A career in the world of mechanics in a place that allows you to be in the middle of nature and to have fun outside too, is possible. Being a mechanic at Le Massif de Charlevoix means living your passion in a unique place. Discover this mountain job through the eyes of Stéphane Dupuis, vehicle mechanic.
A passion for mechanics is essential.
Stéphane has been working at Le Massif de Charlevoix for 1 year now. He was a motorcycle mechanic for several years and even self-employed. Although he is a mechanic at heart, hydraulics was unknown to him, which answered his need for a new challenge.
"No matter what your background is, the important thing is to be curious and manual, the rest comes quickly, especially in the atmosphere of Le Massif. There is a lot of mutual aid and a good sharing of knowledge. The people who work here are qualified and it's great to learn from them. We also have training with the company that produces our snow groomers, Prinoth" adds Stéphane.
Working at Le Massif is completely different from other jobs I've done before, including in shops. I wouldn't do my job anywhere else. The garage is in the middle of the forest and you get to work on the mountain a lot. Machine breakdowns, whether it's a groomer, snowmobile or whatever, usually happen in the mountain. I love having to leave in a Ski-Doo or four-wheeler with my tools and go outside to fix the problem.
No two days are alike
Stéphane's schedule is never the same. He has to respect a structure of maintenance and preventive maintenance, off-season, on the machines, but there is also an emergency management. The repair of certain machines that can affect the operation on the mountain is one of them, such as the breakage of a groomer that will directly influence the snow conditions. Stéphane works on the mechanics of light vehicles and snow groomers. "What I also like to do is to go do road tests on the machines I have repaired. In the winter, for example, I go on a skidoo into the mountain to make sure everything is working properly," says Stéphane.
Stéphane also mentions the difference of being a mechanic on the company's own fleet and not on other people's vehicles. "It's different because you're working in-house and you don't feel like you have to do the impossible to get as many customers as possible".
The mountain have a positive effect on your well-being
Stephane reports that the people they work with are a very important part of loving his job. "People have good vibes here, I've made some really good friends. The atmosphere is so pleasant. I really think that the mountain has a positive effect on the morale of the world, on their well-being. He confirms that a career in the mountains means living at the rhythm of the mountain, far from the stress". It is to have a scenery that is always different, but always as beautiful.
Beautiful working conditions
"We're really good here. We have good bosses, good autonomy and a good salary. Stéphane points out that having bosses who listen to him is an asset in loving his job. The tools are also new and there will soon be a metal lathe to create parts in-house and thus have greater autonomy. "There will be the possibility of improving our machines and innovating in our ways of doing things and that is very interesting".