 Poster: A snowHead
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moosepig - yea and endoman - hee hee!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Devastated to see fatalities on the Pisaillas glacier in an avalanche. Were they on a closed piste from what I can gather? Steve Angus do you have the inside info?
A reminder that it is a dangerous pastime. Thoughts with their family 😓
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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?
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Sad news
Well folks this evening I will start with a stark example of ignoring signage on the mountain to report the death of a 44 year old father (from the Paris region) and his 11 year old daughter this afternoon in Val d'Isere. So today the temperatures felt warmer due to the sun beating down... making the snowpack warmer. Anyway with the wind we have had (not strong but persistent loading the south facing slopes) and the 40cm of snowfall over the last 72 hours or so the 'conditions' were ripe for avalanches. Anyway the piste from the top of the Pissaislas Glacier (Combe du Geant) which is lookers right off the side of the top t-bar was closed today... this was due to the 'overhanging' slopes above the piste that could slide. Anyway a family headed down this (clearly) closed run - pisteurs put signage all over the mountain if people look at it, and half way down the mountain purged itself. Cutting a long story short the wife was partially buried slightly out of the path of the slide but the husband and their only daughter were totally buried and 40 minutes of so later after a drafting in of all the av dogs on the mountain and about 20 pisteurs by chopper as well as any 'professional' in the region the probe line revealed where their (now lifeless) bodies were located. The CRS chopper was on site with the doctor but despite the paramedics and doctor at work they could not be revived (of course they were 'naturally' not wearing transceivers). The SAF chopper was acted as backup flying the dogs and pisteurs etc to the site.
This is Radio Val google translate version of what happened:
"Good weather and beautiful snow are not synonymous with safety. The beautiful weather of this day did not make forget that it had fallen more than 40cm of snow in altitude during these last 48h. The trackers are well aware of this, and it is for this reason that they took the precaution of closing a certain number of tracks because of the danger that can be represented by the sun-warming castings. The track of the Combe du Géant on the sector of Pisaillas was as such prohibited to skiers and ungroomed. A group of friends, skiing together, entered this closed track and around 12:40 pm, was surprised by a plate that had unhooked naturally in the vertical rock wall located about a hundred meters upstream of the track. She buried 3 skiers from the same family. If the mother, a little away from the avalanche's drop-off point, exited the mass of snow, the father, aged 44, and their only daughter, aged 11, were completely covered. About twenty trackers arrived very quickly on the scene and began to probe the foot of the avalanche to search for victims buried under the snow. 4 dog masters with their animals were also present. Cédric Bonnevie then asked to close the entire sector of Pisaillas to ensure a good quality of relief. The use of DVA avalanche search devices was useless because these skiers were not equipped with them. The 2 victims were extracted from the snow some 40 minutes later and the rescuers proceeded, in vain, to long cardiac massages. The CRS mountain helicopter arrived on the spot, with on board a doctor who could only note the deaths of the 2 unfortunate victims. Another helicopter, that of SAF, was also used to manage the material logistics and that of the men of this relief. The place is known for its dangerousness in case of avalanche risk. Last December, the same plate was part of the entire wall above this track. It had completely covered a large part of the foot of the Pisaillas sector. Tonight, in Val d'Isère, the avalins, though accustomed to these dramas, say that they will never do this type of hardship so much sadness and sorrow are great. (Our photo: The slopes above the Combe du Géant subjected to avalanches today)"
RIP
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Anyway back to todays news this end.
I had this morning off (just as well as I needed a little time out of boots and since we are hosting (as of this evening) a French language exchange student which has meant that Ben has come into our bedroom: since he makes one heck of a racket all night long with his gargling etc the nights sleeps are less sleeping and more waking time once again!) and managed to catch up with a whole heap of jobs and admin that needed doing... and of course watching several hours of cricket (go England) and Sky+ Winter Olympics.
I took Olivia up to the meeting point as she is starting a whole new week of group ski lessons (go girl) and then popped home via our little apartment we rent out to see the guests off and then home.
I started work at lunchtime and just before I did I fitted in my periscope (it (the avalanche mentioned above) must have been happening at the same time as I broadcasting):
https://www.pscp.tv/w/1OwGWEBylyZxQ
... and then it was off to teach an interesting lesson... it was a mother of about 40 and her 12 year old daughter. Normally if I am being honest as an instructor you pretty much know how lessons like this are going to pan out.... the daughter will progress faster than the mother but today broke the mould... Anyway we lapped around on the Savonnettes and little by little things progressed although the daughter really does not like standing on and using her left leg... It was warm therefore I stripped off 2 layers which was saying something as I had already shed one layer from yesterday!
By the end the daughter was starting to make controlled turns from the top (sort of) whist the mother really was doing so. More tomorrow girls!
After skiing the language student arrived (the set up is that she is fully immersed for a few days in an english family here in France). She is a lovely 12 year old girl from near Annecy. So most of this evening has been devoted to getting her settled in and welcoming her into family life... starting with a nice family roast dinner this evening.
So back to a full days teaching tomorrow. Not much else to report from today... perhaps a little photo from the Savonettes to finish!
Ps Meant to share a couple of the pisteurs photos of the work they did yesterday (they do it quite regularly) to secure the slopes above the 'up and over' chair (Leissieires Express)
TTFN
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Absolutely tragic news, and sadly another grim reminder of why you should never go down closed pistes. I've skied Combe du Géant many many times when open, and it's scary to see it covered in avalanche debris.
It always amazes me the number of people who risk Santons and Piste L when they're shut (which they always are in the afternoons when I go in March).
RIP to them both and condolences to the family.
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horrible news. I guess it must have gone from the south facing slope above as it warmed up through the day. Those whale mouth things like on the exit from TD charvet As above, don't ignore closed runs!
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Beware of the 'expert'
After yesterdays tragedy it felt quite sombre the mood in town... I have heard and I am not 100% sure how accurate it might be as these things turn into mutated stories in the aftermath but apparently it was the mothers idea to do down the closed run; the father was wearing a transceiver but it was turned off at the time and finally as the slide started to come down the father hugged the daughter to try and protect her and they ended up buried together.!!!!!!!
endoman - no no 'whale mouths' involved just classic slab release due to the sun heating the snow pack up over the day but yes south'ish facing!
Anyway back to today. It was a frantic start to the day getting everyone ready and to the meeting point to drop Olivia off for her lesson and then myself to my lesson. Clare had Ben and the language girl so it was all systems go as they were meeting a friend of Clares in town for a coffee too!
So I met my lesson (a nice young lad from Manchester) at the normal place and time and we headed off up Solaise and had a nice ski around. For someone so new to skiing he skied well and we had a fun session. However the session was marred by what I call the 'expert' factor. How often do you hear of the 'expert' in the group / chalet? Well the 'expert' factor came through once again. I came across a woman in agony and a bloke further down the piste (it was on the magic carpet Pim Pam in actual fact)... cutting a long story short he had given her a 'lesson' but totally over judged her ability and she was sent flying down the run and took a big fall... the pisteurs were on their way already but she was in some discomfort and that will have been the end of her skiing for this holiday and on the first day.... perhaps the 'expert' should leave it to the experts!
I took lunch at the bottom of the mountain and fitted in my periscope:
https://www.pscp.tv/w/1mrGmRXmqyNJy
After lunch I was back with the mother and daughter team I had taught yesterday afternoon and we started on the Savonnettes before moving up the mountain to the magic carpet and spent a good couple of hours working on improving their turns and had a lovely time. Despite the daughter being ill and up half the night and not really eating we had a successful time and I am hoping that we will make it up the Madelaine tomorrow afternoon.
I headed home straight after skiing as I knew that there had been some cupcake making this afternoon - with a cuppa it was a welcome treat at the end of the day!
Don't think anything else to add today.
TTFN
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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.
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It's not what's at the sides of Combe du Géant that avalanches, it's what is above the cliffs. The avi comes off here, drops a big distance and crosses the area between the cliffs and the piste. You can ski off piste to the right of Combe du Géant totally oblivious to what is above you. Have a look on the Pisaillas webcam for a better picture.
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What's very noticeable from the pics, is that a lot of skiers had skied the same piste before the slide happened... every one of them lucky and silly. It's also next to a well known access point to off piste routes. Ski safe out there!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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A surprise
It was a little crazy start to the day as I was taking Olivia to her ski lesson and also needed to get myself sorted. However with the sun trying to dominate the sky was a mix of clouds on one side (mainly the Italian border side of things) and sun the other side. The main thing at the meeting point at the start of the lesson that had to be decided was which side to ski. With the sun dominating on the Bellevarde side my young gun decided that the Solaise side with the clouds would be the better option. So we headed that way. The father decided to come along today and we went on a little circuit up the Solaise. The Arcelle piste was showing the first signs of Spring on it with some death cookies on it but they are very localised and I dont think they will be present non stop for a few more weeks but they were present today!
However the surprise of the day was that they somehow pisted the Marmottons black run down into the Manchet Valley. There are no winch points on the piste therefore they must have used another piste basher as the anchor point. Anyway the piste which is rarely skied anyway was in top nick with no-one on it and we lapped around and around on a mix between chalk snow and groomed snow - nice!
C loved learning how to do some grabs too.
Lunch was a quick affair... a sandwich under the Sun Bar before meeting my pm lot... and the plan for the afternoon was to get them onto the Madelaine for the first time. As it turned out they had not managed to get any practice in but the teenage daughter was feeling better and the mother was feeling nervous. So we headed up and after a couple of practice runs on the magic carpet we took on the Madelaine. A couple of runs later and they were feeling pretty good... so it was a successful afternoon!
After skiing I did a few chores and also fitted in my periscope:
https://www.pscp.tv/w/1YpJkErZVpMKj
...and then headed to the pub (Blue Note) for a beer and nibbles before we all headed up to prepare for the torchlit descent which was a good social as usual.
I got home to eat some homemade pizza that Clare, Olivia and the language student girl had made and after some more household chores here I am!
Tomorrow should see similar weather as today but with more sun although there might be more (proper amounts) of snow on the horizon .
TTFN
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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.
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I've never seen Marmottons pisted, ever! I've also never skied it as Arcelle is such a great run, I'd rather do that.
Saw some sad news today that someone died falling into a crevasse somewhere off piste on the Grand Motte.
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You know it makes sense.
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I always thought that you were relatively safe in supermarkets.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Perhaps we need a new thread on whether you should wear a helmet in the supermarket.
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Poster: A snowHead
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 Blimey!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Alastair, 
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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?
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Transceiver as well so they can find you under the debris!!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Tremors !
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Buzzing to be out there in just over two weeks!
Snow forecast looks solid until then.
My friends and I were looking to start getting more into off-piste skiing (can comfortably handle anything a piste throws our way), and were hoping to get some introductory guiding when we're out there.
Given we've not ventured into much serious off-piste before, we don't have skins, transceivers, or shovels. Can anyone recommend a guide or instructor out there who would be good for an introduction to off-piste? Not sure if most of the intro lessons/guiding would require us to have all that equipment?
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Steve Angus does a great intro to off piste session, and kit is supplied. If you’re lucky he might still have a free slot 
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@Pending, yeah I actually just stumbled across him and his (I think) wife on the TDC brochure. Might go the three day clinic route
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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.
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@Bennisboy, if he's free I think you'll have an amazing time. I'll be in Val same time as you, from March 11th and cannot wait to be back!!
See you in Cocorico.
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| HoneyBunny wrote: |
@Bennisboy, if he's free I think you'll have an amazing time. I'll be in Val same time as you, from March 11th and cannot wait to be back!!
See you in Cocorico. |
Hell yes, Cocorico at the end of every day!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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.
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Yikes Steve!! I still feel bad about your air bag 
I'll be back in a few weeks - I'll look for you on the slopes!
Cheers, Vicky
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My brother and I will be in Tignes and are hoping to book a 3 day intro off piste course march 11-13. @Steve does your colleague's course run the whole week?
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You know it makes sense.
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@Steve Angus, hey Steve, yes week of 12th march. I spoke to Natasha via email, she said there's a few slots for the Tuesday to Thursday afternoon beginner off piste clinic. Just need to convince my mates to sign up now, would be 2-4 of us (maybe one snowboarder interested as well, but I gather the intro clinic can't really help boarders).
One of my mates is keen, but doesn't want to commit until he knows what the snow is going to be like, and is worried if we go in a random group including others that there might be someone slow holding everyone back (I told him this was silly especially as we are new to proper off piste too)
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@ Bennisboy: I will offer a quick plug for the Off-Piste intro clinic run by TDC. We did it in January and it was a great experience. The group size will be limited to a max of 6 (possibly less - but certainly no more). We were lucky enough to ski with Rich & Ben and did an extra afternoon with Steve as well. These guys know the resort like the back of their hand, know where the good snow can be found and safety is paramount. The kit (packs, transceivers etc.) will be provided. You are only 2 weeks away and they just had a top up with probably more snow on the way next week. You may want to book before it fills!
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Poster: A snowHead
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Vasta - ha ha no problems.... all sorted now. Righty yes will keep my eyes open too!
Thighs - first of all the course is running in Val that I am talking about - my colleagues over in Tignes might be running a parallel course over there... if you contact tignes@tdcski.com then they might be able to help! Anyway our clinics run for 3 (half) days typically but if there is demand / on request / availability then we can extend them to 5 days!
Bennisboy - cool - yes Tash works in the office and co-ordinates it all. I can see the clinic you are talking about (the one I had in mind when I replied beforehand too) and yes it is not full and runs those afternoons! Sure re convincing your friends. As I am the only person in the school who teaches snowboarding it means when I am doing the course I can take boarders and give them some tips on how to get into the off piste but it looks like Terry is taking the group that week at the moment (I have a corporate booking that week so not available). The snow will be what it is and of course learning how to ski off piste a) gives people the best chance of finding what nice snow there is out there and b) the technique is required to take on whatever 'type' of snow it might be therefore time is never 'wasted' if you like. Our groups are intentionally small (limited to 6 max) to stop massive splits and we work carefully to make sure that there are never massive splits... however there will always be people at the 'top end' and the 'bottom end' of the group ability wise but it should be minimal! Either way I think our coaches are pretty skilful of making sure everyone develops effectively either way so everyone will get VFM.
vasta - have just seen your response there - thanks for the plug... you've said what we find a little difficult to say ourselves I guess!!!!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Bliss
Not really too much to report from today really as I didnt put ski boots on all day! Not only that but Olivia and Ben gave us a lie in - it was nearly 8am before we were well and truly awake - yippee!
After family scrambled eggs (one of the few things I can cook) and umpteen cups of tea it was such a nice start to the day. Looking out the window it dint look too appetising anyway! Radio Val were reporting 70cm of snow towards the Fornet and 130km/h + winds - down this end of town and the further towards Tignes you went there was MUCH less snow - in fact down here in La Daille (town of) there was basically no fresh snow at all! This is the 'power' and the phenonemon of the 'retour' where loads of snow on the border and nothing further afield! The wind will have meant there were large accumulations in some places and nothing elsewhere. They basically could not get the Solaise and Fornet end of town running for most of the morning but did this afternoon. The av risk was raised accordingly to 3 but I suspect in places that will have been closer to 4 and in other places closer to 2 so be careful out there!
Anyway I went food shopping to Cash 2000 and to run a few errands in town before family lunch at home.... then this afternoon is a combination of playing with the kids, watching the rugby (and curling) on tv and generally putting my feet up!
A few hours ago one of Clares besties arrived to stay with us for the week and as the two of them have been drinking wine most of the evening I have been further enjoying a day off with a couple of beers and the tv remote all to myself!
One of my colleagues snapped this photo off piste somewhere this afternoon - pretty much sums up the weather out there today - gloomy for the most part until the sun made an appearance late on!
It is about to turn very VERY cold for a few days but Im off piste for the most part (certainly mornings) this week so that helps keep me warm.
Finally my periscope from today...
https://www.pscp.tv/w/1RDGldBzlDdGL
Back teaching tomorrow - over in Tignes in the morning with a beginner then in the afternoon off piste so we shall see.... lets hope for good weather thats all I care about.
TTFN
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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?
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Thanks for all the input guys. I'm very keen to book, just remains for me to convince the others!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@Bennisboy - just book it yourself, you will have a great time. If you friends book later on, great. If it's full by the time they try to book, too bad! Do it! You only live once.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Hi @Steve Angus, back home now after a pretty good week overall ... great to see you briefly at the the top of the Borsat Express and big hugs from 9 year old Tilly to Clare. We were lucky enough to stumble across the freshly pisted Marmottons - amazing !
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| kditrj2d wrote: |
| @Bennisboy - just book it yourself, you will have a great time. If you friends book later on, great. If it's full by the time they try to book, too bad! Do it! You only live once. |
And if they miss out you can tell them all about it. That'd learn 'em! 
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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.
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We are back on the 9th. Feeling much more excited about it having just seen your photos!
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FAQ
