Here is a list of the training opportunities we plan to provide to our volunteers this season. These are open to all volunteers within the NCD area, irrelevant of their location. They are optional and beyond the new volunteer & refresher training provided by each program.
Each of these will appear in Snowline as Training events and you must register for them in advance. These events are all free, except for the official Certification events.
Instructor Certification
CADS Ski Teaching Methodology
We will have a good quality video we can use to teach the theory. This is being developed by CADS National TC. It will be part of Snowline as an official training module.
The training will then continue with a 1 day session on Snow. We plan to offer this 3 times during the season:
- Dec 27, 2025 (Saturday) TBD Where
- Mid season (Sunday) TBD Where
- Mar 7, 2026 (Saturday) TBD Where
Neurodiversity
This will be presented via Zoom meeting, multiple times over the season, specifically:
- November – as part of a Calabogie Rust off/Dust Off process
- Dec 16, 2025 (Tuesday)
- Jan 13, 2026 (Tuesday)
- Feb Tuesday/Thursday
- March Tuesday/Thursday
Training will continue with an on snow day, scheduled for:
- December 8 – Calabogie
- See also Certification events
Pre-Certification Training Level 1
This is training aimed at volunteers who want to become CADS Level 1 certified instructors. Much like “Driver’s Ed” this training doesn’t guarantee that you will pass certification, but it will get you ready for the test. We plan to offer this weekly during the season, in two locations:
The training will take place on weekday evenings, starting in early January.
- Tuesday nights at Pakenham
- Thursday nights at Edelweiss
- Monday nights for Visual Impairment Monday nights at Camp Fortune (as part of the Ski Hawks program)
As an addition, this year we plan to enable volunteers to become certified as Level 1 Specialists, in Visual Impairment, Sit Ski, Neurodiversity or 3 & 4 Tracking. These are subsets of the full Level 1 certification, but should allow you to become certified at what you typically do for the program, with fewer training sessions. If this interests you please contact the organizers of the Tuesday or Thursday night sessions and they can advise you which nights you need to attend for which specialty.
Pre-Certification Training Level 2 & 3
This is training aimed at volunteers who want to become CADS Level 2 or 3 certified instructors. Much like “Driver’s Ed” this training doesn’t guarantee that you will pass certification, but it will get you ready for the test. We plan to offer this weekly during the season, in two locations:
The training will take place on weekday evenings, starting in early January, Thursday nights at Edelweiss
Certification Events
We plan to offer Instructor Certification events, including Ski Instructor Level 1 and 2, and Snowboard Instructor Level 1. We do not currently plan to hold a Level 3 certification event in the NCD area this season. Candidates who feel they are ready to take their level 3 are encouraged t attend CADS Festival and take it there. However is several Level 3 candidates come forward we may change this plan.
These events typically take two days and will be organized for a weekend in March. We have yet to pick exact dates and locations. For now you should attend the regular Pre-Certification Training and talk to your trainer about the Certification events.
Francophone Courses
The course listed above will run primarily in English. However we do plan to run a Level 1 course in French, This will run at Camp Fortune or Cascades on Wednesday afternoon. Contact Eric Lacasse if you are interested.
Snowboard Courses
The courses listed above will be Ski based. We would like to run a snowboard Level 1 course this year. The day & location could be jointly agreed by the candidates and the trainer. Contact Eric Lacasse if you are interested.
Other Training Opportunities
Teaching Methodology Update
We want to bring all our certified instructors up to date on the CADS Ski teaching methodology. We will have a video for that, hopefully bound into a training module in Snowline, with a quiz.
In addition we will be running on snow ski methodology / ski technique training days at Calabogie in December under the title Rust Off – Dust Off.
Sit Ski Tethering Clinic
This is aimed at volunteers who want to learn how to tether a sit ski. This isn’t specifically related to any CADS certification level.
The training will take place over December 20 & 21stEdelweiss
The coordinator for this series is Jeff Boucher. Please contact him with any questions.
Sit Ski Progression Clinic.
This is aimed at volunteers who want to learn to teach sit skiers to ski independently. This isn’t specifically related to any CADS certification level.
The training will take place November 30th (off snow) at Edelweiss
The coordinator for this series is Christopher Holden. Please contact him with any questions.
General Instructor Training
We plan to offer general skills training, without a specific level certification in mid regularly during the season. When you register for this you may be required to indicate which skill you want to practice, to make sure we have sufficient instructors. This will be available during the season:
- Thursday nights at Edelweiss
- One weekday night (TBA) at Pakenham
Please email colinmoden18@gmail.com for more details on any of
these.
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