National Team Members Talk New Vans & Sliding on Snow Indoors

Autumn officially started in the Northern Hemisphere this week, which means time is running out to check any adventures off your summer to-do list.

PSIA Alpine Team member Stephen Helfenbein said one of the highlights of his summer season was working as an ambassador for Rollerblade’s Skate to Ski program.

He shared, “My main mission is to expand Skate to Ski’s reach and impact on the PSIA-AASI community. What I’m most excited for is the development of an online Skate to Score course specifically for our members which we’ll release this fall.”

Stephen also took a new job at a new mountain; he is not the training manager for Deer Valley. “Wish me luck as I will need plenty of it to adjust to a new place, people and routine,” he said.

The rest of his summer was all about riding bikes with friends and camping with the family in the van he’s been converting named “Vanada!”

That’s something AASI Snowboard Team member Stephanie Wilkerson has a little experience with. She sold the sprinter van she’d built out and lived in for two years, and bought and remodeled a travel trailer, then purchased her next van she will convert into a traveling home/office in time for winter.

“It’s a blank canvas,” Stephanie said, “so there’s a lot of work to finish before the end of October, but it will be super fun to do.”

PSIA-AASI Adaptive Team member Mike Ma stayed busy in the venture capital world, “Exploring opportunities beyond my current day job – ranging from opening my own VC fund to taking on another chief marketing officer role.”

He also got some time on snow!

“I have been teaching and riding at Big Snow in the New York / New Jersey area,” Mike said. “I’ve also been working on some of my monoskiing.”

He’s also helping the PSIA-AASI Adaptive Team work on the new national standards, learning outcomes, learning experiences, assessment activities, and assessment criteria. He said, “It’s been so illuminating and I am excited for the road ahead.”