Two British sisters from Oxford are to work in ski patrol at Panorama Resort in Canada this winter having secured work on the team there after completing a Ski Patrol course run by The Winter Sports Company.
Charlotte and Jessica Loveday trained with the Canadian Ski Patrol in January this year after searching for the opportunity to spend their ideal winter season abroad.
“The sisters are passionate about helping people, so, taking a huge step into the unknown, packed their bags and jetted off for the experience of a lifetime,” said Beth Mepham of The Winter Sports Company
The course involved Lottie (22) and Jess (20) learning all about evacuating people off the hill and even staging controlled explosions to make the slopes safe from avalanche following heavy snowfall.
“The most memorable parts of my training were the avalanche training and the chair lift evacuation practice, which literally meant jumping off a chairlift with only your ropes and knots to save you! Good thing they taught us well!” said Lottie.
Both girls found summer work as a result of taking the course, Lottie as a pool attendant and Jess in mountain bike patrol.
“We work in an industry where females are heavily outnumbered by male instructors and patrollers, we need more female skiing and snowboarding role models like Lottie and Jess, we are so proud of everything they have achieved,” said Karen La Borde, director of The Winter Sports Company.
The Winter Sports Company run ski patrol courses, ski instructor courses and snowboard instructor courses in Canada, New Zealand and Italy.