Eric Rolls

Eric Rolls
Snowboard Team Coach

Where is your home mountain?

Park City Mountain, Utah

What other occupations are you involved in?

Ski and Snowboard School Training Manager at Park City Resort. PSIA-AASI-I Examiner.

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

For me, the most impactful learning experiences are when I start out as a teacher and then become the learner during the process.

What are your specialties as a team member?

As a coach, my role is to lead the team, help team members develop, and demonstrate skills and behaviors by example.

Relevant certifications?

PSIA-AASI Snowboard Level III and Alpine Level I with Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 2 credentials.

Is there anything we missed asking? 

I’ve served on the PSIA-AASI National Team for three terms (13 years). This will be my first full term as a coach, and I’m excited to learn, grow, and lead the snowboard team for the next three years.

Learn more about Eric.

Tony Macri

Tony Macri
Snowboard Assistant and Development Coach

Where is your home mountain?

Copper Mountain, Colorado

What other occupations are you involved in?

Chef Executive Officer and Owner of Snow Trainers LTD

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

I would say the first-time teaching in China. No one in my group spoke English, so the lesson had to be extra fun and engaging to keep everyone’s attention and for them to understand the exercises.

What are your specialties as a team member?

Snowboard Development Coach, I have been in involved and continue to specialize in Freestyle as the chair of the Freestyle Task Force and Co-Author of the freestyle manual as well as the snowboard certification process.

Relevant certifications?

PSIA-AASI certified Snowboard Level III and Alpine Level III with Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 1 credentials. Two-Time SBINZ National Team Member (Snowboard Instructor of New Zealand).

Is there anything we missed asking?

I love to meet and engage with people all over the world about how we can continue to grow our sport.

Learn more about Tony.

 

Amy Bailey

Amy Gan Bailey 

Where is your home mountain?

Mount Snow, Vermont

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

When National Academy took place at Big Sky, Montana, my group headed to a new area on the mountain and found the terrain was more extreme than what we had been riding. The group had a great energy, and when they saw the new terrain they worked together to support each other and successfully ride down after initially thinking it wasn’t possible. It was a testament to how much the AASI community supports each other.

What are your specialties as a team member?

Snowboarding!

Relevant certifications?

AASI-certified Snowboard Level III with Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 1 credentials.

Learn more about Amy.

Brian Donovan

Brian Donovan

Where is your home mountain?

Mount Snow Resort, Vermont

What other occupations are you involved in?

I work at the resort year-round, but have spent time in the past working full-time as a whitewater raft guide and safety kayaker, as well as working as a guide and trainer at an aerial adventure park and zip line tour.

Describe a teaching experience that sticks out in your mind. 

I instructed a couple who returned almost 10 years later for me to teach their son. They said the snowboard lesson had been a great experience and they wanted their son to learn so they could snowboard as a family. I realized that lessons can be potentially life-changing to our students. The experience reminds me to be 100 percent clued into the moment when working with students.

What are your specialties in your role as a team member?

I’m a member on the AASI Snowboard Team, but have been working with all of the disciplines on the Certification Standards and the Certification Standards Performance Guides for a few years now.

Relevant certifications?

AASI-certified Snowboard Level III, and Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 1 credentials.

Learn more about Brian.

Chuck Hewitt

Chuck Hewitt

Where is your home mountain?

Vail and Beaver Creek, Colorado

What other occupations are you involved in?

I spend the summers working as a mountain and road bike guide.

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

I got my first gig teaching snowboarding at Marquette Mountain in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula for the free pass that came along with the job. After my first lesson, I was hooked on teaching and have been instructing ever since.

What are your specialties as a team member?

I love getting into the tech side of all things snowboarding from time to time, but when it comes down to it, people skills are my jam… and of course snowskating!!

Relevant certifications?

PSIA-AASI Snowboard Level III, Alpine Level II, Cross Country Level II, Telemark Level I, and Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 1 credentials.

Is there anything we missed asking?

“Great guiding isn’t about being the strongest climber or the toughest hombre on the trail. It’s about deflating your ego, subsuming your success into other peoples, and mastering the inner game.  If you can do that, the trade will probably still not reward you with a comfortable living, but it will give you one hell of a life.”   – Outdoor Author Bruce Barcott

Learn more about Chuck.

Matt Larson

Matt Larson 

Where is your home mountain?

Big Sky, Montana

What other occupations are you involved in?

Papa and family man, critical care nurse, whitewater kayak instructor, raft guide.

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

Sitting on a 125cc motorcycle with the goal of learning to ride. It reminded me it’s both exciting and scary to learn a new sport.

What are your specialties as a team member?

I focus my attention on freestyle coaching, commonalities between disciplines, and creating environments to coach people skills.

Relevant certifications? 

PSIA-AASI Snowboard Level III and Telemark Level I, and Snowboard Freestyle Level 3 and Children’s Specialist 2.

Is there anything we missed asking? 

I am goofy footed. I prefer to spin counter-clockwise.  I love Lucky Charms. My middle name is Charles. I wore a helmet when driving for the first six months after receiving my driver’s license.

Learn more about Matt.

Chris Rogers

Where is your home mountain?

Vail, Colorado

What other occupations are you involved in?

Snowboard, Freestyle, and Children’s Examiner and the Snowboard Education Committee Chair for Rocky Mountain Division. Director of WNTR, an online ski and snowboard school training platform and mountain-town consultancy. Summer Seasonal Assistant Manager, Amenities & Activities, at Colorado’s Red Sky Golf Club.

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

One of my recent focuses has been on the word “control” in the fundamentals, and how that enables us to look at both increasing and decreasing performance in relationship with a specific fundamental. For example, “Control the board’s pivot through flexion/extension and rotation of the body” could be used to look at how someone is creating pivot using front or back leg steering in a skidded turn, or how someone might need to work on reducing pivot in the initiation of a turn to carve better!

What are your specialties as a team member?

Multi-discipline indoor presentations, trainer development, e-learning design, social media management, leadership training and development, meeting facilitation, certification standards, training program development and consulting, improvisation clinics, web design, photo and video work.

Relevant certifications?

PSIA-AASI certified Snowboard Level III and Alpine Level I with Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 1 credentials. United States of America Snowboard and Freeski Association Level 200. American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education Avalanche 1.

Is there anything we missed asking? 

Follow my adventures on Instagram: @livewntr

Learn more about Chris.

Lyndsey Stevens

Lyndsey Stevens

Where is your home mountain?

Vail, Colorado

What other occupations are you involved in?

Snowsports instructor and trainer.

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

I taught a never-ever who came back week after week all season. Toward the end of the season, he asked me how he could become an instructor. It was incredible to see him go from never-ever to instructing. His dedication and excitement reminded me that we can all accomplish amazing things.

What are your specialties as a team member?

On snow and indoor training on topics that include people skills, teaching skills, and technical skills.

Relevant certifications?

PSIA-AASI Snowboard Level III, Alpine Level I, Adaptive Snowboard Level I. Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 1. United States of America Snowboard and Freeski Association Level 100.

Learn more about Lyndsey.

Stephanie Wilkerson

Stephanie Wilkerson 

Where is your home mountain?

Mammoth Mountain, California

What other occupations are you involved in?

Women’s Editor and Snowboard Gear tester for www.TheGoodRide.com

Describe a teaching or learning experience that sticks out in your mind.

A year after teaching an 8-year-old, the family returned for another lesson. The father shared that the previous lesson boosted his son’s confidence and gave him new interest. Before this experience, I didn’t appreciate the impact a lesson could have on a student. Now, every client I teach is my most important client.

What are your specialties as a team member?

Women’s specific training and lessons and helping riders figure out the best snowboard gear for their abilities, snow conditions, and riding styles.

Relevant certifications?

Snowboard Level III. Freestyle Specialist 2 and Children’s Specialist 2.

Learn more about Stephanie.