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stevo - pretty much everything except the board!
Geoff - Cervinia is definitely a good shout for early April. Whilst The runs in Cervinia are less challenging there is a lovely long run from the top of the Keine Matterhorn down in to Valtournenche - 15km I think- punctuated by only a 200m chair! You also have the benefits of access to Zermatt.
Cervinia is pretty much perfect for beginners/early intermediates. Most of the runs are wide, long and relatively gentle. A definite confidence building place.
Something new being built up at the top of the Cucumelle!
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Oh, and first snow, too! WOOOOO!
For anyone heading to Serre Che, head straight for the Cucumelle. Long, brilliant red to warm up the legs, or all sorts of slack country fun either side of the piste.
Oh, and a nice place to have a coffee mid way down the mountain!
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The lift in the background is the brilliant, and fast Vallons lift that whisks you up from just below right to the top. Lots of options below the coffee stop, too.
We were playing at Euro carving last season while waiting for the snow to come - my tip is don't forget to close your arm cuffs.
Flights booked for Whilster - yay! Back country guides in Japan already fully booked – booo!
Anyone recommend me back country guides out of Hirafu/Niseko other than Black Diamond? Split boarding out of resort rather than lift assisted stuff.
On the construction topic, rumours of a new lift linking the Chavannes side to the Mont Chery mid-station in Les Gets. There's certainly a dirty great construction going in, though what it actually is and when it will be finished...
Interestingly it's bang on the line of the red egg (when we were there in August they were piling down the side of one of the red egg towers) which makes me wonder if (assuming it is a new lift) it will be possible to transfer off the red egg on to it.
http://morzinesourcemagazine.com/les-gets-new-chavannes-mont-chery-lift-work-begins/
Had to Google Euro carving
Uhuh
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Or as I call it euro-losing-an-edge-and-wiping-out
To be honest, when I watched a YouTube video on it I thought it was a piss take!
Wallop - it is. I mean how can you see where the next bar /restaurant is when your heads that close to the ground?
And are those in line bindings and plastic boots? Practically skiing.
Does anyone have any ideas about who/where/what for me doing a week in Jan by myself? Only I am going with the lad end Feb, but am desperate for a week somewhere first and all the people I know are going with families etc.
I know there are companies who do solo stuff, but looking for advice. I want to be involved with other ideally.
( I do have friends....honest! :()
What's your standard rockape? Fancy a week being challenged off-piste?
Edit: just seen this:
going with the lad
Which makes no difference, I guess! No idea how old you both are! Do you both fancy a week being challenged off-piste?
Asking because the only trip I've done on my own was to La Grave, stayed in a hostel and spent 9 days swapping between riding with Tina and Francky at Band of Boarders, and Didi and Fred at Snowlegends, depending on which groups were doing what.
Utterly shattered by the end. Every day was a big day! Absolutely incredible trip, though.
[i]What's your standard rockape? Fancy a week being challenged off-piste?[/i]
(meant to say 'going with the lads' end Feb)
well I'm a skier, not boarder, so that probably rools that out?
Nope. I rode with skiiers all the time I was with Snowlegends. Because it's a place where you need a guide unless you know the place, it's well set up for joining groups - enough other singles, pairs, small groups looking to do the same thing and share the cost of a guide.
http://www.snowlegend.com/snowlegend-ecole-freeride-la-grave/index.php?lng=en
@piemonster - Great, see you there, I'll be the terrible skier in the bright blue Oakley jacket with a group of about 14 other Brit skiers of all kinds of levels 🙂
Staying in the Le Village if you have noisy neighbours, my apologies!
@Rockape63 A guy from work went with [url= http://www.skiclub.co.uk/ ]UK Ski club[/url] at somepoint to ease the solo trip problems and he said it worked out well.
Rockape have a look at Snowheads, lots of singles & ideas on there, plus several resorts have Snowheads knocking about often keen to meet up for a slide.
[i]Fancy a week being challenged off-piste?[/i]
just watch that vid and my immediate thought was **** that! Thanks anyway, but I know my place! I'm still recovering from a nasty crash on New Years eve (off piste) and what with running a business and being 54, I'm being a bit more careful these days!
Will check out snowheads thanks Guys.
Silly carving on wakeboards is the same.
Toe edges win, every time!
Shaun Murray.
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Rockape - you could try UCPA. I understand they're like the French equivalent of the YHA. Their holidays include lessons/guiding with random groups. You'd have to check out whether there is actually an upper age limit though as technically they're for younger skiers/boarders. Action Outdoors are the UK agent.
The Snowheads shout is a good one. They have regular bashes, I think there is usually a week in Kronplatz at the end of January just before their birthday bash which is usually early Feb and heads to Arabba.
May drop you a quick email nearer the time. We'll also be skiing badly, but in cheaper clothes.
[img][url= https://farm1.staticflickr.com/620/22391181066_78684c6a3d.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm1.staticflickr.com/620/22391181066_78684c6a3d.jp g"/> [/img][/url]
Finally got some snow falling in Colorado.
Ned, Thats what I was dreaming about when I first went to La Grave.
What we got was hard pack.
Our "Guide" (Random Swedish seasonaire, who had been a few times before, and fallen down a crevasse the week earlier, I found that bit out in the evening after)
Still, two turns into Triffide, one of our group lost an edge and did the lot on his front, head first.
He was okay when he stopped, thankfully, a bit shaken.
We dd find some fresh later in the day which was great.
I would love to go back one day, access seems to be an issue this year though.
Hi Rockape
Neilson are doing lessons/guiding with some of their holidays. WE're off to Alpe d'Huez with them for that reason. We're a party of five and so far have always met people who join our party when we're there.
Ski club is also going there, £10 for 1/2 day guiding with instructor and £20 for a full day.
Thanks Sprootlet, have had a quote from Neilson for a week at Serre Che staying at the Grand (which I don't think is very Grand!) and having five half day lessons. Is that the same thing?
Onthesnow.Co.UK have lots of pics of early snow in the alps!
Woo!
You ended up at the Grand Hotel?
Well, thankfully it's not empty cold and bare. It's in a great location. Chantemerle is my favourite of the villages and the Grand is on the little square right by main lifts. Make sure you have coffee with Sandrine across the road!
A few flakes high up in the Pyrenees recently.
And are those in line bindings and plastic boots? Practically skiing.
Specialist kit for Eurocarving is cheating. Has to be done in soft boots, on a freestyle board, in a duck stance!
Quite heavy snow/rain round here last night BTW. A swift look out my window suggests the snow/rain limit was somewhere around 1800-2000m.
Opening day today for some of the Colorado resorts. I'm going to hit the 'white ribbon of death' tomorrow for some training. Hopefully don't get nailed by one of the over eager people!
[i]You ended up at the Grand Hotel?[/i]
No...cos I would have been a complete Billy no mates! Will get back there one day though, I still remember the really interesting skiing there. Waay better than Courcheval, where I might be heading to in a group.
Tempratures finally starting to drop in Whistler and there's a snow line starting to creep down the mountain. Be a while before anyone is skiing though.
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@piemonster, don't be fooled, it was from when the Oakley outlet shop still existed in Letchworth, not sure what I'll do next time I need kit! Feel free to say hello as and when.
@whatnobeer - I reckon it'll be a payback year to make up for all the rain last year.
Hard to be much worse than last year. Forecast is for a warmer winter, but no more snow. Not sure how that works, but fingers crossed. Next year could be a killer with a La Nina weather system predicted.
Have we done these yet?
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Unconvinced, myself. Would be interesting to hear if anyone's tried 'em.
Snowboard boot with a built in / clip on (don't know how to define that bit) binding that clips into ski bindings?
Also unconvinced.
Though they might make it easier for skiers to walk to the pub, or snowboarders eurocarve - although we now know that would be cheating.
91 sleeps!
Sprootlet - Neilson don't do official guiding any more - not since the whole thing blew up in France last year. Maybe Andorra or Italy, if you're LUCKY. Expect it again over the next few years though, when they move everything in house - own instructors, gear etc
I'm fairly qualified to answer that, as I'll be in France this winter working for them, and have just spent this summer working for them (as a bike guide, woop, woop!)
NOt what I was told on my Neilson summer break .
They are enploying ESF instructors to go out with bigger groups to get round the guiding issue .- bigger group keeps the cost per head down .
This is what i was told by a neilson employee who does both summer nad winer seasons ..
RockApe .- You got full ARVA kit , and some fat-ish skis ? I might be lookig for a ski buddy as well??
I understood they Neilsons were using qualified instructors and they are offering guiding/lessons. If this isn't the case then we are going to be royally p****d off!
Not sure why anyone would want to go out in a bigger group. I'd rather ask where the best snow is am / pm and read a piste map. Signed Mr Grumpy 😉
STM/Sprootlet - that's exactly what I'd heard too. I think in a letter/brochure sent in the post from Neilson.
There;s a big difference between what you just mentioned - ESF instructors and guides, vs what they've traditionally done.
So yes - if you're going to pay for guiding, of course it's on! (that was easily cleared up imo)
Where did you go over the summer singletrackmind?
[img][url= https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5766/22058224934_566317d5f1_b.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5766/22058224934_566317d5f1_b.jp g"/> [/img][/url]
Went skiing this weekend. Not too bad for October
#howtomakeenmies
Not at all envious, and where is that?
Loveland, Colorado. It was basically brown a little over a week ago, a couple of good storms and some snow making got it open. Only a couple of runs though.
Had a wee trip off to Solutions4Feet for new boots- appointment only lasted 10 minutes, and was accompanied by much shaking of head, grimacing and sucking in of breath between clenched teeth. Looks like the effects of my various defects and injuries means an off the shelf solution, even modified, is not going to work well enough anymore.
Outcome is they didn't feel they could sell me anything, recommending a visit to Outdoor Traders for a custom pair of DaleBoots.
Kudos to Colin for passing up the sale, but a bit nervous about this route- some mixed reviews for these boots.
Vinneyh, always good when someone passes up a sale rather than sell you the wrong thing!
I wonder if a soft boot hybrid thing like the Apex ones on the previous page might work for you as well!
Good luck, either way!
Vinny - Colin passed up a sale from me too (initially). No boots in a narrow fit for a skier with a few weeks experience. He recommended I carry on wearing ill fitting hire boots rather than spending lots on ill fitting boots of my own. Of course I returned after 5 weeks or so more skiing experience where he sorted me out.
Those Apex jobs, I'd need a bit of convincing before laying out that kind of money- nice guarantee -money back as long as you haven't worn them outside/skiing 😆
Booked in next week for first fitting for the Daleboots.
An expensive season it looks like- these, coming on top of a weeks flights, accommodation etc etc at mid term for the family. I really should have just taken the kids out of school.
OK, so it's heavy branding, but cool image from Oakley to announce that Mammoth has already opened!
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Worth watching if you like this kind of thing. I liked this more than a few of the other recent offerings.
Belle Plagne booked for a week over new year. Most excited.
Yeah! Nonstop sticking it to the big boys for the third year in a row:
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Yes, it's a webvotey thing, much like the crap mountain pictures award, but it's more of a level playing field: companies motivating their clients to vote for them. And if more of Nonstop's clients feel like voting when asked, compared Neilsen's or Crystal's, despite there being way fewer of them, fair bloody play! 😀
Yeah! Nonstop sticking it to the big boys for the third year in a row!
Yay! 🙂
Can anyone recommend a ski boot bag - I'm not into skiing so am pretty clueless. I thought this one looked ideal but I don't want to buy her a crap one:
http://www.ellis-brigham.com/products/atomic-redster-1-pair-boot-bag/705506
Cheers
http://www.snowfit.co.uk/rossignol-hero-dual-boot-bag.html
I've got one of these - lightweight and perfect dimensions for use as hand luggage.
These may be a bit more than you want but some colleagues have had them and liked them.
[url] http://skigearbag.com [/url]
26°C on the plain and 20°C at 1800m today. The highest since records began in SW France.
*waits patiently*
Mrs DD is in the market for some new ski slacks - any recommendations/bargains out there?
DD - I'm about to put up some of Jnr's for sale, but I'm guessing Mrs DD will be after brand new. But they include some nice dark denim look pants.
Darcy - SPusuit are worth a glance at the moment. I got a Sweet Protection goretex shell pair and I think the women's ones are still available (appropriate sizes permitting). Depends what you want to spend of course but you can see where the money's gone. And some Decathlon Quechua fleece trousers at £6 for when it's cold.
Cheers Iain, I'll have a look at SP now.
hammerite, ta, don't think the denim look would be her thing. Plain/black it'll be I think.
Just trying to convince the wife that two weeks in Canadia over Christmas/New Year is a good idea. She's not been skiing for three years and broke her leg in that time, so her confidence is pretty low. It's likely to be Banff/Three Mountains unless I can get something of similar value south of the border in Colorado or out west in Vancouver/Whistler.
As for equipment, I shall be using whatever board and boots the rental company have in "clown size".
This should put a smile on your face:
2°C over the last record in St Jean de Luz. That's quite a big jump.
?
2 degrees warmer? for November?
Sunniest October ever recorded in Southern Finland. 164 sunshine hours. Next on the list was 2005 with 124 hours.
its very warm here in Sweden. I'm nervous....
south or north, hyd?
This should put a smile on your face:
It did!
Their skis were on the wrong way round, but just looked like a MASSIVE amount of fun being had! 🙂
Nedrapier, all over really. I'm south but its currently 13c, Järvsö bike park in the middle has had probably is longest cycling season EVA, keeping the park open unitl last weekend, and people are still riding high up in Åre. Still, alot can change in a few weeks!
Indeed it can. I'm not booking anything for now, though!
Don't know if anyone's found this from a link from the vid up there, but this is worth a wotch.
Euro mountains, euro riders, euro boards, euro tunes, euro carving. Pretty fun shapes being thrown from 2:30.
It's done a job on me. I want a Pencil!
Saw that one, fun vid!
This also just popped-up:
http://whitelines.com/trick-tips/how-to-eurocarve-plus-5-different-ones-to-try.html#Fs1wFPAlB1SeMOsG.97
Also, think my mate has been taking hints about the #eurocarveselfie....
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Nice. I love the carve flip. That's actually what I had in mind in those shots on the previous page. Loaded up the front of the board brilliantly, got the release...
Just the wrong type of snow, I guess. Next time.
just been having a browse through some webcams in french resorts - im sure things are usually a bit 'whiter' by now!? dont resorts open at the end of this month?
Think it's all a bit too warm at the moment (much like here). There won't be any mounds of man made seen for a little while yet.
A quarter of a century ago we were often out skiing in November over 2000m. In recent years it's been rare and this year it's very mild in France. The weather forecaster read out more broken records for temperature in November this evening.
Nearly 1m of snow in Whistler in the last 2 weeks. None in the village yet, but it's probably not far away. Mountain should be opening next weekend, if not before. Last year they opened 1 week early and we've had nearly twice as much snow already than they had then, so fingers crossed.
The high country in Colorado got hit last night. About 12" fell. Brings the ytd to 53" at Loveland. I'm in Texas though sadly so I'm missing it.
Oddly, was looking at Montana webcams earlier. Seems they've had a dusting, but little more. Think the Bowl is due to open in a week or two, so it could be a little tricky!