Advice for CSIA Snow Park Certificate

S

Salad20

Member
Hey guys,

I’m a pretty experienced skier(able to do black runs and double blacks) but I don’t have a lot of experience doing freestyle or park tricks. I can do a 180 but I’m not very good at it. This year I want to get my snow park certification and I was wondering if anyone had any advice or know any areas where I should practice beforehand that’d be very helpful.

Thanks!
 
All the shit you see freestyle skiers doing is built upon muscle memory, at this point no-one can help you except yourself, watch some videos and learn how to ski.

Saying I can do double black diamonds, to me, is synonymous with people who ski maybe 10-20 times a year.

So I am curious how old you are;

if you are a kid, good. your potential is limitless.

if you are a teenager. your brain is in the most potent stage for developing skills, if you want to get good. Ski until you can't feel your fucking legs.

if you are an adult. Becoming a CSIA park teacher won't be hard if you focus, however becoming a good freestyle skier with only 180's at this point might not be worth it. Maybe as a fun hobby or on the side, I would love to see you prove me wrong though.

if you are a racer, quit skiing your steeze is forever nonexistent.

Remember freestyle skiing is difficult, to become even remotely decent in park takes many hours.

Just go watch some youtube video's.

Stomp it tutorials is good for beginners.

What's your ski situation looking like, boots? skis?

They make a huge difference in how you ride, although I've seen kids with the best FT's snow pants tucked in so you know his boots are 700$ riding 2020 Blends and straight airing the rail lips like a bot. So maybe it's a myth.
 
Did this course a few years ago. Its much easier then you think as it is an entry course. We had people with about as much experience as you pass without any trouble. Usually is a 3 day course, with a good amount of the freestyle teacher teaching you new things, both on the subject of you doing tricks as well as you teaching them to others. What I would do beforehand is learn how to ski switch (is a biggie on the course). Another smart thing to do is do a couple of boxes in the easy park, as it will make you feel how it is to slide on them beforehand. All the spins will be taught during the course, so if you pick up things quickly you should get 180, sw180 both ways, 3s both ways (maybe switch 3s), basic straight airs with safety, japan & mute grabs and switch skiing within those course days. If you don't feel like you pick things up quickly, then just try them on a (very) small jump with people that have them on lock already, as they can give you tips on how to advance.
 
I suggest to get your level 1 first to familiarise yourself with the teaching method.

For the freestyle part, the less you know, the better. Just have fun and maybe you will learnt how to 360 in the course!
 
get the level 1

learn to ski switch while teaching

it will help a lot cause u gotta do sw180s to pass

super easy trick, just need confidence
 
14201243:freestyler540 said:
I suggest to get your level 1 first to familiarise yourself with the teaching method.

For the freestyle part, the less you know, the better. Just have fun and maybe you will learnt how to 360 in the course!
Click to expand...

Is 360 an easy trick to learn in 3 days? Also the part I'm most worried about is riding rails since I have never done that before and the mountains around me don't have any rails for me to try beforehand.
 
14201132:DeadB said:
Saying I can do double black diamonds, to me, is synonymous with people who ski maybe 10-20 times a year.
Click to expand...

Thank god someone said this. I work at a shop and so many people come in and tell me this, but A. I live on the East Coast and B. 90% of the people ski at somewhere like Cranmore or Attitash, where a black diamond is equivalent to a green or blue in Europe (where I grew up). It’s crazy that people find this to be an appropriate way to gauge skill to me, just because you might be able to slide down a “black diamond” doesn’t mean that you’re an advanced skier.

/rant
 
14201132:DeadB said:
All the shit you see freestyle skiers doing is built upon muscle memory, at this point no-one can help you except yourself, watch some videos and learn how to ski.

Saying I can do double black diamonds, to me, is synonymous with people who ski maybe 10-20 times a year.

So I am curious how old you are;

if you are a kid, good. your potential is limitless.

if you are a teenager. your brain is in the most potent stage for developing skills, if you want to get good. Ski until you can't feel your fucking legs.

if you are an adult. Becoming a CSIA park teacher won't be hard if you focus, however becoming a good freestyle skier with only 180's at this point might not be worth it. Maybe as a fun hobby or on the side, I would love to see you prove me wrong though.

if you are a racer, quit skiing your steeze is forever nonexistent.

Remember freestyle skiing is difficult, to become even remotely decent in park takes many hours.

Just go watch some youtube video's.

Stomp it tutorials is good for beginners.

What's your ski situation looking like, boots? skis?

They make a huge difference in how you ride, although I've seen kids with the best FT's snow pants tucked in so you know his boots are 700$ riding 2020 Blends and straight airing the rail lips like a bot. So maybe it's a myth.
Click to expand...

I'm 16 and I got salomon xpro 100 ski boots and armada arv 96. I guess I should've clarified a bit more about my skiing level. I've been skiing for 7 years and I can do black and double blacks pretty confidently at Whistler and Cypress. I mostly ski bowls, trees and moguls not really a lot of experience in the terrain park but I like to do side hits and some smaller cliffs(probably highest I've done is a little over 2 meters).
 
14201270:animator said:
Thank god someone said this. I work at a shop and so many people come in and tell me this, but A. I live on the East Coast and B. 90% of the people ski at somewhere like Cranmore or Attitash, where a black diamond is equivalent to a green or blue in Europe (where I grew up). It’s crazy that people find this to be an appropriate way to gauge skill to me, just because you might be able to slide down a “black diamond” doesn’t mean that you’re an advanced skier.

/rant
Click to expand...

Ye I should've clarified a bit more but I'm new to new schoolers so wasn't sure how i should define my skill.
 
14201281:Salad20 said:
Ye I should've clarified a bit more but I'm new to new schoolers so wasn't sure how i should define my skill.
Click to expand...

Didn’t mean to sound like I was accusing you of doing that, just hear it all day every day and was glad someone said it haha
 
14201281:Salad20 said:
Ye I should've clarified a bit more but I'm new to new schoolers so wasn't sure how i should define my skill.
Click to expand...

I had to re write that part a couple times to try and sound nicer lol.

I don't want to come across as mean, but more as constructive criticism.

360's you can learn in a day, like I said youtube how to 360 on ski's click the 1 that says its made by stomp it tutorials.

Maybe don't even stop there if you scroll down after searching "how to 360 on skis" you get all kinds of shit, 180's 360's 540's rodeos flatspins. You name it. Ski addiction and stomp it are your best bets as they actually know what they are talking about. I wouldn't recommend using the youtube channel Bag of Tricks unless you're going for the vibe of some rando park rat kid tryna teach you a 360 and saying "u just gotta send it".

U do just gotta send it tho



As for rails, depends how nervous you are of them. but I will tell you If you are scared of the metal, I've probably fallen off a metal rail at least 1,000 times. I have only actually landed on metal 5 times. So you have nothing to be afraid of.. but beating rail slides into your muscle memory takes much much more repetition then a 360. The best progression for rails

Box>Tube>shotgun>flat>handrail

TLDR 360's are way easier then sliding a rail(comfortably)

If you get a little bit beat up doing the 360's, take a breather reset, do 360's in the boots no ski. then throw it with that motion without the weight of the ski's is fresh in your mind.
 
I did this course way the fuck back in the day. When I say way back, I'm talking back when Doug Bishop was a park tech at Blue Mountain and gave us a shitty aluminum rail to use and Max Hill was airing 7ft out of the pipe right after telling us how much he hates skiing pipe.

If you're a confident skier you'll do just fine. You'll learn the basics of teaching and sliding rails, 3s, 5s, etc...
 
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