Level 2 and the end!
Posted on November 27, 2009 at 4:10 pm

Weeks 8 and 9 have of course been the BASI level 2. Therefore everyone’s heads have been down and their legs have been flexing and extending like never before. Our allocated trainers were Stef and Rob for the boarders and for the skiers, Ben and Roy. They have all commented on how dedicated and knowledgeable the group are. This is credit to themselves and also to the coaches who have done the training throughout the course. There was still plenty to work on though!

At the end of the 1st 5 days everyone was told roughly where there were at and everyone made an action plan of things to work on over the weekend. Many obviously managed to fit the usual weekend nights out into their action plan.

Week 2 of BASI commenced and with pretty high winds on the mountain most days there were limited runs to use. There was still plenty of space to practice what was needed though and the groups could be seen working away on their central theme, short turns, long turns, variables and teaching sessions. Max had the best one having to teach a pretend hen party, although it looked like some of the lads enjoyed acting the part a bit too much!

With the course nearing the end everyone was thinking about what they will do next. There are some great plans and job offers in the group, including teaching in Switzerland, Canada and Japan, ski patrolling in Canada and even talk for one of driving husky dogs in Alaska! With time running out a few of the lads were also putting some last minute efforts into wooing some girls from another group.
The final day arrived and with perfect but cold conditions the trainees had one last opportunity to prove their skills to the trainers. Results were given and 16 out of 18 skiers passed and 10 out of 14 boarders.

So, one last night remains and a big celebration by all, before everyone goes their separate ways, taking with them great memories and stories of their time in Saas Fee.
Well done and thanks to all and good luck for the season ahead!
 

Week 7…. a tame one!
Posted on November 18, 2009 at 8:24 am

Week 7 has been a tame one by Peak Leaders standards. The powder days took their toll on many with leg muscles burning and ego’s bruised from multiple falls into pillows of snow. For the snowboarders Monday was a day as one big group. The powder was still deep enough for us all to try bigger and better jumps off a natural kicker (in between the fun of going over the central theme). We all thought we were pretty good until James pulled a huge back flip out of his bag of tricks. A week of hero worshipping commenced. Unfortunately Marten must’ve found the appeal of being worshipped too much and did a sweet back flip minus the flip and ended up on his head. Thankfully there’s not much in there so no real damage was done.
 

More damage could have been caused by Ed’s ILM. Rugby. After a day up the mountain, a foot of snow and an overly competitive Scotsman I think we were lucky to leave the field in one piece. A slightly more sedate ILM was Jordan’s 10-pin bowling evening. It proved that Kasper’s skills at Snow sports are definitely not transferable to other sports.
 

Back on the glacier it was the last few days of training with the instructors and everyone was concentrating on getting the most out of the remaining days. Tweaking any faults while we still had the knowledge and experience of the ski and snowboard instructors to fall back on. Thursday drew to a close our time with Rob, James, Loz and Roddy. I’m sure that everyone wants to thank the guy’s for everything they’ve done for us, often going beyond the call of duty. Looking at us all now and then going back to October you can’t recognise the skiers and boarders that turned up that first week. Thanks again for your help. It’s been emotional…hasn’t it Harry “I’m just tired”.
 

Thursday also commenced 3 days of rest and recuperation if you so wished. Nobody really wished so Nesti’s, Alpen, Popcorn and Poison all got their pound of Peak Leaders flesh (and Francs). The threat of another British group in the town taking our reputation on made certain unnamed members of the group step it up a level. They have since discovered the true cost of furniture and a visit to the loo in Saas Fee.
Policeman and angry hotel manager appeased we can now look forward to meeting the BASI Examiners. With a fresh dump of snow on the cards we should be set for a good start to Level 2, wind allowing.
 

Week 6…. it was a busy one!
Posted on November 13, 2009 at 1:12 pm

By Alexandra, Domi and Shonagh (well contributions weren’t exactly equal)

Winter finally started to hit Saas Fee over the weekend, leaving us somewhat snowed in on Monday as we had our first full day of minimal visibility. The mountain closed early and the snow continued to fall overnight closing the mountain on Tuesday and Wednesday. Undaunted the boys decided to build a mini park next to the Felskin lift (the fashionably late girls directed) – a Mini-Shred session began and lasted for 48 hours. Skiers and boarders alike attacked the rail (made of sticks) a box, a quarter pipe (again made of sticks) and a couple of kickers. Aided by Gluwein the day became night and we have photos to prove our skills…surely the FIS World Cup competitors felt threatened.

Bri (eezy)’s ILM could have caused an avalanche on its own…picture the scene, eight boys ‘booty dropping’ to Single Ladies by Beyonce…I don’t think JLS have much to worry about. Needless to say, more of this later.

Finally there was a break in the weather on Thursday and we were back up the mountain to train for our BASI 2 which seems to be approaching all too rapidly. Just in case the excitement of a full day’s riding wasn’t enough, Thursday afternoon saw thirty two of us scavenging around Saas Fee for Shonagh’s ILM. She set us three pages of tasks which included general knowledge questions (thank you to Tourist Information, without whom most of us would still be searching for answers), a scavenger list (who knew there were so many cocktail umbrellas to be had up a mountain) and lastly the photos….the photos. Oh my God…the Policeman was tame, the photos of a girl surrounded by 45 men less so, and the piggy back ride from a stranger, the weirdest request of them all. Alex’s team won showing speed and knowledge hitherto unknown to snowsports instructors.

Frietag (we are taking German lessons, after a fashion) and the weekend beckoned. Not before of course another gruelling day up the mountain, we were reminded that we only had another five days of training to go. Even this knowledge could not quell our excitement as we hit the powder (or as Henry would insist on calling it the ‘awesome variables’). Most of us spent the day upside down, digging ourselves out of self-created snow holes…no injuries though as it was like landing on a duvet.

We promised there would be more Beyonce..and yes there was. James had taken on board Bri’s tuition and was determined (ably supported by Ed and Max) to introduce Saas Fee to not only Beyonce but slightly randomly Cotton Eyed Joe (an early 90’s hit) and Soldier Boy. Poison and its fascinated regulars are still recovering.

We had missed two days of training so the hangovers made their way up the mountain for weekend training. More powder, sun, more face planting, more fun. Saturday night was dinner out…or in for those of us lucky enough to be invited to our Italian masterchef’s dinner…yum. Once more we hit the town..not without its casualties. Eyebrows went missing (still MIA), a pair of tights was grievously injured and Ben donated his supper to Nesti’s (the only donation we have heard of which involves more than cash).

By Sunday, the wheels had come off and most of us spent it wondering where we had left them. The snow was still falling and Alex organised a SnowMan competition…many of the artefacts are X rated and we believe still in evidence, providing no end of entertainment for the Korean teams as they run round the sports pitches. Ed, Jordan and Matt are the Artistic Snow Kings of Saas Fee for this week.

All that remains to be said of Week Six…is ‘You’ve Gotta Have Faith’…….
 

Dancing, pool, gorges and lycra…..
Posted on November 4, 2009 at 4:25 pm

By Jordan and Alex,

Week 5 turned out to be very eventful for us all due to a sudden surge of ILM activities. Morven started off the week with her dance session which all the lads quite enjoyed, especially Bram who appeared to appreciate Max’s (Peck-asaurous) sensual massage. The next day was another day on the slopes with the usual ski/boarding banter and german lessons in the evening.

Wednesday started off with a rude awakening for Jordan as it was his 19th birthday. We then wasted no time in hitting the slopes. That evening was enjoyed over some pool and casual drinks hosted by Adam. The evening was a success but we proved no match for Anthony, our resident South African who sealed the win in an exciting final against Gavin.  Thursday was another day of ‘dope’ piste action, but moving on to the weekend…..
 

Friday night was mostly enjoyed in Nesties Ski Bar with the lovely Pipa, except for a couple of the group who had the pleasure of meeting the British Alpine Ski Team.

Saturday (halloween) started off early with Anthony’s ILM, Gorge Walking, which turned out to be more of a gorge adventure. We were swung 15 meters up from cliff edge to cliff edge, rappelled 30 meters onto boulders and propelled via zip line into caves, all in the trusted hands of our experienced mountain guides. All the lads truly enjoyed this and decided it was the perfect hangover cure. Harry kept the day on track with his surprisingly ‘fun filled’ game of Ultimate Frisbee which showed an impressive lack of coordination and that, as far as frisbee is concerned, size does matter! James then took over the mantle of Master of Ceremonies with his evening of halloween madness. He pulled off a great evening of team games, fancy dress, questionable dancing and an obscene amount of lycra. The group shocked each other with the range of peculiar costumes that emerged, especially the appearance of the two bearded nun’s, one cow, a box and 10 lycra covered young men.

The night didn’t finish there…..the costumes, mixed with high spirits and much alcohol, yielded some interesting results…and all you need to know, is that Saas Fee will not be forgetting Halloween 09 anytime soon.

Just to put the records straight, Morven and Steve did NOT hook up… and if any lessons are to be learnt from this week they are; One should not mess with shush Police or Popcorn bouncers, and Swiss girls love the lycra.

Jordan Alex
 

Week 3!
Posted on November 4, 2009 at 3:15 pm

By Tom….

On Monday during week 3 we started our day with BASI training. The skiers had a new ski instructor called Loz who replaced Larry, since he had recovered from a recent ankle injury. The skiers were using progressive exercises so that they could perform aggressive and perfect carved turns by the end of the week. Whilst the snowboarders were continuing to perfect their basic turns and expand on the central theme. That evening we ate at an Italian restaurant around the corner from the Park Hotel, since Patrick the head-chef was away on holiday. The portions were very large and the staff were very welcoming.

On Tuesday, we continued our week with BASI training and progressing from what we had learnt the day before. The weather was perfect and a few of the skiers had a chance to take photographs of themselves with Bode Miller, a top US skier. That afternoon, the majority of the Peak Leaders group took part in additional German lessons. They learnt quite a few basic expressions and parts of the German grammer for their first lesson from a local Swiss teacher.

On Wednesday, the skiers had a chance to try out freestyle skiing thanks to coaching from top British freestyle professionals. They had the chance to learn backwards carving and how to land kickers and control their speed in the freestyle park. That evening German lessons followed.

On Thursday the weather wasn’t ideal for skiing and boarding because of a heavy fog over the Saas Fee mountains. However, BASI training still followed. We practiced skiing slowly with our eyes’ closed in order to improve our accuracy which was very efficient. On the other hand, we weren’t able to continue practicing our carving turns since the visibility was very poor.
 

That evening, as part of our ILM course (International, leadership and management course,) we were to take part in a transceiver hunt throughout the village. Avalanche transceivers were placed around the town in shops and bars and we had to search for these transceivers with a transmitter. The task was a lot of fun and all in all successful.

On Friday and saturday the snowboarders began their First-Aid training with established trainers. The course lasted both Friday and Saturday since it was a 16-hour course. The whole group managed to pass their First-Aid assessment even though it was very challenging. Whilst the snowboarders were First-Aid training, the skiers had two days of free skiing. The weather was perfect, however since it was the weekend the slopes were quite busy because of the amount of week-end skiers. On Saturday evening, we had a Pub Quiz hosted by an ILM student. It was very well organised and lasted the best part of two hours.

Finally, on Sunday the skiers began their First-Aid training while the snowboarders had a day of free ski. In the evening Patrick the head chef and hotel manager of the Park Hotel came back from holiday and everything returned to normal.
 

BASI Level 1…….
Posted on October 28, 2009 at 4:25 pm

This week we had BASI exam throughout the whole week, however because of the weather the first two days were cancelled on the mountain. Instead we undertook theory lessons to aid our comprehension of the central theme and fundamental elements.

On Wednesday we were on the mountain and we practiced our previously learned skills and had video analysis. We did the video analysis on the mountain at lunch so then we were able to practice our faults in the afternoon.
 

The next two days were pretty similar to the Wednesday. We improved on our core skills and slight problems that Helen saw in our skiing. Overall I found it a very challenging but rewarding experience. All of my group passed their BASI 1 exam.
 

Friday night…we got on down…
 

Saturday was quite hazy for everyone especially Ed who’s birthday we were celebrating the night before. Some guys went for a swim and not many people managed it to dinner. Saturday night was pretty quiet for everyone but a few of the true soldiers went popcorn..some stories to be told there…
 

Powder and Teletubbies…
Posted on October 15, 2009 at 7:46 am

12/10/09
 

So the week began with our avalanche awareness course whilst one group did the course the rest enjoyed a day of free skiing or a day in the park for some! The rest of the week was spent preparing for BASI level 1. On Saturday morning we were greeted with some fresh powder and some epic skiing… easily our best day so far!

Come the afternoon we had our final video session, which provided us with some much needed final pointers before our BASI assessment began. As Sunday was going to be the first of the birthdays (Alex and Bram) Saturday night was earmarked for celebrations. This resulted in another classic evening. Apparently Popcorn turned out to be a real team bonding experience, even the teletubbies came out to play!

But once again what happens in Saas Fee stays in Saas fee. Sunday gave us all a well deserved rest in preparation for the start of BASI level 1 assessments, good luck guys!

Sarah Owen

Week 2!
Posted on October 9, 2009 at 6:45 am

We were greeted by another day of glorious sunshine which has been great for the first week with the instructors. Everyone seems to be coming back with stories that they are improving. We had our first big night out as a group on Friday night. Some started the party early, and they seemed to be the first ones home. Others lasted a bit longer and Saturday morning was certainly very interesting as all the stories started to filter through. I would love to share them with you however, what happens in Saas Fee stays in Saas Fee!!

Saturday became a day to chill out and the BBQ in the afternoon was good with everyone far less animated than usual. We will see if everyone throws themselves into next Saturday nights’ party with as much enthusiasm. The day off gave the legs time to recover and we have had another day with the instructors and an avalanche awareness course.

It looks like some new snow is on the way. Just in time for the BASI 1 week!
 

The Start! By sam Farrell
Posted on September 30, 2009 at 8:49 am

Day 1!

We arrived in Saas Fee on Saturday to great weather, we all met on the terrace of the park hotel and the introductions began. We then met Patrick the owner of the hotel before dinner and also the instructors and Kasper the Peak Leaders Group Leader.

Day 2

Kasper took us on a group tour of the town the get to know the surroundings and where everything is located, including the large array of facilities from swimming to golf! In the afternoon we all just chilled out on the hotel terrace in the sunshine, had a few drinks and got to know each other a bit better.

Day 3

First day on the slopes amazing weather up on the glacier perfect conditions for skiing/boarding. Our ski instructor Roddy who will be training us for the BASI Level 1 and BASI Level 2 exams showed us around the mountain and we had some free ski time to get back into the swing of things. Then back down to the village for some table tennis and a bit of poker!

Rob the Snowboard trainer with his group of trainee snowboard instructors!

Roddy and his group!

Day 4

Back on the slopes at 9am for our second day, feet a bit sore but loving the summer skiing not a cloud in the sky! Roddy our ski instructor went through some of the basic fundamentals of skiing and then showed us some interesting techniques.

Later in the afternoon we donned our shorts and t-shirts and Kasper took a group of us on a hike up into the surrounding forest to where there is a glacier mountain spa, we all a had a dip, its amazing for your feet and legs!! We then were shown a glacier lake and other side of the town some great views.

Then back to hotel for a well rewarded dinner!
Sam.

Final Farewell
Posted on December 15, 2008 at 11:14 am

Well friends,

We’re down to our final blog entry for a while from Saas Fee and what a ride it’s been. I am still looking at the calendar to see how our ten weeks in Switzerland flew by so quickly.

The last two weeks we’ve been doing our BASI 2 exams with Steve Rickets from BASI. The guys had a great time with Steve and the final results of the two weeks presented themselves with eight people passing and two of the guys just knocking on the door with a few things that still needed doing. A great result. Well done to all the guys and to Steve, Roddy and Loz for putting in such a big effort, everybody worked really hard.
 

The last nights festivities were with a Mexican theme. Patrick cooked some amazing Tortillas and guacamole. We had an award ceremony with certificates of excellence and Swiss cups going to people for different achievements. Patrick made us a present of a bottle of Grapa which looked like Moonshine with no label on it. Shots were had and the night begun. All in all a great night , some amazing dance moves and interesting drinking games. Another celebration was going on as Steve Rickets our course assessor had just completed his 100th BASi course. More champagne was brought out. Congrats Steve.

That brings us to the Peak Leaders course it’s self. So many people deserve a big thanks you for making such a course possible. The amount of work that goes on in the background is enormous. David and Annie Hughes for starting up such a company that gives people an opportunity of a lifetime to come to these special places in the mountains and have an experience that you will never forget. Mhairi Hughes for putting the Saas Fee idea together and her continual support through out the programme. It certainly made my job a lot easier. The ladies in the PL office in Scotland, Claire, Lorna and Barbara . These ladies were real problem solvers to any background issues that may have arisen and all with great enthusiasm and good humour. Then we move to the trainers.
 

Roddy “ Hot Rod “Willis. I cannot believe how lucky we were to have a guy like Roddy working on the course. If we take away the NLP practitioner and superb coaching skills. You only have to see him ski to realise how good he really is. From the many conversations and cups of tea in late night Saas Fee it was very apparent how motivated and how much he cared that everyone on the course did the absolute best that they were capable of. Roddy also committed a lot of his own free time to the guys so they could succeed.

A really big thank you must go to Lawrence” Loz” Jones one of our racing coaches in Saas Fee that worked with the guys on race training days and really opened the door to make sure the Peak Leaders crew found jobs in the best ski schools with the best long term opportunity. Loz was also a key figure in making sure the guys that took ski school jobs were hooked up with accommodation for the winter. This only scratches the surface of the things he did for us out there.
 

The Rossi family from the Park Hotel were the perfect hosts to us, located right in the middle of town we couldn’t have asked for better accommodation and food. There was no problem that was too big or didn’t have a quick solution from Patrick and Jutta. It would be ambitious to think that over the 10 weeks on the nights off coming back from the disco that nobody would forget their keys or make a little more noise coming in than they should. Patrick would be at hand what seemed twenty four hours a day and all in the best humour. The staff in the hotel also were excellent and friendly.

The biggest thanks has to go to the course participants. Kyp, Chris, Jenny, Bryony, Jill, Hamish, Amir, Ben, Jamie, Cookie, Matt. You guys are ace. It made my job so much fun to do. Everybody gave it a dynamite approach and worked hard on all aspects, from the ILM to the skiing to the extra course activities. It was a real pleasure to spend time with you and hopefully we’ll get to hang out sometime soon somewhere on the planet. I think it was on the last night when we were all dressed as Mexicans with big moustaches and big cardboard Sambreros as the party went on that I realised how much I would miss you all. It’s been a blast, Keep in touch and the very best of luck in what ever life puts in front of you.

Cheers Dave