 Poster: A snowHead
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If the skidomes were wedged full of school kids from the local comprehensive schools during the week (like swimmimg pools used to be) I might have a different view.
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That's an excellent idea and should be put forward to the developers and local authorities.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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admin, yes, seriously subsidised for use by schools, mondays, tuesday and thursdays, say, at the times when no else uses it.
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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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Somewhat on topic (ish), went to Xscape MK last Friday with three mates. Arrived at 8.30, booked 2 hour session, got kitted up and walked onto the slope at 8.50. Had to wait 10 mins as the person operating the POMA wouldn't start it until 9.00.
Poma ran for 45 minutes then packed up. Poma on the other side was 'under repair'. Manager said fix would 'take 10 mins'. Ate cold bacon butty in cafe while waiting for it to be fixed but after an hour gave up. Got credit for another 2 hour session but given the dilapidated state of the place think it's unlikely that those 2 hours will come in very useful.
All in all , 5 hour round trip from Leicester, for 45 mins skiing on a tiddly slope with cr@p snow. I'd have to agree with the title of this thread, 
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AxsMan, The lifts were fine on Saturday and Sunday.
I don't think that the 180 people who raced at MK on the two days would agree with the title of the thread.
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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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| rjs wrote: |
AxsMan, The lifts were fine on Saturday and Sunday.
I don't think that the 180 people who raced at MK on the two days would agree with the title of the thread. |
Exactly.
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rjs, slikedges, Glad to hear that weekend fun was had. Didn't help the four of us much though, nor the couple of dozen other folk who went there on Friday . I guess it's a variation on the 'will the snow be any good' gamble we all face every season. At MK we know the answer to that one (no), the question becomes 'will the lifts be working' and if not 'how much skiing will we actually get for our £25 ticket?'
Trouble is, there aren't too many alternatives so I guess like Arnie 'I'll be back' 
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AxsMan, Tamworth is a lot closer for you isn't it? Snow (ice!) not great but the travelator is usually running OK. I normally go once a year in July as they send me a voucher for a free session for my birthday, seems rude not to. 
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Colin B, Yes it's nearer but smaller and as you say, the snow is even worse than MK. Leeds Castleford seems the best of the three to me, but also sadly the furthest (and still pretty cr@p compared to a real slope). Why can't this country have some decent mountains near where I live?, with a glacier or two and year round skiing? Bloody shambles, I blame Tony Blair myself. 
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if they are "not financially viable" why would companies be investing in new infrastructure. A new snow dome is going up in Hemel, one is planned for lakeside and i believe they are looking at one in Sheffield. i guess they all must like losing money.
rayscoops, making sweeping statements about financial viability when you dont have any facts is a bit silly.
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AxsMan, tend to goto MK often in the summer to get fix and never had any problems - I think you must have been unlucky.
Personally love couple of hours there when quiet i.e. Tue AM 9-11 during July. If skiing peak season you can spend most of the time queuing
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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If the lift ain't working, what's wrong with walking to the top?
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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 have loved the 2 EB ski test that were arranged. The one last Summer was a great get together. Can I have a button please
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You know it makes sense.
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I have been to MK a few times and found it useful. I would say you can have a good couple of hours. A day might be stretching it.
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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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I wait for the seasons to come around, winter sports in the winter and spring and summer sports in the summer and autumn, (lots of sailing which is every bit as good as skiing and boarding, there is nothing like a downhill sleigh ride across the North Sea in lots of wind!!)
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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AxsMan, yup, sorry, I did mean you amongst many, but I now stand corrected  . I'm not apologising to the others yet, though  . On the downhill trend, I admit I somewhat agree with you. The snow used to be better - better feel and better grooming. I've only been a handful of times since the beginning of the season and each time the snow has either been icy or sugary (kind of heavy sugar, not spring snow sugar). However last summer and the summer before the snow was almost always very good. The lifts never used to be anything of a problem until the last several months, since when there have been sporadic periods of significant problems. Overall though, I've almost always had a good experience at MK, and I've been a lot more than a dozen times over the last three or so years!
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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You lot are rotten rubbishing MK when there is an inaugural MK bash in the offing. I don't care what you all say - I'm sure we're all going to all have a good time. I think rather than can you have a good days skiing in a snow dome, my main concern is can I learn anything in a snow dome - I think for me the answer will be a resounding yes, and I'll have a good time doing it 
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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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Not rubbishing it - I've had great trips there in mid summer when its been ridiculously hot outside but cool & empty inside but just a caveat emptor. It would be fair play if they had problems if they had a reliable way of disseminating that information in advance. I imagine midweek is a pretty safe bet as unles kids are skiving school there won't be the dreaded sledging sessions etc.
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I was given lots of off-putting comments about Tamworth before I went there, so went expecting to be disappointed, but actually it was much better than I was led to believe and I really quite liked it! So I have now 'grabbed' Castleford and Tam, only MK to go!
No, it's not the real thing, but it is the nearest I am going to get before 2008 and I don't want to forget the little I have learned so far and so the chance to keep it up is invaluable.
No, it's not outdoors, but at least it doesn't have rain in there or sun so hot it melts the darned white stuff.
No, the snow isn't perfect but neither was it in Serbia in January (ice, mud and fog!) or in Tignes late April (nice 1st thing, but slushy by lunchtime). I haven't skied in 'perfect conditions' yet!
No, the slopes are not very long, but I can still practise & try to move from snowplough towards parallel turns before next season, and the steepest bit of Cas is still a challenge for me, so very much worthwhile.
The bottom line is, if you don't like indoor slopes, don't go! 
Megamum, we are going to have a great day out! Even if we are so unlucky that both lifts are shut, we will just have to tow each other up the slope (skis off I think!)
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fatbob, I'd suggest that going once and thinking to express an opinion on whether it's generally worthwhile for others is being wantonly misleading. If you don't like it, say so, but don't presume to extrapolate a single visit to a representative experience. 
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Megamum, NewSkier, I'm sure you'll have a great time. A perfect time, no, but a great time nonetheless. 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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slikedges, If you'd read my second post its clear I've been more than once and have enjoyed it - in fact I'm trying to organise an intro to tele session for some sHs sometime this summer. I'm even interested in the monthly moguls coaching sessions if I can get an objective review.
I just don't recall seeing information of this quality available every week:
http://www.xscape.co.uk/snow/milton-keynes/whats-inside/snowslope/opening-hours/
Nor do I ever recall seeing staff saying "sorry our snow/lifts/available slope area etc weren't up to our usual high standards please accept a 50% off voucher for a repeat visit". I suspect there are a spectrum of representative experiences - those that are local enough have the privilege of being able to build an adequate sample size may have the advantage but if for every "very satisifed" customer there's a "one off bitcher" it suggests that all is not rosy in the customer satisfaction world.
As you yourself said: "Lots of people on this site seem to go to MK once, have a bad experience...." It's not as though sHs generally is an outright bitching and whining site?
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You English have it tough with your three snowdomes.
We have 80 yds of dendix!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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fatbob, You highlight an important area in which Xscape needs to improve - communication. The one problem I've had at Cas is one I predicted would happen. A friend had booked her kids onto a lesson by phone and asked if she needed to book to ski recreationally at the same time. She was told that would not be necessary as it wouldn't be busy. She asked me to go too. When she said the lesson was 3.45pm I pointed out that they usually groom the main slope 4-5pm, so she rang to check and was told grooming was not happening at 4-5 that day because it was in school holidays(?). We went and......... yes the main slope closed for grooming 4-5pm!
Secondly I emailed them and asked why they have no sessions like Tam do where informal coaching is available. The response was that they do, but had not got round to advertising it yet! It it STILL not on the website, but there is now a new info card which mentions it in tiny print.
The other area Xscape desperately need to work on is a decent membership scheme with discounts like Tam have. Xscape simply price people out of going, which is why it is so quiet in the summer - but hey who I am to complain if I am not in a crowd!
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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 done Tamworth once and it's OK for honing technique and practicing jumps and things but the travelator is sooooo slooooow. I must admit too, after 3 hrs I did get a bit bored. I'll certainly be back over the summer but the price is prohibitive. Out of interest, is it mainly juice that is the major cost in running a dome?
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I heard on the grapevine that one of the reasons MK snowdome suffered from bad snow grooming and poor skiier experience as some of the other negative comments as posted here was due to the management structure of Xscape. It used to be that the whole exscape leisure park was managed by one group and perhaps these folks who are used to runnning chain restaraunts, shops and cinemas didnt have the experience on skiing and made some bad decisions.
From what i hear however the snowdome itself is now owned seperately and leased from the parent company. management is now in the hands of the operators of the snow dome and changes are being made. For instance the tobogan run is being taken out....
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You know it makes sense.
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Its a social event isn't it...? like the others before that. I'd give it a thought if there were good numbers.
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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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I've only been to MK twice..great both times sure it's not a mountain but me and my daughter have had a geat time there..
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Strikes me the lawyer is making a point by counterposing two things that aren't comparable - nobody goes to any UK artificial slope (snow or plastic) as an alternative to heading into the mountains for the real thing. However, plenty of people, myself included, use plastic and/or snowdomes as a means of learning, practicing and/or keeping their ski legs in some sort of shape in the off season (personally I prefer using them out of season when the crowds are smaller, i.e. less beginners to avoid).
Snowdomes: there's been no evidence whatsoever given here to support the assertion that they loose money so I'd suggest that one should be ignored, after all there's plenty of anecdotal evidence, such as new domes opening or being proposed, that they are in fact, at the very least, viable enough to support more being built in parts of the UK that don't yet have such a facility nearby. There's a lot of generalising about domes coming from a few people which I feel is unfair, MK may well be crowded and badly run but I use Tamworth (different company) and have no similar complaints when I go. Yes, the slope can be icy at times but frankly so can the real thing, so perhaps learn to cope with these conditions rather than on the one hand berating the 'artificial' environment and then expecting artificially perfect snow conditions; crowds depend on when you go, so I'd suggest choosing the times you visit better and avoiding the crowds.
| NewSkier wrote: |
| If I had to wait a whole year between isolated weeks of learning to ski, I'd be too old before I managed to achieve an acceptable standard! Snowdomes allow ppl like me to learn, develop & maintain skills off-season so I can make more of limited time abroad. |
Precisely, that's exactly the point.
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| Could one reason why MK and Castleford are not so well used off-season be their exorbitant prices? Tamworth have a members' discount scheme (30%) and do massive summer discounts for all (2nd rec hour free and 30% off lessons. It was hardly full on Thursday when we went, but there were plenty of ppl about, especially straight after lunch. Surely the place costs pretty much the same to run no matter how few or many are on the slope, so economics suggest reducing the price to attract more punters makes good sense! |
Very good point, Tamworth isn't cheap but out of season if you pick your times well it's far cheaper (2 hours for the price of one etc.) for all punters and for members even better (3 hours for the price of one plus discounts etc.)
| petemillis wrote: |
| NewSkier, but then some people moan about too many chavs coming in! |
That's something I've heard about MK - never had that problem at Tamworth (or at Gloucester and Churchill dry slopes... or on the real stuff in Scotland... in the Alps tho...). Funny though how people complain about it being too expensive on the one hand and then some also complain about a 'chav' element - are they rich chavs or are some people just inclined to complain no matter what? I really don't know!
MK does seem to have 'issues' but I hope, as has been suggested above, that it's now being managed better and things are improving.
Oh BTW, I support Snoasis and hope it wins the planning battle - the prospect of a 500m x 80m slope with varying terrain sounds rather excellent to me and I'd be happy to spend the odd weekend there with the family. For anyone who hasn't seen it there's loads of info on their site here and for the sake of fairness the NIMBYs counter site is here.
Last edited by Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person on Wed 16-05-07 11:55; edited 1 time in total
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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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| So if you were to offer me a free day at MK, Castleford, or Tamworth I'd accept, but only if I didn't have to spend the whole 7 hours there |
On the other hand would you spend 7 hours there improving your basic and foundation skills under the guidance of a coach?
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veeeight, Not at over £100 per hour! (which is what they charge), but if that was free, yeah sure. But again to address the original point, the statement was did not say 'a good day's coaching', or 'a few hours fun' it said 'a good days skiing' and IMHO that is not something a single enclosed short slope can provide. (Maybe I just get bored easily) 
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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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Have been to mk xscape many times, and although a few times during peak season have walked in, seen the crowds and walked straight back out again, have NEVER had a bad session there at all. Ok its not the Alps, its short and its relavtively flat - but I prefer it to Castleford by a long way and I can happily spend several hours at a time there just bashing my way round and round and enjoying being on skis again.
Take it for what it is - snow in a shed, and baring liftprobs or similar, you'll have a good time. Expect it to be something its not eg a black mogulfield follwed by 10k of reds and steeps - or even a scenic environment with wonderful fresh mountain air, and you'll always be disappointed. Slating mk xscape (or any snowdome) because it isnt an alp is just churlish and stupid. Saying you cant have a good day out skiing in one smacks of spoilt brat tendencies and being overly snobbish...... and of not having been on a snowhead skitest
Get real, take it for what it is, enjoy the experience !
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fatbob, things could certainly be better, like at the 640m long one in germany I went to 2 years ago, uncrowded, free food and drink, a whole day for €40! 
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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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skimottaret, the actual operation of a snowdome is one thing, the spin off trade is another, but as a stand alone entity I think if they are half empty, are not being maintained and seasoned skiers do not really go back to use it much, then I think these a few tell tale signs that they are not financially viable. Not such a silly point of view really
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| rayscoops wrote: |
| skimottaret, the actual operation of a snowdome is one thing, the spin off trade is another, but as a stand alone entity I think if they are half empty, are not being maintained and seasoned skiers do not really go back to use it much, then I think these a few tell tale signs that they are not financially viable. Not such a silly point of view really |
Can you explain what you mean and offer some supporting evidence because I'm afraid at the moment your POV without these doesn't seem overly supportable... far be for me to suggest it's silly though
The Snowdome at Tamworth for example is a stand alone entity, there's no shopping mall and other such "spin off" activities there's just the dome, a closed leisure centre (now gone bust whilst the dome is doing great business) and an Ellis Brigham store. I'm a seasoned skiier who goes back to it and I know of others who do too, just look on this forum for evidence and you can do the same for any of the Xscape venues. So can you explain how this in any way describes a business that is not "financially viable".
Can I just add that the company that runs the Tamworth dome is planing to open at last one more venue and reportedly has plans for expansion at Tamworth itself, again see threads here. So can you explain why are they planing more "stand alone" domes if they're not "financially viable"?
You may get the urge to say you weren't talking about Tamworth rather Xscape but they're expanding, having just opened Braehead with more planned. I guess you could say that you're talking about MK specifically which does, and I think most people agree with this, have 'issues' which are not necessarily replicated in the other snowdomes. So how do problems with one dome, most probably related to management (and being dealt with so we are told), make every dome "not financially viable"?
C'mon leaving aside anecdote and wishful thinking where exactly is your evidence?
Last edited by Ski the Net with snowHeads  on Thu 17-05-07 10:36; edited 1 time in total
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FAQ
