One for the border: Canada and USA pool coaches' education resources

One for the border: Canada and USA pool coaches’ education resources{mosimage}The newly revamped USSA Coaches Education Department has new partners in time: the Canadian Ski Coaches Federation (CSCF) and Alpine Canada (ACA).

For the 2005-06 season, USSA announced on Feb. 1, it will recognize CSCF coaches with a Level 2 certification as meeting the equivalency of USSA Level 100. The CSCF, meanwhile, will recognize USSA coaches with a Level 200 certification as meeting the equivalency of the CSCF Entry Level trained status.

Both are offering member discounts to their online stores.

Whistler gets dumped on for birthday
On Feb. 1, Whistler announced that January was the snowiest month since weather data collection began in 1981: 181.5 inches.

The powdery present arrived just in time for the resort to celebrate its 40th anniversary of operation on Feb. 4-5.

‘The continuous snowfall this month has been phenomenal’ said Sara Aldridge from Whistler Blackcomb’s snow and weather communications office. ‘Most mornings we’ve woken up to fresh snow; we’ve been experiencing perpetual powder days. The locals are in heaven and our visitors are ecstatic.’

Colorado bragged of having the best snow in 20 years; by mid-January, 22 feet of it had fallen on Steamboat Springs. Squaw Valley spent Groundhog Day playing on a 116-inch base. Washington State skiers were debating whether to stay in and watch the Seahawks in the Super Bowl or head to the hills because of near-record snowfalls. And Ski Utah boasted a total of more than 300 inches this season – before the regularly snow-heavy months of February and March. On Feb. 2, Alta had a mid-mountain snow average of 138 inches.

Stowe, Vermont, had 38, tops, a telling figure of the near-tropical weather that much of New England and upstate New York experienced through January. Among races canceled or postponed by Mother Nature was the Lake Placid Loppet, now scheduled for March 4.

One consolation for Northeast-bound skiers who might have found themselves shut out of the snow: Maple syrup producers started tapping their trees six weeks early.

Doc is what’s up for 61 USSA suppliers
Google ‘Hell is for Heroes’ and you’ll discover a London-based hardcore rock band. This Hell was not a winner of the Doc desRoches Award, presented at the SnowSports Industries America trade show in Las Vegas in late January. Instead, it was the Hell is For Heroes sportswear company that, along with 60 other suppliers to the U.S. Ski Team and U.S. Snowboarding, won the annual award.

Named for Doc desRoches, who was a pioneer in USSA fund-raising, the honor typically goes to a single company; last year Atomic won the award, following Rossignol’s win in 2004. So it was an unusual turn of events for so many companies to win at once.

‘We’re very proud to be suppliers to the team, especially in an Olympic year’ said David Auer, president of Fischer USA, one of the better-known suppliers of USSA. Lesser-known companies that earned a publicity boost from the announcement include Cowbells.com, Capo sunglasses and Finnsisu Marwe roller skis and accessories.

‘While this is unusual to present the Doc desRoches Award to entire group’ said USSA CEO Bill Marolt, ‘we feel strongly that without the financial, technical and marketing support of this group, it would not be possible to achieve our goal.’

In other industry news
-Ted Blazer has returned to New York’s Olympic Region Development Authority in Lake Placid.
-David Dillon is leaving Ski Vermont to become president of the new, private Haystack Club.
-B. James Bottoms is the new director of operations for Mountain Hardwear.
-Otto Lang, a ski school pioneer in the Northwest, died on Jan. 30 at age 98.