Skiing Instructors and Guides

NASTC Director

Co-founder and Co-director of NASTC

A ski instructor and examiner for over 30 years, member of the PSIA Alpine Team from 2000-2008, Education VP for PSIA-Western Division from 1998-2000, and PSIA-W Board of Directors since 1995. Chris has served as a ski school staff trainer at Squaw Valley, Mt. Rose, and Heavenly; attended the prestigious Austrian Bundessporteim in 1989 and again in 2008 by special invitation. Chris is the author of 3 books about skiing improvement: Tactics for All Mountain Skiing, Total Skiing, and Fitness for Skiing. Chris started NASTC in 1994 with his wife Jenny. Chris also enjoys rock climbing, mountaineering, and backcountry and is a professional member of the American Mountain Guides Association, certified avalanche AIARE Level III, certified WFR and OEC, and speaks German. Chris grew up in MA, moved to Tahoe after college, and splits his time with Jenny between Truckee, Big Sky, and Reno. He and Jenny have three adult and amazing kids: Colter, Mo, and Heath.

NASTC Director

Co-founder and Co-director of NASTC

Jenny is in charge of skiing and climbing business development, client relations, marketing, sales, and strategy. Former collegiate ski racer and tennis captain at Amherst College, Jenny started NASTC in 1994 with Chris. She is a certified ski instructor Level 2, and has her AIARE L1. She speaks Spanish and has skied and climbed all over the world, including British Columbia, Mexico, Chile, France, Switzerland, Austria, and Nepal. She’s nearly got her MA History, ABD! She is the proud mother of Colter, Mo, and Heath. Jenny and Chris split their time together between Truckee, Big Sky, and Reno.

NASTC Trainer

Nick is the GM of Boyne Mountain Resort’s Ski Schools. He is the former CEO of PSIA. He began teaching at age 14 at Snoqualmie in Washington. He spent nine years at Big Sky, Montana as a ski instructor and working through the ranks as a Training Supervisor and as Group Sales Manager during the summer months. Nick is the youngest person to have made it on the PSIA Alpine Team.  Nick completed 3 terms on the team. Nick and his wife Kristina have 2 daughters and live in WA.

NASTC Trainer

Ben Brosseau is a seasoned ski industry professional with over 20 years of experience dedicating his time to education and adventure in the mountains. Ben has been part of the NASTC team since 2015. Big Sky, Montana is home and where he has been a ski instructor and guide since 2004. Ben’s journey in skiing began as a young ski racer and now holds credentials with PSIA, USSA, IFSA and American Avalanche Institute. His commitment to excellence has continued as a Board of Directors’ member of the PSIA-AASI Northern Rocky Mountain Region, where he contributes to shaping the ski industry through snowsports education. In addition to skiing with clients in Big Sky, he has worked with NASTC and like-minded adventures in some of the most iconic and breathtaking destinations on the planet, including North America, South America, Antarctica and Iceland. Ben shares his life in Big Sky with his fiancé, Hannah. Ben is also a business owner of a small construction company. Summer recreation is spent mountain biking, hiking and pretty much any form of water sports.

NASTC Trainer

A current member of the PSIA Alpine Team in his 4th term, Mike was one of our earliest staff members starting in 1998. He is a first-class instructor and an excellent all-mountain skier. Mike is also the assistant ski school director at Breckenridge and oversees the training program. He is also a contributing author to sports and skiing magazines. When not on the snow, Mike can be found logging in some serious mileage on his mountain bike, he also windsurfs like a pro and has successfully completed 8 deep water dives in the Red Sea. Mike lives in Breck with his wife and two daughters.

NASTC Trainer

Zoe is a member of the PSIA-AASI National Team, a PSIA-NRM Alpine Pro Trainer, Big Sky Resort Training Manager, and professional river guide. She trains others to create a successful learning experience and aspires to share the outdoor in an accessible way to all.

NASTC Trainer

Richard is the APSI (Australian Professional Snowsport Instructors) Chief of Exams for Alpine Skiing and is currently serving his 2nd term on the Australian National Demonstration and Education Team. Growing up in Brisbane, Richard started out as a secondary school Physical Education teacher in Queensland. Applying his knowledge of physical education and human movement studies his career lead him to the ski fields of Canada, revitalizing a childhood passion for alpine skiing. After serving over 11 years in the ski industry, Richard divides his time between Lake Tahoe, California, and Perisher, Australia.

NASTC Trainer

As a Level 3 Instructor and Trainer for more than two decades, Dan teaches all types of skiers, trains all levels of instructors, and trains coaches. A former Big Mountain competitor and FIS racer, Dan has coached Masters racers, and was coach of the Palisades Instructor Synchro team, competing at the world championships. More recently, Dan helped start and is the lead coach of the Palisades Tahoe Ski Club, an annual sell-out. He is the lead instructor for various camps at Palisades and helps NASTC with their three annual camps there in Dec, Jan, and Feb.

NASTC Trainer

Murph is the former director of skiing and vice president of Palisades Tahoe. A New Hampshire native, he began teaching and coaching skiing at age 15 at Crotched Mountain and has been in the ski industry for 34 years. He has been a clinician and examiner for PSIA-W since 2000, and is a Homewood Mountain Resort Snowcat Adventures Guide, North Face Mountain Guide, and instructor for the Palisades Tahoe Snowsports School. He has two delightful children, Colton and Kaili, both avid skiers and Tahoe enthusiasts.

NASTC Trainer

Originally from the East coast, Allie learned to ski at the age of 3. In 2010, she moved to Tahoe to pursue bigger mountains and a full time career in the ski industry. She has coached ski racing and taught skiing all over the west coast and the world. Allie is a USSS Level 400 Alpine Coach, Coach Developer and Alpine Official, has her PSIA Alpine Level 3, Children’s Specialist 2, Freestyle Specialist 1, Resort & Divisional Trainer, and Snowboard Level 1. With her eye on steeper and deeper lines, Allie started backcountry guiding in 2020. She is an AIARE Course Leader, has her Pro 1, and is an AMGA Apprentice Ski & Alpine Guide. Allie currently holds the position of lead alpine trainer at Sugar Bowl Resort. She is working towards her Pro 2 and the PSIA National Team this season. When not skiing, Allie enjoys whitewater rafting, kayaking, rock climbing and yoga.

NASTC Trainer

Barclay started teaching in 1973 in New York State. He has been a Ski School Trainer at Squaw Valley, Alpine Meadows, and Hunter Mountain, NY. In NY, he served as the Education Vice President of PSIA-E. He is a staff trainer and instructor at Alpine Meadows.

NASTC Trainer

Mark is the former long time Ski & Snowboard School Director at Grand Targhee Resort, where he has been for 32 years and counting and continues to teach and train staff there.  Mark is a ‘jack-of-all-trades’ coach and is PSIA/AASI Certified in Alpine, Track and Snowboard.

His love of coaching and playing on snow with folks of all stripes is infectious.
Mark lives in Driggs, Idaho with his wife Nell and near their two grown daughters Lydia and Tait. He is also a world-class bike packer.

NASTC Trainer

Heidi started skiing in the Green Mountains of Vermont and today is recognized as one of the Top 100 Ski Instructors in the U.S. by Ski Magazine. She is a member of the PSIA Western Demonstration Team and a clinician and examiner for the Western Division.  Heidi also serves on the Board of Directors for PSIA-W and holds an Avalanche I and Wilderness EMT credentials. Heidi pursues ski instruction year round dividing her time between Heavenly in Lake Tahoe and Perisher Blue in Australia. Alongside ski instruction Heidi has helped build the Lake Tahoe Women’s Ice Hockey Association.

NASTC Trainer

Kevin Mitchell is the GM at Powder Mountain in UT. He is the former GM of Homewood Mountain Resort. He moved to the North Lake Tahoe area in 1989 to give skiing a try. After two seasons at Boreal, Kevin moved over to Northstar-at-Tahoe in search of a strong training program in which to grow. At Northstar, Kevin achieved his full certification as well as a Level I Nordic and became a Snowboard Examiner with AASI. Off-seasons were spent further dedicating time to his trade by teaching at Coronet Peak/Remarkables in New Zealand. Kevin also helped develop the snowboard instructional program at Alpine Meadows. Kevin became the director for the Northstar Ski & Snowboard School. Kevin is a former member of the PSIA Alpine Team.

Deb is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from Seattle. She was the first American female Olympic gold medalist in 12 years, winning the GS at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. She had 18 top ten finishes on the World Cup: 7 in downhill, 3 in Super G, 5 in GS, and 3 in combined. She has been a guest instructor with NASTC at Portillo in 2022 and again in 2024. She is also a guest clinician at Taos and various resorts in Colorado. She is a mother of two wonderful daughters. There is no way to explain the thrill of skiing with Deb, you have to experience to know it!

Former 3-term member of the PSIA Alpine Team, he is an instructor and trainer at the Aspen Ski and Snowboard School and has been a trainer for the North American Ski Training Center since 2000. He is just as passionate about teaching now, as he was when he started more than 35 years ago. Victor taught in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, for 16 years where he was also the assistant ski school director before moving to Aspen in 1987. He has also been a PSIA Examiner and Chairman of PSIA’s Steering Committee. Victor has an engineering degree and also works as the Mountain Planner, designing trails and lifts, for the Aspen Skiing Company. Victor lives in Aspen with his wife, son, and daughter, all avid skiers.

Michael grew up in Rhinebeck, NY, and has been teaching skiing since 1985. He is the General Manager at Portillo, Chile in the summer and a Trainer/Instructor at Heavenly Valley, CA, during our winters. He has been on the National Demonstration Team since 1996 and is the Teams Coach. He is also a frequent contributor and education editor for SKI magazine. His other interests include mountain biking and golfing.

Robin has been teaching skiing since 1988. Robin is a current member of the PSIA Alpine team and the Director of Skier Services at Heavenly. Her year-round teaching and skiing were divided between Heavenly Ski Resort and Portillo, Chile for over 3 decades. Robin has also been a ski tester for SKI magazine. She is the owner of Tahoe Outdoor Fitness where she does outdoor athletic training and personal training. In those few months between seasons, Robin spends heaps of time on her bikes. She also speaks fluent Spanish and Portuguese, and can typically be found skiing with a grin wrapped around her face!

Mike grew up skiing at Snow Basin near Ogden, Utah. He is PSIA and CSIA level III certified and the past Certification Vice President for PSIA-W and past President for PSIA-W. He has been a PSIA National Board member and a Western Regional Team trainer and selector. Mike was the previous director of the Mt Sports Learning Center at Sugar Bowl. He retired in 2016 after 26 years of service Mike has spent countless of hours helping instructors achieve their goals. He is involved in the region developing the Senior’s instructional program and is NASTC’s resident Senior Specialist.

Jens started skiing in 1982 in St. Anton am Arlberg, Austria, where he now owns a family hotel. Since 1992, he has been a National Examiner for the Danish Ski Instructor Association. Since 1996, he has been an examiner for the Tirolean Ski Association and in charge of all the educational programs in the ski school in Arlberg. In 2002, he took third place in the International Tirolean Demonstration Championships. Jens works as a rafting guide and canyon guide during the summer months.

Born in Chicago IL, Jim started skiing at age 4 on the icy slopes of the mid-west and became nationally ranked ski racer. He was a former World Cup serviceman and manager for Salomon North America’s Racing and Promotions Department. Jim has been a NASTC Trainer and Technician since 1999. He owns and operates The Start Haus in Truckee which provides World Cup-level boot balancing and ski tuning services.

If you take your AIARE 1 or 2 with us, you may be lucky enough to learn from Wendy. When not being the Lead Avalanche Forecaster at Mt Rose Tahoe, teaching Professional Avalanche courses for AIARE, working as a surgical nurse in Reno, rebuilding her cabin (lost in the Dixie Fire) with a repurposed shipping container, harkening her archaeology education at Oberlin College / Italy, getting after it with friends on week-long hut tours in British Columbia, training with her avalanche rescue dog Carmen, or mountain biking and rafting, she graces us with her incredible teaching skills!

Originally from the East coast, Allie learned to ski at the age of 3. In 2010, she moved to Tahoe to pursue bigger mountains and a full time career in the ski industry. She has coached ski racing and taught skiing all over the west coast and the world. Allie is a USSS Level 400 Alpine Coach, Coach Developer and Alpine Official, has her PSIA Alpine Level 3, Children’s Specialist 2, Freestyle Specialist 1, Resort & Divisional Trainer, and Snowboard Level 1. With her eye on steeper and deeper lines, Allie started backcountry guiding in 2020. She is an AIARE Course Leader, has her Pro 1, and is an AMGA Apprentice Ski & Alpine Guide. Allie currently holds the position of lead alpine trainer at Sugar Bowl Resort. She is working towards her Pro 2 and the PSIA National Team this season. When not skiing, Allie enjoys whitewater rafting, kayaking, rock climbing and yoga.

Dave grew up in the great State of Maine and began skiing there in his early teens on the cold, icy slopes of Sugarloaf USA. After working for a couple of years as a computer programmerfollowing graduation from the University of Maine in 1985, the lure of the west proved too strong and Dave landed in Alta, UTin 1987. Working as a ski patroller from 1988 until 1993 got Dave started on his life long interest in Snow Science. Dave has been teaching Avalanche classes since 1993 and became an AIARE instructor in 2006.

In the winter of 1992-1993 Dave began his first job as an Avalanche Forecaster taking over the helm at the La Sal Avalanche Center in SE Utah and teaching his first avalanche courses for the Utah Avalanche Center. Dave then returned to Alta for 5 seasons of forecasting work with the Utah Department of Transportation from 1996 until 2001, also teaching avalanche classes offered by the Town of Alta. Dave returned to his forecasting roots in the La Sal Mountains in 2002 where he would stay on until 2011. Dave took a break from avalanche related work for 9 years to go make money elsewhere but returned to the snow world as an Avalanche Instructor in 2020 for NASTC. A backcountry enthusiast for 38 years and a lifetime of managing avalanche terrain personally and professionally has given Dave a unique perspective from which to share the AIARE curriculum, spiced up with real world tales.

Originally from the delta of Mississippi, Demetri is certainly not from the mountains, but has undoubtedly been shaped by them.  After college Demetri pointed his sights west towards Lake Tahoe and never looked back. For the last fifteen years Demetri has been lucky to call California and the Lake Tahoe basin his home. During this time Demetri has honed his skills climbing and skiing all over the American west and beyond.

Throughout all of his trips and travels, climbing and skiing in beautiful places around the world, it has always been easy to come back to California. In his opinion, if you’re looking for the best skiing and rock climbing in one place, it is really hard to beat California and the Sierra Nevada.

Tammy is an AIARE Course Instructor, rock guide, and certified ski instructor. She is also a risk management consultant and diversity, equity and inclusion policy advisor. Her work “is at the intersection of human factors, technology, and inclusion.” She is super fun to ski with and always brings a huge smile to anything and anyone she is working with!

As the director of High-Alpine Mountain Guides, Michael is an internationally certified UIAGM/IFMGA mountain and ski guide. Although focusing the last 14 years on guiding in the Alps, he has over 20 years of guiding experience, including numerous ascents of Denali in Alaska and big walls in Yosemite. Michael has climbed extensively in the Alps from the Matterhorn and Eiger in Switzerland throughout the Mont Blanc range, all the way down to limestone crags in southern France, Italy and Spain. Certified by The American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) in alpine, rock and ski disciplines, Michael sits on the technical committee as well as being a guide’s trainer and examiner for the AMGA. He is also the only American guide to be a member of both the French and the Swiss Mountain Guide’s Associations.