Royal Navy Alpine Championships

Detailed below is a guide to Ski and Snowboard ability levels; knowing your skiing/boarding ability level will be necessary when deciding your level of instruction which will ensure that you get the most out of your time on the snow. All the ski and snowboard instructors are either serving or ex-serving members of the Royal Navy/Royal Marines with many having first learnt to ski/board at previous Alpine Championships, some went on to race for the Navy and then decided to put something back into the sport.

Ability level is a way of classifying skiers/snowboarders based on what they can do and how well they ski/board on green, blue, red or black runs.

Beginners
• Never skied/boarded before.
• May have had one or two lessons (indoor/artificial slope) but not really mastered it or gone beyond a basic snowplough or achieved linked turns on a board.
• Previously started as beginner but failed to complete the course of instruction due to injury.
• Extremely nervous skier/boarder who feels a complete recap will help.

Novice
• Already had at least five days on snow i.e. last year’s beginners.
• Designed for the skier/boarder who has previously had lessons but didn’t take to well to the sport, and requires a slower pace of instruction.

Intermediates
• Already has at least one week skiing/boarding experience.
• Confident on groomed blue terrain.
• Able to achieve linked turns on a board or achieve some parallel turns on skis although can be hit and miss.
• Wishes to explore new techniques or terrain.

Advanced/Race training
• Comfortable on all terrains.
• Training required to develop skill in moguls, powder, carving and freestyle (boarders).
• Wish to develop skills in the park (boarders only).
• Require coaching on racing technique (skiers/boarders).
• Wish to compete in Ski/boardercross.

What clothing will I require for a beginners course?
You will need a hat, goggles (boarders) or sunglasses, gloves or mittens (if boarding remember to buy gloves big enough to fit wristguards under), sunscreen and lip salve. It is recommended for beginner boarders to purchase wristguards and the investment of the year is padded shorts (this can save much pain and bruising).

The outer layer – This is typical ski/board wear, normally trusers and jacket (unless an ‘80’s throwback then a 1-piece is the way ahead. The best thing at first is to borrow from a mate or you can hire clothing from ski shops in the UK if you are not sure if the sport is for you. Ski/boarding clothing is very interchangeable but watch out for the trousers (ski trousers are often too narrow to get over snowboard boots). Snowboard jackets normally have a skirt on the inside of the jacket with loops to attach to the trousers, these are very useful to prevent snow gathering in your trousers, it is not pleasant having a cold, wet bum all day!

Middle layer- most ski/board jackets are thick enough to require only a base layer underneath the jacket, however if you feel the cold then a sweatshirt or fleece may be required as well, so consider this when trying on jackets. Temperatures can vary greatly in resort so it is always advisable to wear two thin layers rather than one thick one. The first two days of the beginners’ course are very strenuous, involving a great deal of walking up hills with bits of wood strapped to their feet! A fleece is good because it lets moisture out, it is also cheap. Many people like turtlenecks because that way you can’t get wind or snow down your neck.

Inner layer you should have some long underwear, at least the bottoms. They add lots of warmth without being bulky or heavy.

If you don’t have anything, borrow... You can buy your own long underwear it isn’t expensive and good socks, which are really underrated, don’t worry about looking good. Everybody looks stupid, and everybody has fun. Make sure you keep your keys, wallet and phone in a zipped-up pocket that has nothing else in it, so when you are halfway down the mountain, you don’t open it to get a nutty bar or whatever and drop your keys into four feet of powder.

What equipment is needed?
Please refer to ETC website for equipment options, it is recommended for beginners to choose the full equipment option, often people are given equipment by family and friends and it is invariably unsuitable, alas hindering their progress.

How much are lessons?
Please refer to the ETC website, but we can almost guarantee you won’t find cheaper instruction in the Alps.

I’m required to take part in a race is there any training I can do?
Yes for both skiers and boarders, the skiers have ex Navy racers that carry out race training packages. The boarders use a company called EVO2 to assist Naval instructors with foundation training for the Parallel GS, boardercross and slopestyle. The training is carried out on specific days to coincide with the events and can be booked individually.

Can I do a mixture of race training and Instruction?
The boarders are able to book intermediate and race training instruction on a day to day basis, so are able to mix and match. For skiers the intermediate training is done as part of a 2 day package, but the race training can be done as single days – they are booked in venue.