CANSI Ontario Telemark Report for 2018/19
National Technical Committee
A brief summary of the Telemark related items from the Technical Committee in the past season
CANSI Course Conductor Webinar briefings
This 2018/19 season was the second season of the web based course conductor briefings. This format again showed the value of using this format. It allowed our national course conductors a chance to connect and share ideas. The Technical committee is working to develop this format further, through inclusion of more course conductors.
Ontario Telemark 2018/19 Season
As the second year of serving as the Telemark Technical Representative I have made some observations:
CANSI Telemark membership has remained “flat” with the exception of just certifying one new Level 1. 2 courses and one refresher were posted this season, with one course cancelled due to lack of interest and one course run combined with a refresher. 2 course candidates, and 7 refesher attendees. The reasoning for doing this was to avoid any financial losses, as was evident last season. It also gave an opportunity for the 2 level 1 course candidates, to have more exposure by working with the refresher attendees.
The enthusiasm of current CANSI Telemark members is quite high as evident by the refresher attendance and positive feedback by members. Also local Telemark events are greatly supported by CANSI instructors and the telemarking public. Teaching opportunities are still quite limited in Ontario with only one independent operator offering Telemark instruction, and one private ski club in southern Ontario offering lessons. It is not for lack of interest in the sport, as evident by increase of new skiers taking up the sport. Rather CANSI’s numbers reflect the state of Telemark instruction in Canada nationally. The Tech committee is working with the national board to develop a strategy for increasing Telemark membership base and retaining the current membership. One possibility is offering more developmental learning opportunities that differ from the standard certification process.
As the current serving director, my goal is to continue to increase the Telemark presence in Ontario and support these initiatives.
Ontario Telemark Membership 2018/19
At the end of the 2018/19 season the Ontario CANSI members holding current telemark instructor certification is:
These numbers represent the 2018/19 membership renewal and also include the following:
Registration leading up to 2018/19 has continued to be on the decline as it has been for several years. 2018/19 is a year where CANSI Ontario wanted to remain fiscally responsible while still trying to offer certification opportunities.
I will be continuing as CANSI Ontario Telemark Director and am eager to support and implement any new initiatives that the National Board has to support the future of CANSI.