Student Dustin Eldridge shares a class trip to a local ski guiding business, and reflects on why CMC Steamboat is an incredible place to pursue a degree in Ski & Snowboard Business or a Professional Ski and Snowboard Guide certificate. This post was first published in Dustin’s blog, Steamboat Livin.’
I’m currently taking The Business of Ski Guiding, which is taught by Kent Vertrees, the operations manager for Steamboat’s local cat-skiing company, Steamboat Powdercats. Kent has been working at Powdercats for the past twelve years and has an abundance of knowledge to share about the guided powder skiing industry.
Last week, the class had the opportunity to go investigate the Powdercats’ office, as well as one of their snowcats. We were able to see firsthand the things that lead to a successful guiding operation.
Every week, the class conducts at least one interview over the phone with different industry profesionals. We’ve had the opportunity to interview the marketing manager at Mica Heli-skiing; the premiere heli-skiing operation in the world. Mica’s formula for success is a mix of a huge amount of epic terrain, with very few of the down days that plague most helicopter skiing operations.
Last week, we had the incredible fortune of interviewing professional skier Chris Davenport, the only man to climb and ski all of Colorado’s 14ers in one year. Chris has risen the ranks of skiing over the years due in large part to his incredible focus and self-promotion. After winning his first World Freeskiing Championship, Chris immediately wrote a business plan on how he would utilize his crown to continue down the road of professional skiing and guiding.
But how can a Business of Ski Guiding class be useful to anyone not interested in becoming a guide, or working at a guiding operation? Simple. This class is first, a small business class. We have learned all about marketing, risk management, business plans, management, competitive and market analysis, in the context of a ski guiding operation. What better way to learn about small business than the exciting field of ski guiding?
Personally, The Business of Ski Guiding has excited me about the prospects of operating a small business. Never before have I considered taking business classes, but the Business of Ski Guiding changed all of that.
The Business of Ski Guiding and the Guiding Certificate offered at Colorado Mountain College in Steamboat is only one of the things that make it the best school to go to for a skier/snowboarder. Nowhere else can an avid skier/rider go to a school where they can learn about various aspects of the snow sports industry, be surrounded in every direction by incredible terrain, and live less than ten minutes from one of the world’s premiere resorts. No other college or university, at least to my knowledge, combines these elements in the way CMC Alpine does.