2016-20 TEAM SELECTION
NEW PSIA-AASI TEAM DIVES IN ON IMPROVING EVERYTHING THAT SHAPES YOUR TEACHING EXPERIENCE
%\ 3HWHU .UD\ I
f you asked the best ski and snowboard instructors in the country attending PSIA-AASI Team Training in Copper Mountain, Colorado, this past October what they wanted to accomplish, the answer would come as a single-word chorus: “Improve!”
Tat includes improving their own riding, improving the print, digital, and personal resources available to professional instructors across the country, and, especially, improving efficiency and consistency in applying the fundamentals of skiing and snowboarding and how they present that information to you. “I don’t think you can overestimate how important Team
Training is to PSIA-AASI members, and to the growth of instruction – and snowsports participation – across the board,” said PSIA-AASI Director of Education Dave Schuiling. “What impresses me is how so many accomplished individuals come to this event committed to collaborate, with an open mind about the best practices that will move us forward.” Team Training is essentially an educational symposium; when the 2016-20 PSIA-AASI Team meets to identify and clarify effective techniques for ski and snowboard instruction. Team members are responsible for promoting, supporting, and helping develop PSIA- AASI education materials, programs, and activities at all levels. Tey help set the standard for U.S. snowsports instruction. Team Training at Copper marked the first time the brand-new team
hit the snow together after last spring’s hard-fought selection process in Breckenridge, Colorado. And they did so with a re-invigorated sense of energy and opportunity about what the new team can do. “Te returning members from the previous team have become accomplished at creating an opening for the new members to contribute, and the new team members are walking through that door,” said PSIA Alpine Team Coach Michael Rogan. “We have a lot of opportunities and initiatives to consider. But to start, this is also a moment when we need to focus on the team itself. Specifically, with regard to what we present to the members so there is consistency in what they see and hear.”
MULTI-DISCIPLINED APPROACH TO NEW POSSIBILITIES
As with every aspect of ski and snowboard instruction, fine-tuning the exact mix of technical knowledge, personal accomplishment, and cultural relevance is an ongoing goal. To that end, AASI Snowboard Team Coach Scott Anfang said the Snowboard Team spent time test-riding the Alpine Team’s 5 Fundamentals of Skiing to explore which apply to them while making sure they don’t lose sight of “those intangibles that make snowboarding so special.” It’s an ongoing search for sure, but one that fueled the passion
behind every chairlift conversation and every turn going down the hill. It’s why the PSIA-AASI Adaptive Team’s Geoff Krill and
48 | 32 DEGREES • WINTER 2017
Josh Spoelstra worked on establishing a stronger teaching structure beyond just understanding how to best implement whatever equipment a student uses on the hill. It’s why PSIA Nordic Team Coach David Lawrence, mindful of the clear separation that exists between the goals and needs of cross country and telemark, is so committed to building the resources that support them both.
)RU 36Ζ$ $OSLQH 7HDP &RDFK 0LFKDHO 5RJDQ 7HDP 7UDLQLQJ RffHUV DQ LQYDOXDEOH opportunity for new and returning team members to develop consistency in the messages they share with members.
And, it’s why a living legend such as Juris Vagners, an original PSIA-AASI Steering Committee member who provided
the
critical science and methodology to understanding biomechanics in snowsports, was very excited to lend a hand and join in the discussions. Vagners was instrumental in the association embracing snowboarding, providing the experience and technical stature required to certify America’s first snowboard instructors. For the 2016 Team Training event, he traveled from the Pacific Northwest to Colorado precisely to clarify his original contributions, and to give the new team the blessing to keep working forward for the benefit of us all.
“Te people on this team are influential instructors because, for them, the learning truly never stops,” said Schuiling. “Teir ability to keep asking questions and challenging themselves is what will propel us all ahead, as we keep asking, ‘What’s possible?’” Here, in their own words, the team coaches, members, and manager discuss what they worked on, and what it means to you.
LINDA GUERRETTE
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124