Jay — twelve seasons on one mountain.

How I got here

I grew up an hour from Ellicottville and learned to ride at Holiday Valley when I was eleven. I taught my first lesson at HV as a college job. It stuck. I went from part-time night-school instructor to full-time, got serious about AASI certifications, and built this out as a direct-booking setup so the people I teach can actually find me.

What I enjoy most is the middle of a lesson when a rider feels something click — a first linked turn, a first confident blue, the first carve that stays carved. That's why I do this.

My teaching approach

I coach one thing at a time. Most riders already know most of what they need. The job is to find the one habit or fear that's blocking everything else, replace it, and drill the replacement until it's automatic. No yelling, no ego, no telling you how you should feel about the mountain.

I adapt pace to the rider. If you want to be pushed, I'll push. If you want confidence first and terrain second, we do that. If you're nervous, we name the fear, work around it, and come back to it when you're ready.