A Degree of High Adventure

Adventure Sports Degree students ran a High Ropes sessions for a school group as part of their qualification to become instructors.

Degree Course Manager, Simon Nortcliffe commented, “we have all the facilities and equipment of a major outdoor centre; this is just one of the ways we make our students more employable. Our academic programme complements the practical programme, we have all the coaching qualifications built into the practical’s as well such as Mountain Leader, British Canoe Union Coaching 1 and 2, Single Pitch and Climbing Wall Award are offered each term with up to a 60% discount. The High Ropes sign off is a free course we offer.”

Judging by the smiles, laughter and the odd scream the visiting school group enjoyed it as much as the Degree Student Instructors, who appreciate that this may well lead onto paid work with Reaseheath.

“We don’t offer everyone a part time job,” confirmed Simon, “but virtually everyone being assessed to work on the High Ropes course today has done paid work for Reaseheath and this extra course will give them even more opportunities.”

DSCN0810

DSCN0779

DSCN0805

 

 

 

Expedition to the Haunted Mountain

Legends of an ancient ghost, -11 Centregrade and 60mph winds didn’t put Adventure Sports students off their Winter Skills trip to the Cairngorms, Scotland.

Mick Keeling, International Expedition leader, said “Students learnt how to use ice axes and crampons, the snow had refrozen to a solid form we call ‘neve’, meaning a slip on steep ground could be very serious. Ice and steep snow fields meant the really used their new skills. We also looked at winter climbing skills such as bucket seat belays and snow bollards. We even built survival shelters in the snow.”

In the evening the group attended lectures on avalanche detection and rescue at Glenmore Lodge, the National Outdoor Training Centre. They also looked a winter navigation and how to choose routes with reduced avalanche risk.

Chris Tym, Mountaineering Instructor, who led the weeklong trip, took a team to Ben Machdui, the UK’s second highest summit.

“The summit is meant to be home to a giant grey spectre, called Fearlas Mor in Gaelic or the Big Grey Man in English. Climbers report a feeling of dread and fear in his presence” whispered Chris.

Laughing Chris stated, “I’ve worked around these mountains for years and I have never seen or felt anything. It’s a tough and remote peak, possibly the wildest place in the UK, I guess that might play on climbers minds?”

See http://www.biggreyman.co.uk/legend.html for more information on the Fearlas Mor!

DSCN0073

DSCN0083

Cairngorms National Park

Cairngorms National Park

DSCN0105

DSCN0087

Coaching Adventure

Extended Diploma Adventure Sports Students lead beginner groups canoeing on the colleges’ 3 acres lake. Mick Keeling Level 3 Canoe Coach assessed them as part of their BTEC in Adventure Sports. “I heard lots of laughter from the group and the Student Instructor seemed to be enjoying himself, but the most important part was the beginners were safe. With our resources such as the lake, fleets of canoe’s, kayaks and sailing boats, we can offer our students a real head start in becoming instructors.”

In May the students get the chance to complete the British Canoe Union Coaching Qualification, Mick has already assessed them for their Canoe Star Awards.

Instructor Mick Keeling

Alpe d’Huez Adventure Sports study tour

Level 3 Adventure Sports students and Richard Hathway having a powder day with ESF ski instructor in Alp d'Huez on the annual adventure sports ski trip

Level 3 Adventure Sports students and Richard Hathway having a powder day with ESF ski instructor in Alp d’Huez on the annual adventure sports ski trip

During January, twenty four students Adventure Sports students and three staff had the opportunity to spend a week in the resort of Alpe d’Huez, situated high in the Central Alps of France. The group travelled with Ski Plan and stayed in Club Hotel Beausoleil, a large hotel catering for schools and colleges right on the slopes of the resort. The hotel staff were friendly and accommodating, providing good food for ravenous appetites and nightly après-ski entertainment.

Ecole du Ski Francais organised the time on the slopes. The students were split into groups according to their level of ability and spent all day exploring some, if not all, of the 280 kilometres of runs on the mountain! The instructors encouraged beginners to gain confidence and progress quickly whilst enabling the advanced skiers and boarders to hone their skills both on the piste and in the park.

Conditions at the resort were mainly good with blue sky and all runs open. Only on a couple of days did the mountain show its more dangerous side with strong winds and icy patches which caused a few tumbles!

The group were able to learn about the winter tourism industry as well as spend plenty of time on the slopes developing their skiing and snowboarding skills. It was a great opportunity to see how a winter sports trip is organised and to experience life in a resort, including the reality of hard work and long days. A previous Adventure Sports Extended Diploma student was already working at the Hotel and, judging by the enjoyment of the week, there will be more to follow.

Here’s a short clip of student Josh Cook on the slopes…

Adventure Sports lecturer volunteers with Rescue Team

Adventure Sports lecturer and instructor Matthew Daily-Hunt uses his outdoor expertise as a member of Staffordshire Search and Rescue Team.  SSART is a team of dedicated volunteers with specialist training to locate and rescue missing people anywhere in Staffordshire.  They train and work with the police and ambulance service to enhance their search and rescue efforts.

During the recent heavy snowfall Matthew and other SSART volunteers used the team’s 4×4 vehicles to support West Midlands Ambulance Service in the Staffordshire Moorlands where they helped recover stuck ambulances, transported essential medical personnel to hospital and responded to 999 emergencies in remote locations.

Tim Reeves, Head of Adventure Sports, Uniformed and Public Services said, “Matthew’s skill as a mountaineer, mountain bike leader and rock climbing instructor make him valuable to the Rescue Team. With his Rescue training he brings a whole new level into our college team.”

For more information on the team go to www.SSART.org or ask Matthew, who wears his badge with pride!

ssart adventure sports matthew daily-hunt

Survival School Skills and then the World!

Mick Keeling used his international expedition skills and two decades of army experience to teach Reaseheath Public and Uniformed Services students survival skills.

Survival skills“The students paddled canoes along a flooded river”, explained Mick, who taught Survival Skills in Bavaria for the army. “Then they made emergency shelters using only the equipment they had and learnt how to light fires. They even made some simple food using a stove.”

“Despite the floods and wet weather the students managed to deal with every incident and learnt how it’s not just about surviving but doing it comfortably”.

Mick’s skills are much in demand. While not working at Reaseheath he trains leaders for World Challenge Expeditions who have just asked him to fly out to Peru to train Expeditions Guides. Reaseheath students benefit from Micks skills and qualifications, he leads student trips on rivers and mountains in Scotland, Wales and Cumbria, this year he is leading a student expedition to North Africa.

“We’ll be climbing the highest peak in North Africa and traveling through desert regions, even though we’ll only be a few hours flight from Europe it’s a different world, high mountain huts, ancient markets and the ruins of lost cities”.

Greg Houghton, Public and Uniformed Services Course Manager added, “Experienced NCO’s and Expedition Leaders like Mick are brilliant on courses like ours. Those decades of experience,  rank and qualification  make a real difference to our students giving them the real skills you need to work in a public or uniformed service. No other college can offer students experience like this!”

survival skills

survival skills

Self Defence, Rope Rescue Skills and abseiling into buildings?

These are all part of the practical skills Uniformed and Public Services students have been learning in January.

Former Warrant Officer, Shropshire Light Infantry, Mick Keeling took a group of students to the Lee Mathews British Military Martial Arts Academy.

“They learnt how to deal with a bigger attacker and suppress an assault” described Mick Keeling, who after teaching Survival Skills and Adventure Training in Bavaria for the Army works for Reaseheath and leads international expeditions.

The next week the students looked at Improvised Rope Rescues and abseiling. Greg Houghton, Uniformed and Public Services course manager described it, “They might find themselves having to use ropes to rescue people who have got onto steep, dangerous ground or to abseil into a building to resolve an incident. At Reaseheath we have the specialised staff to teach survival or ropes skills. In their second year they’ll get extra training for Dog Handling and Horses. That is what is so great about Reaseheath, we have such specialised staff and resources to make our courses exciting and increase student’s employability.”

Public Services lesson

Public Services lesson

Public Services lesson

    Public Services lesson         Public Services lesson

What do you do at weekends when your job is instructing Adventure Sports?

Simon Wells, full-time instructor in the Adventure Sports team, and Dalton, a recent Reaseheath graduate and now on the team as a part-time instructor, wanted to spend the weekend climbing winter routes in Snowdonia but the sudden thaw had made them unsafe.

The pair are preparing for a nine day climbing trip that will focus on the major winter climbing routes on the North Face of Ben Nevis.

They ended up at a ‘Dry Tooling’ crag, called White Goods in North Eastern Wales.

Dalton

Reaseheath Adventure Sports graduate, Dalton

“We both wanted to climb, but it was too warm for ice and too wet for rock, so dry tooling was the answer”, explained Mountaineering Instructor Simon Wells.

Dry tooling is using axes and crampons to hook over tiny edges of rock or torque  the blade into cracks. It developed from the super hard continental routes on mixed ice and rock, hence the M grade for mixed is used to show how hard the route is. Dry tooling is ice climbing without the ice!

Despite being involved in Winter Climbing for over 20 years Simon has only dry tooled a few times before. It wasn’t the first time dry tooling for Dalton either.

“When I was a Reaseheath student we did a dry tooling workshop on our Winter Skills trip with Adam Hughes, who is sponsored by Edelrid.”

“I whipped Simon” laughed Dalton, “he fell off the first route and couldn’t get over the main overhang on the second route!”

Simon muttered something about it being graded at M7, before admitting it was great to see a former student climbing so well.

Adventure Sports instructor Simon

Adventure Sports instructor Simon

“I trained and assessed Dalton for his Climbing Wall Award. He also came on one of my Rock Climbing Master Classes and went from not getting up English 6C to doing it with no hands!  It’s fantastic to see him climbing so well, it’s the best reward as a climbing instructor to see your students improving so much.”

“What was great about today was Dalton coaching me by using some of the techniques from our Rock Climbing Master Classes. His feedback helped me to improve my dry tooling. As a climbing coach I learn a lot from trying new and harder forms of climbing. I can bring more to my groups and it helps me relearn by applying it in a harsher environment.”

In Simon’s defence he was climbing  6C+ a few days before and he wanted to preserve his strength for a degree student Master Class in indoor lead climbing the next day.  At least that’s what he told us!!!

RHES visit London Zoo

On Saturday 9th February the Reaseheath Herpetological and Entomological Society (RHES) took the four hour journey down to London Zoo (ZSL) to go behind the scenes at herpetology and BUGS.  This behind the scenes tour gave students the opportunity to see the valuable work that zoological collections are doing to conserve reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates but the side that the public don’t get to see. This included research rooms and areas under development.

The tours also gave students the chance to speak to key members of both departments about how they got to where they are now and what their plans are for the future. RHES are currently redesigning the leaf cutter ant enclosure at Reaseheath Zoo so they took the opportunity to ask questions about what works for London Zoo and how it could be improved to help them with their design.

RHES with Ben Tapely Team Leader of Herpetology

RHES with Ben Tapely Team Leader of Herpetology

 

 

Combined Training

To enter our next Combined Training event on Sunday 28th January 2018, please enter online http://bit.ly/RHC_EquineEvents or contact 01270 616482 or email equineevents@reaseheath.ac.uk.

Click here for an entry form.