• THE   ICE   TEAM
    Training exclusively from BASI Trainers
I worked on the ICE course for many years coaching slalom. The ICE team comprises a hugely experienced team of BASI Trainers and run a very professional course. I very much enjoyed working them.
Alain Baxter
Olympic Bronze medallist

Our Team

At the heart of the ICE training program is its highly experienced team of BASI Trainers.

Qualified to the top level and with many years experience training instructors, racers and recreational skiers to the highest level, the standard of training available on all ICE courses is second to none.


James Duffield

BASI Trainer/Director

James has been instructing in Val d'Isere for almost 10 years and now lives in the Tarentaise Valley below Val d’Isere in the village of Séez with his family. 

He has taught skiing at a recreational level for the entirety of his professional ski teaching career but in addition to this, he has also been a coach for several training centres that develop the skills of instructors towards all levels of the BASI pathway. He has worked closely with other nationalities and their training systems through his time in New Zealand, in a multinational ski school environment and frequently running ski school training for the staff. 

He is now one of the directors of ICE where he brings all of this past experience together and is able to pass this onto any of the instructors or skiers that come to train with ICE.

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Like all our coaches James also works with the British Association of Snowsports Instructors as a trainer which he has done since the age of 23. He assesses instructors working towards any level of the BASI system. In this role, where he refines the teaching techniques of others and coaches to a very high technical level, he is able to reflect continuously on his own instructing and develop new innovative teaching ideas to then use in all of his own sessions.

James has skied and worked in the Southern Hemisphere in Treble Cone, New Zealand, as well as across the Alps in Courmayeur (Italy), Verbier (Switzerland) and Megeve and Chamonix before settling in Val d’Isere, for his 15th winter season.

When not on the slopes, James spends the summers working as a brand ambassador with Jaguar-Land Rover and working with the team at ICE to prepare everything for the next winter in Val d’Isere. In his free time, he loves to cycle, play tennis and spend as much time as possible with his family in Séez where he has just become a Dad to his first son George!

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Rupert Tildesley

BASI Trainer/Director

It seems a long way from Cornwall, but for the last 26 seasons Val d'Isère has been home for Rupert Tildesley. Qualified to the highest level in both the British and French systems, Rupert is one of the most experienced top level ski coaches in the world. He is a BASI Trainer and former member of the British Demonstration ski Team and has represented Great Britain at the International Ski Instructors Congress (Interski) in Switzerland 2003, Korea 2007, Austria 2011, Argentina 2015 and Bulgaria 2019.The purpose of the congress is to raise the levels of Ski Instruction internationally and to share teaching methods across the globe.

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Rupert competes on the FIS Masters World Cup and won the British Masters Championships in Giant Slalom in 2009 and Slalom in 2010

He was involved with the rewriting of the BASI Technical Manual, drawing on considerable experience and technical knowledge of the sport.

Outside of skiing, Rupert is a keen kitesurfer, cyclist and sailor. He campaigned a 49er on the Sailing World Cup and at best had a world ranking of 133 ISAF World Cup Tour and was the first person to complete a land to land crossing of the Irish Sea by kitesurf (c.f www.thecrossing.org.uk).

Rupert is also managing director of Saturn Innovation Ltd, web design and multimedia company. Saturn Innovation are one of the biggest names on the marketing side of the ski industry having designed many skiing related websites, including this one and www.mountain-masters.com. To find out more about Saturn Innovation go to www.saturninnovation.com

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Mark Jones

BASI Trainer/Director

Mark is at the pinnacle of ski instruction. He trains, assesses and examines Ski instructors through all levels of Instructor qualification. This uniquely places him at the cutting edge of what is happening in Ski Coaching globally. He is a BASI Trainer and former member of the British Demonstration ski Team and represented the UK at the International Ski Instructors Congress in Norway in 1999 and Switzerland in January 2003, Austria 2011 and Bulgaria 2019. The purpose of the congress is to raise the levels of Ski Instruction internationally and to share teaching methods across the globe.

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Mark started skiing at the age of four when living in Italy and used to race to a high level until the age of seventeen. Mark has worked as a ski teacher for the last 20 years and has worked all over Europe as well as Australia. He has been based in Val d'lsere for the last 18 years.

Off the slopes, Mark was the technical editor of Ski and Board Magazine for many years and was responsible for writing the technical articles on how to improve your skiing and also reviewing the equipment for the forthcoming season. There are few people that know more than Mark about ski technique and equipment. He is on hand to provide advice throughout the course on equipment and set up.

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Rupert Goldring

BASI Trainer

Rupert Goldring's skiing career began in earnest at the age of three, donning strap-on skis to descend a modest slope in his parents' garden in Rutland. Family ski holidays in Europe spawned an obsession with mountains generally and skiing specifically. Rupert would dream his way through school exams in the comfort that his vocation was already a certainty. After university, he spurned his books and headed to the Alps. 15 years later, he is still there.

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Now one of the world's most respected coaches, Rupert is qualified to the top level, and is a Race Coach (APC2). He is also a trainer for the British Association of Snowsports Instructors, coaching and examining would-be ski teachers. Rupert has taught in Switzerland and Courchevel, and was Ski School Supervisor in Queenstown, New Zealand. But as he first cut his teeth in L'Espace Killy, so he returned 8 years ago. It is an area Rupert deems unsurpassable.

Rupert now lives full time in L'Espace Killy. Summers are spent mountaineering, reading, watching cricket.

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Lynn Mill

BASI Trainer

Lynn represented GB on the international race circuit for 10 years achieving many championship titles and international podiums.  In 2011 she was awarded UKCP’s Children’s coach of the year following her roles at the British Ski Academy and British Children’s Team. Since then, Lynn has spent 12 years teaching year round in the Alps working with clients of all abilities and ages. She has been a BASI trainer for 11 years and is a 3-time member of the BASI demo team.  When she is not skiing, Lynn enjoys mountain biking on the same slopes she skis in winter.

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Dougie Mill

BASI Trainer

Dougie is from Scotland and started skiing through his high school at the age of 12. After quickly learning the required skills, he started racing for his school. During this time, he was skiing with his local scout group gaining the Scout Advanced Instructors Award in 1999. This gave him a taste of being responsible for others on the mountain. Dougie started gaining his teaching qualifications by gaining his level 2 qualification with ICE in February 2005, this qualification gave him work opportunities with lots of different clubs, organisations and companies. He continued to undertake the necessary modules necessary to complete the International Ski Instructor Diploma (ISTD) in 2010 and started delivering courses for BASI (British Association of Snowsports Instructors) in 2015.

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For the past 11 years he has been based in Val d'Isere, firstly working for New Generation Ski & Snowboard School, but also with different race clubs and organisations like the British Children's Team, The Telegraph Ski and Board Magazine, Podium (Instructor Race Training Programme) and the British Disabled Snowsports Team as an assistant coach.  Dougie likes to ski the whole mountain in all styles, from introducing the sport to beginners, to ski touring into the vast off piste of Val d'Isere and Tignes. Working with different types of students really helps to keep things fresh and makes every session different for him.

In his free time during the winter, he enjoys ski touring, and searching for different ski lines and powder snow. If the conditions don’t suit off piste, he’ll be found training his technical abilities on the piste, in the park, or through the moguls. During the summer months, Dougie spends as much free time as possible on his mountain bike and really enjoys spending time in the great outdoors.

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Renelle Mortimer

BASI Trainer

Co-founder of Alliance Snowboarding Ltd (2006) and now founder of Fresh Snowboarding was born and bred on the beautiful beaches of Australia's Sunshine Coast. Her affinity for the European mountains began on a one week holiday to the French Alps in 1994. Completing 17 full winters (or 6.5 years in total) playing on her snowboard, Renelle is now among the worlds leading coaches.

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Having attained the highest level Snowboard Instructor qualifications, Renelle is the only woman ever invited to the role of BASI Trainer (British Association of Snowsports Instructors). Renelle has attained Level 4 ISTD and has over 14 years coaching experience. When the snow melts, Renelle can be found on the west coast of France near Hossegor, surfing one of the world's ultimate beach breaks.

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Ben Arkley

BASI Trainer

Ben has an unsurpassed depth of ski knowledge, with a passion for those dreaded moguls! Ben started skiing at the age of 7, at The Oval dry ski slope. After many ski holidays and after completing his first instructor courses, Ben starting working for the Interski Snowsports School at the age of 18. Since then Ben has completed a whopping 23 winter seasons, 12 of which were continuous between New Zealand, Europe and America, which makes him the most experienced seasonnaire at Ultimate Snowsports!

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Alongside his full ISTD teaching qualification, Ben also holds the trainer qualification. He is an examiner for the British Association of Snowsports Instructors and is highly respected within the organisation. In his free time he is keen to keep active by cycling or playing squash, yet he is not averse to winding down the hours sat back in a comfy chair watching non-stop sport!

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Craig Halliday

BASI Trainer

Craig has been working as a BASI trainer for 5 seasons delivering courses across the Alps and Scotland. He has a vast range of experience for you to draw from when it comes to preparing students for BASI exams as he has trained instructors right through to completing the BASI Level 4 qualification. 

Craig has been based in Val d’Isere for 11 years and knows the resort very well. This means knowing where to find the best slopes, and conditions not only for training for exams but all the fun and varied off-piste spots that Val d’Isere has to offer. 

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Olivier Renassia

BASI Trainer

Having been passionate about gliding sports forever, I now split my year in two in order to make the most of what has inspired me for so many years. The mountain in winter and the ocean in summer. I arrived in Val d'Isère in 1999 and I will be very happy to make you discover the jewels of this wonderful resort that has motivated me to stay in this valley all this time.

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Whether it is skiing, touring, snowboarding or telemarking, I will endeavour to find fun ways to make you progress or discover the joys of gliding.

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Tom Gregory

BASI Trainer

Tom started doing winter seasons in 2005 in the Aosta Valley (Italy) and has also spent time in New Zealand during the Southern Hemisphere winter seasons.

He moved to Tignes in 2011 and has been based there ever since.
He has been a BASI trainer since 2020.

During the Summer months, He works at several music and sporting events and likes to spend as much time on his bike as he can!

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Unparalleled pass rates.

ICE provides world class training exclusively with BASI Trainers. This provides an important connection between training and examination which, in turn, produces unparalleled pass rates.

BASI Level 1
100%
BASI Level 2
85%
BASI Level 3
75%

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