The North Face Winter Leadership Training Course

Dates & Price Application deadline: November 1, 2010 Announcement of successful applicants:  November 10, 2010 Course dates:  January 16 – 23th, 2011 Cost per person: $700 + applicable taxes Information Package: Info Pack

	The North Face (TNF) has supported Alpine Club of Canada (ACC) Leadership Courses since their inception and we appreciate their generosity towards these initiatives.

Amateur leaders are an integral component of Alpine Club of Canada programs – facilitating a variety of safe and exciting excursions for ACC members across Canada.

Twice annually (winter and summer), The North Face and the Alpine Club of Canada Training & Leadership Committee offer training courses for amateur leaders from across Canada, in recognition of the training needs of these tireless and invaluable volunteers.  The principle objective of these courses is to empower ACC volunteers by enhancing their skill sets. 

The curriculum for the TNF Winter course has been significantly revised for 2011. The course has now been split into two types of courses: two winters of ACC TNF Winter Ski Touring Leadership, followed by one winter of ACC TNF Winter Ski Mountaineering Leadership (next offered in 2012).

2011 ACC TNF Winter Ski Touring Leadership Course
The course in 2011 will focus entirely on ski-touring and will not require rope work or travel on glaciers. Additionally, the 2011 TNF course now integrates the Canadian Avalanche Association AST 2 (Avalanche Skills Training Level 2) curriculum as a fundamental part of the curriculum! AST 2 certification will be awarded upon course completion. 

The course will focus on the following topics:

Photo: © Cyril Shokoples

• planning and management of ski touring trips on non-glaciated terrain;
• avalanche terrain evaluation, snowpack and stability evaluation and tests;
• use of  bulletins, forecasts, the ATES scale, the Avaluator and the STEPS process in decision-making;
• route finding, track setting and decision making in avalanche terrain;
• navigation using terrain, map, compass and GPS;
• route planning, route cards and route selection;
• risk theory, group dynamics, group management, conflict resolution; and
• emergency situation management including avalanche rescue.

This will be an intensive, thought-provoking course with lots of learning for everybody!  Conditions permitting, the majority of the daylight hours will be spent actively in the field, building skills and techniques.  In the evenings – after dinner and a bit of relaxation – informal presentations and group discussions of the above topics will be held.  Based on skills and experience in previous mountaineering adventures and trip leadership, it is expected that everyone will participate in and contribute to these discussions.

You will find a more detailed course outline and revised objectives on Cyril Shokoples’ website after November 1, 2010.

The TNF ACC Ski Touring Leadership Course will be held at Mistaya Lodge in Golden, BC. The Lodge has a broad range of terrain and slopes as well as a lodge that is condusive to indoor sessions that will suit this course perfectly.

Seven nights accommodation at Mistaya Lodge is included in your course fee. Please note that you are responsible for your own accommodation arrangements on Saturday, January 15th in Golden, BC. We encourage you to stay in Golden that night to avoid delays on flight day.

Sumptuous meals will be prepared by our experienced backcountry cook at the lodge. If you have any food intolerances or preferences, please include that information with your application and we will do what we can to accommodate you.

Application Process

There are two types of learners on the course: Section and National.  The majority of available spots are designated for Section applicants. Historically, some Sections have been fortunate to further offset the cost of their member’s participation in these courses.  National spots are available to applicants who are, or are training to be, National Camp Managers.

For Section Placement you must submit each of the following:

• Completed application form – Please use the Online Application Form. This will automatically send you a receipt copy that you can use to send one copy to your Section. By submitting this form, one copy will automatically be sent to the National Office ( ). This must be done by November 1, 2010.
• Letters of reference from two of your skiing partners who can attest to your skills.  References (including name, relationship, and email address) should send their letters directly to by November 1, 2010.
• Your Section Executive should send their endorsement of your application directly to by November 1, 2010.  Note that if your Section chooses to endorse more than one person, we will ask the Section to prioritize the applicants from the perspective of the general good of the Section.

Please ensure that your application is complete, and that your letters of reference have been submitted. Incomplete applications will likely be rejected.

For National Placement you must submit each of the following:

• Completed application form – Please use the Online Application Form. This copy will be sent electronically to the National Office at: . This must be done by November 1, 2010.
• Letters of reference from two of your skiing partners who can attest to your skills.  References (including name, relationship, and email address) should send their letters directly to by November 1, 2010.
• Endorsement of your application by one of the following should be sent directly to by November 1, 2010.

• ACC Programs Director, Toby Harper at or
• An ACMG Mountain Guide who works on ACC Camps or
• A current National camp manager or amateur leader

Please ensure that your application is complete, and that your letters of reference have been submitted. Incomplete applications will likely be rejected.

If you have been selected for one of the spots at the TNF ACC Leadership Course, you must complete and return The Alpine Club of Canada's Waiver of Liability form as a condition of registration. This form will be sent out to candidates who have been selected.  Participants will not be allowed to attend the course if the completed form is not received prior to the commencement of camp.

Selection Criteria

This leadership course is designed for those members who already have considerable skiing and/or ski mountaineering experience, and have taken some related courses. The TNF-ACC courses are to provide training for our active section trip leaders, GMC amateur leaders and national camp managers. It should be emphasized that this course is not designed to replace local section leadership and training initiatives; rather, it is a fine-tuning for participants and a focused learning/sharing program.

The following criteria are used when assessing applications. There is no "order of importance" within the criteria.

• applicants must submit a complete application, including all requested references and either Section or National endorsement
• applicants must have the appropriate and adequate technical skills and abilities
• applicants must  be active, contributing members of the ACC, and show a willingness to commit to leading trips once they've taken the course

Within these guidelines, the committee strives to create equality amongst the numbers of participants from different Sections.

Staff:

For the 9th consecutive year, Cyril Shokoples and Brad Harrison will be the TNF-ACC Winter Leadership Course instructors for the week. 

The camp staff will guide and instruct each segment of the program with daily field activities, and coordinate them with evening presentations and group discussions. In addition, The North Face might provide a representative, who, if he/she is able to attend, will be contributing during the week.

All meals will be prepared by your TNF Chef (who will also mentor and inspire!). All participants will assist with routine meal and housekeeping chores and duties as needed.

ACMG Mountain Guide Cyril Shokoples		Camp Manager Brad Harrison
Cyril began his career as an outdoor professional 30 years ago. His professional mountain guiding began a quarter century ago and he is an internationally certified mountain guide. He is a past president of the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides and has received distinguished service awards from the North West Mountaineering Club, The Alpine Club of Canada and the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides. He was the coordinator of Prehospital Care programs at the Alberta Vocational College where he trained Emergency Medical Technicians and developed the Parks Emergency Responder course for national park wardens. He still delivers that course all across Canada and teaches Wilderness Emergency Care to mountain guides. Cyril trains the Canadian Forces Search and Rescue Technicians in Mountain Rescue and is one of the primary instructors on the ACC summer and winter TNF national leadership courses.		Born and raised in Invermere, Brad was conveniently dropped into the backcountry. His father, Bill, was a pioneer in the Columbia Valley, guiding and outfitting for the likes of Conrad Kain and Dr. Walcott from the 1920's well into the 1970's. Following in his Father's footsteps, Brad took to the mountains. He was an owner/operator/guide for over 20 years of Golden Alpine Holidays, one of Canada's premier backcountry lodges. Brad is an active, professional member of the Canadian Avalanche Association and Executive Director of the Backcountry Lodges of British Columbia Association. He has been the manager of the Alpine Club's annual General Mountaineering Camp since 1985. Brad was recently honored by being one of 13 mountaineers included in an Artist/Mountaineer exhibit held at the Whyte Museum in Banff as part of the Alpine Club of Canada's 100 year anniversary celebration and is the Patron of the 2008 Mountain Guides Ball.