In The Beginning

In the snowsports industry, two major factors on which the success of a resort depends are the generation of new skiers and riders and the retention of existing ones. Far too many people try skiing or snowboarding once or twice and then walk away from the sports. For those of us who teach, this means that there is a very great burden to make certain that anyone trying skiing or snowboarding for the first time enjoys the experience enough to come back. Obviously, part of this entails their returning to spend more money at our resorts, but it also means an opportunity for us as teachers in the truest sense.

As I’ve noted in my description of this blog and in countless conversations with guests and other pros over the years, I view the job of an instructor, at its essence, as one of sharing our passion for our sports with as many people as we can. The best way I’ve found to articulate this is to explain that we should all strive to ‘make the answer to the question “yes”.’ By this I mean that after we’ve taught a beginner to ski or ride, when they are asked whether they ski or snowboard they should respond “yes”, proudly. The answer should not be “well, I did try skiing once” or “my [friends / family / spouse / etc.] took me on a ski trip and …”. The ideal answer is “Yes. I went to [Okemo, Treble Cone or another resort], I took a great ski / snowboard lesson, and now I am a skier / rider. I love it and I’m totally hooked.”

For the second season in a row, we here at Okemo Mountain Resort have had a free early season program for beginning skiers and snowboarders, inclusive of equipment rentals, a lower mountain lift pass, and a beginner lesson. While we do get some people who have skied or ridden before, nearly all of the participants are new to our sports. The program has been a resounding success and the numbers tell quite a story. Between December 1st and December 16th, 2008, the Okemo Ski + Ride School taught 1,651 people how to ski or ride for the first time, including 926 riders and 723 skiers. Last weekend, December 13th and 14th, we taught 782 beginners, including nearly 500 on Saturday alone. It’s a remarkable accomplishment and, judging from my observations, the overwhelming majority of our students have had a wonderful experience. It’s incredibly gratifying for all of us. We have created new skiers and snowboarders with each and every lesson and have shared our passion for our sports with so many.

I’ve been very lucky. Over the last several years of teaching skiing, I’ve worked with many of the same students year after year and have had the opportunity to see their skiing evolve over time – this is true of both kids and adults. The cold hard reality of working as a ski instructor is that we make a living by virtue of the request private lessons that we generate and the tips those lessons provide. Most of us find it distasteful to “sell ourselves” too much and, thankfully, we find that when we focus on the quality of the guests’ experiences during their time with us and on their growth as skiers, they tend to come back and our livelihood improves. Plus, we get to know some wonderful folks, spending our time together doing something we love in some pretty exceptional places.

There is, however, one unfortunate irony in this dynamic: as we succeed we teach fewer and fewer group lessons and fewer-still lessons for entry-level skiers. There is a risk, therefore, that anyone who succeeds at teaching skiing or riding will lose touch with the experiences of beginning skiers. This year, a combination of factors has brought me back to the lower level group lineup with far greater frequency. It’s a rebuilding year for me, having missed the last Northern Winter with injury, private lesson bookings have dropped considerably in the current economic climate, and our free lesson program has required that we have more staff available for the beginner lessons. For me, the result has been fantastic.

Yes, I still have many high-level skiing clients that otherwise keep me busy. Yes, I still teach many upper level classes and still focus on private lessons in order to make a living. But, I have been able to share in the excitement of introducing skiers to the sport, seeing the looks on their faces as they slide for the first time, and the pride and joy that comes from mastering the simple and yet difficult tasks of skiing. It’s awesome and, though it is my injury and the recession that have caused me to step back and participate in this process from the very beginning, it’s been worth it.

As an aside, today we skied in over a foot of legitimately dry, light powder at Okemo, and it isn't even officially winter until tomorrow. Beach? Who needs a beach? I’ll take the mountains, thank you very much, and some beginners with whom to share them.