# Instructing on ones own?



## Intheshit (Jan 8, 2012)

Anyone have tips on working out a decent plan for making some money or getting by in winter months snowboarding?

with level 2 certification I get to ride for free, but am required to work on most good/busy days at a rate of 12.50$/h

thats 8-4:30 (i no longer work 8-8pm as it is ridiculous to expect that level of physical sacrafice)

sometimes 4:30-8 ; as you can imagine it is extremely tiring and does not pay very well. If the majority of lessons were mountain top or even demonstrations that would be better... to be honest we spend 75% of our time showing people how to put on their equipment, walking them down the hill and lifting them off their asses.

If someone would pay for my day pass or work out a continuing lesson plan throughout the season I would only require a 20 or a 40$ payment for the day that I get to take home and buy food with. 

The best job here is really working with the kids camp because at least it makes sense. You are basically a councilor for tots; a skilled babysitter. Even then, most babysitters make 20$/hour these days.

These things I am finding strange in life. Most jobs I am offered have ridiculous physical demands at low rate of pay and leave me with no time to even feed myself imbetween.

Most recently I had an interview to work 66 hours a week @ 12.00 an hour doing physical labour... Sad part is I have to beg for this job because without it I cant afford to live. Ends up being a decent chunk of change, roughly 3000 a month but I will have no life as my only day off will be spent cleaning my house and shopping for the food of the week. 


anyone have any tips on life? I hate this feeling of being a loser let me explain.

either I am working so hard I have no time or energy for anything else
or I am broke and lets face it- Being broke is pretty shitty way to live.

anyhow, next season I am not paying into the CASI union and probably wont be hired anywhere.
--
edit:
I should add that I really don't understand where the mountain gets off. They charge somewhere around 90$ for a private lesson and the instructor gets 12$. It must make sense for it to work and have everyone agree under that system but I personally do not get it.


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## lernr (Feb 3, 2012)

That's probably not helping you much but I know what i'd choose between $12 / hr for physical labour and $12 / hr to instruct people snowboarding. Heck, I think I'll have fun instructing... I've helped a few people start, from kids to adults and I hear you - some are getting on your nerves when they start bitching about how hard it is to strap in. But if they are any good at some point during the day they start to have fun and the smiles come up so it's not all misery


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## SnowMotion (Oct 8, 2010)

What was also not mentioned here is the fact that instructors don't make 12/hr for going to work. They are only payed on hours spent teaching. So they will require you to show up for 6 hours. Only give you a 1 hour lesson and pay you for one hour. This allows them to over staff and always be covered but does not allow instructors to survive on the paychecks.


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## Grizz (Nov 10, 2008)

Intheshit said:


> Anyone have tips on working out a decent plan for making some money or getting by in winter months snowboarding?


Figure out how to increase the number of request privates you are teaching. As a level 2 you should get at least $20 an hour for an RP. If it's not change mountains.



Intheshit said:


> to be honest we spend 75% of our time showing people how to put on their equipment, walking them down the hill and lifting them off their asses.


If this is accurate it might be part of your problem.


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## mixie (Mar 29, 2011)

Intheshit said:


> anyone have any tips on life? I hate this feeling of being a loser let me explain.
> 
> either I am working so hard I have no time or energy for anything else
> or I am broke and lets face it- Being broke is pretty shitty way to live.




honestly? Start a business, work freelance, be a consultant etc. There a lot of jobs that can and will be flexible. You just need to be creative and find them. Don't get caught up in having to have nice things if you can't afford them. Find what you're good at, then figure out who's needing that skill. And if you can sell yourself you will do fine. 


I do freelance/contract work. I end up working about 75% of full time. Lots of time to do what ever I want. A lot of my colleagues work 125% of full time. they take on way more projects then I. They have houses and kids and german cars. I have...ok had...a beat up honda. It blew up yesterday..... 


I have a friend who is a full ski instructor (she snowboards when not at work) and I probably have rode twice as many days as she has this year. Like you said, she's spending her days teaching...


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## slyder (Jan 18, 2010)

I know at our local hill as a instructor, if you are at the hill and don't have a lesson you are free to ride and do what ever you want. They only have to give 30 lessons over the entire season.


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## ThunderChunky (Oct 1, 2011)

Ever look into driving plows. Pays good and works at night so you can shred during the day.


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## Intheshit (Jan 8, 2012)

To be fair; our mountain pays for half day if not good business day and pays while you at work like a regular job. 
It is a good place to work , just very hard in a real sense if you value your health and want to actually snowboard with people.

They have a unique system and hire a ton of people .. It would take pages to explain the specifics. 

It is a combination of little things compounded by not having any real lessons in a season and just not surviving on the hours/pay anyways.

My first year was great. I learned as much as I taught but I also was fake every day to everyone I guess it was instinctual because I thought they were giving me a hard time turns out that I was being treated well compared to what came in next

--- edit 
Yeah they take money from u for everything too. Training is paid on successful completion so u see a lot of forced failures and "favors" for passes, must buy things through and from them , must sell their products... Like I said I get that it's a team effort but they take it too far. 

I know many business are hustle oriented -- snowboarding should not be one of them.


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## dreampow (Sep 26, 2011)

I say find a niche, find a skill thats needed and will continue to be needed and either work for yourself or with a small company that genuinely cares about the people who work there.

Most importantly do something you are interested in and ideally enjoy.

I work for myself and I wouldn't do it any other way. Whilst the responsibility for my income rests 100% on me I also have the freedom to work when I choose and under my terms and conditions.

I personally value my free time and freedom in general over material wealth.

Still there has to be a balance and its good to live comfortably.

Good luck.

The force will be with you.


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## Grizz (Nov 10, 2008)

Snowolf said:


> At the resort I worked at, it was widely known for years that the "top instructors" on the private board would offer $10 kick backs to the girls at the desk selling privates in order to get the private requests.


Guess I've got my head in the sand. I've never heard of this. I would never think of doing it. I would hope no one I work with (sales or instructors) would do it. Flat out unethical.


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

Learn a skill or 2 (this is achieved through hard work), grow up, and try not to be such a disrespectful punkass.


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## SnowMotion (Oct 8, 2010)

Grizz said:


> Guess I've got my head in the sand. I've never heard of this. I would never think of doing it. I would hope no one I work with (sales or instructors) would do it. Flat out unethical.


I have not heard of people paying off sales staff on the east. But i would be lying if i said i didn't get all buddy buddy with them and make sure they knew who I was and what I was good at. This and all my return clients is why I was the most requested.


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## handscreate (Jan 17, 2012)

This thread is making me think twice about being an instructor next season...


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

Snowolf said:


> I have a skill or two and I do work hard....:laugh:.


not u dummy 

I flamed this kid cuz attacked me for posting crying pictures of all your pow, like out of nowhere; not that I mind, internet shennanigans.



Intheshit said:


> These things I am finding strange in life. Most jobs I am offered have ridiculous physical demands at low rate of pay and leave me with no time to even feed myself imbetween.
> 
> Most recently I had an interview to work 66 hours a week @ 12.00 an hour doing physical labour... Sad part is I have to beg for this job because without it I cant afford to live. Ends up being a decent chunk of change, roughly 3000 a month but I will have no life as my only day off will be spent cleaning my house and shopping for the food of the week.
> 
> ...


I'm referring to OP. I will die doing my blue collar work, proud, tired and happy. If you're trying to get paid, there's no shortcuts, try white collar; although usually people who complain about work in blue collar world don't necessarily get very far there either. 

I'd still start with not being an entitled punkass, put that shit to bed and you can start figuring out what the grownups are up to.


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## sbguy (Mar 9, 2010)

love your post about AASI !! i'm going for my 2 and agree about the attitude and bs that is required. they want everyone to ride the same way period. No consideration for anything else you fit their mold or go home empty. its very humbling attending clinics or testing.


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## Intheshit (Jan 8, 2012)

oh!

so this is the reason i was dragged back to these forums in the off season.

that I am considered a "punk ass" to blue collared worker man who is ever so proud of slaving away *golf clap*.

well i have some advice for you too. Why dont you eat the cheeze from under my foreskin and see if it tastes like your wifes cunt?


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## Intheshit (Jan 8, 2012)

or anything less offensive.

clearly the most insulting insult i have ever come up with.

rather proud right now, give us a moment and a double post.


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## IdahoFreshies (Jul 9, 2011)

snowolf, your comments make me curious what type of instructing is done at my local resorts...i have not been in a lesson in 5 years and after learning the basics i got better and just made my own style. That part about AASI trying to make boarding skiing is crazy. Boarding is cool because it's a lot looser and more about creativity than perfection and utter smoothness. 

OP: Don't work for $12 bucks an hour doing anything...period. you will never have the time or money to be able to do all of the fun shit you want while having your own place and food working for 12 bucks an hour.



Intheshit said:


> well i have some advice for you too. Why dont you eat the cheeze from under my foreskin and see if it tastes like your wifes cunt?


wow, that was completely unnecessary. Why don't you come up with some better retorts than petty meaningless insults.


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## CheeseForSteeze (May 11, 2011)

I don't think you'll ever make any money working at/for a resort unless you offer them something they can't replace. The resort game is all about real estate. Snow sliding is a fashion to people who bring the resort a lot of money, it's only a passion (and even a way of life to the dedicated few) for the rest of us shrewd folk and because we're shrewd, the resort industry won't ever care that much. Not the big resorts, anyway.


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## IdahoFreshies (Jul 9, 2011)

Snowolf said:


> Idaho,
> 
> 
> As an example, take riding moguls. I rode the task without fail. I did not fall. I maintained a consistent turn shape and speed and was riding dynamically. I was "failed" because the examiner did not like the fact that I naturally ride with a slight open hip (it is my anatomy as it is evident when just standing too) People who fell 5 and 6 times going down the mogul run "passed" because the examiner like the particular body movements he saw and did not seem to take into account that these people could not actually ride through the mogul field without falling multiple times.


HA! Thats ridiculous! If i was in a lesson and someone was showing me how to get through a mogul field and fell 5 times I wouldn't take a word of advice from them after wards. I dont care if their "body movements" are pretty if they cant actually make it down the hill.


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## 2hipp4u (Dec 24, 2010)

Well this thread is kind of depressing, I am new to snowboarding and love that generally speaking you are not going to be looked down on for not being just perfect in your body language and style while riding.

I fucking hate the arogant smug skier culture and hope its not gonna take over this sport.


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