 Poster: A snowHead
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OK which of the INDOOR real snow ski slopes is regarded as best in the UK and why.
Ive used Castleford, Hemel Hempstead once, and Chill Factor in Manchester once too.
I also read that planning permission has been granted for a new indoor ski centre in Teeside! Wether it ever happens will remain to be seen, but looks promising as the nearest is a long way from me at Castleford.
Peter
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Depends where you are based. Much of muchness really, but I'd rather travel 1 hour than 3 hours and the slope be 20m shorter.
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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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I'd say whichever is closest to you is the best one. There are a few differences between them, but they are unlikely to be significant enough to make it worth travelling further, and the differences are to large extent likely to be subjective and tradeoffs meaning no one will agree.
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I've used Tamworth, Manchester and Hemel Hempstead.
Tamworth has the most interesting slope, with changes of pitch, a bend and a couple of ridges, plus the snow is hardpacked and less likely to degenerate BUT it does have the worst lift system (travelators and a rope tow). Hemel & Manchester are broadly similar, wider, colder, with good button lifts and softer snow which is much nicer to start with but gets chopped up very quickly.
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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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I'm in Halifax so....
I found Tamworth odd due to the bend halfway. . only went as it was opne before the others did
Castleford is a tad short but also sometimes gets 'slow' snow and does not open early
MK bit far to go and same as castleford plus you have to pay to park !!!
Chill factor i've found the best, opens early morning Mon/tue/Wed. and great value (7.30 till 9.30 inc. breakfast for £15) and free parking.
Halifax outdoor slope only good for Olympic trick jumping etc. and a bit of boarding..beer ok though 
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I started writing about indoor snow and snowdomes in 1987, so have an interest in this, but have only skied Hemel, MK and Tamworth. Hemel struck me as a well-run well-designed place with a good panoramic bar (well, it's the most modern of those 3). Yes, I think the snowpack at Tamworth has always been relatively hard - it's a different snow-generation system to most domes (a kind of ice-scraping method, if they've stuck with the same process).
It's encouraging to see Tamworth still going (strong?) as this project was actually built by a non-skier (a local developer called John Llewellyn, who started skiing when his baby emerged) and I first visited it in its skeletal steel-framed form. The travelators were quite a surprising choice - he kind of pushed the project through with quite a gung-ho approach. Apart from being slow, is there anything wrong with them now? (I've not skied there since the day it opened around 20 years ago).
MK was a bit of a zoo when I visited, but it skied fine.
None of the above were recent visits.
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@yorkshirelad, Early mornings at Chill Factore, Monday, Wednesday and Saturday (not Tuesday) and only Wednesday for the breakfast included.
Wherever you go, the regulars will tell you how badly run they are and much less interested in skiers and skiing than in making money regardless. I use Chill Factore regularly. For the most part its just fine though the comments about snow deterioration through the day are very true. Every other week only half a slope is available Wed, Thurs and Friday due to rails being out.
Complain though people do and I'm as guilty as the next man, they are great facilities IMO when compared with dry slopes which I used for the first 20+ years of my skiing career.
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Anyone else heard of this new one about to be built in Teeside?
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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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I have used Castleford, Chill Factore, Milton Keynes and Hemel and to be honest there is little to choose between them. I think they all have good and bad points depending on when you go but they are all better than the dry slopes they are starting to replace. I learnt on the dry slope in Aldershot and skied Gloucester, Hemel, High Wycombe and Warmwell and if they were closer I'd be at one of the snow domes regularly.
Of the ones I've been to I preferred Hemel, Castleford and MK were very similar and Chill Factore was very new so was having teething troubles when I went.
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Only one I've been to is Dubai, it gets very boring very quickly. The chair is Soooooo slow.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Hemel all the way...chunky chips!!! [/drool]
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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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What ALQ said. 
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I'm a bit prejudiced against Milton Keynes having once received a parking ticket! Otherwise, I found Castleford to be very similar to MK - and both were a generation better than Tamworth! Still have a soft spot for the old Gloucester slope - and full power those who took on the running of it when the previous owner lost interest.
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You know it makes sense.
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[quote="Ade57"]@yorkshirelad, Early mornings at Chill Factore, Monday, Wednesday and Saturday (not Tuesday) and only Wednesday for the breakfast included.
oops ..forgot about tuesday, but they have started an over 50's morning, not sure if it still runs, but the piste is great for two hours, then it goes quiet again. ok for ski excersizes etc. but thats all...better than nothing
Most of last year you could book the breakfast club for £10.50 'for members' but it did not ask for membership details !!!! so i paid 10.50... why not ? also the advertising for the breakfast club is woefull... makes you wonder who runs them.
I was lead to believe that Chill factore was for sale as most of the others are all the time !!! ... anybody ??
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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'm a regular visitor to Manchester, Tamworth and Castleford. They each have their own advantages and disadvantages. Though it's a bit further than the others for me overall I prefer skiing at Manchester, the slope is longest, steepest and the surface is the best in my opinion. Castleford is the quietest at peak times but I find the snow to often be very sugary and slow which when combined with the gentle slope makes it quite tedious. I actually like the hard packed surface at Tamworth and the contours add a bit of interest, however I find the travellators an absolute pain in the backside and the numbers they pack on at peak times are in my opinion not only restraining but a straight up health hazard.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@PeterGroom, I've been to all six in the UK - Tamworth, MK, Hemel, Chill Factor-e, Castleford and Braehead. My favourite is probably Tamworth as it's closest to me (I live in Coventry), and Milton Keynes is also less than an hour away. As many have said here, there is little to choose between them tbh, Castleford and Braehead are virtually identical. My least favourite is probably Hemel as it always seems to be the most crowded whenever I've been there. Chill Factor-e is OK, nice and wide.. and feels more roomy than the others, but the lift management leaves something to be desired if I'm honest. I'd also say the indoor slopes offer a better experience than the outdoor ones personally speaking... although Gloucester, Plymouth and Christchurch offer very good value for money on the occasions I've used them.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I've heard about the potential for a slope at Teesside. However from what I understand this is in the very early stages so likely to be a long time coming! I don't even think it has any funding or investors on board yet so could just be a fantasy.
It would be great to have something in the North East
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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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An indoor snow slope would be nice in the NE but I just can't see it happening. There's life in the Dentex yet at Silksworth!!
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| LOTA wrote: |
| I'm a bit prejudiced against Milton Keynes having once received a parking ticket! Otherwise, I found Castleford to be very similar to MK - and both were a generation better than Tamworth! Still have a soft spot for the old Gloucester slope - and full power those who took on the running of it when the previous owner lost interest. |
I skied at Glos on Friday as it was a nice sunny day. First time I've been there since he new owners took over. Was good to see it busy and great that they've taken the middle slope back to its original length. All in all £20 well spent for killing a couple of hours and getting my snow legs back.
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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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@PeteMan, excellent, I'm thinking about an hour or two on Friday afternoon before going on to Kingsholm for the rugby.
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I find the ticket system to be an @rse at Manchester, as your pass turns into mush and gets harder and harder to read. I find the lifties seem to scrape all the snow away at the top of the lift/tow so your skis run slower/can't just get away and on with it. Glasgow I also frequent, no ticket, you have to wear a lid now. Really can't tell the difference to say it's better or worse-I find it's better lit oddly enough!  One they had a glycol leak and it was appropriately what I imagine skiing through porridge is like!
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There's life in the Dentex yet at Silksworth!!\\
There is no life at Silksworth whatsoever. i live within 5 mins and would still drive to Castleford at 1hr 40.
Maybe i need to open the wallet and get involved with the teeside project
Peter
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Not in the UK, but snowworld in landgraaf Holland is great, 520m and 2 drags and a large sit lift. Also has a massive fun park. Website does not do it justice.... We go several times per year as I am Dutch and my family lives 2 hours away.
I have been to MK which was just not worth the trouble (2 hour drive for us), also was expensive.
Snowworld is about 3 hours from calais, an option for the South East I'd say. Great deals in low season too....
Simone
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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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I've only skied in the indoor slope at MK (apart from dry slopes at Southampton and Warmwell, years ago).
But I have used Airkix windtunnel lots of time which is in the MK snowdome, and there was free parking, if you were prepared to look for it and walk a short distance. Some bays, slightly further away, were coloured purple, (i think) for long stay and much better value... but over behind the wind tunnel side, so far right hand in plan view, were some free parking bays. And the next car park away from the front, over the road, think its for a pub or Post Office were free too...
But I haven't been recently, since the Basingstoke wind tunnel opened, so it might have changed again.
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Tue 6-01-15 12:41; edited 1 time in total
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CFe could be great but will never be so till the owners get rid of the management there. They have had regular Glycol leaks and the snow ( down the right hand side ) has been like skiing through a mixture of treacle and superglue. This has stayed like that for days which is not acceptable.
Worse still they have had issues with bare metal substructure showing near the top of the slope. If someone hit that they would probably ruin their skis if lucky at worst have a serious accident.
The new ticket system ( supposed to have been changed in Oct to a scan/swipe system as you pass rather than insert and scan ) has yet to be implemented by the management.
The lifty's at the top does sometimes scrape too much snow away leaving the plastic mat visible but a quick polite word solves this and I see it more as a lack of training. They have a serious issue of safety when busy with not enough staff on slope ( often means the lift operator at the top has to go partway down the slope to sort out a problem leaving nobody able to watch the top of the lifts when there are frequent faller at the top).
Their pricing structure and reasoning behind it when compared to other pricing is something even a monkey could do a better job at.
I love the skiing generally ( leaks aside ) the general staff are a fantastic bunch the instructors are very friendly all let down by a management team who could not even organise the proverbial P up in a brewery. I fear the place will go into receivership unless the owners change the management of the centre.
I took the decision to go to Ski Rossendale in Dec and have not looked back it works out so much cheaper, is quieter and so I get more runs per hour ( more than double, possibly at times as much as four times ). Which when it is not far from being a fifth of the price monthly is a no-brainer.
I will use CFe in the summer for a one month pass and maybe at a push two months but have no inclination to spend money there anymore.
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