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Ski Race Training.

If you’re feeling the need for speed, then be sure to head to The Snow Centre Manchester. Our ski race training classes can help you reach your full potential, making high-speed skiing a breeze. Through our ski race coaching, you will master techniques for increasing your speed and having more control, as well as learning some key strategies for competitive skiing race.

Ski Lessons for 11-16-Year-Olds

OUR APPROACH TO RACE SKILLS TRAINING.

Race skills training sessions are scheduled on a weekly basis on a Tuesday evening, with racers having exclusive use of the slope. Ski race coaching is perfect for getting your skiing level up to the highest standard and mastering the advanced techniques; we have the perfect tutors to take you to that next level here at The Snow Centre Manchester. Our Race Skills training programme provides a consistent framework for developing and assessing technical race skills over time.

The training sessions are divided strictly by age, as follows:

Adult Snowboard Day Lessons

JUNIOR RACE SKILLS (Under 12s).

*Tuesday 18:00 – 19:30

The junior race skills group is perfect for cultivating children’s enjoyment of skiing. It develops core technical skills that will underpin all-mountain skiing and provide an introduction to racing. The training targets four key technical areas: edge, pressure, rotation and coordination of steering.

The training runs in cycles of approximately two months, with the final week of the cycle acting as an assessment session. Coaches will regularly set race courses to enhance the development of slope skills and to help lay the foundations of competitive racing. To participate in Junior Race Skills (for children under 12), your child must have completed Level 6 in our kids ski lessons and received a recommendation to join Race Skills from their instructor.

Adult Ski Lessons

Learn More about our JUNIOR RACE SKILLS Sessions

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  • Advanced, plough parallel turns
  • Use a poma drag lift unaided
  • Be able to control their speed on blue slopes, using a variety of rounded turn sizes, with their skis mainly parallel
  • Be aged 7 years and over
  • In the event of any age discrepancies, you will be required to provide proof of age. This must be provided physically, showing official photographic documentation i.e. a passport. Photographs of documents will not be accepted. We ultimately have a duty of care to ensure the right guests are on the right sessions.

Please see information for parents here.

Race assessment skills criteria can be found here.

If your child is under 7, we have a specific 4-6-year-old skills development session on Tuesdays before Race Skills. This session is run by one of our Race Coaches and is designed and scheduled to be a preparation session for race skills.

For children aged under 12, skills development and fun outside of race gates are extremely important. Junior Race Skills (Under 12’s) trainees will ski different courses and may have less slalom course/race gate time than the Senior Race Skills (12+) group.

Children participating in Junior Race Skills (Under 12’s) will only be permitted to participate in Senior Race Skills (12+) when they are at least 12 years old and have been recommended by their coach.

Junior Race Skills (Under 12’s) will always be coached according to each child’s development (physically, socially and technically) to ensure every child is being developed at their own pace.

Please respect the professional view of the coaches and understand that race skills sessions are the most advanced training group of a broader skiing development pathway for The Snow Centre Manchester guests.

Due to school holidays and GCSE assessment evenings, on some evenings we won't be running our regular race training sessions.

For the 2025/26 winter season, we won't be running race training on:

  • 28th October 2025 - Due to the October half-term, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 18th November 2025 - Due to a Disability Snowsport UK event, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 23rd December 2025 - Due to the Christmas holidays, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 30th December 2025 - Due to the Christmas holidays, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 6th January 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 3rd February 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 10th February 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 17th February 2026 - Due to the February half-term, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 17th March 2026 - Due to a Disability Snowsport UK event, race training sessions will not be running.

JUNIOR RACE SKILLS Sessions

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Junior Race Skills - Ski (Under 12s) 1½ Hr
90 Mins
Time 1½ hour
7-11 Years
Age 7-11
From £35.00
Junior Intro to Race (Ages 7-11)
An introduction session to racing for 7-11 Year olds.
90 Mins
Time 1½ hour
7-11 Years
Age 7-11 Years
From £35.50
Junior Intro to Race (Ages 12-16)
An introduction session to racing for 12-16 Year olds.
90 Mins
Time 1½ hour
AGE 12-16 Years
From £45.00
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SENIOR RACE SKILLS (12+).

*Tuesday 19:45 – 21:45

A ski group for adults and children aged 12+ that focuses on alpine ski racing*. Senior Race Skills (12+) comprises two groups as follows:

Performance Group – This group focuses on utilising race techniques to develop advanced ski skills further.
Competitive Race Group – This group is focused on competitive racing, with training for competitions held in the UK and overseas.

The training runs in cycles of approximately two months, with a specific theme focus for each cycle. Themes are rotated to motivate trainees, develop skill levels and enhance performance at the competition level. We plan to run timed races through a course every two months, with results being recorded and tracked by coaches so that progress is continually monitored.

Become a Ski Instructor

Learn More about our SENIOR RACE SKILLS Sessions

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To participate in Senior Race Skills (12+), participants need to be able to demonstrate the following:

  • Use a Poma drag lift unaided.
  • Be able to control their speed on blue slopes, using a variety of rounded turn sizes, with their skis remaining parallel throughout.
  • Perform a basic parallel stop/hockey stop (both left and right).
  • In the event of any age discrepancies, you will be required to provide proof of age. This must be provided physically, showing official photographic documentation i.e. a passport. Photographs of documents will not be accepted. We ultimately have a duty of care to ensure the right guests are on the right sessions.

* In consultation with Snowsport England, junior racers who turn 12 years of age within the GBR calendar year, i.e. 1st April to 31 March, will be allowed to ski full gates at the senior session.

We will now use the timing kit on a monthly basis. Dates are as follows:

  • Tuesday 14/10/25
  • Tuesday 18/11/25
  • Tuesday 16/12/25

**Please note these dates are subject to change.

Due to school holidays and GCSE assessment evenings, on some evenings we won't be running our regular race training sessions.

For the 2025/26 winter season, we won't be running race training on:

  • 28th October 2025 - Due to the October half-term, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 18th November 2025 - Due to a Disability Snowsport UK event, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 23rd December 2025 - Due to the Christmas holidays, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 30th December 2025 - Due to the Christmas holidays, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 6th January 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 3rd February 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 10th February 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 17th February 2026 - Due to the February half-term, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 17th March 2026 - Due to a Disability Snowsport UK event, race training sessions will not be running.

Senior RACE SKILLS Sessions

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Senior Race Skills - Ski (12+)(Adult)
Race Training for 12+ Years.
2 Hours
Time 2 Hours
age 17 plus
AGE 17+
From £55.00
Senior Race Skills - Ski (12+)(Junior)
Race Training for 12 years old.
2 Hours
Time 2 Hours
Age 12-16 Years
From £45.00
Intro to Race (17+) (Adult)
An introduction session to racing for Adults.
2 Hours
Time 2 Hours
age 17 plus
Age 17+ Years
From £55.00
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snow activities
Learn from the best.

Our ski race coaching instructors make each training session intuitive and challenging to foster progression and advances in technique, passing on their in-depth knowledge to ensure you get the most from each lesson.

snowboarding equipment
Want to give it a go?

Are you already a competent skier and feel like you want to push yourself to participate in a race, but are not sure how to approach it? Check out our Give It a Go Race challenge, where you can get an introduction to slalom and ease yourself into it.

Annual Membership
Developing new skills.

Ski race training at The Snow Centre gives you all the skills you need to develop and feel comfortable skiing at the highest level.

Adult Beginner Snowboard Lessons
Food and refreshments.

After enjoying all the slopes have to offer, head to The Lodge Bar & Kitchen, the perfect place to sit back and enjoy a taste of the Alps.

BECOME A SKI INSTRUCTOR.

If you’re comfortable skiing at the highest level, why not consider making skiing a career? With just one qualification, you can join our team of expert instructors and pass on your passion, knowledge and speed to the next generation of budding skiers. Learn how to become a ski instructor at The Snow Centre Manchester.

Find out more
Become a Ski Instructor
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TESTIMONIALS

See what our customers had to say about their time at The Snow Centre Manchester:

Bob T

“Great lessons with experienced instructors who put kids and parents at their ease. The lessons were full as it was half term, but each child still didn’t have to wait too long between turns on the slope. It was easy to get and return equipment and the food in the restaurant was great and came promptly.”

Sue L

“Easy access from M1. Plenty of parking, simple registration, and quick service to collect skis, boots etc. Both lifts serving the main slopes worked faultlessly and although the session was quite busy I felt the slopes were quite free of other skiers classes. I particularly liked the snow conditions and at the end enjoyed the amazing cafè overlooking the slopes. Reasonably priced menu. All told an excellent start to our skiing this year.”

Wayne M

“Very friendly staff. Good, clean facilities and very good prices on lessons lift passes.”

Molina K

“We booked a beginners group ski lesson for 4 people and we had such a good time. Our ski instructor was Stuart T and from start to finish he was super helpful and encouraging. We would 100% recommend learning with him and are looking forward to going back again so that we can progress further.”

img testimonials CetgsZwB

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OUR EVENTS.

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Thu 29 Jan

Freestyle Features - 1 Line

Freestyle
Thu 29 Jan

Freestyle Features - 1 Line

Tue 03 Feb

No Race Training - GCSE Sessions

Race
Tue 03 Feb

No Race Training - GCSE Sessions

Thu 05 Feb

Freestyle Features - 1 Line

Freestyle
Thu 05 Feb

Freestyle Features - 1 Line

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FAQs.

Find all the answers to commonly asked questions about The Snow Centre.

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Due to school holidays and GCSE assessment evenings, on some evenings we won't be running our regular race training sessions.

For the 2025/26 winter season, we won't be running race training on:

  • 28th October 2025 - Due to the October half-term, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 18th November 2025 - Due to a Disability Snowsport UK event, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 23rd December 2025 - Due to the Christmas holidays, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 30th December 2025 - Due to the Christmas holidays, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 6th January 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 3rd February 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 10th February 2026 - Due to GCSE assessments, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 17th February 2026 - Due to the February half-term, race training sessions will not be running.
  • 17th March 2026 - Due to a Disability Snowsport UK event, race training sessions will not be running.

There are many clubs across the UK that organise ski racing events and provide training. If you're looking to take up ski racing as a hobby, you'll learn everything you need to know here at The Snow Centre Manchester.

No! Our Senior Race Skills class starts at age 12 and up; our junior programme caters for 7- to 11-year-olds who can learn how to ski race under the guidance of our coaches. 

Our ski racing coaching class is split into two groups: the Junior Race Skills class for ages 7-11 runs for 1 hour and 30 minutes, and the Senior Race Skills class for ages 12+ runs for 2 hours. 

COME JOIN US

AT THE SNOW CENTRE.

Whether you’re looking for an adult skiing lesson or looking to give the family a fun day out, our team can handle any and all lessons. If you have any questions about booking an event or any of our services, please contact us, and a member of our team will be happy to help.

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