The IFMGA’s youngest member, the East European Mountain Guides Association, developed from the 3 to the 10 of January 2020 the “Avalanche and winter risk” and “Communication, Human Factors and Leadership” courses block. Run in the Carpathian Mountains in Romania. This is the second block in the aspirant guide’s formation which is designed based on the revised 2018 IFMGA Platform. The first block (Rescue and First aid) was held with support from the IFMGA and the Guide Alpine Friuli Venezia Giulia section of the CoNaGaI. This block was supported by the IFMGA through the presence of the president of the Technical Commission, Reiner Taglinger as well as the VDBS and SLF through the “Avalanche and winter risk” course director Ben Reuter from Germany and by the SBS through the “Communication, Human Factors and Leadership” course director Mike Wright from Sweden.
With EEMGA assistant instructors and visiting instructor Yaroslav Nikotin from the Kyrgyz Mountain Guide Association (through the IFMGA instructor exchange programme) the course-block has indeed an international flavor to be matched only by the diversity of the trainees: 5 from Bulgaria, 3 from Romania, 2 from Hungary, 2 from Poland and 1 from Czechia.
The next courses to be run this winter and spring are, in order: “Freeride and mechanised assisted skiing” (Bulgaria), “Ski touring in non-glaciated terrain” (Slovakia) and “Ski touring in glaciated terrain” (Austria).
Written by: Cosmin Andron, Technical Director of the East European Mountain Guides Association
