Ski Club 2.0 Home
Snow Reports
FAQFAQ

Mail for help.Help!!

Log in to snowHeads to make it MUCH better! Registration's totally free, of course, and makes snowHeads easier to use and to understand, gives better searching, filtering etc. as well as access to 'members only' forums, discounts and deals that U don't even know exist as a 'guest' user. (btw. 50,000+ snowHeads already know all this, making snowHeads the biggest, most active community of snow-heads in the UK, so you'll be in good company)..... When you register, you get our free weekly(-ish) snow report by email. It's rather good and not made up by tourist offices (or people that love the tourist office and want to marry it either)... We don't share your email address with anyone and we never send out any of those cheesy 'message from our partners' emails either. Anyway, snowHeads really is MUCH better when you're logged in - not least because you get to post your own messages complaining about things that annoy you like perhaps this banner which, incidentally, disappears when you log in :-)
Username:-
 Password:
Remember me:
👁 durr, I forgot...
Or: Register
(to be a proper snow-head, all official-like!)

La Plagne easy red

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hi all. I'm heading out to La Plagne in a few weeks. I've been before but frankly struggled with confidence on the blues last time although I was proud of myself for getting down the top steep section of Mira before we left. Since then I have been going to the local dry slope weekly and I have high hopes of being better this visit. Can anyone suggest the easiest red in the resort?
snow report
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
@Skihappy, Don’t beat yourself up. Focus on skiing the blues and enjoying yourself. Also remember that a blue on a bad day (poor visibility/slush/ice/crowds/moguls/hangover/etc.) is infinitely harder than a red on a good day. Let the reds just happen rather than planning them too much.

I’m afraid I can’t remember any reds that stand out as being significantly easier than others, but equally I don’t remember many of them as being massively harder than many blues. Don’t forget that many of the reds are just red because of a a slightly steeper section (usually the start) and once you have got down that then the rest of the run is really a blue.

If you really want to conquer the reds, then pick a really nice day and choose one of the runs high up with not too many people around. Perhaps Inversens, Sources or Carina.
snow 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?
@Skihappy, Wot @foxtrotzulu, says, the easiest runs are the ones with the best snow on them usually., find a red early in the day before it has been heavily skied and not known to be a difficult one and it will be a lot easier than many blues late in the day, particular;y ones that return to resort,
ski holidays
 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
@Skihappy, in going to the local slope have you had any tuition? It really is important. On the trip you are about to go on, if you have no classes booked then I strongly recommend that you get a private lesson booked for the second morning. If you develop technique, then there's no issues about blues, or greens or reds - it's just skiing different terrain. But if you take poor technique onto steeper ground you are likely to have a miserable time. There's a lot of fun to be had in a place like La Plagne, developing technique on easier pistes and then refining it over a few days, still staying on the easier runs, but knowing that you are improving.
ski holidays
 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Thanks for your encouragement everyone. I realise now that I lost my confidence on blues in exactly the circumstances @foxtrotzula mentioned i.e. white out, moguls, busy end of day. It helps to realise that. I have been having tuition at the dry slope and they have significantly changed my technique so fingers crossed. Also I have a private lesson book with Reflex ski who I cannot recommend enough! It's just a shame I ski so much better with an instructor than on my own.
snow conditions
 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
Skihappy wrote:
It's just a shame I ski so much better with an instructor than on my own.

We all do. Madeye-Smiley
snow report
 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@Skihappy, Great that you are having a lesson in resort, but IMO not necessarily for the reason that Valais suggests. For me, the best thing about an instructor is not their fruitless efforts to improve my technique but the fact that they just take you down runs without any fuss about what colour it is and they make you realise that you can ski it without problem.

If it’s any consolation, I think of myself as a very comfortable/confident red run skier but I still have occasional moments when I will be fighting my way down a blue and hating every second of it.
snow report
 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Skihappy wrote:
Thanks for your encouragement everyone. I realise now that I lost my confidence on blues in exactly the circumstances @foxtrotzula mentioned i.e. white out, moguls, busy end of day. It helps to realise that. I have been having tuition at the dry slope and they have significantly changed my technique so fingers crossed. Also I have a private lesson book with Reflex ski who I cannot recommend enough! It's just a shame I ski so much better with an instructor than on my own.

Icy runs at the end of the day in flat light with a few bumps in them are runs that few skiers relish.
Sharp edges and good technique help, however an instructor other than imparting good technique will usually be able to help in a couple of other ways , they can pick lines with the best snow and easiest gradient for you to follow and they provide a focus so the flat light is less bothersome. In these conditions if you are on your own sometimes the answer is to download rather than go down a run where you will lose confidence. If you have to ski them remember that the sides of the run is usually where the best snow is and they can get a little 'polished' in the middle. But don't avoid red runs on the grounds that you lose confidence on blue runs in very tricky conditions , try to work out where conditions are best and go therer, the colour is only a rough grading and does not take inot account the conditions, there are black runs that are far easier than blues when icy and polished in flat light.
snow report
 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.
The red off the top of the Grand Rochette is nice. It's quite steep at the top, but lovely to ski when it's freshly pisted. You can go and have a look before skiing it and see if you want to or not.
snow conditions
 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
On my first week skiing our instructor took us down Carina as our first red, it is an easy run, basically just 2 medium steepness flat faces if I remember correctly. It goes the opposite direction from Mira from the top of Grand Rochette.

Take care to control your speed coming down to the ridge / saddle where left is Kamikaze and right is Carina, people will be heading down the first bit of Kamikaze from the opposite direction. Kamikaze is seriously steep for a red, so do choose the right direction (right) and stay on Carina (don't worry, it's the most obvious junction ever)
snow conditions
 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
The Fornelet red down towards Montalbert is pretty mellow, and has the benefit of a lovely blue run crossing it so you can divert to that if you want.

Inversens is a nice wide open cruiser of a run too, or at least it was when I last skied it a few years ago. I think the other red from Roche De Mio down towards Belle Plagne was okay too, a couple of steeper pitches though and it can be a bit busy.
snow conditions
 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.
@SnoodlesMcFlude, Not convinced about Fornelet. I’ve seen it make grown men weep. It’s a fab run, but it seems to be well shaded and can turn to ice early in the afternoon and make the home run to Montalbert a little more challenging than expected. It’s fine, but IMO far from being the easiest of reds in town.
snow conditions
 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
@foxtrotzulu, fair enough, I've only done it around mid to late morning and always found it fairly straightforward. Also I like that it's relatively short pitches to the 'escape route' of the blue run that crosses it.
snow report
 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
@Skihappy, I'd suggest spending a bit of time in the Champagny sector if you are looking to progress from blues to reds.
There is a reasonably easy red to the left of the Borseliers chairlift and an easier blue to the right of it so you can decide which one to go for on the chairlift up. It's also relatively easy to ski across from the red to the blue if you bottle it.
The 3 blues off the Rossa chairlift are good confidence boosting runs and you can then carry on to either the red or blue off Borseliers.

I wouldn't go for the Carina or Source initially, once you are on either run it is difficult to find an escape route if you find yourself struggling.
At least with Inversens you initially have the option to change your mind and cut across to the blue tunnel piste.

Definitely agree with @foxtrotzulu, about Fornelet, it can be very difficult when it is icy.
latest report
 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Thanks everyone. Can't wait to be there now. Must stop watching the webcam live feeds!
snow report
 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
La Plagne seems to have a bit of a dearth of red runs.

Inversens is wonderful, fast, quiet, and wide enough to pick an easy line. But a very slow chair back up!

The reds under the Becoin chair above Centre are good but a little steep for the nervous -it’s where the ski schools practice slalom. But again wide enough to pick an easy line.

Also the reds under the La Roche chair below Aime are lovely - always quiet over here and in the trees. And a nice cafe at the bottom!

Carina is a short red from the top of Grand Rochette which is easier than some of the blues.

Avoid the other red from Roche de Mio (the middle option when you come off the initial pitch) - it has a very steep pitch which can be very tricky if icy. There used to be a “mur difficile” sign there 20 years ago to warn off non-expert skiers! If you’re coming down this way stick to Inversens (see earlier) or the blues on either side.
snow report



Terms and conditions  Privacy Policy