9 Cool Reasons To Become A Ski Patroller

Snow is falling in the mountains and countless ski bums are heading to cool mountain towns to work in the ski industry. If you’re ready to have the winter of a lifetime, it’s time to find a cool winter job.

The first thing you need to do is to find a job. Every ski resort and mountain town needs ski and snowboard instructors, lift operators, park crew, bartenders, ski techs, and other guest service jobs. But there is one job that stands out as one of the coolest jobs in the ski industry – ski patrollers. This is what you should aspire to be.

Learn More About Ski Patrol Jobs

Ski patrollers are the heroes of the mountains. They risk their lives to save others and to ensure that the mountain is safe. It’s a job that requires early mornings and lots of skiing.

So what make ski patrolling so cool? Here are 9 awesome reasons to become a ski patroller:

1. Get To Ski All Day Long – Your job is on the snow and in the mountains. You get to ski from first chair to last chair every day of the ski season.
2. Outdoor Office – Your office is the chairlifts and snow covered mountains of ski resorts around the world.
3. First Tracks – Ski patrollers are the first ones on the slopes, so if it snows they get to ski untouched powder.
4. Power To Enforce Rules – Ski patrollers have the power to enforce the ski resort’s rules to keep people safe.
5. Rewarding To Help Others – It’s rewarding to help locate a lost skier, find a missing ski, or assist an injured snowboarder.
6. Save Lives – When someone is injured on the slopes, ski patrollers are the first responders.
7. Throwing Explosives – Avalanches are possible in the mountains and ski patrollers help to mitigate that risk by throwing explosives on avalanche prone slopes.
8. Work With Avalanche Search Dogs – Ski patrollers get to work with search and rescue dogs during the workday.
9. It’s Cool! – Everyone respects (and is a little bit jealous) of ski patrollers. It’s one of the top jobs in the ski industry.

Do you want to be a ski patroller? Head over to the JobMonkey JobCenter and start your search for ski patrol jobs.  These ski industry employers all need ski patrollers:

• Palisades Tahoe (formerly Squaw Valley Ski Corp.)
• Killington Resort
• Loon Mountain
• Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort
• Copper Mountain Resort
• Stevens Pass
• Aspen Skiing Company
• Whistler Blackcomb
• Intrawest
• Vail Resorts
• Angel Fire Resort
• Telluride Ski Resort
• The Canyons
• Mount Bachelor
• Bear Mountain Resorts
• Loveland Ski Area
• Eaglecrest Ski Area

To become a ski patroller you need to join the National Ski Patrol, have both first aid and avalanche certifications, and be a strong skier. If you meet those basic requirements, apply for a job with a cool ski resort. Here are some more tips to getting hired as a ski patroller. If you land the job, you’ll be donning the coveted bright red jacket with a white cross – a symbol of ski patrols around the world.

We hope you become a ski patroller. It’s the ultimate seasonal gig. See you on the slopes!