PSIA - AASI

PSIA-AASI Blog

12.5.2011

Peter Kray Q&A: The Making of American Snow

Officially released this week, American Snow: The Snowsports Instruction Revolution is a testament to PSIA-AASI’s incredible 50-year contribution to the growth of skiing and snowboarding.

Beginning in 1961, when PSIA’s seven founders gathered in a cafeteria in Whitefish, Montana, and voted to form the association, through the creation of the Skills Concept, the advent of student-centered teaching, and the ensuing booms in nordic skiing, adaptive skiing, women’s skiing, and the explosion of snowboarding, the book chronicles half a century of bigger-than-life personalities, mountain culture, and breakthrough concepts.

With a beautiful new copy of the book freshly in hand, 32 Degrees sat down with author Peter Kray to talk about documenting the incredible journey, and also what it is about the association’s history that impressed him the most.

32 Degrees: Tell us about the title for the book, especially the “instruction revolution” aspect?

Peter Kray: I think the term “American Snow” really defines the breadth and reach of ski and snowboard instruction in the U.S. That’s because from Alaska to California, and from Colorado to Wisconsin to Vermont, there really is no snowflake, snowpack, or slope that is alike. And the way people enjoy the snow—whether they use alpine skis or sit-skis or cross-country skis or snowboards—is also incredibly diverse. Yet PSIA-AASI has still created this wonderful instructional system that encompasses all of it.

I think the title really speaks to both the standards and the versatility of that. As for “The Revolutionary,” aspect, I found that in every decade for the past 50 years, American instructors have been responsible for these often radical but always innovative leaps forward in how snowsports are taught.

32 Degrees: Such as?

PK: The focus on the student has to come first. That’s the most enduring aspect—that every lesson is built around how each individual person learns best. I think that idea has affected how all sports are coached and taught, and is something that turns every lesson into an adventure that’s new and fresh. After that, the Skills Concept is remarkable in how it allows instructors to really dial in on the mechanical aspects of what each student needs to work on the most. And of course, there are all of these great people, like Bill Lash and Doug Pfeiffer, Max Lundberg and Horst Abraham, and Mike Porter, Ellen Post Foster, Dee Byrne, Carol Levine, Lee Perry, Dave Merriam, and Lowell Hart who bring the whole story to life.

32 Degrees: How important are people to the story’s arc?

PK: People are what the story is all about. It’s what PSIA-AASI is all about—this extended community of people across the country who are so passionate about sharing the sport. What I loved about the interview process was how everyone I talked to wanted to tell me how much they were inspired by someone else. It’s a really a story of people who spend all their time trying to increase this sense of freedom and fun for someone else.

32 Degrees: And what impressed you the most?

PK: The fact that the sense of passion and love of sharing the sport hasn’t slowed down one bit. The book really closes at the 50/50 Celebration in Snowmass that took place last April, but you can see that isn’t the end of the story. There is so much new energy constantly coming into the profession—from new ideas, new technology, and the next generation of instructors—that it’s pretty clear how much opportunity there is to keep expanding on the legacy that PSIA-AASI has already built. It’s been the opportunity of a lifetime to tell such an fantastic story, and it’s especially fun to see how many people are already starting to write the next chapter for themselves.