They’re up! Next year’s course dates and prices have been finalised and are going out to everyone as I type.

Here’s a quick run-down of the dates and prices on each course, and a brief overview of who each course is aimed at…

13 Week ‘Work Placement’ Course

Our 13 Week ‘Work Placement’ instructor course is for intermediate and above skiers and snowboarders who are eligible for a Japanese Working Holiday Visa, and wish to gain real life, paid teaching experience. This amazing opportunity is only available to a maximum of 8 skiers and 6 snowboarders. We limit the numbers on this course to ensure all our trainees get a work placement. GET IN QUICK!!!

Early-booking discount: Save 50,000 JP Yen on bookings made before 31st July 2012.
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Woohoooo, they all passed!

Our ski and snowboard instructor training courses finished up last week with smiles all around. All our trainees worked really hard during the final few weeks of training and passed their instructor exams. So thats Level One, the Childrens’ Teaching Certification and Level Two.

Well done crew… you did us proud.

SBINZ Examiner Pauly handing out results

This season we’ve been lucky at the Academy to have a small but seriously awesome group of trainees. One of these trainees is Andrew Davey.

The first American to join our Academy courses in Japan, the young Mr Davey (just 19 years old), really did step outside of his comfort zone when he signed up for our 13 week course. And we’re certainly stoked that he did.

With an extensive background in competitive snowboarding, including boarder-cross and freestyle, Andrew has been a valued member of our 2011/2012 instructor training programme, helping push the riding limits of our crew – even the Trainer had to work hard to keep up sometimes.

Davey throws another backy

Here’s a quick Q&A with Andrew about why he came here and how the season has been for him…

What made you decide to come to Japan and has it lived up to your expectations?

“I was interested in becoming a snowboard instructor and wanted to take a year off from school and do some traveling too. When I found out about Niseko Academy I knew it was the perfect program for me. I was almost instantly sold, what better way to get instructor training than in the worlds’ best powder and be able to experience one of the worlds’ richest cultures.”

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Last week we took some of our Academy trainees and staff to Sapporo Teine (one of our most favourite resorts in Japan) for the day.

It was super fun. Not a whole lot of fresh snow, but certainly enogh to enjoy the steep terrain they have in Teine Highlands. Check out this little video from the day…

We’re really only 4 weeks into the season here in Niseko. We’ve had massive snow falls, a little bit of sun, some fun training and lots of epic riding. Our 13 week ‘work placement’ programme is 3 weeks in and they just finished up the Level One exam. All our guys passed, so we’re a happy little team right now.

Here’s a couple of photos from the week, but we have more in an album on our Facebook page here.

NZSIA Examiner Ben Adams presenting to the group

What a great first week of training. It has literally snowed every single day for the past week, but we’ve been lucky enough to get a few sunny spells in between the storms too.

We’re stoked to see our 13 week trainees making big progress already. And with the Level One exam just around the corner, our guys have been applying themselves 100%, getting ready to slip into their first paid work placement with NBS ski school over the Christmas period.

Quote of the week: “Ah look, Mt Yotty’s out”… hahahaa, classic. Mt Yotei (Yo-tay) is the spectacular volcano that appears across the valley. Here’s a few shots from the first week…

Peaking out the window... yet another powder day in Niseko