I was in the other TDC group on Tommeuse, Steve. It was pretty busy with all of us on there but looked like everyone got down fine. Completely agree on the temps: very hot! I must have drunk about 2 litres of water when I got in. Looking forward to some cooler weather from the weekend; hopefully with some snow.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
A pleasant off piste day both am and pm!
Another sunny day was on the menu so I was one layer down on yesterday and with the off piste bag I was carrying I was glad of it. I had not realised that all three of the am clients would be skiing with bags so we ended up with me and my bag, the three of them and their three bags as well as 3 more bags with gear in it..... they also had lunch, drinks and all sorts of 'stuff' in their packs so it took a bit of re-arranging to get everything stuffed down to only 4 packs and the four of us looked as if we were off on a multi-day tour when we left the meeting point rather than just a morning off piste. The safety 'chat' complete the first stop (after some piste technique to prepare them for the off piste upcoming) was the Grand Vallon. I decided to ski the guts (as per last week) and the snow was LOVELY and chalky - top to bottom (well where we came out to rejoin the piste to the Signal!). There was next to no-one down there so it made for a very pleasant outing and everyone enjoyed it!
A quick tracking over to the Cugnai and Cugnai looked lovely. Once again however there was a lot of people down there without any sort of safety equipment which is always worrying to see!
The guts were quite bumpy (as to be expected) but the snow was nice. I had hoped after we got 3/4 of the way down and onto the west facing slopes that they would have softened up but I was wrong - perhaps 30 minutes too early! I then realised that it was nearly 12 noon and I was still not at the bottom of Cugnai, let alone on / up the Manchet Express chair, taken kit back off them and re-sorted out packs AND made my way back to town - arghhhhh. Anyway I finally made it to lunch at 12.30!
The 'guts' of the Grand Vallon - bumping up with all the traffic it has been receiving day after day for the past few weeks!
The afternoon was similar to the morning but it was with seasonnaires and for some reason only 2 could make it today! Even so a trip through the Grand Vallon followed by trip down the L'Avancher couloir was in store. The couloir was in GREAT nick actually!
The L'Avancher couloir was in great shape
Great views of town from within the couloir!
The only other pieces of news here in town are:
1) Guerlain Gicherait suffered a bad crash during practice for his world record long jump in a mini over in Tignes today...... he made the length but the nose dropped too much on landing and he ended up cartwheeling 4/5 times and initial reports are that he is OK just badly shaken up with some bumps and bruises - lucky guy.... who knows whether he will have another go at the jump anytime soon or not!
2) A local paraglider for some unknown reason had to make an emergency landing on the cliffs above Val (the non skiing side) yesterday afternoon and needed a helicopter rescue - he was OK but that would have been an expensive mistake!
3) The 'pollution' temporary speed limit on the roads in the valley has now been lifted thankfully as the pollution seems to have sorted itself out!
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Hi Steve, loving all the reports as usual (especially as I'll be there in less than a week!). Any word on the street about the snow this weekend?
fingerbib - Hi - nice to meet you from afar. Yes lots of people skiing the moguls wasn't there - especially with the various BASI groups looping around too! The following forecast may be to your liking - assuming you are here for another week!
Well over a metre of snow is forecast starting from the end of this week if "optimistic-forecast.com" - sorry snow-forecast.com, is anything to go by. Seriously I do find them rather optimistic so I very much doubt we will get this amount up the mountain BUT equally I am not surprised to see a potential return to winter and some snow......
So HoneyBunny - you may be in luck, a lot of luck as the case may be!!!!!
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Another scorcio day in the mountains. It was a little cloudy first up but that cleared quickly. It had hardly frozen overnight down here in the village but it was a different story at altitude!
My third and final day with my am peeps and today we worked some more on shorts and then longs with a few 'tricks' thrown in for good measure! I 'tested' them by taking them down Arcelle first up and it was predictably firm underfoot which highlighted the necessity to work on edge and pressure control. So we worked on that for a good hour before moving to the Glacier Express to work on carving. With two differing levels of performers I was giving two very differing sets of drills!
Anyway we finished by coming down the Plan M and it was interesting to see the differing slope conditions from top to bottom with it being north facing and scraped at the top all the way to soft and west facing near the bottom and then finally just plain soft down by the bottom of the Solaise Express due to the lower altitude!
I met up with my colleague and friend Gav and we headed to Tignes Les Brevs to meet up with his wife and young (16 weeks old) daughter and Clare - those three came via car. Anyway the girls had managed to get a really nice table in the sun so we sat and had a long lunch which was glorious. Gav and I skied back to Val whilst the girls drove back.
Whilst we were down in Brev at the Armailly (which is the lovely (and best restaurant down there) place right over the bridge when you get to Brev)) we saw two PGHM choppers fly overhead in the direction of St Foy so not sure what was happening down there today - hopefully nothing too serious!
The last couple of hours I have been snoozing on the sofa and will be going for my french lesson soon. They are still forecasting this evening for this storm to hit us and I have even seen some reports saying that it could be as much as 1.5m that will come but as always I am being pessimistic / read that as realistic, on the snow front - keep watching this space.
We have one more day of sun forecast for tomorrow before we get a change in the weather either way!
P.S. In the photo above you will notice down the valley there was evidence of smog in the air...... lets hope any precipitation clears that up...... or they may reimpose pollution restrictions again!
what do you think about the week end?will be snow or rain?
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
fanesa wrote:
what do you think about the week end?will be snow or rain?
Probably snow up top and rain down at lower altitudes - rain in the day but snow in town at night!
After all it is free
After all it is free
Chilly wind
I really wish I had taken note of the wind in town this morning and put another layer on as I was rather chilly up there today as the Foehn wind blew over from Italy!
In the am I had a guy who had not had a lesson for a few years and was (by his own admission) a little unfit. He is here with a group of lads on a lads trip (the leader of whom I know very well and someone ill be teaching tomorrow and is a fellow SH!). Anyway the aim of the session really was to make the whole skiing experience for him less tiring and to give him the tools to make it around the mountain both safely and securely but also with a little bit of speed to keep up!
We worked our way through a variety of drills that when all coupled together meant that the skiing was much easier for him. He even surprised himself by skiing down the red steepness terrain on the Val stade - bravo!!!!
I did have to keep reminding him that the snow conditions vary so much at times of the season like this that you cannot use a one size fits all technique on the ski front.... sometimes a pivot and slide works and at other times it really does not!
Anyway I was rather chilly and it was only the morning and it was still rather sunny up there and bit by bit was clouding over so I considered going home at lunchtime to get another layer on... but I decided against it in the end!
Just at the end of the morning lesson I had a rather unfortunate case of 'wrong place at the wrong time' with an ESF older female instructor who took it upon herself to take offence as Mark and I (the person I had been teaching) poled our way around the corner from the top of the Marmottes lift to download on the Olympique - something along the lines that we were in the way of a young child in her group. I found her to be rather aggressive and she ended up intentionally standing on my skis to get her point across...... nothing like showing professionalism on her behalf ehh! Really not sure what the whole fuss was but I think the thing that annoyed me the most was that she jumped in with two feet whilst I was busy finishing the lesson and chatting with Mark - there was no 'excuse-moi' or anything. When you see such poor manners and aggressive behaviour I do not understand how the ESF have any customers at all. NB for those regular readers of this blog you will note that I do not normally be critical about named outfits but in this case I feel no shame in naming the ESF who create a bad name for themselves all to often!
Anyway after lunch I met up with another group of SH's and the session was slightly different from normal in that it was two skiers and one boarder. We worked on some technique on the Arcelle initially and we worked on turn shape and that moved on to some lateral separation work later on. All along I was able to give some drills (even though I was on my skis and talking to a boarder) to improve the riding performance so I was running both a ski and snowboard session all at the same time. I have done this many times so I was hardly challenged by it but it is always a tough thing to balance up as one half of the lesson is not 'interested' half the time and can switch off and the other half of the time it is vice-a-versa and coupled with that demonstrations and feedback can take quite a while!
Anyway there was some really good improvements made. I always think in one off sessions like this that half the job of the instructor is to give the client tools they can play with in their own time and plenty of drills to get stuck in - then the improvements can be made in their own time outside of the lesson as the movements are committed to muscle memory! In doing so the client understands what they are trying to do to improve and how to do it.... I guess in a way homework is then set so the client can improve as they go in their own time!
It clouded over little by little all afternoon and the stiff breeze never really calmed down - they are still calling for heavy snowfall starting from tomorrow night onwards - hmmmmmmm we shall see as I still think that will be rain in town and snow higher up!
This evening Clare and I have been around to the chalet of a relation of hers for a drink and nibbles and had a quiet evening together after that. It is only another 2 weeks until Clare heads back to the UK to begin the countdown to the big day - so much to do before then.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
Well it has certainly been way warmer than anticipated out there today and certainly more sunny!
I had Jason and his band of merry men this morning for a bit of a guiding session around the resort. As usual at this time of year Jason (who is a long standing client of mine) comes out with some mates (in fact this is his third trip this season) and they have me for a morning combining some showing around coupled with a few tips for both the skiers and snowboarders in the group!
I thought we would go somewhere different this time and headed towards Val Claret but then went up the Tichot side of things and around that way to Le Lac before heading back to Val via Le Face!
It was a jolly nice morning really and the guy that I gave a lesson to yesterday morning did really well in keeping up with the others until his legs got tired and skipped the ski from Val Claret to Le Lac and instead took the bus down!
Later on in the morning and with blue skies prevailing overhead I noticed that a hogs back cloud had come back over Mt Blanc so surely a change in the weather is a must now!
Clare and I sat outside the Tartine at lunchtime today and enjoyed the company of an old friend of ours from the Hemel Snow Centre days, Mel. It was nice to sit and chat in the sun for a couple of hours as she was also waiting to hear on news from her husband who has been doing his BASI Level 3 technical course this week after a whole seasons worth of training.... when the call finally came it was not good news as he failed on his moguls..... such a shame as everything else is at the level. So they are both planning on another season back in Tignes next year working on finally achieving Level 3 status - good luck Dave and Mel.
Notice the ice on the lake in Tignes starting to thin - only a few more days until it will not be possible to walk across surely!
Despite a bit of a breeze blowing the Grand Motte cable car was still functioning this morning - as we could see from afar here at the top of the Tommeuse!
So I am having a lazy afternoon and shall be enjoying the last of the sun before finally this weather system arrives - watch this space!
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Lovely pics Steve. Wish me luck getting to the resort on Sunday - might see you to say a quick hi in the Blue Note one afternoon!
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Steve Angus, thanks, yes here for another week: luxury!
Forecast looks promising too, certainly different to this week. We had five days with Kieran which has been great fun; finished off with some gates in the stade this morning, which was ace. We might try and get another afternoon booked with tdc next week if the weather clears for some powder. I can't remember it being so warm consistently in March but the snow has held up really well.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Been in Val since last Sunday. I've been enjoying the posts for weeks in the run up to the holiday. Thanks for the great blog.
The sunshine's been lovely all week, but it certainly hasn't done much for the snow. We've managed to find some decent off piste with Thomas from Alpine Experience in the last couple of days, but it's been hard work. Hiking at a minimum, skins preferred.
I really hope the snow arrives as forecast, even if it does mean our last day might be a bit bleak.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
HoneyBunny - sure you'll be fine. Yep may bump into you at some point.
fingerbib - yep you could get some powder turns in this week for sure. Glad you had fun with Kieran this week!
RobMcQ - yea you certainly have had to walk for the pow this week haven't you..... in this weather it has been worth it!
ITS SNOWING
It has been a rather lazy day here. It started reasonably bright - still some high clouds. Had a very long lie in, had brunch, watched some TV, Clare went and changed the sheets in the chalet apartment and then came back and changed to go out for a girly afternoon at her ' baby-shower'. Clare loves things like this - not the celebration as such but more the fact that she meets up with her friends for a good natter and eating of cake and other things - don't all women just love things like that.
However that is perfect for me as I have had a sports fest on TV - the cricket and the footy.
Outside it has got darker and darker all day and now in the last hour or so the heavens have opened and it is snowing really hard down in town. I suspect that up top it has been snowing most of the day! As the forecast continues to show it should continue for a day or so on or off which should set us up nicely for next week!
Not too much else to report really. Looks like may get another day off tomorrow as we are still in the limbo period before Easter kicks in. I am working hard to set up a couple of heli skiing trips for later on this week so if anyone in town wants to perhaps do some of that then let me know and ill see what we can sort out.
TTFN!
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Have you been lucky enough to have no transfers this weekend?
Only two weeks until we are back in resort
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I live in Bourg but a heli trip sounds awesome, what are you planning for it?
muppet - yes I was very fortunate as our guests are here for two weeks so it was a change to get a Saturday off! timlongs - well we run trips from Lac du Chevril to the top of Solaise and if everything works out there might be a trip running this Wednesday or Thursday but there is a good chance it is fully booked up. It is based on 4 people and works out about €100 per person all in including chopper cost and guiding for the afternoon / morning.
HoneyBunny - hope you arrived - as you can see it is rather snowy out there.
Well WHAT a tiring day
It really has been an exhausting day....
I was up very early to get everything together and to get the car and drive around to Tignes as I got booked at the very last minute last night for both an am session this morning in Tignes and also a seperate pm over there too.
It had snowed about 20cm all over this morning (so the forecasts more or less came true). I suppose the good thing about this time of year is that the actual roads (and anything man-made really) retains its heat which meant that the roads were clear! Whilst I was loading my car I saw John jump on his YSE transfer bus - goodness me at his age I still cannot believe that he does the trip EVERY single Sunday!!!!
Anyway I made it to Tignes in good time and parked up in my secret parking (free) spot and made it to the meeting point nicely on time.
It was a little annoying as I had it written down that the guy I was teaching did not have any off piste gear - well I was proved wrong as he certainly did. In actual fact he was a very good skier and certainly the best skier I have taught this season. It turns out he owns a place in Tignes and has a very successful business (IT) in the UK so spends most of the season out here skiing and off piste skiing at that!
Anyway the weather really was not playing ball but we battled through driving snow and winds and zero visibility for much of the time. We really tried to cover some ground whilst developing a couple of small things in his skiing that needed attention - mainly his arm carriage when he pole planted - sometimes the left shoulder opened up which put him off axis and therefore off balance a tad.
Anyway after an opener in zero vis on the Familial when I could not see a thing but there was lush snow in there we headed to the La Daille trees and had some nice turns in there. Next was the Spatule and we did 'crooked-tooth couloir' which required me to cut a small avalanche sluff before we skied it... it was jolly tight getting through but we made it OK. Spatule itself was good but he had the advantage of being able to see my tracks which helped him 'see' whereas I was 'blind'. At one point I did manage to lose and ski and went for a tumble which thereafter meant my goggles kept steaming up...... see instructors do fall over in lessons sometimes!
We randomly bumped into some English lads who were having some issues skiing some of the lower Spatule powder so he asked for my card which was a rather surreal thing to be handing out in such bad conditions.
It really was a return to Winter out there and next up I thought about going for the Cairn which I thought by now would have been nicely opened up by someone else cutting a track in as by now I had already cut in several tracks this morning and could already feel it in the legs!
So anyway we were not in luck (well I wasn't) I started cutting tracks in and notices that there was some definite surface slabbing breaking up but generally only slumping. It was very strange as you would have patches where the wind had gotten to it and you still had the sun baked tracks sitting there whereas elsewhere it was soft and deep powder and sometimes really wind piled up!!!!!
Anyway after about 50 yards of the traverse in I really got a bad feeling about continuing so we headed back to the Face - which was not as easy as it should have been - again I did not see a wind lip and slipped (but did not fall over) down that..... anyway I was glad to make it back to the piste.
I then planned to head to Lievre Blanc but the Solaise Express was not running due to high winds so we had to bus it to Laisenant.... the top part of Super L was nice - if you could only have seen where you were going but the actual Lievre Blanc was brilliant - we were perhaps the 4th group in there so hardly any tracks laid down... the snow was lovely and light all the way to the bottom.
It was now 'lunchtime' and I had to get back to Tignes Le Lac for my 1pm session (I had overrun and gotten my timings wrong in the am session so only had 45 mins to get from Laisenant to Le Lac). Anyway luckily all the links etc were working just fine (the Tommeuse never did close because of the wind although it was threatening at one time) and I made it to Maison de Tignes just on the stroke of 1pm.
Looking like Winter all over again!
Anyway the afternoon was rather more sedate with a couple on their third skiing holiday. Their first two had been to Quebec in Canade so they were used to the COLD and WIND.... Anyway we lapped around the blues of both Le Lac and Val Claret and finally finished with a red.
By the end they were absolutely knackered and freezing cold which was just as well as so was I.
So after shedding the gear and driving home, parking the car I had a very nice couple of hours - yes that is correct, in the bath drinking a pot of tea and eating some left over cupcakes from Clares baby shower party yesterday pm!
Just about finished catching up on some email and messages and most certainly now ready for bed - good night!
Another week starts tomorrow and I think we could have a few more days of wintery weather to come!!!!
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Certainly poor visibility up there this am!!!!! But it got better and better!
It certainly looked like it was going to be a stinker of a day and initially it looked that way!
I woke up feeling more tired than when I went to bed but I suppose that is the cliche of Monday mornings isn't it!!!!
So I set off into the doom and gloom (just fairly windy and snowy (but not really settling too much)!) and I met up with my am lesson. There was not a lot of bookings in the system for this afternoon and I did not expect much to come in, especially with the weather as it was!
I had not recognised the name on the booking but it was with some I taught a fair bit a couple years back. This time Alfred was here with his wife. It was a case of taking it all back to basics as there were some fundamental issues that he (willing admitting to) was not sure about. She has a couple of other areas to work on. The beauty of having three sessions with them is that I can spend time working through some of the fundamentals on the first day with them before ramping it up tomorrow and so on and so forth (conditions etc permitting).
So the three hours whizzed past and little but little the weather improved. In fact by lunchtime it was starting to become sunny and now as I write this at nearly 4pm it is a lovely afternoon with hardly a cloud in the sky although that is supposed to change again over the next few days!!!!!!
Clare and I have spent most of the afternoon having a jolly good spring clean here in out apartment (the studio one we live in) as we have a viewing in a little while which is exciting! Our neighbours have left their dog with us this afternoon to look after too so all in all it has been an 'alternate' afternoon.
Not to much else to report at this end although the main local news is that Marc Buaer has been re-elected mayor of Val d'Isere once again for another term whereas over in Tignes it will go to another round as there was no clear victor in round one. Other piece of local news was that after his crash last week attempting the car long jump record, Guerlain Gicherait, is back in action without really any injuries although his attempt (for the time being) is over..... at least he was not injured!
Well it has certainly been way warmer than anticipated out there today and certainly more sunny!
I had Jason and his band of merry men this morning for a bit of a guiding session around the resort. As usual at this time of year Jason (who is a long standing client of mine) comes out with some mates (in fact this is his third trip this season) and they have me for a morning combining some showing around coupled with a few tips for both the skiers and snowboarders in the group!
I thought we would go somewhere different this time and headed towards Val Claret but then went up the Tichot side of things and around that way to Le Lac before heading back to Val via Le Face!
It was a jolly nice morning really and the guy that I gave a lesson to yesterday morning did really well in keeping up with the others until his legs got tired and skipped the ski from Val Claret to Le Lac and instead took the bus down!
Later on in the morning and with blue skies prevailing overhead I noticed that a hogs back cloud had come back over Mt Blanc so surely a change in the weather is a must now!
Thanks for a great time Steve, the guys really enjoyed themselves and Mark promises to get fitter for next year so he too can do Face. The boys are also badgering me to organise that heliski you were talking about for next year?
I need to get to Hemel over the summer as Sally seems to have perfected switch leaving me behind. Drop me a text / note if you're around between other commitments.
If I don't speak to you before, good luck with the baby.
Jason
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
trainee snowboard jedi - no problems at all Jason. Glad you (and the boys) had fun. Sure Mark will get fitter and conquer the face! We can also sort out the heli trip for you - no problems!
Indeed I shall let you know the plans for Summer and The Snow Centre in Hemel. Sure we can fit something in.
Thanks for the note on the baby.... less than 8 weeks and counting - eek!
Taken from the up and over 'scare' chair or whatever you want to call it you can see that the cloud held off at a high enough level not to really impact on the visibility and enjoyment out there today. In fact by mid morning there were signs of the sun coming out but it really never took hold but nonetheless it was a MUCH nicer day than yesterday and a little warmer too - so can't complain!
In the morning I had the same couple as yesterday and they both made really good improvements today. Having worked on some fundamentals yesterday it was time to ramp things up a little today and hit some reds and then work towards improving shorter radius turns....... and some excellent things were seen. I videod them and I think they could understand things much better when they saw themselves on video - which always helps!
There was quite a lot of us at lunch which made for a good atmosphere - not that often that so many of us are at lunch - so that was a nice change!
The afternoon was spent with a young couple... they both did the TDC Gap program last year and passed their BASI 1 and 2 and now he is out here to do a ICE ISIA training program and is slowly working his way through his qualifications whilst she has started at university in York. Anyway they had done a fair bit of skiing with her parents this week and I think the session was to mix up things a bit for them and to give them a focus for the remainder of the weeks skiing.
So we looped around quite a few times on the Arcelle working on some pretty tough drills related to short turns. At one point I had them doing double pole plants jumping the backs of the skis around the turn to exaggerate the hips travelling through the flow line at the start of the turn - that was quite tough and physical for all of us!
Just when they thought I was going to go easy on them we swapped strands to work on moguls. Since so much BASI training courses etc spend time on the Tommeuse bumps etc I decided that the Foret bumps at the Fornet would be a much better place to go and play.... indeed they were nice and we had some good laps down there!
This evening I have spent most of the time trying to work on the seasonnaires heli trips - one tomorrow afternoon and one Thursday afternoon. With illnesses and other 'issue' it has turned out to be a bit of a pain in the back bottom getting it all sorted but I think I am nearly there now. Lets just hope the weather does not spoil things tomorrow!
Until tomorrow.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Wow Steve these updates are amazing, thank you so much.
I'm going to Val D'Isere on Saturday...hoping for some good conditions.
After all it is free
After all it is free
The thing I don't understand about the snow reports is that it says on snow-forecast.com that the freezing level in Val currently is between 1250 and 1700 metres but the temperature in the resort when you type Val D'Isere weather into Google says 7-10C. Can anyone shed any light on this? Sorry if it's a common query.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
skiben - no probs... glad you like. AFA the freezing level and temps thing is concerned.... I know snow-forecast.com were having issues presenting the data properly recently so maybe that is something to do with it. Another thing to consider is that the freezing level is based on the expected 'dry' air temperature and if the air carries moisture / humidity then the freeing level can alter radically. Another thing is that sometimes weather stations are in the direct sunlight therefore heat up more and create artificially localised readings so that 'real' air temperature is different to the 'spot' thermo temp that could be the feed to google etc! Good luck for the holiday!
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
What a day
It started quite sunny but the clouds (and the odd little bit of snow) started forming quite early on..... building from the Italian / Fornet side it threatened to come in a few times (but in the end never did).
So I just had one half of the couple that I have been teaching the past few days this morning. We were able to really get stuck into some decent short turns (on Arcelle) and then carving up on the Plan Milet runs. Some good changes have really come into her skiing over the past few days so I was chuffed with my handiwork!
Lunch was a rush trying to get packs etc ready for the afternoons heli trip. The weather was holding off long enough for it to be a go'er! - yippee.
So (despite a couple of the seasonnaires being a little late) we were ready for the Chevril heli trip!
We headed up Tommeuse and hiked along the ridge for about 10 minutes. I wanted to test the seasonnaires out on the south facing slopes of Familial - the slope (although not too long) was rather crusty so it was quite challenging. The sun had had a little effect but all in all was relatively stable. It was a good tester for them as I knew the snow lower down may be hit and miss (as it would so to be proved).
By the time we moved around onto the north facing slopes the snow was glorious - light and about boot deep and was a real pleasure to get some powder turns in. We made our way across the 'flats' and past the ski-doo / yurt hanger.... I then made the call to SAF choppers and said that we would be at the rendezvous point about 1515 and set off for the walk up to the pylon and over and ultimately over and down to start the descent to the lake pick up point.
The snow was starting to change and the girls legs were a little tired but we pushed on slowly but steadily. There was some lovely snow and scenery to be had. The middle narrow bit is a bit steep and the snow was rather curdy and churned up at this point and it did not help that it was rather grabby. It was tough going for a part but they did well and bit by bit we entered the forest and finally to the rendezvous point.
I was still in the middle of setting everything up before calling the pilot (it was now about 1530) when he obviously got bored and decided to come in.... there was several frantic minutes of dashing around (totally NOT by the books way of doing things but he never gave me the chance to call him to give him the go ahead to come in when we were actually 100% ready). Just when I thought it was all done I noticed that one of the seasonnaires jackets that she had taken off as she was hot after the descent had blown away when the chopper came in an landed and also a pack too.... so I had to rush off to collect that...... arghhhhhhhhhh
Anyway it all worked out just fine in the end and we had the most amazing flight ever over Val d'Isere back to the drop zone at the top of Solaise.
We skied down and headed for the Blue Note for some beers to celebrate and then after an hour or so there - Clare popped up too, it was time to head to my French lesson. The only downer of the evening was that I got a call from the chopper people to be told that the heli needs to go in for emergency repair work tomorrow so we cannot heli tomorrow so I have spent most of the evening trying to re-arrange tomorrows sessions for Friday!
Anyway must sign off as I am rather knackered now and really must get some sleep!
Ill leave you with some photos of our heli trip.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Your afternoon trip looked fab, something to aim for in the future.
The snow looks good for everybody coming out in the next couple of weeks for the Easter holidays.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Steve Angus,
Hi Steve,
Mentioned a few weeks ago that might be looking for a 3/4 hour private. What is your diary looking like Sat/Sun this coming weekend ? Best reply would be to Julie@vsmltd.com as only picking up messages up on this address every couple of days.
Thanks,
mrkn (Mark & Julie)
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Weather getting nicer and nicer
This morning was a luxury as had a lie in as am lesson was not until 9.30am.
One of Clares father contacts has a large corporate group out here at the moment so you can guess which ski school got the job of teaching them - thanks Stevie for the recommendation!
Anyway I (co-incidentally) ended up teaching the owner of the company who was a good skier but told me he always likes to start a school trip with a lesson to brush up on a few things. So we headed up Bellevarde and initially worked around on some blues and reds before heading to some blacks - namely Trolles over in Tignes. The main issue was with lack of arm discipline that meant that his shoulders twisted, therefore balance was affected when he turned (especially on his left hand turn). Anyway work to fix that coupled with a little more lateral separation work and that was his piste performance touched up. We then did some work on moguls before I took him to Les Tufs restaurant where they had a table booked for lunch (all 19 of them).
The afternoon was a relatively relaxing one... I went for a walk in the sun with Clare and then did some working through the next off piste heli trip being planned for tomorrow afternoon! I can assure you trying to get 8 seasonnaires sorted out took a fair while but we got there finally!
I watched the cricket matches form Bangladesh with much interest and it was great to see such a good England performance!
In the evening Clare and I headed to Blue Note to have a drink with some family friends of her Dads (Clares dad gets quite showing today!). It was nice having a couple of drinks before coming home for a nice meal.
I am really tired so will sign off now and look forward to a lie in before the afternoon heli-skiing trip.
The weather forecast is for it to get steadily warmer, clearer and more Spring like over the next week or so - perfect for the start of the Easter holidays.... that coupled with the perfect snow conditions - you can't really get it much better than this!
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Great to see you and Clare today Steve! She is looking absolutely radiant. Glad the heli trip went well - looking forward to the report - what a day for it!
I must say, the snow and weather this week has just been fantastic.
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Steve Angus, when's the Big Day?
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
HoneyBunny - GREAT to catch up.... albeit briefly. Yes it was certainly a great day for it and thanks for your kind words re Clare - apart from the odd back ache here and there she is looking full of life and ready for the arrival - 'Bid Day' pam w is 17th May - she goes home a week today!
I had a BRILLIANT day: Friday 28th March.
Had (perhaps our VERY last together for a VERY long time) a lie in this morning which was bliss. Clare headed off for a swim whilst I watched some TV and doggy-sat Indie from next door - she is a very cute cocka-po (sp??). Anyway that was a nice way to spend the morning.
It was shaping up to be a lovely and sunny day... in fact perhaps looking to be almost too hot (therefore a little more dangerous) for the heli ski.
Anyway I headed up to the meeting point to meet 8 VERY excited seasonnaires ready for their trip!
Rich (my colleague) had a lesson that ended up finishing at the Toviere restaurant so we all rendezvous there.
After handing out the safety gear and doing a transceiver check we were off. We cautiously, with big gaps between one and all, cut across the south facing familial face in order to get around the corner to the north aspect of the face. As soon as we got around the corner the snow was much better and we got in some powder turns all the way down across the flats before doing the boot pack up.
The quick OK from the pilot that he was OK to fly and we were set.
The snow down through the trees where it gets steeper and narrower was actually better than Wednesday as the crud bit on top was more scrapped away sp much more manageable. By now both Rich and my groups were working as a single team which meant it was very atmospheric and lots of jokes being shared. In fact three of the YSE girls mimicked the YSE lettering with a backdrop of the dam in the background as they hope it will make the YSE photo of the day!
Anyway all went according to plan and we were on time. A quick safety briefing and the next thing we were airborne!
Another amazing ride and it was such a great way to finish the seasonnaires program for another year!
A few beers in the Blue Note (Honeybunny - nice to see you albeit briefly) followed by a take away then bed and it was the end of a great day!
I realised when I got home that I had managed to leave my GPS goggles 'running' in the chopper and it looks like we reached a top speed over Val d'isere of 149km/h!
I will edit together lots of video footage that I (and the seasonnaires) took yesterday into a little video sometime to share with you all sometime.... however here are some photos of the day!
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Not to much to report - but apart from to say - LAST TRANSFER DAY TO GENEVA FOR THE SEASON - YEY!
It was an early start but the roads were quiet and clear and we made excellent time all the way to the airport!
With the guests dropped off I treated myself to my favourite cup of tea and muffin at the airport in Tekoe tea shop in the arrivals hall.... yum yum.
The journey back towards Bourg was fairly painless.
A quick (naughty) Mcdonalds lunch followed by a MONSTER clean of the car for two hours then some shopping and it was almost time for a half hour nap before meeting the Eurostar inbound to collect our new (returning from last season again) guests!
I was able to use a VPN service to listen to BBC Radio 5 live cricket..... so there I was washing a car in the French Alps listening to commentary coming from Bangladesh..... the wonders of modern technology ehhh! Anyway just a pity the result did not go our way but there you go!
One VERY clean car waiting at the station car park
....but not much snow looking up towards Les Arcs 1800 from here - but I am sure they had some great snow up there - just a little higher up than we can see from down in Bourg!
So with the guests up and settled in I came home to some dinner and a couple of beers before hitting the sack.
Thats all folks for yesterday report!
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well it was so lovely and quiet on the hill today and the snow was in top condition as although it was warmer than it had been a few days back the sun did not really take control of the skies and we had a thin veil of high cloud for the most part.
I had mrkn - Mark and Julie, from over in Tignes this morning for a 4 hour thorough development of their technique. They have a place over there therefore are out for several weeks and they picked a good day for a lesson. In fact for only a relatively short amount of skiing experience they both have very good technique and technical understanding!
We worked on turn shape - active steering under a pressurised ski at the start of the turns, followed by active work on their flow line movements and finally some lateral separation work. After three hours of all sorts of rigourous drills and exercises to develop the various parts of their technique - in particular to improve skill and accuracy it was time to work on some carving so we switched areas from the Fontaine Froide and OK Orange sectors towards the Creuz blue from the top of Tommeuse.
Anyway there was some very positive developments so well done folks!
If I can work out how to get the video off my camera (its playing up this evening) then I will try and put it up to show some excellent short radius turns!
This afternoon I have mainly been relaxing and making dinner for a rather tired Clare.
Not much else to report this end..... the three weeks of school holidays chaos starts tomorrow for me..... 94 hours of teaching left to do before the end of the season which should bring the total number of hours taught this Winter to about 550+ hours..... 'phew knackered' - i'll be.
It started a little chilly this morning but warmed (and warmed) rather nicely as the day went on. In fact it is very much back to Spring freeze / thaw cycles and south and west facing slopes need to be timed carefully to get the best of the snow. Other options is to head high - e.g. the Motte or the Pissailas glaciers!
Anyway I was meeting (as I will be all day this week) at the chalet of my clients I am teaching this week. I have taught Bernard, Pam and his family on several occasions. As a new starter to the ski scene in later life he has really caught the bug and so have his grown up kids too. The plan had been to teach Pam the wife but unfortunately last week in Les Contamines on the first day of their ski trip she had fallen and twisted her knee which means she is not able to ski this week.... well it does not look like she will be able to ski at this stage. Anyway so with some juggling I am taking one of the sons in laws or one of the other siblings out over the course of the day.
We headed straight up to the Val glacier before the crowds arrived to get the best of the snow (to be honest it never got busy at all today anywhere so that is good news).
We spent most of the morning lapping around on the pistes up there which was lovely.
Lunch was taken at the Signal and then I took one of the older sons and his wife for a ski in the afternoon and worked on some technique - she is a pretty good skier actually - have had a spate of good skiers in the last week or so. Anyway we were able to work on some pretty advanced stuff and finished with a run down the Face doing a combination of short turns / carving turns and also some moguls.
Clare is out for her French lesson and it looks like the weather should stay as is for a few more days although there is a chance of rain and snow at altitude from later in the week - however I am not predicting anything yet a while.
Stunning scenery up the Val glacier.
Deserted pistes up there too.
Lovely day in town too!
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
I meant to say that this is the video I edited of Mark and Julie from yesterday showing some good short turns on the steep part of the OK Orange piste. Ok still some development to do but some really good skills shown here.
Meeting at the chalet at the same time... heading up with the same person as yesterday am (Solaise rather than Fornet this time) and then all lunching together at the Tete de Solaise before splitting to teach the other grown up son and wife.
Weatherwise it was very much the same as yesterday so the pistes are really getting into a solid melt freeze cycle so you have to pick the right slope at the right time to get the best conditions!
There were some really good improvements in terms of technique all over the shop today so I was glad to be making a difference!
Whislt we were skiing down the top pitch from the top of the Datcha lift on the Piste L towards the Datcha restaurant we came across a serious crash that was being attended to by the pisteurs. Within a few minutes the chopper was brought in so we got a ringside seat as the evacuation took place.
I have spent most of the evening editing the heli ski video from the other day so will try and get that up here soon.
Weather-wise there is a chance of some heavier weather (read that as possibility of rain in town and snow up higher (but not much of it)) moving in later in the week but not to much else to report at this end! Sorry rather a boring update this evening.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Steve Angus, why do you want a ringside seat, rather perverse!??
The finished edit from last Fridays heli ski with my seasonnaires i've been teaching on Friday afternoons a few times over the course of the season.
Markymark29 - I didn't necessarily want a 'ringside' seat - I just meant that we had one when it was taking place whilst we were trying to carry on with our lesson that was all!
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
Steve Angus, that's a great video, I think the happy smiliing faces may well sum up a good day!!
Do they run that into May??? Thinking of a bucket list for my 50th...., sorry 40th
Cheers,
Greg
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
What a fantastic video! Great backing track- I couldn't help but smile all the way through! Thank you Steve.
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Poster: A snowHead
