NASTAR

NASTAR uses the principle of time percentages to calibrate a skier's ability, a concept pioneered by France's Ecole de Ski Nationale Chamois program.

The NASTAR idea of adjusting a local pacesetter's time to a national standard was introduced in France 20 years later, in the winter of 1987–88.

The program, to which Fry applied the acronym NASTAR, was introduced in 1968 as a means to compare the performance of recreational ski racers at resorts across the United States, and later, for a time, in Australia, Canada, Scandinavia, Switzerland and Italy.

NASTAR courses are simple, open-gated giant slaloms on mostly intermediate terrain, allowing skiers of all abilities and ages to experience racing.

Every skier, regardless of ability or disability, can ski with a time referenced against the national champion, corrected for the specific resort and course conditions and his/her level.

Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze designations are based on performance in several races, relative to each racer's age, gender, and ability group.

While the appearance of each race venue may vary, the aforementioned criteria, particularly the consistent par time established by the pacesetter, contribute to result standardization.

Once the data is on the central database (usually by the end of a race day), it becomes publicly accessible, and racers can effortlessly view their performance history from different dates and resorts at any time.

For each division, the top 100 performers during the season in their respective age and gender group are invited to compete in the National Championship.

After the competition, Gold, Silver, and bronze medals are awarded to the fastest 3 racers by handicap in each division, gender and age group.

The National NASTAR Championship brings together over one thousand participants from the United States and Canada, of all ages and ability groups.

[1] Traditionally, ski instructor certification was based more on subjective assessment of form and technique rather than objective clock-based performance.

The Rocky Mountain Division of the PSIA includes the biggest ski resorts in the U.S., such as Vail, Aspen, Steamboat and Taos and has 6,000 members, half of which are certified as Level 3, the highest rating for an instructor.