Archive for the ‘Lectures/clinics/workshops’ Category

Tony Macri and Matt Phare went to the BASI clinic last week. Here’s the write-up…

Clinic title: Synergetic Strength

Clinic synopsis: The BASI Examiners said they have recently noticed that some instructors who are coming to their high level exams aren’t as balanced on their boards as they would like. To address this they are trying to run some exercises / tasks that focus on being centred in a strong action-ready position. They are trying to develop Synergetic Strength which was described as dynamic stability that allows you to always be ready rather than having to constantly reset your position on the snowboard.

Our summary: The workshop started indoors with Ben Kinear (Technical Director of Snowboard and Vice President of BASI) delivering a brief outline of the day’s workshop on Synergetic Strength. He described Synergetic Strength as dynamic stability and that it allows you to be always ready rather than having to constantly reset. There are five major elements to this focus:

• Mobility/Flexibility
• Strength
• Coordination
• Balance
• Fitness

(more…)

SBINZ’s Technical Director, Adam Dooney, went to Croatia’s snowboard workshop last week. Here’s what he has to say about it…

Clinic title: A New Approach to Teaching Snowboarding

Clinic synopsis: This clinic outlined how a ski instructor can effectively and safely teach a first time snowboard lesson while on skis using their poles as a balancing aid!!!

The progression they use is based on the student experiencing the feelings of snowboarding through assisted balance until they find their own balance. The clinician believes that teaching snowboarding on skis using poles reduces the amount of falls making it a much safer lesson.

Our summary: This progression starts with the ski instructor holding poles under each arm with the student doing the same. This creates four points of contact for student with the ski instructor providing the majority of the balance. As the student starts to find their balance through an assisted floating leaf the ski instructor will reduce the amount of contact points on the poles. The student is then moved on to linked turns assisted by holding poles with both hands and to finally holding the pole only with their front hand before making unassisted turns.
(more…)

Karl ‘Dutty’ Dunham went to Finland’s Snowboard Clinic. Check out his review…

Clinic title: Just Try It

Clinic synopsis: Jussi from Finland showed us a super guided discovery teaching style he is bringing in to snowboard instructing in Finland.

Our summary: This is how the Fins use this style of teaching in a beginner lesson…

They would start with a typical board intro explaining how the bindings work etc. Then a little work on balancing with no board on, including balancing with the students eyes closed.

He said they basically wanted a terrain park for a first timer which would have cones, bars and snow bumps (sometimes imaginary) to form corridors, things to jump over or duck under or points to aim towards in order to set challenges for the student.
(more…)