[Closed] The STW Ski & Snowboard thread. The 2014-2015 season

Can't wait for the snow.

I bought some Scott Mayas for Mrs E-T last year and was really quite impressed with them.
I also borrowed some Scott Crusades whilst my skis were away under warranty. They were heaps of fun 😀 , so Scott will be high on my list next time I treat myself.

I will be old in 2015

Just might get a MLC roflcopter holiday as consolation - do those blades count?

First time in ages I don't need any kit, though new goggles might be nice (if I ever wear them).

Back (again) to Les Gets - think of it as my version of Serre C, Cpt F.

Big news though is that following this year's successful 1 hour slide down some blue runs mainly holding the instructors poles, our younger son (4 in January) is booked in for a full week of morning lessons.

Looking forward to all four of us cruising some easy runs by the end of the week.

Booked already. 19 people filling a catered ski-in / ski-out chalet in Les Manures (Reberty) with Sauna and Hot Tub. Manchester flights, ski carriage all round, full 3Valleys lift pass, all for under £800 a head.

Gear-wise, it's probably time to get a new helmet and possibly goggles to go with. I tried my mates Anon M2 goggles on our last trip and they were jolly nice with the easily-interchangeable lenses but by golly they're expensive!

More importantly, when will the ferry companies open up the booking for next year? We tried to book for Feb half term and they're not available yet. My thinking was book early, get them cheap, but not if you can't book early!

It will be the first time we are going during the school hols in a long time. Can't say I'm looking forward to the queues! The last few years we've gone the first week of Jan.There is something very special about been the first person down a run in the morning.

PS

A trip to Decathlon is almost as exciting as the holiday!

......I don't get out much.

Excellent thread initiation.

@CFH they do look nice, simple and a little backcountry ethnic. Better some of the other tattoo's on skis we've seen lately. Try and borrow/trade stuff, they only wear for 1 or 2 holidays at this age.

Working on the strengthening rehab. After March trip where I skied fairly lightly my knee wasn't right for 2 months so need to work on that. Looking for some little inflatable cushion things to do the dynamic work.

Hoping for a Zermatt trip (missed out last season) and I imagine we'll be back at ClubMed Peisey-Vallandry again at some stage.

Truth is still haven't finalised Alps biking yet ! Knee needs to be stronger for that too.

Some of the K2 stuff for next year looks truly gopping, even by their own high standards of gop!

Booked already. 19 people filling a catered ski-in / ski-out chalet in Les Manures (Reberty) with Sauna and Hot Tub. Manchester flights, ski carriage all round, full 3Valleys lift pass, all for under £800 a head.

I just need lots of STWers to purchase lots of goodies from me so I can afford new skis. The old ones are on their last legs. Hint.
Oh just remembered boys don't take hints 😉

Whistler for 11 days next January. Just want the summer over with 😉

Booked two weeks so far, the Christmas week and march 15th, both in Saalbach at my usual hotel. Then another week planned jan or feb somewhere like the 3 vallys or maybe st anton.
I'll hopefully be buying new ski pants and a couple of jackets

Haven't even booked summer yet.
Might have to reduce trips to 1 week and several weekends next season. December clashes with work. Jan/Feb might be OK.

As for new kit...
New jacket is highest priority. Can't decide what, or what colour. Will wait till new gear comes in to the stores.

Not booked yet, but may need to stick to school hols as kids are getting older and are getting into year 9 and 7. Not done school hols before, but I am thinking of going 28/3, easter holiday. Been to Champery, nendaz and morzine. All first week of February in the past. Liked morzine best, we like a nice town and being able to ski a decent area without getting the bus.

We drive, so not too much further would be good....

Any recommendations for where to go end of march/start of April? I know a nice town and late ish skiing/ boarding don't go well together. Can we risk morzine?

Simone

Flights booked already. Half term with my boys in beloved Oetztal.

hopefully bartered a hen weekend for a weekend away boarding with a couple of mates...

We were thinking it might be nice to ski in Whistler as we've only seen it in the summer. Nothing set yet though.

I was just wondering when this thread would commence!

Hopefully a group trip this year - a few lads and little old me (plus husband!) to Morzine for a few days. Haven't skied there before - looking forward to it!

Simone - we did Les Gets at Easter this year, which was first week in April. Morzine village was snow free, but the slopes higher up and into Les Gets were fine if slushy in the afternoon, and Avoriaz was pretty good if a little busy. Les Gets was reasonably quiet. Apparently the Swiss side was very sparse snow-wise. Temperatures go into the 20s.
If you do go 28/3, might see you there.

igm - cheers, may chance it as we like the area. Don't mind slush, don't really like ice. Presume le pleney would be closed? And we are seriously considering just booking that week and taking a chance - great value accommodation on offer that week.

Will you be tagging a family along?

We'll be off to Mayrhofen again, probably for two weeks around half term. One week with mates, the second with family. Woo hoo!

Two weeks, amazing! I've always fancied Mayrhofen.

Simone - four of us. My wife and I, and sons 8 and 4 (by then) with Ski Famille. I think Pleney was open in parts, but to be honest we didn't head into that area. We did two days over at Avoriaz / Chatel, and the rest in Les Gets or further up in Morzine.

I'm a big fan of the crusades, but this year I may go up to the Ventures for my all-rounder just for that little extra width.

My plan is to get around Colorado and Utah a bit this year instead of working all weekend teaching. Free pass is great, never being able to use it, is not.

We are off to Val Cenis again for Feb half term. Apartment and tunnel already booked. Still waiting forI have a new set of SP Brotherhood snowboard bindings to try. Quicker to do up on chairlifts so I can beat my skiing family off the lifts.

Good timing on the thread CFH.

I've just bought my season pass for the 2014 season, lots of weekends skiing in NZ this year - some Treble Cone, Cardrona, Ohau and a lot of my local club fields in Canterbury 😀

I've sold my K2 Twin Tips from last season and will be getting shot of my boots. I'm getting some new kit so that SWMBO can take me touring.

Boots I'm going to get local from a good fitter.

Skis and bindings probably from Europe. I'm looking at all-round skis, not dedicated touring skis. Need to be my one-and-only ski for pistes, ungroomed, crud, crust and pow - with a bit of sidecountry, slackcountry and backcountry touring.

With that I mind I'm looking at Atomic Access, Black Diamond Warrant and K2 Hardside - all available for about EUR 200-250. Any opinions on any of these or something better for the money? I can find some Dynastar Cham High Mountains for not much more (and they weigh a lot less) but only in 87 underfoot.

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I'm not going to get tech bindings yet - I have been steered away from them until I'm a bit of a better skiier...

It would appear that fluo colours are going to be making a strong comeback this year!
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If Nordica get their stuff sorted out in the UK, I'll be drooling after a pair of theses:

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White Doctor for 2015 looking teh orsumz...

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I'm hoping to get two trips in new t year. Feb half term on the UCPA solo travellers week and hopefully to Morzine over Easter with the Subvert guys. Quite fancy either Burton Hate or Salomon Villain this year. Maybe some new bindings too.

3 weeks in Japan with the wife and kids as a 40th birthday present to myself.

I shall be doing weekly snow dances in hopes of a better winter in the Sierras, as this season was so poor. Might even branch out and ski at a different resort, but the one we have been going too is just such good value.

I actually finished last season on a bit of a low. Despite being a fitness God for most of my life, age is catching up on me and after skiing for four days in Bormio with the lads, mostly like a teenager, I was welled and truly ****ed at the end. In fact the last morning's skiing was soo awful as a result, I didn't enjoy it much! Imagine? 🙁

(I still hit 60mph on the peak to creek run though!) 😀 😀 😀

K2 have a knack for gopping graphics Flash. Junior has a pair of Iron Maidens. Not being a fan of the band makes an already uncool ski tepid enough to melt snow. The good news is that that they do what they are intended to do very well and despite his best efforts in the snow park are still intact.

Ignore the graphics, read the [url= http://www.skipass.com/guide-matos/k2/iron-maiden.html ]ski tests[/url]. In the case of the Iron Maidens, three out of the four testers mention the gopping graphics, and all four provide useful positive feedback on the way they ski.

It got a bit nippy here last night and dumped a LOT of snow down south, seems the Cardrona crew can't even get up the road as theres 50cm of snow

**** you 🙁

It was a wet day in the garden city yesterday with snow over the port hills and now I can see snowy mountains in the distance form my desk....

good job I got these at the weekend and have the skis on order...

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Garden City? Hemel Hempstead, right? Rockin' the fridge at the weekend?

😉

Christmas/New Year somewhere snowy, not yet decided where but possibly Cham/Argentiere staying with friends who live out there; work trip in Jan to an as-yet-to-be-decided Austrian resort, probably Stubai; a selection of long weekends staying with a mate in Innsbruck and doing some touring.

New skis on the cards but again, as yet to be decided...

A little bit of snowy happiness from Slovakia to chase those summer blues away...

😀

I've booked flights to Turin and car hire for 3 days in mid Dec for the GF's birthday. I'll wait and see what the snow is doing before choosing which resort but there should be plenty of choice 😀

Hopefully there'll be a big early dump somewhere so that I can really test out this baby; Rossignol Krypto

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Nice little film of backcountry skiing in Australia for your amusement:

We spent last Sunday afternoon in the chill factor e, with our nephew. He had his first taster session. Proud auntie and uncle looked on as he listened to every word the instructor said and acted accordingly. He's now hooked and would like lessons. Whoops what have we let ourselves in for.
It was weird stepping out into the glorious warm day after.

I think I might have persuaded the husband that going skiing for Christmas is a really good idea.

Any recommendations? I'd love to go to Zermatt but I think it might be a bit *too* extravagant.

Actually, I think I'd quite like to go back to the Plein Sud in Serre Chevalier. There can't be many better places for your Christmas dinner. Decision made.

Last season fizzled out slightly following a slightly scary (but not actually dangerous) tumble on Ben Nevis near the start of May.

Next season I would mostly like to ski some steeps in a style that pleases me rather than just get down them.

Time off booked for the first week in feb. Here's the fun bit. If the other half is pregnant by then, I'm authorized to go on a lads ski trip. If she's not, I'm going with her. I don't know what I want but I'm fine either way!

Managed zermatt at the start of last season and had a trip to morzine in January as well. Thinking back to Austria for this season. Missed the beer and grub.

Cobrakai, you know what you really want......

Little Mini Ski Kids!

Good luck either way!

Little Mini Ski Kids!

Our 3 year old had his first go on the hills holding the instructors poles in April.

Next March he has a week of half day lessons.

He's excited already.

Big brother is vaguely suggesting he'd like to try one of those big single skis you stand sideways on.

Brace yourself igm.

In March 2013 our 2 (nearly 3) year old had her first week of ski lessons with a very patient instructor on the nursery slopes of the Dolomites. Just an hour a day for little legs, but great to see. By the end we took her down a green run between a mates skis.

In March 2014 she was our 3 (nearly 4) year old, and was in the kid's club in Les Deux Alpes doing a full afternoon of lessons every day for a week! She can now happily get on a button tow by herself, ride it to the top, get off with a little assistance, and ski back to the bottom again.

If only I learnt that quickly!

I really must bore you all with a video of her sometime. #prouddad

PS Afterwards she asked me if she was good enough to go on a snowboard yet 😆

Sounds familiar.

Our 8 year old dropped me on a red when I lost an edge and I didn't see him again till the bottom.

😀 I look forward to the day she can out ride me. I suspect I won't have to wait too long.

This article rings true:

http://www.powdermag.com/stories/skiing-dad/

So there are rumblings of El Nino this winter. I've tried to research what this might mean for European skiing but it's not clear to me. Anyone more experienced have any wisdom to share?

Dunno, but so long as it brings about 50% of the amount of snow we had in the Dolomites last season, I'd be happy.

My kids started skiing at 6 and 9. My 16 year old son ski's almost as fast backwards as I do forwards (I never started until I was 40 :-()

Hello.
My missus would like to know if there is a ski& Snowboarding equivalent of singletrack world?She has to do some research for a work related project.I told her about these threads on here ....but which other blogs/forums would you recommend please?

Think there's a forum called snowheads, senior j

You could try the Snowboard Club UK forums senor j, though obviously they are snowboard oriented.
http://www.snowboardclub.co.uk

Very excited. Just booked flights for Japan. 😀

Japan for me too, end of January. Also quite excited.

Looking at going this year for the first time in 15 years for me. It will be first time for wife and 3 children. Looking at going first week at xmas.
Any recommendations? We want to fly, really good deals to grenoble at the moment.

thanks Graham & sprootlet.

Any suggestions for a week at the beginning of Jan? Looking for somewhere cheap with sights and things to do etc, skiing doesn't have to be great, neither of us has ever skied but we fancy something a bit different. Any of the Eastern European countries worth a shout?

[quote=senor j dijo]Hello.
My missus would like to know if there is a ski& Snowboarding equivalent of singletrack world?She has to do some research for a work related project.I told her about these threads on here ....but which other blogs/forums would you recommend please?

http://snowheads.com is the obvious choice

Any advice on Canada?

Thinking about two weeks late February early March.

What is it you want to know about canada? I went for 8 weeks four years ago

Oh bugger, hadn't actually thought of any questions.....

Ummmmm, uhhhhh.......

Ok, if you was to ski in Canada just once, and as a relative novice.

Where would you go?

Whistler, big white, lake Louise.

Maybe as a relative novice I'd go lake Louise. Canada in my view is outstanding.. It's 'big mountain' if you get what I mean

Like it.

Last winter we booked a last minute package that worked out pretty well, does that approach work with Canada (and the US) ?

Or is diy much better?

Whistler booked. Early January 11 nights. Never been there in the winter. I am told it gets exceptionally cold up on the mountains, so some extra thermal gear is on our shopping list.

I did DIY . It's expensive there. Lift passes per day at around 100 dollars. But it's worth it. Me and six mates went round to lots of resorts over 8 weeks . Best time of my life

Canadian and US lift passes are often a lot cheaper if you buy them nice and early through a UK tour operator 🙂

Has anyone flown to Boston and done a Road trip up through Vermont? Looks interesting - but I'm not sure if it's too stressful logistically...

I'm not booked yet....waiting for action outdoors to release their prices. Feb half term is my most likely week....either Chamonix or Flaine I reckon. Although looking at the price of flights, I may have to wait until Easter 🙁

Sandwich Junior has a hankering to hit the slopes between Christmas and New Year. Any recommendations from the assembled company.

Cheap is really important as he is a student nurse. The timing is fixed as this is the only time available between placements/college in his last year. Another money saving forum had some clowns who suggested going at another time!!

Tell him to check out actionoutdoors.co.uk solo travellers week over that period is in Chamonix. Prices aren't out yet but my guess is around 650 quid full board with tuition and equipment hire. He'll need to add travel to that.

To answer a couple of questions from above: Banff is good but you have to go on a lot of buses. Did Boston to Killington on another trip, ok but quite tame really.

Cheers Tom. I'll keep checking in for other ideas, if there are any.

Hoping to snaffle a Christmas week with White Room. Fingers crossed!

Tell me about Tignes....what's it going to be like half term week?

Tbh I'm not too bothered about night life-I just want somewhere to get the serious hours of riding in. I'll be having instruction, 50% of which I'd guess will be off piste.

piemonster - Canada lift passes are indeed much cheaper when bought in advance - some of the 'early bird' offers have already ended though (I bought my 14/15 season pass for Fernie in June).

Some resorts do another offer in the Autumn, so it pays to keep an eye out/subscribe to mailing lists etc.

Canada can be bitterly cold - especially the Rocky Mountain resorts in the 'interior' including Lake Louise & Banff (which can be quite icy), Revelstoke, Fernie, Red Moutain & Kicking Horse.

Whistler however can be milder due to it's proximity to the coastal range.

It's all relative however - if all you've experienced is European Alpine resorts with sunshine and tanned lifties with their shirts off then prepare for a bit of a shock ... and pack the thermal merino! 🙂