The STW Ski & Snowboard thread. The 2012-2013 season

skiidygonzales[/url] and powdercab[/url] are worth checking out for morzine transfers – the owners are all lovely!!!

Giggly excited having just edged and waxed my ol’ Work Stinx skis for a random day up at Raise tomorrow. Packing the skins too, as the cover up there looks pretty good, so hoping to be able to avoid walking all the way in. Woop, wool!!

Just booked trip # 1 for this year .
Christmas week in La PLagne in a basic catered accomodation with wine. £365 with flight and transfer , which does seem rather cheap. Gatwick – Grenoble flights in daylight too , no 0430 check in for me this year ( unlike the last 4 Skiworld trips from Gatwick )
Might have to get my Monsters serviced and purchace some new gloves ( with idiot strings )
woooo hooooooooooo

where abouts in LP rob? we’re keeping an eye out for last minute deals and if we end up in LP will give you a shout

Chalet Alpages through SkiFrance .
I’m not expecting it to be amazing , and it is shared facilities.- not en- suite, but for the outlay , for Chrimbo week , in a quality resort , with flights, transfers and dubiuos quality wine included.
Coudln’t find anything near it tbh, most others around £500

Right. That’s it. It’s just not fair.

Looking at the Serre Che webcams earlier, it’s been chucking buckets of the stuff for days. It’s going to be an awesome season, isn’t it?

And I’m not going this year. 🙁 However, I have something even better for this season! 🙂

Now, you lot. Your mission, whether you like it or not, is to ensure that I can live a vicarious season through your trips. That means PICTURES! Lots of ’em! 🙂

looks like i’m going to bernex (small french resort) at the end of feb with the GF and her colleagues. might go for a week in morzine beforehand though 😉

anyone been to bernex?

Just booked my lessons, whoop whoop! Your going to have to wait a while for pics tho capt we don’t get back until 2nd March.

89 sleeps left!

btw, this is a mate of mine in morzine 2 days ago…

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Flashy – I’ll try and sort some sunny t-shirty March pics for you then. Am I right in thinking that currently shots of small people learning to ski are right up your street?

Am I right in thinking that currently shots of small people learning to ski are right up your street?

Little Miss CFH will need some inspiration, and sunny shots of mini-people having fun might be ideal! (She may well not realise what they are, apart from being shiny lights etc, but I suspect I’ll enjoy them for her!)

Little Miss CFH will be skiing in a couple of years, don’t you worry! There’s a learner slope at Serre Che with her name all over it!

I say, Teh Modz, could you perhaps get your backsides doing some work and fix this glitch? It really is most annoying. Thanks, awfully, etc.

Where is a good place to buy boots and skis in the uk?

Where is a good place to buy boots and skis in the uk?

It depends where you are but make sure you go to a good boot-fitter. If you’re anywhere near the NW of England I unreservedly recommend Rivington Alpine. (they’re MTBers too so you’ll have something to chat about during the lengthy fitting process)

Why buy your own skis? A bit hypocritical as I own my own but, unless you’re going to ski 20+ days a season you’re better off renting. No lugging throug airports, someone else has to service them, you can chop/change them if you don’t like them or conditions change.

Just spoken to a mate currently in Tignes, loads of snow, 1ft of fresh powder with no one on it and perfect -22 degree temps. A free room in their chalet.

Gutted I cant just go out there tomorrow 🙁

unless you’re going to ski 20+ days a season you’re better off renting.

Agreed.

If you’re anywhere near the NW of England I unreservedly recommend Rivington Alpine

Also agreed. Have heard nothing but good about them.

Gutted I cant just go out there tomorrow

Again, agreed. Not going this season, though. 🙁

Well, I’m not so fussed about skis but I’m size 13-14 so have difficulty renting boots. I’m based in the south east but am willing to travel.

I’ve got 3 weeks planned for this coming season so it’s getting there on justifying them.

3 weeks? Worth buying boots for that, assuming you go regularly as well.

That size? Eeek! Ring around a few places – Snow and Rock (Covent Garden or High St Ken), Solutions4Feet, Profeet, 47Degrees, Finches Ski are a few good shots in London.

Wellwellwell – solutions 4 feet in Bicester, Colin is excellent. He actively put me off buying boots after just one trip saying I should wait until I was a better skier before spending a few hundred pounds on boots. Lost out on a sale. Although I did go back 4 ski weeks later.

If anyone has any younger skiers in the family wanting gloves I managed to get Jnr some bargain Reusch gloves from Decathlon, Gore tex gloves for £19.99, reduced from £34.99. Looked like they had sizes from age 8 to 14 (although I doubt a 14 yo would be able to get them on).

p.s. I only came in to this thread to say…
~ there will be no family ski hol this year
~ there will be no lad’s ski hol this year
~ the new bathroom will be finished midweek

Have fun everyone but, for me, it’s roll on next season before this one’s begun.

That is all.

roll on next season before this one’s begun.

*High fives fellow season misser!*

Yup, got a week booked in saalbach, 7 days planned up in scotland, then another week that is booked off from work, but we have not booked anything yet to see where the snow is… I’ve also booked 2 weeks over christmas and new year 13/14 due to this hotel booking up well in advance.

hopefully i will try and get some weekends in scotland too in addition to the week planned already

I’ll check out those shops in London… I’m kinda running out of time already as I’m assuming they will need to order them in…

Yup, got a week booked in saalbach

Me too. Well Salfelden actually but same ski area. Travel dowm on Xmas Day and come back on New Year’s Day. 😀 So a week for my three pre-teen children to show me how slow I am on a snowboard. 😳

these were the gloves

Some good news for anyone heading out to the Portes du Soliel soon…
Champèry was open this weekend. Only three lifts were open but snow conditions were excellent. The links to Portes du Soleil were closed (due to avalanche risk I assume). Verbier was mostly closed on Saturday for the same reason…

[/url] Champèry with Adam[/url] by Beanum[/url], on Flickr[/img]

[/url] Champèry off piste[/url] by Beanum[/url], on Flickr[/img]

Why buy your own skis? A bit hypocritical as I own my own but, unless you’re going to ski 20+ days a season you’re better off renting. No lugging throug airports, someone else has to service them, you can chop/change them if you don’t like them or conditions change.

Agreed here. I think the accepted logic is boots first (after ski clothes) and then rent unless you are doing at least 14 days or you just fancy your own like me, I’ve had two sets which have each easily lasted 10+ years before I’ve got bored of them/realised how much the technology has moved on, am just about to replace again (with Prophet’srecommend on here – thanks guys).

By the time you factor in servicing and repairs renting looks even more attractive.

How about snowboards on the rent -v- buy debate?

I bought fairly early on as I thought rental boards were pants.

Was this true?

Is it still true?

Rental boards tend* to be aimed at beginner level for some reason. In most (not all) hire places there tends to be a broad range of skis covering different abilities, terrain, conditions, styles etc – then a big pile of unsorted snowboards. 😕

The boards themselves are generally not terrible, but they are not great either. And they may have rental-friendly things on them like big plastic caps to protect the ends and horrible quick-release bindings with a button to rotate them. Yik.

*(Obvious exceptions to this include anywhere with a snowboard test centre or good snowboard school)

I always find rental gear varies a lot resort to resort. Places like Whistler have a great range of gear, that’s more often than not this season’s. Smaller resorts though have less choice.

Thinking of a cheapo deal boarding the week after New Year – can get B+B in somewhere like Kaprun or Kitzbuhel for not much over £200, and eating out in Austria was pretty cheap last year.

Can’t find anyone else to go with though so it would just be me and the missus, and she is much more of a beginner than me. Anyone else done this – did it work out ok?

The OH and I are on a bit more of a level now, but when I first went skiing she was far more experienced than me. I would have 1/2 day lessons and she would ski by herself or pair up with someone else who was in a similar position. Occasionally she’d ski alone. She could then get a good ski in before meeting up and having to go at a steadier pace/gentler terrain all afternoon.

That said she did have a scare one day when the weather closed in and she couldn’t work out how to get back home. She ended up skiing down with a group of Spanish ladies who even though they had safety in numbers were even more lost than she was. After that she decided to have lessons whenever I do so she was never skiing alone, not that she really needs them.

She’s still a better skier than I but I’m the one pushing the terrain and pace now, she’s happy just pootling about exploring.

Recommendations please

I need a EASY to get to location (ideally less than 1hr transfer from airport (??) will be flying from Gatwick) for a ski weekend with the Mrs. doesnt have to be five star but something on the nicer side of things with some nightlife for dinners out and drinks (no crazy apres needed). Will be our first weekend away without kids in 3 years so skiing is only part of the appeal

chamonix is about an hour from geneva.

Chamonix is definitely on the list but I went last year with some mates so wondered if anyone had any other inspirational ideas.

Depends on budget but if you have a big one, Megeve is the answer. About an hour from Geneva and probably the smartest resort in France, some may argue Courcheval 1850, very very nice and therefore very female friendly. Chamonix can be done nicely as well but the different ski areas can be a pain. The portes de soleil resorts are all close to Geneva too, never week ended in them.

Budget not insignificant but obviously dont want to have to take out a new mortgage. Will take a look at Megeve.

If too expensive, there are some nice looking towns on the way up which I think have lift access like St Gervais but I have never spent any time in them.

Thanks Mefty, just had a look at although on the pricey side of things it looks manageable in Megeve – depending on whats available.

Any other ideas?

I would avoid Chamonix for a long weekend tbh. I found the local area busy and the lifts miles apart .

Flaine is butt ugly , but close to GVA.

Look at Praz de Lys for something different.

Otherwise Morzine or even better Avoriaz . Again , not pretty but almost doorstep skiing and miles of piste to cover. Morz Express for Transfers .

higgo – Member

p.s. I only came in to this thread to say…
~ there will be no family ski hol this year
~ there will be no lad’s ski hol this year
~ the new bathroom will be finished midweekThat’s sad.
I didn’t like to ask why you weren’t going this year, when we bumped into you.
BTW are you coming on next Sunday’s ride in Macc forest?