 Poster: A snowHead
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I'd like to build up my experience going off piste, skinning up and so on so looking to go on an off piste week with a guide in italy several times this winter. Ideally it would be aosta or somewhere around Turin as the flights to there are easy for me. I've looked through the forums and found azimut.ski to be well recommended but didn't find other companies or individual guides so thought i'd ask for recommendations.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Bump! I'm sure someone knows someone, or at least knows Azimut and can or cannot recommend them!
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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.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@BobinCH, Ah great! Thank you!
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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.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Weathercam, Ha ok! Well they must be doing something right. I wouln't go with a big company if i could find a good guide in the region, its just really hard to do all that over the internet but I'd really like to build up experience off piste so that I can one day just head out with a group of friends like locals do.
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@BorisFX, well ... arguably then, you would be better booking on a number of off piste weeks with instruction? Guides don't always share their knowledge 
If flights are easy to Turin, I'd imagine they're easy to Geneva too? Various options with various good companies in various places including but not limited to Chamonix, Verbier, Val&Tignes, ...
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@under a new name, I live in Vilnius which is in Lithuania, and recently flights have become quite challenging. Turin and Milan are the ones that are still easy. Out of curiosity could you name the options? Where does one look for off piste weeks? I know SnowHeads do an off piste week but i think i'm late to the party for this year. I just wasnt aware there are more options.
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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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@BorisFX, with pleasure, just not right now, I’m en route home flying into via Geneva. But Turin not a dreadful hub for any of the places I mentioned
 will revert from real keyboard tomorrow
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@BorisFX, Ski Club Freshtracks do lots of off piste guided weeks, icluding some with instruction. One of their locations is Alagna which is not too far from Turin.
In Val d'Isere I'd recommend Alpine Experience
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@DCG, Amazing! Thank you i'll check those out!
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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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| BorisFX wrote: |
| @under a new name,I know SnowHeads do an off piste week but i think i'm late to the party for this year. I just wasnt aware there are more options. |
There are a few places left on the GnarliiiBuG and I’m sure there are places left on the following week which is even more hardcore off piste.
Edit; The following week is the SOPiB2023
Last edited by And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports. on Sun 20-11-22 19:48; edited 2 times in total
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@BorisFX, as above, Alpine Experience very good in Val. Warren Smith and no doubt many others in Verbier, UCPA in many resorts in France ... There are loads of them.
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You know it makes sense.
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Also worth considering Snoworks. Their All Terrain courses may be a good fit.
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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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Poster: A snowHead
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@Rob Mackley, that said as OP (effectively, between the lines) wants off piste instruction …
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@BorisFX, indeed, if it is building experience then I would look for a good instructor rather than a guide. Two different experiences.
I used Paolo Tombini in Champoluc for two days guiding arround the area. Good chap, but a guide rather than instructor.
+39 333 166 4434 whatsapp
Sekmės!
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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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@under a new name, I suppose you're right in that, but lets say sopib or gnarli week right? These weeks still get guides but then are they somehow more interested in teaching people? Or is it just that these weeks have been running for many years so guides are not worried about loosing clientele and are more happy to share? I suppose what I'm trying to understand is whether such a thing as off-piste instruction exists? Seems like there are guides everywhere...
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@BorisFX, off piste instruction totally exists all over the place. See suggestions above. But guiding is a slightly different thing.
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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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@BorisFX, on the SOPiB there are 2/3 groups that are more instruction than guiding, led by top-notch instructors. The remaining groups are guided rather than instructed. I'm not sure about the gnarli but I think some of the instruction can be off piste. The off-piste clinics on the PSB are an excellent intro, and PiPAU is expressly aimed at improving technique to equip nascent off-piste skiers with solid skills to handle any conditions (plus ski better on piste, of course).
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@BorisFX, my point really that many guides are not instructors and/or have no interest in instruction. Some of the grumpier ones round here have little interest in conversation. A guide chum also insists on a minimum off piste ability (which is really quite advanced and quite reasonable as he mostly guides in high, glaciated, terrain).
My point being that a guide is probably not what's required, unless they also have, and are wearing, their instruction hat.
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ortovox run 2 and 3 day avi awareness/touring courses in Italy at various stations on various dates. Then book some privates with an instructor. Good skiing habits are good skiing habits irrelevant what snow you're on
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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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@Bergmeister, I don't think you can generalise by nationality though. You find good and bad everywhere.
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| under a new name wrote: |
| @Bergmeister, I don't think you can generalise by nationality though. You find good and bad everywhere. |
I'm not generalising - but quoting specific experiences. The dodgy guides were Brits, French and Scandinavian. And, in contrast, one of the brilliant guides was a Brit and another two were French...
Maybe it's coincidence that, without exception, Canadian and US guides have been excellent.
I was just making the point that some guides aren't very personable and seem to not enjoy what they do - which is not what I want when I'm paying them hundreds of pounds a day for the pleasure.
Last edited by Ski the Net with snowHeads  on Mon 28-11-22 10:22; edited 1 time in total
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I've been out with Peakshunter (sic) several times. (www.peakshunter.com) They are Aosta based. Can highly recommend.
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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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Ok nice! Guys thank you very much for all of the suggestions! I will now go and plan trips according to those! After posting the topic there hasn't been many replies but then somehow people explained things. I realize all of this might be common knowledge for everyone here so people didn't reply initially but all of this is extremely valuable. And i'll be sure to book the an ortovox course as-well. I'm quite interested in the meteorology as I used to do a lot of paragliding so avalanche training seems to be quite an interesting topic to me.
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I never had a bad guide, either in personality or in experience. Always find it interesting to chat to them about their experience in the mountains or the local culture / food over lunch, but I love the mountains so maybe I'm happier than others would be shooting that breeze. The ones I have most respect for are constantly looking around observing what's going on and what could go wrong and not really paying too much attention to chatting to me while we're skiing, which again I'm very happy with. Been lucky enough to have a guide who was also an instructor once.
In any event, to an extent, off piste guiding isn't really about learning, in terms of drills at least. You're paying a lot of money to be brought to locations which hopefully involve excellent descents / views / aesthetics, make best use of the given snow conditions, are relatively unvisited by others and are safe. You do learn in my experience though from simply skiing behind a good skier.
Incidently, what do people expect to pay for a guide nowadays? I remember hiring one in Courmayeur maybe only five years ago for a little over 300 euro for the day. However, last year in Bad Gastein I think they wanted closer to 600 for the day and similar in Verbier. Is that now normal cost across the main European ski countries?
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You know it makes sense.
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@BorisFX, did you ever find any good leads? I'm recently based in Valle d'Aosta and am looking for similar, although I am already an advanced rider so more for guides and fellow riders to make a group with. After the recent snow conditions off-piste should be nice here for a bit.
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FAQ
Again, all of those (Euro guides) mentioned had a real passion and enthusiasm for the mountains and that enthusiasm rubbed off on the group. 
