Backcountry Skiing Mentorship Club
What are your goals this ski season? If you're like me, the pursuit of a great goal is motivating. We want to help you create and achieve your goals this winter with the help of 'The Backcountry Skiing Mentorship Club'! This club will teach you skills, evaluate you performing those skills, and then invite you to go on rad adventures together. Jump on board!
Benefits
- Hone essential skills to stay safer on challenging ski lines.
- Prove you're a competent backcountry ski partner.
- Being tested on specific skills + Performance feedback from a pro = deliberate practice. 10,000 hours only works with deliberate practice.
- Confidence Booster: skill based & competence-founded.
- Third party evaluation and encouragement prunes away the BAD and nurtures the GOOD, so your GREAT can fluish.
- Quality concise instruction.
- Ride the wave of your cohort's energy to replace "One day" with "Day one!"
The Mentorship Club
- 1st - You'll have access to five MTN Sense online courses, and our private community group.
- 2nd - Complete online tests to insure long-term retention.
- 3rd - Demonstrate competence on camera: Successfully complete 20 exercises. Get together with your friends and learn together.
- 4th - IFMGA Mountain Guide, Mark Smiley, gives video performance feedback to refine your skills.
- 5th - Take a leadership role on your big goal ski objective. Zoom consultation with IFMGA Mountain Guides pre and post tour to help you be successful. +Join your cohort's calls so you can learn from their experiences.
- 6th - Get an invitation to join us at the Blanket Glacier Chalet, 10-minute helicopter ride from Revelstoke BC, to ski tour for 4 days. On the final day we will tour back to town via the iconic Mt Begbie. (Cost is additional)
Get a custom highlight reel, like the one here, to brag about the best winter season of your life!
Rad Rope Skills
Guide Consultation
Slay The Best Powder
Crevasse Rescue
Navigation
What sets this club apart?
- Join a cohort of skiers that will progress with you, and be great ski partners.
- Acquire skills to increase confidence on bigger lines.
- Mark Smiley will personally vouch for you if needed for future pursuits.
- Join for team-led adventures in Revelstoke BC Canada with competent partners.
- We make learning fun.
- Limitless access to the video content for review.
- Consult with a IFMGA Mountain Guide before you tackle your big goal line.
MTN Sense Backcountry Ski Mentorship Club
- Smartphone Navigation
- Crevasse Rescue Made Easy
- The Ultimate Guide To Backcountry Ski Mountaineering
- Avalanche Safety: A Comprehensive Course
- Beyond Level One
Throughout the online courses there are quizzes and a final exam that need to be passed. You must get 92% or higher to pass.
With the power of film and video you will demonstrate your proficiency in 25 different areas. From skiing, to rigging a hauling system, finding buried beacons and more. Feedback will be provided on each assignment directly from Mark Smiley via a video call.
Dates: Jan 21, Feb 4, Feb 11, Mar 3 from 8:00-9:30PM MST. These are not mandatory. Use them if you want to discuss specific topics deeper.
Once you have successfully completed the assignments, you will be invited to attend our mountain missions. These will be student led, not guided trips, where we will make decisions as a team. Example dates/locations: March 7-10 Revelstoke, BC // April 26-28 Shuksan, WA // May 30-June 2 Ouray, CO. We will lock in these locations based on input from those that complete the program each year.
You will have access to the community of MTN Sense Backcountry Ski Certified skiers for future missions together. This could be the coolest aspect of the entire experience! Quality partners can be hard to find.
Enroll Here
- Complete the video course on your schedule. Reference lessons in the future.
- Ask Mark Smiley direct questions.
- Complete the video course on your schedule. Reference lessons in the future.
- Ask Mark Smiley direct questions.
- Complete the video course on your schedule. Reference lessons in the future.
- Ask Mark Smiley direct questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Every video has a place where you can write in questions, and Mark will reply personally. We will meet twice a month, the first and third Sunday evenings Feb-April, via video conference. The mountain missions will be a great time to connect and ask questions in real time.
If an average ski tour is 3,000-6,000 feet (900-1800m) then you should do great. You can use this program to motivate to get there as well. The fitter you are the easier it is to drive your skis on the down, increasing the fun level.
Simple click enroll and follow the steps.
The amount you spent on the course(s) will be refunded after you enroll here.
Yes. Travel and lodging and food costs are additional. This will be a guided trip, but you will have plenty of opportunities to flex your decision-making muscle.
Each person will have their own personal goals. Some will invite others to join, and some will already be set with their partners. There will be cohorts in different regions, and ideally you can go skiing with another club member.
This is better. Mark Smiley can provide a letter of recommendation for those that have completed this program regarding your personal level of avalanche education proficiency. Which will likely be enough to qualify for Rec Level 2 course.
Who is Mark Smiley?
Mark Smiley's passion for adventure has taken him on 30+ expeditions on five continents. He and his wife, Janelle, are the only people that have attempted to climb all 50 Classic Climbs of North America (48 successfully). He was part of a team to set a world record skiing across the entire Alps Mountain Range (1100 miles and 292,000 vertical feet) in a mere 36 days.
His avalanche safety training style is fun, mellow, and easy to understand. As an IFMGA Certified Mountain Guide, Mark Smiley is among the world's elite guides to have reached this status. More important than this certification is his candid style of conveying the best avalanche skills training techniques that will benefit you the most.
Victor Caldua was a friend and mountain guide and father who died in an avalanche while climbing Alpamayo, Peru. He left behind a wonderful wife, Alicia, and two amazing and talented daughters, Vanessa and Estefani. 10% of the profit from this course will be gifted to Victor's family for their education expenses. Vanesse wants to be an engineer and Estefani wants to be a mountain guide.
Sept 1, 2023 Update: $10,000+ sent to Victor's family, to help with school expenses. We are committed to supporting their needs indefinitely. As more people enroll, his kids' education prospects increase.
