It's the middle of March and there is a sense in parts of Canada that winter is over – or at least that it's melting away. Whatever the case in your part of the country, I hope you managed to ski your quota of days and that you managed to wear that funny smile that we all pull on when the skiing is just so nice. You know the smile I mean.
It's been a busy month across the board with courses running in every region. Congratulations to Martin Beland, Rene-Martin Trudel and Antoine Belanger-Morin on achieving the telemark Level IV certification. They now join Jesse Moore to become the four first-ever Level IV CANSI telemark instructors. I can imagine the smiles on their faces are pretty impressive too. Well done, gentlemen!
Congratulations to all those who achieved new levels of certification this winter, whether as instructors or as course conductors. The pursuit of higher certification levels is what makes CANSI fun. There are now more than 1,200 CANSI members across the country, sharing and learning from each other. Refreshers and prep courses help keep us in the loop on changes and additions to the teaching methodology developed by our technical committee (TC). I encourage everyone to take advantage of the learning offered to you every year.
I don't often talk about pro deals, but maybe I ought to. I know that I take advantage of the deals I get with Rossignol, Icebreaker, Meidjo and Arc’teryx. My equipment helps me maintain a level of professionalism on all the courses and workshops I participate in. Spring is a great time of year to look at your closet and decide what pieces could use an upgrade. The sooner the suppliers know what you want, the better the chance you'll have of receiving early "Christmas" presents next fall. And that would put a different kind of smile on your face, I bet!
Wherever you are, enjoy the spring!
CANSI