Mount Snow Snow Pros Website

Hey Gang,

We are right in the thick of it with President’s Week, and things have been going very well. Thank you to everyone who added a day here and there, it helped us make space for some request privates and give some folks a break when they needed it. Let’s keep the energy going, and finish this busy period off strong! Mother Nature has even been on our team finally, with some fresh white stuff out there!

• If your guests need snacks from the Mountain Camp or Snow Camp lunch areas, please ask the staff in those areas before you grab anything. Also please help us keep Disco clean by cleaning up after yourselves and your guests in the break areas.

• The Glint survey is out again, so keep an eye out for that email. Please take a few minutes to fill it out and use the comment boxes if you have something to say. These really are looked at all the way up through management here at the resort, and above. Common themes are identified and we try to make changes based on your feedback wherever we can. Closing Roller Coaster to the public on weekends and holidays was a direct result of safety concerns that were brought up by a several staff in the last survey. Your voice really will be heard, and is taken seriously.

• On a sad note: Matt Kunkel will be leaving us. His other job has picked up significantly and it will pull him away from Mount Snow. He has been a great addition to our staff during the short time he was here, and he will be missed.

• We have added the private request form to the staff website, to make it easier to find. You can access it by logging into mountsnowpros.com and find it in the “Employee Resources” page. Click on the “Private Lesson Booking-Click Here” banner, and it will take you to the form.

• To end on a positive: Ed Sheldon got his PSIA Alpine Level 1 last week. Please give him a high five and congrats when you see him!

Please keep a close eye on the weather for the next few days. There is some precipitation moving through, as well as a pretty big drop in the temps Friday night. Bring some extra layers, and stay safe out there! Looking forward to finishing out this busy holiday period with you all!

Hey Gang,

Happy belated Valentine’s Day to everyone! I hope everyone has been able to work on their sun tan in this terrible warm weather. As all of the veterans know we are headed into a very busy week…for the rookies in the group, business for the next week will look very much like Christmas week. Please rest up, stay healthy and PLEASE stick to your schedule. Inventories are set based on daily staffing levels, so missing one person can have a pretty huge impact on our stress level for the day. If for some reason you need to call off, please let me know as early as possible so we can try to make adjustments. I love and appreciate you all, but a no-call/no-show during President’s Week will mean we might not be friends for a while.

• THIS WEEKEND IS PAYROLL SATURDAY. By now you all know the drill, so please get those Smartsheets in as soon as you can.

• There has been a big uptick in folks not submitting Smartsheets. We can (and do) enter lessons when no Smartsheet has been submitted, but have no way of entering your non-teach time if you have not submitted a sheet. Please help us pay you correctly!

• We are planning to continue using Roller Coaster as an SRS only trial for weekends and holiday periods. Please be mindful that this will be used by a lot of green groups, especially from Mountain Camp and Snow Camp. It is important to go with the flow of other groups using this terrain, this usually means a lot of traversing across the trail and no skiing/riding straight down the fall-line. We had a ton of success with this last weekend and I’m excited to have this terrain reserved for us during the upcoming holiday week! Make sure to thank Mo, Toby, and David Yeagle for all their hard work to make this happen!

• There are no cut lines for the carpets around the Discovery Center. Please queue up with the lessons and guests already waiting, and play nice with everyone. If you have little ones in a private lesson, you can take them over to Snow Camp land and use Mercury.

• The policy on the daily health screening was updated this week. You only need to do this if you are feeling symptomatic or have tested positive for COVID. Otherwise you do not need to complete the health screening.

• Renata Senatore got her Children’s Specialist 1 accreditation during the exam here at Mount Snow earlier this week. Please give her a high five and congratulations when you see her!!

It’s going to be busy, it’s going to be hectic, the weather is going to throw some monkey wrenches at us….but we’ll get through this busy holiday week! At the end of the day, it’s all just sliding on snow. Take care of yourselves and look out for each other.

Hey Gang,

We are deep into the heart of the season, and I think our program is really hitting its stride. We are looking at a very busy weekend coming up (thank you to everyone who added some days!!), so please keep a close eye on your schedule and let me know as soon as possible if you can’t make it…we really don’t have much wiggle room, so I would really appreciate everyone sticking to their schedule. We are also looking mostly sold out through President’s Week, so please stick to your schedule and feel free to add days if you want to. That being said, I can’t guarantee any additional private requests from 2/17 through 2/26. Please submit requests if you get them, but let your guests no that it’s not a sure thing.

Please do also keep an eye on yourselves, and each other as we get into the grind of the season. This is the time when injuries happen due to fatigue and complacency, and moods can get cranky from burnout. If you need an afternoon, or even a day off to catch your breath and reset your headspace please let me know. I want everyone to enjoy working here, and also enjoy themselves when they’re not at the mountain, so please raise your hand if you are feeling worn out or overwhelmed.

• Based on some questions from staff, I want to clarify: Roller Coaster is not considered a terrain park, as far as our park certifications go. Feel free to use that as teaching terrain, with students whose skills are appropriate for that terrain.

• If you have an issue out on the hill, especially with staff in another department PLEASE contact me or Dawn or Gen. If you end up engaged in a heated conversation with other staff, it makes it harder for us to straighten things out. A lot of things happen out on the hill when we’re busy, and sometimes things change on the fly that don’t necessarily make sense. Please just call one of us, we will have your back, and try to straighten things out.

• Mo has been building a pretty solid library of PSIA-AASI manuals for the department. Please feel free to swing by to check on out for a week. These can be great resources whether you’re considering an exam, just want to brush up on some skills, or get some ideas for a lesson you struggled with.

• PSIA East is offering an “Intro to Alpine Lvl1” webinar for anyone considering their Alpine Lvl1 this season. You can follow the link here if you’re interested in that bronze pin this season: webinar. Sorry, this is just being piloted with the Alpine side right now, hopefully a snowboard offering will come up soon!!

Finally some kudos:

• Cameron Todd has been awarded the “Promising SnowPro” scholarship by PSIA-AASI East to get his Snowboard Lvl1 this season

• Shannon Rucker has been awarded the “Nancy Oaks Hall” women’s scholarsihip by PSIA-AASI National to attend National Academy in Big Sky, MT later this season

Please give them both a high five the next time you see them!! Looking forward to seeing everyone this weekend!

Hey Gang,

I would like to start by thanking you all for an incredible season so far. Over the last few years there has been an incredible amount of change with the transition to Vail, transitions in management, and COVID policies. At times these have led to frustration and confusion, but you have all stuck with it and continued to share your stoke for skiing and riding with everyone who comes out for a lessons. I think a lot of the changes have pushed things in a positive direction, but I know on a micro level some things have felt like a loss. I truly appreciate all of your reliance and patience as our Ski & Ride School continues to move in this new direction!

• First, and most importantly: It is going to be dangerously cold on Saturday. Please dress in layers, avoid any exposed skin, and keep a close eye on each other and your guests. We will have hand and toe warmers available for staff, so please let us know if you need some! Attached is some information on cold weather layering that was sent out to the resort management team earlier this week. Please take a minute to look it over, the last thing I want is for anyone to get frostbite this weekend…please plan ahead and stay safe!

• This has come up a few time recently, so I want to remind everyone: there is no lunch included with private lessons. Full Day lessons have the option to break for an hour for lunch, and as staff you are not expected to accompany your guests to lunch. PSS is adding some verbiage to their confirmation emails, but please share this information with your guests if they ask.

• Please complete your LIFT trainings, asap! We have a fairly long list of staff who still have outstanding trainings. If you are having trouble finding the trainings assigned to you, please stop by and I’ll more than happy to help you out.

• Speaking of LIFT trainings, please remember the policies you’ve learned in the Kids on Lifts training. Specifically that any kid 6 and under must be accompanied by a capable adult on a lift, if they are in a lesson. If you have questions, please reach out.

• Saving the best for last: Please congratulate Tim Howe on completing his Alpine Lvl1 cert this week! It’s exciting to see so many of our new staff going out to get certified!! Please give Tim a high-five the next time you see him!!

I’ll look forward to seeing you all this weekend, even though we’ll all probably be bundled up like Ralphie’s brother in A Christmas Story!

Hey Gang,

We are trucking right along through the heart of the season. With the recent snow we’ve seen ropes drop on quite a few trails, and some that weren’t open at all last season! It looks like we’re gearing up for another very busy weekend, but unlike the last few weeks we should have significantly more terrain to spread the guests out.

• A notes field is being added to the Smartsheet so that you will be able to add any necessary comments to help us enter your payroll correctly. You are not required to enter anything in the field, but it is there if you need it! Look for that update to roll out next week.

• There were quite a few late Smartsheet submissions at the end of the last pay period. Some of them were entered a day or two later, so they will have to be paid on the next check. Please make a note on your calendar every other Saturday, and PLEASE enter your sheet as soon as you are done working for the day.

• Some staff have taken the initiative to help a few guests with quick tips and pointers outside of a lesson. While this effort is certainly appreciated, please keep in mind that we have to pay you for all work that you perform. I don’t want to discourage anyone from helping a guest in need, but please keep these “guest service opportunities” to a reasonable amount of time, and please add the time to your Smartsheet for the day.

• As part of Epic Wellness month, Pam Greene will be hosting a guided mediation session on Friday from 5-5:30 at the hotel

Now on to some really exciting news!

• Amy Rautiola was successful at her Alpine Level 2 exam here at Mount Snow yesterday, and she has a shiny new silver pin! Please congratulate her and give her a big high-five the next time you see her!

• Mike Workman will be receiving the Walter A. Smith award on February 5th from the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association. This is in recognition for his decades of work as a high school ski race coach in New Hampshire. Please also give him a high-five and congratulations the next time you see him!

Ok, I think I was able to keep it short and sweet for once! Please keep an eye on your schedule and make sure to let me know if you need to make any changes. Looking forward to seeing you all out on snow this weekend!

Hey Gang,

Looks like we’re about to roll into another very busy MLK weekend. Please rest up, eat your Wheaties, and make sure you check your schedule and show up on time. We are expecting some wet weather later tonight and tomorrow, so be prepared for some variable conditions this weekend.

• If you or your guests are involved in a collision, you MUST call patrol and all parties must stay at the scene until they arrive. Please also notify myself, Dawn or Gen as soon as possible and let us know if you need someone to come out to take over your lesson. There will be some paperwork to fill out afterwards, so please check in with me before you leave for the day.

• We are looking for at least one more person to help with crowd control and handing out tickets in Disco this weekend from 7:30 – 8am. If you are interested and available, please let me know.

• IMPORTANT: We are short a few staff this weekend for a variety of legitimate reasons. Right now I’m looking for two skiers to cover two Saturday AM private lessons. If you’re not already on the schedule, and willing to come in at least for the morning please let me know ASAP….I will be forever grateful!

• If you submit a private lesson request form and you are currently not on the schedule that day, you will only be made available for that lesson block. If you would like to be available to work the rest of the day, please send me an email and I will add you to the schedule.

• Thank you all SO MUCH for paying close attention to the information you’re entering on your Smartsheets. I’ve seen a HUGE decrease in errors in the last week, and that makes my and Kit’s life so much better. I know it can be a tedious process, but I’m really impressed with the learning curve and adaptability of this group!

• We had our last batch of new hires go through training this week. Most of these folks are staff from the Hermitage who are looking to fill up their mid-week schedule. Most are going to Mountain Camp to help with school programs, but we have at least one coming to join our program. If you see Paul Rainey, please say hi and make him feel welcome to the family! He is also a former co-worker from Liberty, so I’m definitely happy to add him to the team here!

Plan for a very busy weekend, and please do everything you can to keep yourself and each other safe and healthy!

Hey Gang,

Happy New Year!! Thanks again to everyone who worked last week and made a crazy busy week run like a well-oiled machine! We sent out a ton of lessons, and I heard a lot of great feedback from some very happy guests. The next time you see Dawn and Gen, give them a high-five because we couldn’t have held this ship together without all hard work and attention to detail. Moving ahead to this weekend, things are looking a little rough with the weather. We’ve lost about 50% of our open trails, and coverage is getting pretty thin in places. Snowmaking should come online tomorrow, so be on the lookout for things that will grab your skis or snowboard under the thin layer of snow. Thankfully we didn’t get as much rain as expected, or the ice that was in the forecast today. I won’t lie, the mountain is looking a little sad but it should recover quickly thanks to consistent snowmaking temps over the next week.

• This is the final weekend for ESWs, so please make time to attend one if you haven’t already (this doesn’t apply to new hires)

• If you plan on attending a clinic, please sign up on instructor.snow.com I learned this week just how tedious it is to add attendees if they don’t sign up…it is not pretty.

• Please make sure any private lesson request forms you submit include the number of guests in the lessons. This has a direct impact on your pay rate for the lesson, so we need accurate information.

• One of our new hires just got his Alpine Lvl1 certification!! The next time you see Gregg Clark, please give him a high-five and congratulate him!

• THIS SATURDAY IS THE END OF THE PAY PERIOD. PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR SMARTSHEET AS SOON AS YOU FINISH YOUR LAST ASSIGMENT FOR THE DAY. Help me, help you! 

Enjoy the rest of you week, and I’ll look forward to seeing you out on the hill soon!

Hey Gang,

I’m going to try to make this short, since it’s a busy holiday week. First off, everyone who has worked here this week is an absolute rockstar and I truly appreciate all your patience, flexibility, and dedication to sharing your stoke for skiing and snowboarding with the public!

• PLEASE submit your Smartsheet on the day you performed the work you’re recording. Please also ensure that you are selecting the correct lesson products.

• We have added a fourth item in the drop-down for PODs labelled “training”. Please use this to record all future paid training hours, even if it means you will have to submit two sheets in a day. This cleans things up on the back end for us, and helps ensure we’re paying everyone correctly.

• While we will make acceptations to allow four people into a private lesson, this is only to be used for existing request clientele to keep families together. Everyone needs to be careful not to advertise it, because word travels fast!

• Reminder: Everyone accrues sick time, and it is your to use as you see fit. If you are going to use some of your sick time, please shoot me an email with the amount of time you would like me to enter. Your leave balances will show up in a drop-down at the bottom of your electronic paystub.

• I have had a lot of questions about service entrances at lifts. I want to apologize that it has been confusing this year with some lifts changing, and some entrance plans not being marked yet. I am asking everyone taking the lessons on the Bluebird to please use the SRS entrance on the north side, do not use the service entrance on the south side. For safety reasons, we’ve been asked to leave that entrance for Patrol and Lift Mechanics only.

• On warm days like today, we are allowed to wear the brown puffy jackets as long as you have a name tag. If your lesson is on one of the carpets, you can wear the blue Mount Snow t-shirts that were distributed last year (new hires, please see Shannon) as long as you have a name tag.

Please keep an eye on yourselves and each other this week, we’re over the hump and the end of the holiday craziness is in sight!

Hey gang,

I hope all of you had the opportunity to play in that amazing snow that came through last weekend. It was like an early Christmas present for the mountain! We have opened up quite a bit of additional terrain as a result, and most of it should survive the impending rain tomorrow. It couldn’t have come at a better time as business has really started to pick up this week, and we are running at capacity most days through 12/30. Please keep a close eye on your schedules and let me know if anything needs to change. As a reminder, please EMAIL schedule changes and CALL OR TEXT day-of call offs or if you are running late (my cellphone is listed in my signature below). Here a few notes for the upcoming week:

• Private lessons will always auto-charge at midnight two days before the lesson (ie lessons going Saturday will get charged Thursday night). If you have private lesson guests asking why they haven’t been charged for a lesson they booked two months in advance, please pass this info along to them.

• My regular days off are Mondays and Tuesdays. I’m trying to get in a better habit of putting my out-of-office up, but please keep those days in mind if I haven’t responded quickly.

• We have some pretty nasty weather blowing through over the next 48 hours. It will start with 3-6” of snow this evening, then switch to up to 1-2” tomorrow, followed by temps plunging into the single digits. We are also expecting dangerously high wind….so all in all, just a great time right before the holiday week. Please keep a close eye on the weather and roads. Be prepared for heavy traffic, downed trees and power lines. Please contact me ASAP if you can’t make it to the mountain and please be safe out there!

• VERY IMPORTANT!! This Saturday is the end of the pay period. Please, please, PLEASE submit your Smartsheets as soon as you are done with your last assignment. We have a very limited amount of time to enter your hours into the system, and if everyone waits until 4:45 it becomes impossible to do it all at once.

• Be on the lookout for some new faces at lineup! We have a pretty solid crew of new hires, and they have all now completed their training so they will be joining us at lineups. Please do your best to welcome them to the team and make them feel at home.

It's going to be very busy through this holiday period, but we’ve all done this before and we’ll get through it just fine. Look out for each other and yourselves, and I’ll look forward to seeing you on snow!

Hey Gang,

I hope you are all as excited as I am for the snow storm coming in tonight! Depending on which forecast you look at, we could get anywhere from 10” to 2’….and with all the base snowmaking as been cranking out, we could see a lot more terrain come on line this weekend! Please do keep an eye on the weather and on the roads, and give yourself some extra time to get to the mountain.

• If you are using the staff locker room in the Main Base Lodge, please try to keep all of your belongings in or on top of your locker except skis or snowboards. Please do not hang ski poles or bags in places that could create a safety hazard or block other staff from accessing their lockers. We do have quite a few new staff coming in this season, so please help them get a lay of the land in the locker room, and make them feel welcome.

• We are expecting new terrain to open up in the next few days, so please keep an eye on the Mount Snow website or the Epic Mix app on your phone for the most up to date info

• N.E. Time and Snow Dance (below the pitch) are open, and grooming has done an incredible job of shaping the trails. Please feel free to take green skiers to that terrain, if they are ready to move on from Disco

• Please make sure you are selecting the correct lesson type on your Smartsheets. I’ve seen a few ski staff enter snowboard lessons, and a few others select private lessons when they taught a group. Details really do matter!

• LIFT trainings….please complete them as soon as you can!

Get that fresh wax and tune on your gear, and get ready for the first powder turns of the season! I’ll look forward to seeing you all out there this weekend!

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Hey Gang,

We’re now into our second week of the season, and rolling along really well. I want to thank all of you for rolling with the punches and adapting to the changes we’ve made this season, I truly believe they’re all for the better but know that change can always bring stress and frustration. Please continue to ask questions if you don’t understand something, or need help…Dawn, Gen, and myself are all here to support you!

• A reminder that if you have guests that would like to book you for a private lesson, you can submit the request on their behalf with this form

• Conversely if you have a private lesson guest who would like to cancel their lesson for any reason, please have them email MountSnowLessons@VailResorts.com (this can also be found on the bottom of the lesson page on the Mount Snow website)

• Please, please, PLEASE submit your Smartsheet for the day on the day you performed the work. If you forget to submit one, PLEASE make sure you change the date for the correct day you performed the work. We’ve had several back-dated submissions with dates that didn’t make sense and this creates a lot of extra work on our end. If you have any questions at all about the Smartsheet please come see me. I’ll be more than happy to help, even if you have to ask the same questions all season.

• If you are using the tuning/waxing area in the MBL locker room, please unplug the iron when you are done. We’ve found an iron left plugged in a few times this season, and given what happened to our old Ops building I’m sure you can understand our concern!

• Please do keep a regular eye on the instructor website, as it does change in real time. It is always a good idea to take a quick look at it the night before or morning you come to the mountain.

While the weather has done everything it can to put a damper on our early season, our snowmaking team has done an incredible job of resurfacing every chance we get. With that in mind, do keep an eye out for variable and changing conditions while you’re out on the hill free skiing/riding or with a lesson. If you see a sketchy spot on the hill, please let us and your fellow staff know so that we can get the word out. It looks like the weather might cooperate with us this season, and we might finally open the new #7 Sundance Express. Keep an eye on the Epic Mix app for all trail and lift updates!

Looking forward to seeing you all out on snow this weekend!

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Hey Gang,

We made it through our first week of programming for the season! Thank you to everyone who was here working, and for those that weren’t I’m happy to share that things have gone incredibly smoothly, considering all of our changes for the season. When you see Gen and Dawn, please be sure to thank them for all their hard work, and attention to detail. We’ve changed a lot of our internal processes this season, and they’ve been rock stars at improvising, adapting, and overcoming!

In spite of Mother Nature’s best efforts to put a damper on our early season, the mountain ops team has done an incredible job of keeping plenty of snow out on the hill. We will be looking to expand our terrain this weekend, and start spinning the brand new #7 Sundance Express! With that being said, the weather has been variable for several days, and there is rain in the forecast for Saturday so please be careful in the parking lots and out on the hill.

• We are focusing on child safety during drop off and pickup from lessons. If you are on a private lesson with a young child, please get into the habit of asking who will be picking the child up when you’re having that initial conversation with the parent/guardian

• You best resource for lift/trail status is the Epic Mix app. If you need helping finding and installing it, please find myself, Dawn, or Gen. This can be an incredibly helpful tool in planning your lessons and your day with real time information

• Supervisors will be doing lesson observations out on the hill this season. This is a great opportunity for them to see all the awesome stuff you all do in your lessons (they are definitely not looking for “gotcha” moments), so don’t let it rattle you if you see them out on the hill watching you. You might be observed by supervisors from other programs, which can be a great opportunity to get to know them better. We are planning on using these observations to give us better data to use in writing your year-end evaluations.

• I know it’s a little short notice, but for anyone who will be at the mountain tomorrow. There is an all-staff training event called “Welcome to Winter” in the Somerset Ballroom at Grand Summit from 4:45-6:30pm. This will be a paid event, so please submit a Smartsheet if you are able to attend. Please see the attached flyer for more information.

• With the less than stellar weather in the forecast, we are seeing low lesson volume for this weekend. Instead of calling staff off, I would like you to take the opportunity to attend an ESW while you are at the mountain…or simply go take some laps with some other instructors! Please sign up for an ESW on instructor.snow.com

• We will continue to have our morning meetings at 8:30am on Saturday and Sunday, on the 3rd floor of Disco. Please plan to attend one while you are at the mountain.

• Please welcome one of our new additions this year. Cameron Todd will be joining our program this year on the snowboard side, after completing his first year teaching in Mountain Camp last season.

Finally, this is an important piece: Please, do not under any circumstances split your class between lifts. This includes splitting beginner groups between Apollo and Disco. Giving students time to practice is great, but please do so in a manner that you can supervisor them at all times. If you have a split in your group, please find a supervisor or manager (even if they’re in a different program) to help you. You can also connect with an instructor teaching a higher level group to take your more advanced student(s). Please feel free to come to me if you have any questions.

Enjoy the rest of your week, and I’ll look forward to seeing you at the mountain soon!

Hey Gang,

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, I hope you get to enjoy some time with friends and family today. I’m already thankful for the handful of folks I’ve seen out on snow so far, and looking forward to seeing the rest of you soon! As I’ve mentioned before, there are a lot of changes this year and I’ll continue to try to send them out to you in manageable doses….if you’re confused by anything, or have questions please don’t hesitate to ask me, Dawn, or Genn.

• Lesson times this season are 9AM and 1PM for Privates, and 9:30AM and 1PM for Groups. Please check your schedule on instructor.snow.com or the paper schedule in the locker room and plan to show up to the appropriate lineup 15min prior to the lesson time.

• We are going to try to start in-person morning meetings on Saturday and Sunday mornings in the Club House (3rd floor of Disco) at 8:30AM, please plan to attend one of these a weekend when you are on the schedule. The timing and format may change throughout the season as we figure out what works, and what doesn’t

• AM Group lessons this year have the option for an upgrade to a Full Day. If you do such an awesome job with your students that they decide to upgrade to a Full Day, you will get a $10 bonus for each student. Please provide a list of names to Dawn (or Genn, or myself), so that we can make sure you get this bonus.

• If you are PSIA-AASI Lvl1 or above, and we ask you to help Snow Camp with a Full Day red group (never-evers), you will receive a $20 bonus for the day.

• Please continue to submit those private lesson request forms for and returning clients you have that would like to book a lesson with you. I can’t promise that we will always be able to make them work (ie if we’re already completely sold out), but I will always try prioritize these lessons. If you are currently booked on a regular private or group lesson, I will swap you out as long as we have the bandwidth to do so. If for any reason we cannot accommodate one of these requests, I will contact you to let you know.

• As some of you probably noticed, Mo started adding a blurb at the end of her emails for staff to submit a Smartsheet for the time spent reading the email. I will start doing the same with my weekly emails, as we want to pay you for time that we are expecting or requiring you to work.

Finally, I would like to ask for everyone’s continued patience early on in the season. A lot has changed, and some of those changes are behind the scenes stuff. We have all spent a lot of time pre-season trying to iron out as many details as possible, but there are certain things that can’t be fleshed out until we have some real world data out on snow. We will continue to make adjustments as needed, and will try to communicate things effectively. I will tell you, I think a lot of things are moving in a very positive direction and that in the long run life as a snow sports instructor is improving…we just might have some growing pains along the way. Remember that myself, Dawn, and Genn are all here to support YOU. We will always be willing to make time to answer questions and walk you through processes, as many times as it takes for you to feel comfortable and confident.

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Hey Gang,

Welcome back to another season, I can’t tell you how glad we are to have you back!! Snowmaking has been working hard all week to turn all that grass white, and the temps at night are looking good for next several nights. For those of you that weren’t able to make it to the Returning Staff meeting on the 6th, a lot has changed this season…but don’t worry, we’ll get everyone caught up and it’s all good stuff. Here is a short list of some items that will specifically impact the Adults & Privates program this season:

• Everyone’s schedule has been set for the entire season, if you log into instructor.snow.com you can see which days you are working on Privates, and which days you are on Adult Groups. To keep up with the demand, I am using everyone in both sides of the program.

• PSS will be assigning instructors to lessons at the time they are booked, based on information I have given them. We will also be monitoring bookings and assignments ahead of time to identify any changes that need to be made.

• The Adult Group lesson meeting place will be moving over to the base of Gemini this year, since all of Snow Camp will now be meeting at the bottom of Mercury. The start time for AM Group lessons is also moving to 9:30am, and all Half Day Group lessons will be 2.5hrs. All other meeting times for Groups and Privates will remain the same, and lineup for Privates will be in the same place on the South Side of Disco.

• Dawn and Genn will be splitting their duties on Fridays through Sundays with Dawn running the Group Lesson lineup, and Genn running Private lineups. They will also be able to spend more time out on snow this season, and less time glued to a computer so they will be there to help out if you run into trouble. They will also do occasional lesson observations, but don’t worry they’re looking for the good stuff you’re doing! I will also be at lineups and out on snow doing the same thing.

• My office has moved to the Club House side of Disco where the refrigerator and counter used to be. Mine is the middle of three with Matt Heller from the rental shop in the office closest to the back stairwell, and Kit our new Admin Assistant on the other side

• Staff do not have restrictions on riding/skiing in uniform…yes, this means that you are allowed to free ski/ride and attend voluntary clinics in your uniform. This is a huge win and I hope that it makes you all feel more free to go out and enjoy some time on snow when you’re not teaching!! (just please keep in mind that you will be more identifiable on the hill when you’re in uniform)

I would encourage everyone to log in to instructor.snow.com soon and take a look at your schedule to make sure that everything looks right. I’d rather make changes and corrections now, than find out we had you scheduled for a day you didn’t think you were working. As the season progresses, please make sure that you are contacting me as soon as possible for any schedule changes. The earlier we know, the easier is to accommodate your days off for the dentist, family commitments, or anything else that comes up.

I’m attaching a few pictures from the off-season so you all can see what has been going on at the mountain since the snow melted. I had the opportunity to spend six weeks working with Snowmaking at the end of the summer, and also helped with the haul rope splice on both new lifts. It was really cool to learn a lot about the ops side of the resort, and work with some folks that we rarely cross paths with on the mountain. I can’t overstate just how hard Snowmaking and the whole Ops team works in the off-season to make sure the mountain is ready to roll for the winter!