BASI LEVEL 1

Anyone any experience of doing this course. I'm considering booking myself on one. What should I expect? Is it difficult to pass? Is it more of a learning training experience than a test. The course I've seen is 5 days.
I'd be interested to hear your views and/or experience.

hi
i did my BASI 1 last summer in Glasgow at Xscape.
I found it to be very tough for the first three days-my personal skiing came under some scrutiny (mainly posture-and I would have regarded myself a very able skier beforehand)
The hardest part was doing the basics correctly in the way they need you to. You need to look like the EXACT model in the text booka nd be able to portray this to the client-bloody tough but after 2 days of snow plaugh turns you get plough parallel and parallel pretty quickly. Also hard skidding turns rather than carving!
I benifitted loads from the course and would recommend it even if you dont want to teach. However, I have found it very tough to get the required shadowing hours to get my full liscense
Was a great experience and really good fun!

snowpack, did you look into this any further?, what does the qualification mean you can do?

amanda n wrote:snowpack, did you look into this any further?, what does the qualification mean you can do?

Very little, it's part of a continuing syllabus. In itself you can teach in a "non mountain" environment which means dry slopes and indoor slopes in the UK once you've completed the course and the required shadowing with a ski school.

thanks ise

Rossyhead,
Do you think your posture problems were because you'd drifted away from the position you were originally taught, or because the ideal correct posture position has changed since you were taught?

It must have looked very funny seeing all the expert skiers on your course struggling to do a snowplough correctly!

Ally

I'm still considering it, to be honest. As Ise says once completed you are then able to teach on dry slopes or snowdomes (non mountain environments). But the idea is probably to progress through the BASI system. I'd like to be able to teach but I'd also like to make some core improvement to my skiing. I've done performance courses but I the BASI system appears to offer the "all round teaching" elements which I think I may find interesting too.
Along with the level 1 I'll need to do shadowing, first aid, and child protection BEFORE one can claim the level 1 status so it's a reasonable comitment.

I'm not scared of snow ploughing, although I don't know if I was ever taught it 100% correctly.

Thanks for all your input.

i would be interested to know how you progress, keep the forum updated snow pack.