[Closed] The STW Ski & Snowboard thread. The 2012-2013 season

blue seems to cover everything from flat narrow road to nursery slope to actually-quite-steep-in-places.

We were talking about this on holiday and came to the conclusion that some maps were deliberately misleading.

These days everyone compares stuff before buying and often just rely on stats - so resorts have to offer a certain number of blues, reds and blacks to compete.

Plus if they have a home run it is in their marketing interest to sign it as a blue or possibly red, even if the reality is a mogully black.

And of course actual skiable area and piste length is often highly dubious.

Snow conditions affect the apparent difficulty too. Was super easy grippy snow all last week, and no icy stuff between moguls at all.
This meant the lethal narrow steep red at the end of the day that all the n00bs and less confident loathed before was merely a narrowish slightly steeper but perfectly OK red.
And there are blacks that I'd have been happy taking a 3rd week skier down last week, but I have stacked it and slid down steep sheet ice on my back in previous years. Even measured the gradient of some apparent "blacks" and they really were much steeper than I estimated (but seemed much shallower than I remember).

There are some Red bits that I think are Black, but are on the map as red since they form part of the Sella Ronda M25. New chair though - might mean a regrading if the carnage section can be bypassed?

GrahamS - Member
igm: Just how fast is this 6 year old??
Isn't the Coal a super-stiff race board? Volkl rate it as 9/10 for stiffness.

Said 6 year old is quick (ie his mum can't catch him) but not that quick (ie I can still, but that ain't gonna last).

I think the name may be all that remains of the Volkl Coal. My Coal is a 2005 I think, and is definitely not a super stif race board. Soft end of all-mountain I'd say. But then like I said as a 16 stone ex-back row forward lots of things flex more easily for me than for others.

Hmm.. I was 15.5 stone when I got my Bataleon Goliath (I've lost a fair bit since then) and I'm also a 6 footer and an ex prop forward.

Can't say too much flex has ever been a major issue for me, but then I have more fun playing around in the pow than just straightlining as a fast as I can. If I wanted to do that I'd be one of those hard booter perverts 😀

I guess the main thing is to examine the recommended weight range on the boards you are looking at. I see that Coal XT that I linked to says you should be on a 168, which is a BIG board.

you should be on a 168, which is a BIG board.

At just over 6' and 16 stone, I started on a quite stiff 164 cm Oxygen board and then a Tommy Brunner Lib Tech in 168cm and TBH the TB was easier and quicker turning, faster and more stable in all situations I came across, although I don't venture into the park!

Next time I'm out, I'll be using my circa 1999 limited edition Never Summer (wide and 164cm) which appears to be indestructible and has the same pop as when I got it in 2001 😀

Edukator,

I know you live in the Pyrénées. I was alluding to whether home was at the top of the hill or on the plain. It's different to being stuck out of resort to being stuck away from home!

Both places are very homely. When there's snow I spend more time up the hill than down but either side of the ski season there are a couple of months when it's often in the clouds, dismal outside and freezing cold inside as there are no neighbours. There's a bus between the two that only costs five euros so I go up and down depending on the weather and what there is to do.

The joys of Scottish skiing: the 2-chair at The Lecht has derailed!!

36 people rescued, 6 injured.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-21434338

Graham, please be sensitive. I know a few of them involved. It is not a joy, it is broken backs and limbs.

No insensitivity intended matt.
Sorry if I appeared flippant. It's a nightmare situation. 🙁

I know. I have a couple of texts from people who are there guiding guests.

Any details of what happened? Was it wind or some mechanical failure?

Edit: never mind I see it has it's [url= http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/accident-at-the-lecht ]own thread now[/url].

Nasty. Hope recoveries are swift...

Now, to lighten the mood - [url= http://www.fluorescentrompersuits.co.uk/readerspics.html ]Open with caution...! 🙂 [/url]

Edukator .
I have the week commencing 2nd March booked off work.
It is also some School holidays that week unfortunatly.
With the recent snowfall , would I be insane to think about driving to a small town ( maybe Lourdes ) and driving to a different ski resort each day?
Lourdes has lots of hotels , seems relatively central to about 8 diffferent villages , and restaurants.
Will it be busy in March , enough to mean 5 minute waits at lifts for instance .?
I would drive over 2 days probably as its a 1000km ish.

Any more news from the Lecht?

It's sounding like some of them have no lasting injuries (except a long lasting fear of chair lifts perhaps), but some are still in hospital I think.

[quote=singletrackmind ]Edukator .
I have the week commencing 2nd March booked off work.
It is also some School holidays that week unfortunatly.
With the recent snowfall , would I be insane to think about driving to a small town ( maybe Lourdes ) and driving to a different ski resort each day?
Lourdes has lots of hotels , seems relatively central to about 8 diffferent villages , and restaurants.
Will it be busy in March , enough to mean 5 minute waits at lifts for instance .?
I would drive over 2 days probably as its a 1000km ish.

Probaby worth asking that over on snowheads. MountainBug are based in Bareges and a couple of days ago all the tourists were evacuated from resort due to the risk the entire village might be avalanched

Singletrackmind:

You could do that from lots of places.

Grenoble: you have Villard de Lans, Chamrousse, Les Sept Laux all no more than an hour from the centre.
Alpe d'Huez is manageable as are others.

Another town to try - Briancon;

Resorts nearby - Serre Che, Montgenevre, Bardonecchia, Sauze, Claviere, Sestriere, La Grave, L2A, etc

I was looking at doing (well looked on the internet at the feasibility, but no more) a trip to the Auvergne ski resorts. Lioran, Le Mont Dore, Super Besse.

Not huge areas, but probably enough for a few days. Cheap lift passes too. [url= http://www.skiresort.info/ski-resorts/europe/france/remaining-france/auvergne/ ]Auvergne ski resorts[/url] Somewhere a bit different.

Or if French school hols might put you off drive/fly to Innsbruck and try all the areas around there.

Bit of a result today as the cost of repairing my house is going to be [b]much[/b] less than I anticipated, so I had a little trawl through April offers and came across [url= http://www.snow-forecast.com/resorts/SaintGervaisMontBlanc ]St. Gervais[/url], which TBH, despite having driven past it several times, I'd never really noticed or considered. Self-catering apartment and flight to Geneva included at a price I couldn't refuse 😉

Any ideas on getting from Geneva to resort? I've had a quote for a minibus which at Euro140 return for myself an GF seems quite reasonable.

Any info/feedback appreciated

I doubt you will beat that, however consider hiring a small car as you will probably be able to do that for the same amount in £ and that will enable you to go to other nearby resorts - of which there are plenty. Make sure there is somewhere cheap to park though as hotels can sting you for parking spaces.

Good idea mefty but I've had a quick look and there is a huge variation between companies from £137 to £350 for the same car! That's without going into the potential extras for collision damage waivers and fuel/tolls etc.

I think I'll play safe and get the mini bus as it's less hassle hopefully.

I'm going to Kreischberg next weekend - nearby are Katschberg, Obertauern, Schladming and Turracher Hohe. Not a bad spot for multi-resorting!

Or how about La Rosiere, La Thuile, St Foy, Tignes, Les Arcs?

Lourdes has lots of hotels for pilgrims so it won't be busy until Easter. The town with the most hotel beds after Paris. It's also the rainiest town in France and unless you're into religion a proper dump compared with any other town in the area. A better base up that valley would be Barrèges which they will have dug out by then. It's the biggest ski area and a pleasant place to be.

Resorts within a easy drive that I've skied:

Gavarnie: small, painfully slow chairs, huge queues. On one day I skied up the green to the top of the resort on X-C skis quicker than people in the queue.

Hautecam: tiny and too low, don't bother unless you ski X-C or are a complete beginner.

Barrèges La Mongie: efficient lifts, plenty to go at, good hors piste though it soon gets churned up.

Luz Ardiden: a big bowl that holds snow well with one fast six-seater.

Cauterets: a cable car up to a high ski area means it usually has some of the best snow in the valley.

Couraduque: X-C only but really good X-C.

I ski these places because I live here, If I were driving out from the UK I'd head for Chamonix as a base to ski different areas or simply rent a flat in Tignes and not have to use the car.

Edukator, where did you fly to to get to Lourdes. Thinking about cow tourettes. Went biking there one summer. Pretty cool. Heard the boarding is great there.

Anyone been taking advantage of the snow in the UK recently?

[quote=ratswithwings ]Edukator, where did you fly to to get to Lourdes. Thinking about cow tourettes. Went biking there one summer. Pretty cool. Heard the boarding is great there.
Anyone been taking advantage of the snow in the UK recently?

direct flights from Stansted

Cauterets: a cable car up to a high ski area means it usually has some of the best snow in the valley.

This is where I learned to snowboard many years ago! Was studying in Tarbes for a year.

I am getting a bit too excited at the moment! Only 8 sleeps until this.

[img] [/img]

Thinking about cow tourettes.

🙂 "Mooo-bollocks, Moo-arse, Mooo-***"

Just come back from four days of powder heaven in St Gervais, Great little resort and large ski area.Just rebooked for a week at easter, happy days.

I-ache, that's the Chavannes express chair in Les Gets and I claim my £5.

We'll be there in a few weeks time. Excellent place to take small children. Last year we were on the boards in the morning, lunch on the slopes then sat around the village in shorts and T-shirts in 20C in the afternoon - blue skies all week.

Peak District this week.

[IMG] [/IMG]

[IMG] [/IMG]

Just back from 5 cheeky days in the Dolomi-Tee-Hees.

Very last minute, friends in Milan had been eyeing up forecasts, which kept changing, as they do. Tried Austria and Switzerland, which were both full, unless we wanted to spen £10K - £20K on an appartment for 4 days, which we didn't. Also needed to find a place that was happy to take Otto, their ridiculously cute minature schnauzer.

We ended up in a hotel next to the lift in an odd little resort called Marilleva, linked to Madonna di Campiglio. Half day Saturday in the sun. Cold, OK on the piste, horrible off it. same again on Sunday. Monday at Passo di Tonale, very windy, snowy and cold, some OK turns, but mainly out there for the sake of it.

Not too distressed at this point, this was an opportunistic trip and a chance to spend some time with friends we don't see enough. We're going touring later in the year, and I've been a lucky swine with powder for years.

BUT! 2 feet over Monday night! Woo and Hoo. Still snowing, but no wind. Over to Madonna di Campiglio, went exploring, found some steep lines in the trees. Smiles back on faces. Bluebird on Wednesday, more exploring in M di C a bit further off the beaten track.

Drove back over Passo Tonale, enviously ogling the lines and the potential. We shall return, with touring stuff and a bit more preparation!

[img] [/img]

[img] [/img]

Oooooh that looks lovely ned.

igm - Member
I-ache, that's the Chavannes express chair in Les Gets and I claim my £5.

We'll be there in a few weeks time. Excellent place to take small children. Last year we were on the boards in the morning, lunch on the slopes then sat around the village in shorts and T-shirts in 20C in the afternoon - blue skies all week.

Your five ePounds have been awarded.

I am hoping to get the kids (3 and 5) up there towards the end of the week as it will only be their (and mine) second time skiing and neither went up the mountain last year. There is that kids section on the right as you come up the lift that looks fun for an hour or two. The biggest problem will be them being good enough to get to it from Morzine and me being good enough to take care of the eldest.

Ned, apart from your skis being on the wrong way round, that looks lovely! 🙂

Smiththemainman
Excellent news. I'm going 14th April. I like the look of it because its the GF's second week on skis and I'll be mainly boarding. Looks to be quite a big area on the map with loads for us both 🙂

I-ache,

Indian Gardens I presume. If needs be get the bus from Morzine to Les Gets and get the Chavannes Express up. They're pretty good at slowing it for kids if needs be, but it is one of the world's gentlest lifts anyway. It's a gentle slide into the gardens from there. My five year old (six this year) also liked the mini jump run under the Chavannes chair.

Iain

Yea thats the one. To be honest they should be ok going down Crocus into Les Gets, its not that far and the eldest has been having lessons in the fridge so will probably be better than me. Mrs_Ache is a good skier so can take the youngest between her legs.

Nice Ned - what's the score with Marilleva? I was looking at it earlier in the week after a colleague forwarded me an e-mail of a March deal for apartment and lift pass deal.

I notice it's at the valley bottom, does it take a long time to get to the slopes of Folgarida and then on to Madonna?

Woody, I think you may have one day on the slopes as I believe the resort shuts on Sunday 14th April???

You know when you get that sinking feeling.................. 😯

Just checked and it is subject to conditions but they are still selling 6 day lift passes starting 15/4 online.

I will be on the phone first thing tomorrow. Surely they can't sell a ski holiday if the lifts stop the day after you arrive.....can they!!!!!!!!!!

Not able to check other than online today, so does anyone know the area and can let me know alternatives if it is closed eg. How far/easy is it to get to Chamonix etc. Cheers

It's worth asking this over on Snowheads as there's at least one regular with an apartment in that area

Cheers nbt I'll try that later.

Chamonix 30 mins, Argentiere 45 mins, Morzine 1hr, Flaine 1hr, Verbier 2hrs, Courmayer 45 mins though tunnel. Plenty of other places to ski nearby hence my recommendation of car hire.

Woody you will still be able to ski/board down , just along walk up!!!!
seriously though ,I am led to believe Les Contamines is 10 mins up road 5 free buses a day, that is more snow sure with its own micro climate and often stays open longer.

Woody, ditch the transfer , hire a car then the skis your oyster, all the above times about right and also Flaine, under an hour and is open upto 28th!!!

Cheers for all the info/advice.

I'm a lot happier now and Les Contamines looks superb. I would love to do a few places but my GF has only one week skiing under her belt and gets easily phased out if it's busy, or she is in an area she's not familiar with, so I think there is more than enough to keep both of us happy there.

Still going to play hell with Lastminute on Monday though 👿

Views from last week in AdH:
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8087/8480903805_432262497e.jp g" target="_blank">http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8087/8480903805_432262497e.jp g"/> [/img][/url]
I know she looks like she's going downhill!

And in a Flash'art style:
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8519/8480905441_46c2a27a5b.jp g" target="_blank">http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8519/8480905441_46c2a27a5b.jp g"/> [/img][/url]

NB I am not a photographer 🙂

Shifter,

Photo 1 - Awesome! Clearly having way too much fun!
Photo 2 - So close, and yet so far! Stella? STELLA? 😉

Operation on shoulder cancelled due to lack of beds, now booked in for next Wednesday. Easter boarding is now looking very bleak.

Bah. Not good, Tracey!

Oh, and Ski Sunday on now.... 🙂

Ligety is on another planet to everyone else! Awesome!

And Woodsy! What a top man.

Met him a few times through Salomon. He's a super-nice guy, a super talented skier and so totally focussed. Not like the usual "Whoa, DOOOOOD!" freeride kid, even though he sounds like it. He's very, very driven, highly competitive.

Good luck, fella. Bring us back a gold from Sochi! 🙂

I didn't ski today, or yesterday! Mountain biking made a nice change. For those heading to France, sachez que les stations de ski sont prises d'assault par les vacanciers de la zone B.

Edukator - et, encore pire, les anglais... 😉

know that ski resorts are taken by assault by vacationers zone B.

according to [url= http://translate.google.co.uk ]Google Translate[/url] anyway - though it does suggest he may have meant: [i]"sachez que les stations de ski sont prises [b]d'assaut[/b] par les vacanciers de la zone B."[/i]

Which makes a little more sense:

know that that ski resorts are taken over by tourists in the area B.

😉

Take your pick from the Google translations, [url= http://www.larepubliquedespyrenees.fr/2013/02/17/parkings-pleins-a-gourette-des-navettes-pour-artouste,1118314.php ]busy.[/url]

Nice to see LOL knows no language barriers....

Little video from my trip to The Dolomites the other week. Group holiday so just playing about in slackcountry mainly. I'm the guy in red jacket, green cargos - bloke filming is my mate Ali.

Our first time filming with a GoPro. Lessons learned: you need to get REALLY CLOSE otherwise you get a lot of white and a tiny little dot. Pole works well, filming each other from a distance doesn't.

4 days of work then off to Slovakia. 😀 🙂

The Sales have started!

Snow+Rock have up to 40% off the remaining 2012/2013 boards and skis.

Yeah I've been sniffing around the sales too.

I wonder if these nice and bright jackets will still be in next winter, more so my motionless body can be easier spotted than for fashion, but I would quite like one...

Lessons learned: you need to get REALLY CLOSE otherwise you get a lot of white and a tiny little dot. Pole works well, filming each other from a distance doesn't.

Yeah I've learnt this too - makes for some fun close proximity boarding! I've just been holding mine in my hand with the right angle attachment as handle. Have also had some fun results with the Chesty mount on front and back on skiers, I tried it hip mounted on the board but my arms just wave around right infront of it and it soon gets tiring to watch.

[i]The Sales have started![/i]

Lots of gear with an extra 30% off in the Two Seasons sale.
If you can get their bloody site to work 👿

Went down to Xscape with elder son (6) yesterday, and I've worked out why he's so fast.

He can turn whenever he wants to - he just doesn't want to. So he just straight lines it whenever and wherever he can.

Ah well, we'll see if another week in the Alps gets him paralleling properly and teach him the sheer joy of a nicely carved turn.

Snow+Rock have up to 40% off the remaining 2012/2013 boards and skis.

Including the frankly pornographic WhiteDoctor stuff.

I appear to be going skiing again.
Booked flights to Munich , on Avios so basically free. Sorting hire car now . Intend on booking a pension 12km out of St Anton at a place called Flirsch. 1 problem, I rang to make a confirmation , but I don't speak German , and she didnt speak Engleeesh.
Hopefully the email I sent using Google translate will make some sense.
Anyone with any useful German want to book a B & B for me ?
Might visit Sonnehopkf and Warth -Shrocken if we can sort the logistics ( and a translator )

Anyone with any useful German want to book a B & B for me ?

Just ask this question;

welche ist die beste Bordell in Flirsch?

No need to thank me.

(Well, if you will go skiing again when some of us haven't been at all.... 😉 )

Sorry , But Xmas in La Plagne was very good but wasnt long enough. The 3 vallees trip had its moments but felt i could squeeze in another adventure.
The pension is only Eu29 pppn , so not expecting much and we will have to fend for ourselves in the evenings.
Dont worry CFH , I will take some pictures for you.
The only german i learnt last time was luftkrakenwagon.

I had a great time in Serre Che the other week and I'm still going again on Saturday. Austria this time. 8)

There's is blatantly going to be some instant karma thing going on now, isn't there? My smugness will prevent me from getting there, I bet....

hammerite, sorry, just seen yours.

Just in case it's still relevant, we stayed at the Sporting Ravelli right next to the lift in Marileva 900. Takes about an hour to get to M di C, quite a lot of flat blues and 4/5 lifts. Bit of a bumpy, busy ballache racing back for the last lift down (you can't ski from 1400-900)

Alright one or twice, but we really enjoyed M di C, so drove over on the last day - only takes 30 mins, and you're only paying for a single area. Don't think we skied to Folgarida, but it's easier to get to from Marileva than MdC.

Passo Tonale on the Paradiso side would be amazing with some fresh snow and a clear day. And prob well after fresh if you prepared to go looking. Also 30 mins drive from Marileva 900

No worries, thanks for reply. It's still relevant, love knowing about different places and had seen a deal for Marilleva last week, which I can't take but now know in case I see another in the future.

New Sochi Skicross course 2013

Very impressive course.

Didn't [i]look[/i] that fast - though I suspect the wide-angle lens makes it deceptively slow.