[Closed] The STW Ski and Snowboard thread - 2011/2 Edition

Best mid-day pasta lunch type thing I've ever had was in Serre Che too.
Roquefort pasta , I think was - never found the like of it any where else!

Aye, the food up there is awesome! FWIW, my fave is the Tartiflette at the Bercail, which is at Aravet. Set back a little, nice and sheltered sunny terrace too!

You're looking forward to it a bit eh?

Erm, does it show? 😳

😆

*Chooses to ignore Edukator's link*

*Remains optimistic*

Fear not Captain - I'm going to the Tarantaise this weekend, and the conditions gods nearly always look favourably upon me (apart from that one time in Fernie but we've sorted that out since).

New snow's coming at the end of the week, along with a dip in temperatures. Serre Chevalier's not [i]that[/i] far away from the Tarantaise. You'll be grand.

Might have to give Serre Che a try. Went there for a day from Montgenevre and snow was so poor it put me off from going back but looking at that.......... 😀

See that, Edukator? Eh? Do you? See? Told you...!

😉

Woody
Might have to give Serre Che a try. Went there for a day from Montgenevre and snow was so poor it put me off from going back but looking at that

Woody, are you in Montgenevre at the moment? I was wondering what the snow was like as I'm there in 10 days

I think the Snow-forecast website is typically unreliable. Overly optimistic further ahead; forecasts of snow which gradually reduce as the time gets closer

Try [url= http://www.yr.no ]this for forecasts[/url]

From last page, I can recommend Solutions 4 Feet. Only ever had one pair of boots, but they were fitted by Colin. Very comfortable. Budget £100 over the cost of the boots for the footbed.

Anyone been to Kitzbuhel late in the season? We're looking at heading out 31st March so would be skiing first week of April. Are conditions reasonable (as good as anywhere else)?

Thanks for that link, Hammerite. Especially as it shows snow for Friday to Monday! 🙂

I'm in sunny Durham at the mo' - no snow just yet 😉

I've been to Montgenevre twice, once with excellent snow and the other very late in the season where it was a case of scratching around and doing the occasional slush run to Claviere. Still fun though. I'd be surprised if it's not very very good when you get there.

I'm in sunny Durham at the mo' - no snow just yet

Chuffin freezing though isn't it? -6° this morning.
Still hoping for a good bit of UK snow. I'm sure we are due some.

Good forecasts continue to flow from the Alps - but I'm not in Austria till 11th Feb and I'm going a bit stir crazy!

Not being one of the landed gentry like CFH, I'm not sure I would go back to a French ski resort tbh - I prefer not to feel violated if I want to stop for a brew.

In St Johann even at the top of the mountain you could buy a large beer for 3 euros, or a gluhwein for 3.50, and it was tasty and came in a big mug. Compared to a minimum of 5 euros for a pint down in the village in most French resorts.

Grum, that's one of the reasons I like Serre Che so much. It's refershingly "unFrench" while at the same time being very proper French. None of that Val d'Isere/Chamonix type of stuff.

GrahamS

Your lucky, I'm not going until March. Where in Austria?

My last 2 holidays have been there, Kaprun and Kirchdorf. Kaprun was good although the bus and long cable to the glacier was a pain but luckily there was so much snow that other areas were open and very quiet. Kirchdorf was a bit limited, however I was really impressed by the friendliness of the Austrians and not being ripped off for beer and food.

Your lucky, I'm not going until March. Where in Austria?

[url= http://www.skiamade.com/en/winter/skiresorts/schladming-dachstein ]Schladming[/url].

We love Austria. It is our default choice when heading to the Alps.

Schlad is fairly small compared to some places, but the pass covers multiple different hills, including a glacier. We liked it enough last year to go back this year. Reasonably priced beer was a major factor 😀

Oh and they have fairly top notch facilities at the mountain (tons of snow cannons, fast lifts, changing facility and ski lockers) thanks to the Ski World Cup visiting there.

We're also currently looking to see if we can squeeze in a cheeky lads holiday as well this season.

Anyone been to Slovakia???

[img] [/img]
http://www.chaletslovakia.com

however I was really impressed by the friendliness of the Austrians and not being ripped off for beer and food

I've made my bed, in that I own a chalet in Morzine; I love the place winter and summer, and will probably semi-retire there in years to come. That said, Austrians really know how to do mountain food and drink, far more so than the French, and the prices are consistently more reasonable.

FWIW I have been to Ellmau twice with the family and enjoyed it greatly both times. I would certainly go back.

nickf

Is your chalet for personal use or do you rent out?

There's a load of the girls from work out there right now and I think they go every year and love it.

Anyone been to Slovakia???

Three times in the last five or six years and kinda know Paul who runs www.propagandasnowboards.com which was the first Brit chalet in Jasna.
It's a pain to get to now there's no direct flight to Proprad. I can give you some tips if you wish.

Beer is only 2 or 3E on the slopes. Maybe only 1E in town. Around 5 years ago it only around 40p/pint

jamiep: yeah I was looking at Propaganda too. Their accommodation website is: http://www.snowboardslovakia.co.uk/accommodation.html

[url= http://www.snowboardclub.co.uk/PNphpBB2-viewtopic-t-47923.html ]Both chalets are regulars on SCUK threads about cheap holidays[/url]. They both suggest flying to Bratislava and transfer from there?

Any tips you think would be useful would be most interesting. Just at the chin-stroking phase at the mo and still to get past the wife-begging phase.

Beer is only 2 or 3E on the slopes.

Yeah and £229 for a weeks B&B in a chalet ain't bad either!

still to get past the wife-begging phase.

That's always going to be the hardest part! 🙂

Not being one of the landed gentry like CFH, I'm not sure I would go back to a French ski resort tbh - I prefer not to feel violated if I want to stop for a brew.

In St Johann even at the top of the mountain you could buy a large beer for 3 euros, or a gluhwein for 3.50, and it was tasty and came in a big mug. Compared to a minimum of 5 euros for a pint down in the village in most French resorts

Fits my thinking...

Italy has always been my preference, based on food and drink quality & value.

Not tried Austria - will have to address that failure.

Not tried Austria - will have to address that failure.

Try Mayrhofen if you like your apres. 😀

Woody,
Kirchdorf is a great base to ski the local area. You've got the whole of Kitzbuhel, Waidring and Sankt Johann to go at. More than enough for a week.
.

GrahamS

Try Mayrhofen if you like your apres.

Italy has always been my preference, based on food and drink quality & value.

Ski through espresso bars FTW! 8) I did a Christmas trip to Sauze a few years back. Loved it, especially the food!

^^^ yep CFH, Italy for Family hols at half term.
and Austria for a lads trip in March.

Ski through espresso bars FTW!

I remember a mountain hut (might be in the 'hoff) that had whole roast chickens slow roasting on a big ass grill outside. You could smell them from the top of the piste and they tasted awesome.

Being Scottish, roasted meat appeals far more than roasted coffee. 😀

Any thoughts on these boots? Overkill for a piste rider? Marketing BS? Any better just for stomping between chalet and ski lift when carrying all wife's kit and mine...? I'm consider buying some boots for the first time but don't know what to get. Salomon seem to have a whole range of these hike/ski boots that seem to be able to unlock for a bit more flexibility when out your bindings but still lock and act as a normal boot skiing.

I'm not sure if it's a genuine improvement in tech or just marketing. The all mountain tag is all too familiar and makes me cringe but if it's still nice and stiff for skiing it doesn't seem a bad idea.

[img] [/img]

The blurb on them is this:

[i]The Quest 10 is a dual-role adventure boot for confident all-mountain skiers. Built for accessing harder to reach areas without compromising piste ability, it’s perfect for skiers who mainly ski in-bounds but maybe hike occasionally to find fresh turns. The 110 flex is firm, the 55mm Energyzer strap adds power and the PU shell is precise. [/i]

Being Scottish, [s]roasted meat [/s] anything deep fried appeals far more than roasted coffee

FTFY! 😈 😉

We went to Italy this year because I'd never skied there before. Loved it.

Loved Ellmau too when we went, hence why I'm keen to try Kitzbuhel at Easter (but been conditioned to think I must go very high late in the season).

Grostl, Kaiserschmarrn, Gnermknoddel, Gulaschsouppe mmmmmmmmmm

JAL, I looked at Quests last year and decided against. For the hobble to the lifts, normal boots and a silly walk are fine. I'm not really doing anything that involves longer walking (getting to those secret stashes on foot) so I decided to go for a "normal" boot.

If you're likely to do more backcountry stuff, off the beaten path (and also, more importantly if they fit your feet!) then have a look at them.

One other minor point I found with them, and other three buckle boots, was that I couldn't get teh fit quite as comfortable around my [s]beefy[/s] toned, muscular cyclists calves.

JustAnotherLogin, forget the blurb and the branding. Get the boot that fits best.
Generalising here but for example Atomic are built on a wider last and Lange on a narrow one.
Skinny feet here = Lange.

Ecky

I think you might mean Kirchberg. Kirchdorf is much smaller and without links.

Grostl, Kaiserschmarrn, Germknoddel, Gulaschsouppe

Food of the Gods! Every one of 'em a classic, especially the Grostl (proper man food)
Easy to make it at home too.

I think you might mean Kirchberg. Kirchdorf is much smaller and without links.

Oops 😳
Yep

Same as Ecky - I have skinny feet = Lange boot wearer.

No worries Ecky - a good mistake to make as I've now added Kirch[b]berg[/b] to my list of 'possibles' for March 😉

Grostl, Kaiserschmarrn, Germknoddel, Gulaschsouppe

Again, for some reason my Scottish genes prefer the Currywurst.

[img] [/img]

😀

GrahamS, you utter son of a bachelor! Currywurst!

Hungry now! 🙂

Graham, Grostl has a fried egg on top though, what Scotsman wouldn't like that?

[img] [/img]

Hmmm... as long as I can scrape the green stuff off. I don't do green.

I don't do green.

I once stayed in Edzell for a wedding. Lovely waitress would come round at dinner and serve you your veg. Poor lass always had to say, "Would you like any...........er...........um..........Green stuff?" when she was serving anything that wasn;'t a carrot! 🙂

LOL Spoken like a true Scot!

Gnermknoddel,

We also tried Austria this year (I've been several times) as hubby had never skied there.
We were so impressed with the lovely warm hospitality, good, inexpensive food and just all round friendliness of the Austrian folk.
Although the down side for me is the flat section around the resorts and having to bus everywhere with the inconsiderate lack of queueing.

CFH - We're off the Serre Che in March, save some snow for us please? Oh and don't eat all the cake.