What It Means to Be Part of the Snow Pro Community

Over the past three months, PSIA-AASI National Team members have shared their professional development plans, their pride in the work they’ve done for the benefit of professional snowsports instructors, and how they achieved their personal goals.

Here, 10 team members reflect on what it means for them to be part of the Snow Pro Community.

You can read more responses here.

“Being a team member in the PSIA-AASI has been more than 30 evolutions for me. The people who share the same passion have made the journey amazing. With all my successes and failures to look back on, I try to help others grow from what I have learned. My passion seeps out because I see no matter where I am on my journey there is still so much to have fun learning.”

– PSIA Telemark Team member Keith Rodney

“It’s an amazing time to be part of PSIA-AASI. There is so much effort and dedication to helping people improve their skills as snowsports instructors and personal skiing and riding. The skills gained can improve and affect all aspects of your life and any other field of work as well.”

– PSIA Alpine Team member Dusty Dyar

“I am very proud to be a member of PSIA-AASI and the community of instructors who support our organization. It is amazing to me when I attend events like Master’s Academy for PSIA-AASI East and see the number of members excited to attend this event. It is sold out within hours of it opening. Due to events like this, I feel like I can ski at any resort in the United States and run into someone I know.”

– PSIA Alpine Team member Mike Hafer

“The PSIA-AASI community has shaped me as a person. I have been both a mentee and mentor and will continue to be in those roles. To be part of a community that can have such a huge impact on your life, adds purpose, challenges you, humbles you, and can help you feel safe when you are vulnerable. The PSIA-AASI community is family.”

– AASI Snowboard Team member Matt Larson

“I believe the PSIA-AASI community is one that will give you as much as you put in. Some of my closest friends in the PSIA-ASSI community do not live near me, but we have come together with a similar love for sharing the sport. As I always say, it is wonderful to have friends that want to nerd out about skiing as much as I do!”

– PSIA Alpine Team member Zoe Mavis

“This has been my community for 19 seasons. It’s a huge part of my life, and many of my best friends have been gained through teaching, training, and connecting with our community.”

– AASI Snowboard Team member Chris Rogers

“The PSIA-AASI community is a supportive network of people who all come together for their love of snowsports. Our community is full of people who are ready, willing, and qualified to help students, as well as their fellow instructors. Creating a supportive and inclusive snowsports environment helps us all to share the sport we love with others.”

– AASI Snowboard Team member Lyndsey Stevens

“Being a part of this community means having wonderful people I care about spread out across the country. As part of PSIA-AASI and especially as part of the National Team, I get to have reunions with special people throughout the winter. I hope that everyone I spend time with feels seen, heard, and valued. I especially hope they feel this when we interact after skiing together.”

– PSIA Alpine Team member Ann Schorling

“It is always wonderful to see our shield on jackets in lift lines and in different parts of the world. It instantly gives you a reason to approach a stranger and make a new friend.”

– PSIA Alpine Team Coach Michael Rogan

“Being part of PSIA-AASI has meant I am part of something that brings joy, fun, and excitement to guests and fellow pros. By always being present with my guests and taking ownership in the creation of their learning environment, I am setting an example of how the community within PSIA-AASI helps our guests feel the same sense of belonging as we do. One of the ways I share this with fellow pros is to give testimony as to how I was helped by others in my journey. When we maintain a growth mindset and display a personal drive in our training regimens, where we demonstrate the use of tools created by ourselves and our peers, we uphold that sense of belonging that bonds us for a lifetime.”

– PSIA Alpine Team member Brian Smith