We hear you: Mountain Mentorship is coming to Northstar, Kirkwood and Heavenly
The question we get more than any other is some version of “do you coach at my mountain?” For Northstar, Kirkwood and Heavenly the answer has been no. We’re working on changing that for the 2026/27 season, and we’d like to know who actually wants it before we commit coaches.
Right now we coach at Sugar Bowl, Mt Rose, Palisades Tahoe and Mammoth. Adding a mountain properly means having coaches who genuinely know it, not just coaches willing to drive there. That takes planning, which is why we’re asking now rather than in November.
Why a Mountain Mentorship day beats a resort private
This is not really about price, though the price is better. It’s about what a day is structured to achieve.
A full day, not a time slot
Resort privates are commonly sold in one, two or three-hour blocks, often finishing before the snow is any good. We’re with you from first lift to last, which is where progress compounds.
The same coach, every time
Book a resort private twice and you’ll likely get two different instructors, each starting from scratch. Ours is a relationship, so your coach remembers what you worked on in March.
Feedback as it happens
Intercom keeps the coaching continuous while you ski, CARV measures what your skis are actually doing, and your coach works through video with you afterwards. Instant, checkable and reviewable.
Your group, one price
$600 covers up to three people. Nobody gets paired with strangers, and a mixed-ability family can stay together instead of being split into classes.
What we mean by mentorship
A lesson fixes today. Mentorship is aimed at the season, and at the one after that.
The method is guided discovery. Rather than handing you a list of twelve corrections, your coach gives you one or two things to feel and puts you on terrain where the difference is obvious. It’s slower to describe and considerably faster to learn from, and it’s why our guests tend to still have it the following winter rather than losing it over the summer.
Alongside that you get someone who knows the mountain. Which aspect holds snow after a wind event, which lift to skip at 10am, where to take a nervous first-timer, which trees are worth the hike after a storm. A local coach saves you more of the day than most people expect.
The three mountains
Northstar
The most family-friendly of the three, with immaculate grooming, a well-run village and terrain that rewards people building confidence. It’s also the mountain where a resort private stings most, because peak-season rates are among the highest at Tahoe. Northstar’s tree skiing off the back side is underrated and genuinely worth having someone show you.
Kirkwood
The serious one. Kirkwood gets the most snow in the Tahoe basin and holds the steepest inbounds terrain, and it is not a mountain to figure out alone. The Wall, Chair 6, the cirque: these are places where local knowledge is the difference between the best day of your season and a frustrating one. If you want to be pushed, this is where we’d take you.
Heavenly
The biggest and most spread out, straddling the California and Nevada state line with the best views in the sport. Heavenly’s scale is its own problem, because it’s entirely possible to spend a day riding the wrong lifts and never find the good snow. A coach who knows how it links together changes the day completely.
Register your interest
Nothing below is a booking and nothing is charged. We’re gauging demand, and the resorts that get the most interest are the ones we’ll run. If we go ahead, this list hears first.
Register your interest early
These aren't bookable yet. We're measuring demand before committing coaches, so registering tells us where to go and puts you first in line. Spots will be very limited, and everyone on this list gets to book before we announce anything publicly.
Frequently asked questions
Is this bookable now?
No. These three mountains are not confirmed for 2026/27, and registering your interest is not a booking. If you want to ski with us this season, we’re already running at Sugar Bowl, Mt Rose, Palisades Tahoe and Mammoth.
What will it cost?
We expect the same structure as our other mountains, which is $600 for a full day covering up to three people, and $400 for a fourth guest. We’ll confirm before anyone books, and registering commits you to nothing.
Why ask instead of just launching?
Because adding a mountain properly means coaches who know it well, and that is a real commitment of time before a single day is sold. Demand tells us which of the three to do first, and whether to do all three.
Why will spots be limited?
We coach with a small team and we don’t intend to grow it quickly, since who does the coaching is the whole product. A new mountain realistically means a handful of coached days per week, not an open calendar.
Will these be private lessons?
They’ll be Mountain Mentorship days, which means skiing with a certified coach as your host and mentor. Formal instruction inside a resort is generally the ski school’s exclusive right, so a formal lesson at these mountains is booked through the resort. Our true private lessons run at Sugar Bowl.
Do you coach snowboarders?
Yes. Our coaches hold AASI snowboard certifications alongside PSIA alpine, and groups where some ski and some ride are completely normal.
What if my mountain isn’t on the list?
Tell us anyway in the notes field. If enough people ask for somewhere else, it goes on the list.
Skiing sooner? See everywhere we coach at Tahoe today, or browse the camps and guided trips we run further afield.