UKC

Has anyone done their SPA Assessment at PYB? If so, can you provide any details on what it was like, where you did your two days etc.

In reply to charlieboy: I just remember being under Louise Thomas's spell for two whole days, that and being asked if I would be kind enough to partner an equally gorgeous PYB "student" staff member for the duration of the course ! And I passed.

In reply to charlieboy: Consider also Plas Menai, where I did my ML and SPSA. Very good, slightly cheaper, also comfortably residential and with a lot of the same assessors/trainers as Plas y Brenin.
http://www.plasmenai.co.uk/course_category.php?cid=10

In reply to Mike Conlon: No idea which crags you visited?

In reply to charlieboy: Last summer, I saw a PYB group doing their assessment at Craig Y Tonnau. I think it will depend on the instructor and the conditions in the whole area

In reply to charlieboy:

Did my training with an outfit based in Bethesda, I think, and then the assessment with PyB, as couldn't get booked in anywhere else. I thought the assessment was fine and the instructor staff I had were pretty good.

In reply to LastBoyScout: Can you remember which crags you visited as I plan to visit Snowdonia before my assessment for a look round?

In reply to Big Steve: Thanks for the information.

In reply to charlieboy:

We went to Hollyhead Mountain, Cromlech Slabs and a small crag at the back of the church in Capel Curig.

Weather was absolute shiv, blowing a gale and soaking wet.
Assessed by Louise Turner made a cock up of setting up the abseil but did again the next day and passed!

Don't worry about where you're likely to be, if you know your stuff you'll be fine!

Good luck
W

In reply to charlieboy: We had a half hour walk to a pleasant crag on the first day,sorry but the name escapes me. On the second day we enjoyed ourseves on Tryfan Bach although Ollie Saunders sandbagged me just as I was starting to relax into thinking of a possible pass. I would thorougly recommend PYB but I don't have anything to compare with. The atmosphere, accomodation, standard of instruction/ assessment etc, etc were all first rate when I attended in the mid/late nineties. I am trying to wangle my employers paying for a further course if that is additional recommendation. I found the assessment very fair and recognising the candidates working environment. I work with kids who are locked up so for security reasons we have the benefit of very small ratios of staff:student. I was up front about not knowing how to occupy a large group of kids on my own and they were fine about that. I learned so much but was impressed by the instructors' apparent willingness to learn from the candidates where appropriate.If you have any thing specific that I might help with please ask. Good luck and enjoy.

In reply to charlieboy: Yeah, I did my assessment with PyB, really good. I had Louise Thomas who was an excellent assessor. I have heard of assessors failing people/picking people up for stupid things like using cams. At PyB you know the instructors are proper climbers, so will be fair.
We went to Willies crag in Ogwen, the Pinnacles in Capel Curig and Holyhead mountain.
Sam