Intermediate Ski Development
Slovenia & Austria
When developing in skiing, the development and retainment of good technique is key to future performance. Once you’ve mastered the basics, our Intermediate Ski Development course picks up where you previously left off. You will progress through a 6-day programme, building upon your existing skills and focusing on advancing your efficiency in both speed, direction and control over increasingly challenging terrain.
We are based both within Slovenia and South-Eastern Austria. These may not be known as the best ski destinations in the Alps, however, in comparison with the resorts of the ‘big 4’, France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland, it provides a significantly better learning environment. There are few to zero queues, sparsely populated pistes and an abundance of steeper, tighter, more technical pistes that will change daily to adapt your rapidly developing skill set too.
The primary focus of the course is on the development of your on piste performance, with a wider overall focus for candidates to be left largely independent on red pistes where they have acquired the skill to travel further and enjoy the sport for which it was intended, adventure.
The Instruction:
Your course will be directed and overseen by the former Slovene National Team Member David De-Costa, one of Slovenia’s highest regarded ski instructors. David and his team have a wealth of knowledge and first hand experience in training alpine champions.
Over the duration of the course, you’ll receive both 1:1 and 1:3 time with your instructors, benefiting from personal instruction whilst at the same time enjoying the benefits of peer learning. As you progress, you’ll receive more independent time on the slopes and receive video analysis of your recent performances.
Course Content:
- Piste navigation and active awareness of others
- Correct posture and body movement
- Controlled stopping at variant speeds
- Control of speed and effective use of momentum
- Turning in narrow and wide corridors
- Progress from basic stem turning techniques into parallel turning
- Correct timing and placing of poles
- Peer piste leadership
- Experience of different resorts and snow conditions
Price Includes:
- Gondola and mountain passes
- 6 days professional coaching and instruction
- Breakfast and evening meals (excluding lunch)
- A 3* single room in traditional accommodation for 7 nights
- All transport arrangements (excluding flights)
- Equipment hire upon request (hire fees not included)
- Full access to resort bars and restaurants
- Full access to local fitness and wellbeing centres (fees not included)
Lloyd Langford Expedition Training Limited provide all attendees with public liability insurance and accidental injury cover up to £5,000,000 during the course, however the risks associated with snow sports and outdoor activities are your own and through booking and accepting our terms and conditions you take responsibility for these risks. You are also advised to purchase your own travel insurance policy for the duration of the course, covering you for winter sports, personal equipment and cancellation.
This course will run at a certain times throughout the ski season, however it is available upon request for groups simply by contacting us beforehand.
Itinerary:
Day 1:
Arriving in Slovenia you’ll be met by the team at Ljubljana Airport, and from here we’ll take a short drive to the small town of Topolšica on the outskirts of Velenje to Turisticna Pirnat, your home for the week. Here you’ll be able to unpack, unwind and perhaps catch up on some lost sleep from your travels.
During the late afternoon you’ll be given a tour of the local area, a round loop from your accommodation that contains shops, restaurants and bars and an extensive spa / gym complex.
Before our evening meal a workshop discussion will run focusing on ski specific apparel choices, weather conditions and equipment set up. These workshops also provide a great opportunity for our instructors to get to know you, share stories and discuss your goals and aspirations for the week.
Day 2:
The second day is all about suiting up, getting out on the slopes and taking part in the lessons and workshops provided on your course. Over the week you’ll receive 1:1 and group time with our instructors who’ll spend a great deal of time observing you, analysing your performance and building a personal development plan for you
During the late afternoon, your time will be your own. Our instructors will remain on hand to continue instruction initially with the introductory course candidates. However, there is a large emphasis in the afternoon to log ‘miles’ and put what you’ve learnt into individual and peer practice.
Day 3-7:
From day three onwards your itinerary will vary depending upon the pace in which you are developing. Our instructors will continue to choose the best ways to help advance your skills over the course of the week, including morning/evening photographic and video analysis sessions of your performance.
It is almost guaranteed that during an intense development week, you will experience significant fatigue and muscle aches. This is not only common, but a natural process due to muscle groups being used intensively. Therefore, during the mid-week point you’ll have the opportunity to take a day off the slopes and head to Lake Bled for a change of scenery and a cultural experience. However, this isn’t mandatory for those on intermediate courses.
Additional individual and group experiences such as ‘beer spas’, wellness and individual massages are available should anybody wish.
Day 8:
All good things must come to and end, and we’ll head as a group to Ljubljana Airport to say our goodbyes.
End Goal:
Although everybody’s aims and aspirations on this course can be considerably different, we aim to have everybody leave the course with/able to do the following:
- Have a good in-depth knowledge of apparel and equipment selection
- Have a solid overview of piste etiquette and practice
- Safely navigate red pistes independently
- Perform both short and long parallel turns at varying speeds
- Maintain correct posture and performance on varying terrain and snow conditions
- Maintain an efficient control over speed and direction
- To stop confidently and abruptly wherever necessary
Equipment:
The winters in Slovenia are incredibly cold and can be harsh, therefore we advise coming equipped and dressed accordingly for temperatures of 0c and substantially below, both on and off the slopes. Appropriate footwear for rough terrain, deep snow and ice are also essential.
To be suitably equipped for the course, you’ll need to bring thermals, a ski jacket and salopettes (or reasonable apparel substitutes), gloves, socks and eyewear such as ski goggles or sunglasses.
In the case that you do not possess some of your own equipment, we can provide skis, boots, helmets and poles. However, hire costs are not included in the overall course price. To hire equipment from us, please get in contact a minimum of 2 weeks prior to the course.
Notes:
We are able to provide flexible and bespoke payment plans to meet your needs, simply get in contact to discuss your desire to do so with a member of our team.
If you wish to stay for any additional days in Slovenia these will need to be arranged independently. Travel to Slovenia’s capital city Ljubljana can be sought from the airport during the day and takes roughly an hour.
If you are interested in booking a CLOSED ski adventure in Slovenia for a peer/family group, please click here to see our packages.
We currently have no upcoming dates for this course, however if you are interested in requesting this course as a group please get in touch to discuss this:
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