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Keeping your hand in - are snowdomes worth a visit in summer for a little refresher?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
The family thoroughly enjoyed our recent ski trip and the wife wonders whether it is worth us visiting a snowdome (probably Tam'orth because it's on the way to mum and dad) in the summer to keeps our hands in, as it were. We are all reasonable intermediates. I appreciate that any skills/competence gained may well have disappeared by next winter, but would it be a worthwhile half-day/day out? Anything you can do to make it more worthwhile? PS There is no decent carpet slope nearby in the summer - Pontypool will probably be closed for the summer and I am not counting Cardiff dryslope as a decent alternative
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
In a word, yes.
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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?
Yes, sometimes they run clinics for certain skills so you can learn something new or improve on existing skills over the summer too Toofy Grin
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Yes! Sometimes they get a bad press but it's definitely worthwhile. I've been having regular refresher sessions at Hemel and didn't appreciate the benefit until my best mate came for his first session last month. He was ahead of me on our last hols but he really struggled at the snowdome (his exact words were "I think I've forgotten how to ski!").
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
They're like Methadone - not the real thing but better than nothing

Worth it in summer to just refresh skills, often quiter in summer as less interest and often get some good deals as well
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You'll also often find that a lesson does not cost much more than the lift pass so it's a good way to get a few pointers rather than just compounding your current problems.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Yes - would agree with all of the above. Laughing at 'like methadone' but it's a good way of describing them!

The cheap summer deals should be starting soon - it's worth keeping an eye on the Tamworth website for offers and discount codes (I learned to ski at Chill Factore two summers ago at a fraction of what it would have cost in the winter). I was given lots of new drills to try out during the lessons I had on this season's ski trips so am planning some regular practice in the next few months.

I've also found that it's a 'sod's law' way of guaranteeing good weather in the summer - book and pay for a nice, long, non-refundable snowdome session and when the day of the session comes, you'll wake up to warm, sunny barbecue weather!!
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Most bizarre summer moment at MK - hottest June day for years one weekday morning and the fire alarm went off - meaning tramping out to the car park in boots and full ski clobber
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I'm already booked at CFe for the end of the month Very Happy Good deal on booking last weekend with them that I took advantage of. Hoping the hand is better by then, if not I'll strap it up under the gloves Toofy Grin
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Boris, Laughing
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Not a fan myself. I live in MK and have never been to the fridge. I went to Tamworth once about 20 years ago.

On a ski holiday you will ski 6-8 hours day for 6-8 days. A couple of hours is going to be nothing in comparison. It's not replicating the terrain I will be skiing most of the time. There's generally a lot learners, half a slope available, waits for the drag, etc which doesn't enhance the experience. £17 an hour versus a whole day for twice that in any European resort seems bad value to me.

I am playing devils advocate a bit. It's clearly got a lot going for it as an all year round learning and training ground in a country which for the large part doesn't have easy access to even some small simple mountain areas. But it's very limited IMO.
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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.
Yes, but only if you have a lesson. No point just circuiting around doing the same old same old and reinforcing bad habits. wink
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 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
Quote:
Yes, but only if you have a lesson. No point just circuiting around doing the same old same old and reinforcing bad habits.

You could circuit round and reinforce good habits though. You don't need constant supervision. Have a lesson, identify what the problems are and how to fix them. Then practice. Personally I just think a fridge isn't a particularly pleasant place to do this. I get the impression the OP is quite new to skiing though which means they will be keaner and less 'put off' by those factors.

Quote:
I appreciate that any skills/competence gained may well have disappeared by next winter

Just on this particular point. Anything beyond a few weeks of not playing/doing any particular sport a certain amount of rustiness will set in. However, IME even after a couple of years out (which is about the most I've had) it takes a matter of hours to shake that off. The beauty of doing full weeks, skiing for many hours, over many days, is that it becomes second nature and something your brain doesn't easily forget. I have done a couple of 15 day stints in my younger days. And by the end of that it felt more natural having planks on my feet than it did walking down the street Toofy Grin So for sure, if you fancy it, and the opportunity presents itself, it will help a little. But personally I get by without it.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
In a word NO.

Save your money, they are expensive and boring.
Last time i went i did a max of 10 runs and was bored senseless, i chose to accompany the wife shopping for the rest of the day.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I'd say that if you only had "good habits" there'd be no particular point in going to a dome though I agree you need to practice what you've been taught, to embed it into your muscle memory.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Do experienced climbers practice on indoor climbing walls?
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Layne, some good points. We are fairly new(ish) but are competent enough on reds and seem to be improving year on year. I may head up there for a half day or so for a lesson - to try to iron out some bad points (some balance work without poles, skiing on one ski, trying to "perfect" ha ha parallel turns). In hindsight, the elder daughter may get a little bored unless I stick some bumps, jumps, rails or boxes in her way (Mrs Dobby no like the park stuff though).
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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?
Corduroy wrote:
In a word NO.

Save your money, they are expensive and boring.
Last time i went i did a max of 10 runs and was bored senseless, i chose to accompany the wife shopping for the rest of the day.


Each to their own.

Without practicing in the Hemel (and occasionally Milton Keynes) snow centres, I would have taken A LOT longer to progress as a skier.

It is not a holiday destination in itself and if you want to go and just ski down a hill just for the sake of it, it is probably not worth going.
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dobby, There is always a box and a jump at Tamworth when we go to Morning Boarding on Mon/Wed/Fri. More put out at other times.

We always enjoy our trips to Tamworth. Never get bored, even after 3 hours Very Happy

But then we are snowboarders wink
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Layne wrote:
£17 an hour versus a whole day for twice that in any European resort seems bad value to me.


Bit of a simplistic costing! How do you get to the resort!? If you can magic yourself there at the start of the day and magic yourself home at the end then I'd agree (and I'd definitely go for that option).

The perceived high cost is because you're paying for a snow slope on your doorstep.
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Layne wrote:
Do experienced climbers practice on indoor climbing walls?


Yes but primarily for fitness, not for skills which are different indoors versus real rock (which tends to lack helpfully colour-coded holds). Don't think people ski indoors for fitness.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Touchguru wrote:
Corduroy wrote:
In a word NO.

Save your money, they are expensive and boring.
Last time i went i did a max of 10 runs and was bored senseless, i chose to accompany the wife shopping for the rest of the day.


Each to their own.

Without practicing in the Hemel (and occasionally Milton Keynes) snow centres, I would have taken A LOT longer to progress as a skier.

It is not a holiday destination in itself and if you want to go and just ski down a hill just for the sake of it, it is probably not worth going.


BIB: Do many people go anywhere to 'just ski down a hill for the sake of it'? I doubt it. I expect the reason some people find fridges boring is because they go skiing for the full experience. The being in the mountains, the fresh air, the sense of travel, the food, the scenery, the varying terrain etc. Can you get that sort of experience at Hemel or MK? Thought not.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Having been to Hemel last week to try out my new skis I'd say a categorical no

If you're beginner though am sure it's great for those baby slope lessons prior to going skiing proper.
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swiftoid wrote:
The being in the mountains, the fresh air, the sense of travel, the food, the scenery, the varying terrain etc. Can you get that sort of experience at Hemel or MK? Thought not.
No, obviously not (although meeting up with friends at a dome can be a sociable experience). I tend to think the artificial slopes (indoors or plastic) are very similar to a driving range. Certainly not the same experience as playing 18 holes around your favourite golf course, but useful nevertheless. Back in the day when I used to play golf I found that the more time I spent at the driving range/practise green the more I enjoyed my golf on the course. The artificial slopes provide a good improvement opportunity when time and/or money make it impossible to get to the mountains.
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Quote:

Do many people go anywhere to 'just ski down a hill for the sake of it'? I doubt it. I expect the reason some people find fridges boring is because they go skiing for the full experience. The being in the mountains, the fresh air, the sense of travel, the food, the scenery, the varying terrain etc. Can you get that sort of experience at Hemel or MK? Thought not.

which is precisely what Touchguru said, actually. No, you wouldn't go just to "ski down a hill for the sake of it", (without the mountain trimmings) but you would go if you wanted to invest serious time and effort in improving your technique. He is a living example of just how good you can get, doing that with dedication (and talent wink ). Some seriously good British freestylers have done similarly, I believe, even on dry slopes.

So - it all depends what you want to get out of it (and put into it).
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People have reached very high standards of gate skiing on dry slopes and indoor slopes, too.
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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.
pam w wrote:

which is precisely what Touchguru said, actually. No, you wouldn't go just to "ski down a hill for the sake of it", (without the mountain trimmings) but you would go if you wanted to invest serious time and effort in improving your technique. He is a living example of just how good you can get, doing that with dedication (and talent wink ). Some seriously good British freestylers have done similarly, I believe, even on dry slopes.

So - it all depends what you want to get out of it (and put into it).


Was it really? What did the 'if you want to go and just ski down a hill just for the sake of it' comment have to do with what corduroy said then? There was no indication in their post whatsoever that 'just skiing down a hill for the sake of it' was what they wanted to do.
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 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
Quote:

It is not a holiday destination in itself and if you want to go and just ski down a hill just for the sake of it, it is probably not worth going.

That's what Touchguru said, and it was in response to somebody who "did ten runs and was bored senseless" and went shopping instead, presumably precisely because he had just "skied down the hill for the sake of it" rather than doing what Touchguru and many others have done, which is take lessons and/or do very focussed work on technique.

The two contrasting responses seem to me to answer very effectively the OP's question. An indoor slope presents excellent opportunities to improve technique if you go about it the right way, but is no substitute for a "holiday destination" if you just want to pootle around.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
pam w wrote:
Quote:

It is not a holiday destination in itself and if you want to go and just ski down a hill just for the sake of it, it is probably not worth going.

That's what Touchguru said, and it was in response to somebody who "did ten runs and was bored senseless" and went shopping instead, presumably precisely because he had just "skied down the hill for the sake of it" rather than doing what Touchguru and many others have done, which is take lessons and/or do very focussed work on technique.

The two contrasting responses seem to me to answer very effectively the OP's question. An indoor slope presents excellent opportunities to improve technique if you go about it the right way, but is no substitute for a "holiday destination" if you just want to pootle around.


Again there is no indication that Corduroy just wanted to 'pootle around' or that he/she 'skied the hill for the sake of it'. Maybe they did but nothing in their post suggests that.

I'm not arguing against the idea that fridges offer good opportunities to improve technique, just against the rather strange assumption that finding them boring means that one isn't interested in improving and just wants to 'ski the hill for the sake of it' or 'pootle around'.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Quote:

nothing in their post suggests that.


Puzzled he said he did 10 runs and was "bored senseless". What does that suggest to you? There is plenty of evidence that those who want to improve can use indoor slopes extremely effectively to do just that. But some people (and I would be one of them) would like guidance and feedback, in a ski lesson or clinic, to help me use the (expensive) time effectively and avoid the risk of reinforcing my bad habits. Some people are probably good enough to do their own feedback and analysis but I suspect that most, particularly people who have done only a few weeks skiing, aren't.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
We are thinking of doing one of the fast track learn in a day before we go to Flaine for New Year. It's been 13 years since I last skied. I will still do ski school when away but thought it would be good practise before we go. Also going to book children in for a session before we go as at the moment they are learning on a dry slope.
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swiftoid,pam w has me exactly right.

Thank you for detailing what I meant in my absence pam w Smile
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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?
pam w wrote:
Quote:

nothing in their post suggests that.


Puzzled he said he did 10 runs and was "bored senseless". What does that suggest to you? There is plenty of evidence that those who want to improve can use indoor slopes extremely effectively to do just that. But some people (and I would be one of them) would like guidance and feedback, in a ski lesson or clinic, to help me use the (expensive) time effectively and avoid the risk of reinforcing my bad habits. Some people are probably good enough to do their own feedback and analysis but I suspect that most, particularly people who have done only a few weeks skiing, aren't.


That they went and tried the indoor slope environment and found it boring rather obviously Puzzled

It doesn't tell me anything about their desire to improve technique or get guidance and feedback when skiing in an environment they like more or what their motivation for going in the first place was.
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swiftoid wrote:
pam w wrote:
Quote:

nothing in their post suggests that.


Puzzled he said he did 10 runs and was "bored senseless". What does that suggest to you? There is plenty of evidence that those who want to improve can use indoor slopes extremely effectively to do just that. But some people (and I would be one of them) would like guidance and feedback, in a ski lesson or clinic, to help me use the (expensive) time effectively and avoid the risk of reinforcing my bad habits. Some people are probably good enough to do their own feedback and analysis but I suspect that most, particularly people who have done only a few weeks skiing, aren't.


That they went and tried the indoor slope environment and found it boring rather obviously Puzzled

It doesn't tell me anything about their desire to improve technique or get guidance and feedback when skiing in an environment they like more.


I see where the problem might be stemming from. My comment 'if you just want to ski down a hill for the sake of it' was referencing skiing in a snow centre, not outdoors.

I don't find skiing in a snow centre boring because I know that I am not there for the scenery or to ski just for the sake of skiing down the indoor ca. 160 metre hill, but to improve my skiing by working on drills or training with others.

I can ALWAYS find a drill to challenge my skiing indoors.

If I had a choice though, of course I would be out on the mountains as I am sure Corduroy and most others would as well.


Last edited by You need to Login to know who's really who. on Tue 11-03-14 21:00; edited 1 time in total
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When I go to a snow dome by myself I tend to work on things that I have previously been given to practice, I do drills and exercises that my instructors have previously shown me and try to work on improving my skiing. I find I have now reached the point in time where I know what it should feel like and so try to work on improving what is right rather than reinforcing what is wrong. After all they are not cheap to visit and I think that I might as well try to do some good when I am there.
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I guess it's a personal preference thing. I'll go every now and then to get a snow fix, but only if I'm heading towards the dome anyway (CFe, just over an hour away but I have family in Manchester and often down that way for the football and shopping). Take advantage of any offers that may be on too. Last summer CFe had free lift passes for a month or two if you booked a beginner/improver/advanced day lesson. I did a day lesson (suffering confidence issues with parallel turns following an injury) and then got more than my money's worth in free lift passes to practice some of the drills we did in the lesson, as well as play around on the snowboard and practice riding switch.
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Sitter, I got a good deal at CFe this weekend just gone - a four day special offer - an hour for £11.99 and an extra fiver for two - skiing to be booked in the next month which suited my plans Very Happy
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Touchguru wrote:

I see where the problem might be stemming from. My comment 'if you just want to ski down a hill for the sake of it' was referencing skiing in a snow centre, not outdoors.

I don't find skiing in a snow centre boring because I know that I am not there for the scenery or to ski just for the sake of skiing down the indoor ca. 160 metre hill, but to improve my skiing by working on drills or training with others.

I can ALWAYS find a drill to challenge my skiing indoors.

If I had a choice though, of course I would be out on the mountains as I am sure Corduroy and most others would as well.


I don't doubt that for a second. As I said I don't disagree that indoor slopes offer good opportunities to improve technique and challenge yourself but I can understand why some might find them boring and finding them boring doesn't mean someone only wants to go on holiday and 'pootle around'. I used to compete at a reasonably high level in K1 slalom and always found training on artificial courses way more boring than river based training. Of course I could challenge myself and improve on the artificial courses but it wasn't nearly as fun for me. If I'd not been competing and just been a recreational kayaker would I have bothered with the artificial places? Probably not but that doesn't mean I'd have been satisfied with 'pootling around' rather than learning how to cope with more extreme water in an environment that I found more satisfying.
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swiftoid wrote:


I don't doubt that for a second. As I said I don't disagree that indoor slopes offer good opportunities to improve technique and challenge yourself but I can understand why some might find them boring and finding them boring doesn't mean someone only wants to go on holiday and 'pootle around'. I used to compete at a reasonably high level in K1 slalom and always found training on artificial courses way more boring than river based training. Of course I could challenge myself and improve on the artificial courses but it wasn't nearly as fun for me. If I'd not been competing and just been a recreational kayaker would I have bothered with the artificial places? Probably not but that doesn't mean I'd have been satisfied with 'pootling around' rather than learning how to cope with more extreme water in an environment that I found more satisfying.


Re: the above bold text - I don't believe I ever said as much as I clarified in my previous post.

I agree wholeheartedly that most people who have been skiing in the mountains would find it boring just skiing down an indoor slope a number of times. I would too!
However, those who go there to improve themselves by taking lessons or practicing drills they have been given rather than just simply skiing down the slope a number of times, will definitely benefit. Which you and I appear to agree on.

And the main point is that as long as the OP sees that you can definitely improve your skiing in a snow dome, then that is good enough for me.
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Megamum, it was a good deal - I wanted to do that too but have an unusually busy month ahead so wasn't sure when I'd manage to go.

Usually CFe does unlimited monthly passes for £50 in the summer - pretty good value if you plan to go more than a couple of times during the month, which we do as it's conveniently located for us and we can often go on the way to/from other places - would of course rather have another week or two in the mountains but sadly that's not possible for a while! So it's the best alternative and I do find it useful to practise drills/concentrate on what I've been taught in lessons. I can understand that it wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea (particularly for people who have been skiing longer/can go away more often) but I am really enjoying learning to ski and therefore to my mind it's a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours.

It's definitely more of a pain when only half the slope is open - but the website lists upcoming events so I tend to check these before I book.
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