http://www.geocities.com/skischoolweb/levelstree/
This first link is to a description of Levels that the normal TTS progression takes people through. You'll see that there is a focus on rotary steering inputs at all levels and that parallel skiing is not introduced till level 6. So the first 5 levels, compared to a PMTS approach is, at least from this student's point of view, a waste of time, effort and energy.
http://www.breakthroughonskis.com/Pages ... ion05.html
This second link is to a very insightful discussion between Lito and Harold about the rather broken state of ski instruction. Harold is not the only one "bucking" the status quo out there. In both cases, because of who knows what reason, these fresh thinkers have had to go their own way running private camps and writing books and doing videos. In this they are both very successful.
Two other authors have also taken this approach. Eric and Rob's book ski the whole mountain is also a PMTS approach and very successful. They run their x-clinic series of camps.
Craig McNeil also has his little pocket book which is also a PMTS approach.
I went to a PSIA ran race camp on Mt Hood last year and all we were taught was stuff that matched PMTS.
None of the above matches the first links 9 levels of progressions the TTS style of teaching moves students through.
Over on Epic there is much dicussion of the sorry state of ski schools and ski instruction in general. They quote a stat that only 15% of people whoose first experience in skiing is a lesson ever ski again. That is an astounding statistic. I would be out of business if my client retention rate was like that. I have 2 family members that are in that 85% statistic all because of a "wedge tts" lesson at Breckenridge. They found the wedge to be unsafe, hard on their knees. Since it has little to do with skiing why place that barrier there.
So you have asked an excellent question. While I was in Harold's shop getting my boots worked on a young masters racer was brought in by his mom. The whole family races. She went on and on about all she had heard about Harold in the racing community. This was their son's 3rd boot fitting that year and everyone she sought out in frustration to get things right told her seek out Harold. Erik Schlopy, a world ranked world cup skier, gets his foot beds from Harold.
Harolds own story summerized is that he came out of years of racing and working in the racing community to teach. He really loves teaching. He was on the top national demo team. He tried to change things from within. But as you can see people don't want to change things. So, like Lito, Eric and Rob, and others he works outside the mainstream.
What I find interesting is that in a discussion or back and forth on the value of PMTS or not, many dismiss it right off because they do not even agree with the concept "anyone can be an expert skier". It goes deeper than that. Many don't believe there is a best way to ski or that a goal like that is appropriate to teach. Bottom line is that in this country the resort schools are run as if they are a monopoly in that no competition is tolorated. Any monopoly will, by its very nature, not feel compelled to improve or compete. This is all to the detriment of the consumer of ski instruction.
If I ran my business with this attitude or with these type of retention rates, I would be out of business. But, there is no monopoly in my business so I do not have to do weird things to compete.
Really - if you haven't go back and read the Lito link. Good questions. But, your probably asking the wrong person. You should ask your buddy the ski resort owner. If I was an owner, I'd clean house immediatly.
I find it fascinating that there are two worlds of ski instruction:
The level 1 through 9 TTS approach on the first link:
vs
PMTS, Lito's, Eric and Rob, Craig McNeil, most of the race camps on the planet. The movements taught in PMTS are not unique, but a highly organized and user obtainable progression of ski skills and a set of defined terms to describe skiing. In that tight progression and organization and ski vocabulary PMTS is unique.
PMTS and the revolution in ski instruction will be a bottom up, from the frustrated students of TTS 1 through 9 instruction demanding a better ski instruction product, and not top down from PSIA.
There are other methods PSIA has endorsed and some are similar or based on PMTS. (the Elan method and the centerline method if my memory is correct) But these methods have not changed the cert requirements which follow the older TTS stuff or what the majority of ski schools teach.
What would be nice is if the PSIA AGAIN would do objective studies to see what works. Throw out the stuff that doesn't and redo the cert and the levels to match what works and what gives great retention rates.
So review, study the history, become aware of the current situation. Understand it's not just HH and PMTS that have had to go their own way, but the most popular books and videos out there that people are buying have all been done outside of the dogma of the PSIA skier level and cert approach. So the question to ask is why hasn't the PSIA redefined their TTS approach? If they have other methods internally that they feel are more effiecient why is the old stuff retained?
I wish I had my money and time back from the TTS approach. I'm one of the lucky ones. Many of the people I met at the PMTS camps had spent and wasted much more time and money than I had.