The week started with a buzz. The snowboarders are now all qualified instructors with a 100% pass rate. The skiers are starting their Level 1 on Wednesday and have a lot to live up to, to make sure they equal the snowboarders on pass rate. The boarders were heading out with Laura and she had promised them a lot of fun riding which they were all excited about. First on the agenda was hitting the cliff and other steep terrain. It was smiling faces all round for the snowboarders at the end of the day as they had all pushed themselves and conquered terrain they previously hadn’t, maybe the confidence boost of the level 1 success has lifted them. The skiers were still hard at work with Mark and continued to work on the material for their Level 1.

Tuesday arrived with a little dusting of snow. At 3cm of the fresh stuff it does not warrant a pow day so the boarders continued to explore the mountain and work on their riding with some freestyle around the mountain. The skiers spent their last day before their exam working on what they felt they needed to.

Wednesday arrived and it was a day for hitting up the park, with some coaching from Laura who specialises in freestyle they were all working on what they wanted and soon enough starting to land some new tricks. All the guys and girls were hitting rails boxes and kickers.

The milestone in the 11 week course had arrived for the skiers. After arriving early to the village and meeting their examiner it was to be 3 full days under the watchfull eye of Steve Nooner their examiner. The boarders spent the day what they do best, shredding the mountain all over.

Thursday came with a powder alert. What a day it was. At least 20cm had fallen. Freshies were had all round. The snowboarders got to enjoy it slightly more and they spent most of the day over at Gem lake riding trees and hitting drops. Day 2 was over for the skiers and with 1 day left to go they would be eith toasting success or drowning their sorrows. We have nothing but confidence for them.

It was all over for the skiers. Friday came and went and before they knew it they were sitting eagerly waiting their results. The snowboarders after another mad day of riding, carving up the fresh groomers and hitting drops waited in the village to hear how their fellow housemates and friends had got on. As Steve Nooner joked by placing tissues on the table for the ‘Unsuccessful ones’ there was definitely an increase in tension and nervousness. This soon dissipated as he proceeded to say everyone had passed and there was laughter all round. A great night out was to follow as once again we had hit our 100% Level 1 pass rate.

Saturday and Sunday were the day of rest and a much deserved one. Bring on the remaining weeks and the Level 2 exam.

For the snowboarders this is it! The first milestone was upon them in what has been an incredible first month at Big White. It was exam week and over the course of 3 days our novice snowboarders were to be tested on their gnarly snowboarding skills and teaching ability.

So with the training week kicking off on Monday morning all of the NothinButSnow snowboarders had 2 days of last minute prep before their exam started on Wednesday. Even after Sunday doubles everyone was up early and still as keen as ever to ski and snowboard in to the village to meet with their instructors for the week ahead. The snowboarders spent the entire Monday ironing out those bad habits with a full day of relaxed riding, whilst the skiers kicked it up a notch with some intensive ski tactics and guided millage.

Tuesday saw the snowboarders gather in Happy Valley for a day of final prep on the teaching side of the snowboard exam, as they all have to pass both their riding and teaching to gain the full CASI qualification. Everyone was looking keen to get stuck in to the exam and there was certainly confidence in the air.

As Wednesday rolled in it was an early start for the boarders who had to be in the main village for 8:30am to register for their exam. With fresh snow on the ground the day was primed for success as the boarders split in to examination groups and headed out. The skiers enjoyed the fresh snow, working on pressure control by demonstrating hockey stops, which resulted in some funny powder face shots. Wednesday is one of the most well known nights on the hill as everyone flocks to Snowshoe Sam’s for Wings Wednesday. With the attraction of cheap chicken and a jug of beer most of us descended on Sam’s for a relaxing evening.

For the snowboarders Thursday was just a blur, it was the mid way point before the big day on Friday, results day! The prefect conditions continued for those still in training and for all those taking their exam.

As Friday morning turned quickly in to Friday afternoon, our snowboarders eagerly awaited their fait! To be called in via their groups and be handed an envelope either containing a certificate and pin or just a form detailing what part they had failed on.

For us that make NBS tick it’s a nervous time. We have provided all of the support and training over the last 3 weeks and these last few days are purely down to each individual. As everyone opened their envelope to the sight or a certificate with their name on it and a CASI pin and membership card we were elated to discover by the time the final group had been called in that everyone from NothinButSnow had passed and became qualified snowboard instructors.  It’s the most exciting time for us and we were so proud of all of our guys and girls.

Friday night was party time and after we devoured a mountain of pizza and a crate of beers, the celebration party continued throughout the bars around the village.                                                                

For the snowboarders week 5 was the first week of our level 2 training, while in contrast, for the skiers it was their level 1 exam. For us it felt so good to relax and have a week letting our hair down on the mountain. It was our fun week where we continued to work on our riding but with an increase in harder terain and use of the terain park!

Our first day of training for level 2, taking things nice and slow, we headed straight to the Cliff. Most probably the most challenging run on the mountain at Big White with no prizes for guessing why. Feeling confident and relaxed after the previous busy week, we enjoyed the challenge and spent most of the day there. A highlight in particular was Stephen’s attempt to decorate the mountain from a chairlift, showing us what he had for breakfast and just how good his weekend celebrations were.

Tuesday provided us with clear blue skies and with a good amount of snow on the piste we had a day tearing down tree runs over at black forest. We worked on some freestyle tricks practicing butter 360’s and 180 spins.

Freestyle Wednesdays was the day we were all looking forward to, hitting up the Telus park. Many of us had experience trying things in the park, but having tuition on how to hit rails and kickers was sure to improve us massively. Even after a couple of runs through, each one of us got comfortable laying down 50/50s on boxes and rainbow rails, and popping off medium kickers. Karen, in her last week at Big White, swiftly swapped buttslides to boardslides and showed more pop than a pop tart off some of the jumps. After a successful day in the park, it was smiles all round as we headed to Sam’s for wings night. After a Gil Morgan or 30 we got on the sauce and busted some shapes on Sam’s dance floor.

Feeling fresh on Thursday morning and on a quest for fresh powder we headed to Gem Lake in search of some tree runs and fresh tracks. Our quest was more than complete, with even our trainer Laura becoming stuck in deep snow on one occasion. We had a fantastic day shredding the best snow Big White had to offer, with the chairlift rides in between runs providing constant amusement reminiscing of the night before. Gavin and Carina even had to take off their goggles to stop them from filling with tears of laughter. Good times all round.

Friday was a day to work on our individual feedback from the week and practice some skills we had learnt. We went back into the park and ended the week on a high with all of us comfortably landing boxes and rails each time. A fantastic week for us boarders was only made into a perfect week for all when the news that all of the Skiers had successfully passed their level 1 exams. It was to be another night of celebrations and we headed to the Bull Wheel to start the night off in style.

The weekend was a chilled out one and with everyone now a qualified ski/snowboard instructor, the house was stress free and returned to its usual relaxed atmosphere. We ended the week with a Tubing session down at happy valley, a perfect way to end another successful week in Big White. Unfortunately we had to say goodbye to Karen, who left us to embark on another adventure. We all hope the next 6 weeks are to be as awesome as the 5 we have just had.

Nick