Test Drive - Hotham Snowboard Masterclass
Hotham has replaced its Level 5 (top level) boarding group lesson with a new product called “Masterclass” (official page). It’s a more structured approach that pairs the students with advanced instructors. You can buy it by the day or as multi-day bundles. I felt my boarding had hit a plateau so I decided to buy the 5 day bundle. The cost is $255 for 5 x 2 hour lessons which I think is quite reasonable. I was also able to get my Hero Pass discount applied for an extra 20% off, bringing it to $204. I’ve just completed the first 4 days and so far I’ve been the only person in the class, so basically it’s been 4 x 2 hour private lessons at $40 a pop! Even better, for ordinary group lessons if 2 or less students turn up they shorten the lesson to 1 hour, however that doesn’t apply to Masterclass. The instructor has kept some of the structured program but also tailored it to what I want to do and where I need to improve. The areas we’ve covered so far have been general technique, steeps, steering with knee, carving and a bit of freestyle. We’ve also done a bit of powder hunting and tree runs. The coach has been excellent, really attentive, patient and very good with his explanations. Even in a group I think this would have been a good buy and I’d recommend it to anyone looking to step up their riding.
That sounds really awesome, and the pricing is more than reasonable for five lessons (it’s not often I say that about resorts, especially in regards to lessons). How many people do you usually get in a group?
Just for reference Whistler Blackcomb would charge $600+ for an all day private lesson which is about 6 hours.
Not sure what the group limit is. I think it’s up to 10 people in a standard group lesson. I had the final of my five lessons today and we had 4 in the class.
I think the price for a full day private lesson here is also around $600. It’s only luck I got a virtual private lesson for the first 4 days, but still if you pick your timing carefully there’s a good chance there won’t be many in the group.
I really got a lot out of it, especially the four days of private lessons. I am definitely riding better and have plenty to keep practicing.
Which instructors did you get?
After working for Merlin here at Falls, I can’t see them ever putting 10 people in something they call masterclass.
10 people is the max they try to stick to for group lessons and I feel like any of the advanced courses they tend to stick to 5 max. Especially outside of school holidays where they have plenty of instructors and likely want to give an awesome experience to these sort of customers like Mud who will likely come back for more now and/or will pout an awesome experience to his mates (i.e. BW) therefore getting a better response in future. (and since you’re paying about $40-50 for the 2 hour lesson, that almost pays for the instructor to be at work)
Oh an since it’s a normal “group” lesson, the instructor won’t get a bonus for privates but will have the awesome day of riding with someone good. It’s a win / win for the instructor and the student.
Which instructors did you get?
I had Nate for the whole 5 days, awesome instructor.
awesome! He rips 