Saalbach Blue run Moguls concerns. Any insights ?

A snowHead

Hi everyone, so on my way home (UK) from a family ski holiday in Saalbach, our first time to Saalbach and really enjoyed it apart from one thing, the Moguls on the blue runs. We are booked to go again in February half term with friends who are all mixed ability .

I'm.concernerd about the Moguls on these blue runs as some of my friends would really struggle and lose confidence.

Are these Moguls normal on these blue runs ?
Or is it due to weather being warmer ( we had 2 really warm days) and the snow being slushed snd carved into a daunting Mogul field?

We also felt like it wasn't being pisted as the Moguls would have been flattened on a daily basis.

Any insights would be very much appreciated ?

Thanks

A snowHead

We were there In Jan and Feb 2020, the south facing home runs got a lot of moguls by the end of the day then, as well as 2b was a mess by early afternoon. They were fully piested each day though.

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This is quite common, depending on slope/aspect/weather. There are often sections of blue runs where less capable skiers are having difficulties, stopping all over the place, feeling uncomfortable. It's kind of part of the learning process! More experienced friends can ski below them, help them down, remind them about the basics, be encouraging.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

I love saalbach but have certainly found that slush and bumps can feature too often for my preference, so much depends on weather conditions though which makes it impossible to fully predict

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I don't know Saalbach. Is it possible to download by lift, and avoid the slushy and mogully runs?

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

I enjoyed Saalbach but I remember the moguls and some of the runs turning into Wacky races with experts and beginners all trying to get down.

After all it is free

@Beckski, unless there is an area deliberately left for moguls they get created each day depending on the number of skiers, the snow conditions at the time and the angle of the slope. The pistes get bashed every night. However if the slopes are busy and conditions are soft most of the "home" runs will have moguls on them by lunchtime. This can be difficult for less confident, less fit skiers but there is little that can be done. Often there are blue "tracks" that run through the trees adjacent to the main piste which can be an easier alternative. This is not an issue confined to Saalbach Hinterglemm but is found in most areas.

Perhaps south facing open slopes are more prone to this issue than north facing shaded ones, but these can be hard or icy. Do bear in mind that the colour is no guide to how difficult the piste actually is, a badly cut up or icy blue home run can be more difficult and less pleasant to ski than some blacks with good snow.

I’m in Saalbach now, it is unseasonably warm in Austria at the moment, this means the snow gets very soft in the afternoons and the popular pistes become very bumpy. If you are uncomfortable with these conditions then the trick is to ski these valley runs in the mornings, go higher in the afternoons then at the end of the day just download on the gondolas from the mid stations. This way you will be able to experience all the runs and avoid the crowds being challenged at the end of the day. Alternatively use it as a learning opportunity, perhaps book a private lesson and ask them to concentrate on how to handle the bumps??

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Slushy blue run bumps are great fun once you get the hang of them.

Stem turns etc don't really work so they are tough for beginners.

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It’ll be like this pretty much everywhere at the moment. It’s definitely not just a Saalbach thing. It’s very busy in most ski areas and it’s been warm. As a result everything gets churned up much easier. I tend to find it’s a bigger problem on narrow blue pistes or on steeper sections. In colder conditions and much quieter weeks it will be much less of a problem.

Something I suggest to people I’m with… If there’s a neighbouring red or black run that gets you to where you want to go, consider choosing that instead. Quite often fewer people will have skied on it (lots of people just avoid anything that isn’t blue) and although it might be steeper overall it’s probably actually easier to ski!

You know it makes sense.

I am a big fan of taking lifts down from the middle station, if conditions are slushy, moguly and busy towards the end of the day.

I recall doing this one year on the Kohlmais lift in Saalbach; and being surprised that it was full of instructors and locals. I asked them why they were taking the lift down, as they were good or expert skiers. They replied that they were not crazy, and they were not going to ski in what they described as “ankle breaking conditions”.

So since that day, you will often find me taking the lift down from the middle station at the end of the day.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

A snowHead

Blue 87 (I think ) in Saalbach was possibly the most dangerous blue run I have ever been on … very bumpy with some steep sections and incredibly crowded.

A snowHead

This is really a case of basic technique. Moguls on a genuine blue should not present much of challenge to low level intermediates. In my experience most holiday skiers DO have the ability to cope with these sorts of conditions but have a bit of a mental block about bumps. A lesson or two will fix this, mostly from gaining increased confidence. I have often taken sessions with perfectly good skiers who stated they could not cope with ice or bumps. It always turns out that they don't mean ice, rather firm pistes, and are more than capable of skiing the terrain safely just don't believe they can. A couple of things to concentrate on and an instructor to follow normally fixes the problem.

I would go a step further and say it is a good idea to be confident on bumpy blue slopes as you might encounter them at any time on the mountain. So for safety's sake, get a couple of lessons for your friends so they are. That said I advise against older, less fit, and less confident skiers using the home slopes in the afternoon when it is warm. The risk of injury is very high, and made worse normally by fatigue (and/or a couple of beers). There is no shame in downloading. My wife often does as she does not enjoy the carnage - she is an ex-racer and VERY good skier even now.

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As a snowboarder I see it as my duty to flatten bumps to assist those who dislike them. Doesn't half take it out of your legs though

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Blue runs down to bottom of Kitz all mogul’ed up by lunch time yesterday. Great work out for the legs and technique!

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When I skied with timid intermediates - I would get them to practice on the odd bump, to show them that they could use the Bump to Up Unweight, then plant the Pole, turn the skis on the top (least resistance) and ski down the other side. It actually makes turning easier and can be done pretty slowly. Too fast and you fly off the top.

When comfortable on 1 bump, then the ante could gradually be upped and Moguls became less intimidating. It was a change of mindset, from "Help, I can't cope and I'm going to fall", to "This makes turning easier, so lets look for friendly bumps to turn on".

IME. The secret is to get comfortable with the technique on the singular bumps (so know they can cope), before it becomes a "do or die" situation.

...and Instruction always greatly helps - and of course, my solution could be a little Old School and requires the bumps to be reasonably spaced out (or there is a need to be able to traverse bumps using absorption).

Help!!

Saalbach Blue run Moguls concerns. Any insights ?

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