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.”
What do you think of Niseko?
“Niseko is a great area, it has a small ski town feel with Japanese culture and is not to far from the bigger cities like Otaru and Sapporo, plus it’s right at the bottom of the ski resort. Living in Hirafu was a great experience, I had lots of fun times going to onsens, eating some great food, meeting lots of interesting people, and riding the deepest powder ever. I will definitely be coming back again.”
How has this course helped you?
“The instructor course was one of the best decisions of my life. Not only did I become a qualified instructor, but I became a much stronger rider and technically sound snowboarder. The Trainers were very nice and highly skilled at what they do. Brian made me feel right at home as soon as I came to Niseko.”
What goals do you have for the future in the world of snowboarding?
“After this, I plan on taking my new skills back home to Idaho and do some instructing at my home mountain, yet still trying to pursue higher levels in my snowboard instructing. Then later I would like to get into the coaching side of the sport. Niseko Academy has set me up for many good things in my future of snowboarding, even putting me in touch with top-level coaches back in the US.”
Tweaking out a stalefish off a hefty drop
Andrew scoped this double pillow drop for a while before hitting it, but he hit it with style
Bridge drop at Sapporo Teine
Shredding the Niseko pow pow
With the sad natural disasters that occured in Japan last March, we had lower numbers than usual on this year’s training courses. However, this turned out to be a bit of a blessing in disguise as we’ve had a whole lot of fun skiing and riding the massive amounts of powder that has fallen this season.
Bring on the exams and some March shred-action!
