 Poster: A snowHead
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Ok chaps (and chapesses!)... I know the degree of difficulty of the runs in most Austrian resorts (St anton excepted!) can pale into insignificance when compared to some French, Swiss and American stuff but in your opinion which are the toughest / steepest runs in Austria.... steepest black piste? toughest ski route? tough runs with big verticals? Answers on a post card please.... 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well the HariKari in Mayrhofen would probably be on the list. At 78% it's apparently the steepest piste in Austria.
Apart from that, it's hard to know what else would be considered. I guess the Hahnenkamm race piste is pretty spectacular, but a lot of the time most punters miss out sections of it.
The Gamsleiten II lift in Obertauern accesses a pretty imposing mogully black run, but again, I don't know how it compares to tough pistes in more gnarly resorts.
D
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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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SnowGod, Mooserwirt to Galzigbahn c.8pm 
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The Harakiri in Mayrhofen might be the steepest piste in Austria, but only for about 20 meters... Certainly not a difficult run by any stretch of the imagination.
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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.
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Yeah. That looks a little steeper...
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boabski, agreed, especially when you're not 100% convinced it's your board your on!
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Nadenoodlee, Do what we do and take a bench and turn upside down - hey presto, a new sport - benchboarding
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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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boabski, The run down to The Mooserwirt at 3pm.... nearly got killed in the rush to get a table!!!
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SnowGod, severe shortage of table as some idiots use them as transport later on 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Deliaskis, the Harakiki, if it is actually 78% (38 degrees), is the steepest piste in Europe by a few degrees.
The Hahnenkamm is not steep. Low 30s max. But just long, tons of these 30 degree drops and covered in one long poo-poo of ice.
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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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Did the Harakiri at new year after a fall of snow and it was OK, it didn't look much fun the previous day when it was icy. It's good fun going up on the lift watching people slide down on their back bottoms, not a great confidence booster though, especially if you're on the way up to do it.
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back bottoms - I didn't write that, I wrote @rses!
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You know it makes sense.
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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 don't think there are that many resorts in Europe with particlularly steep black runs in any country. Since I started skiing in the '80's there seems to have been a gradual move to reclassify many of the steeper black runs as ski routes or other such name and to rechristen some of the red runs as black runs.
There may be a few steepish ones left but they are getting fewer.
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Poster: A snowHead
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In America most of the runs are labelled whereas in Europe (esp Austria) a lot of the more challenging runs aren't labelled. The pics I put up earlier are ca 45 deg, this can be seen in the third pic as if I had outstrechted my right arm I could touch or be near to touching the slope while standing upright. The last pic is lower down on the run out and only ca 25-30 but some of the chutes in that area are 50-55 - they don't have official names as such.
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At 78% (38º), Harakiki in Mayrlofen, Austria is the steepest piste in Austria, and highly possible to be the steepest in Europe.
But in nooooo way does Harakiki compare to ANY of the steepest pistes in North America. Unlike in Europe, America labels 90% of the mountain with runs. In Europe, it is probably a small 5-10%. Therefore, America has much steeper slopes.
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http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_steepest_ski_slope
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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if you wanted to go to a decent size resort in austria with a reasonable mount of challenging piste skiing other than the arlberg where would you suggest
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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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| dan100 wrote: |
| if you wanted to go to a decent size resort in austria with a reasonable mount of challenging piste skiing other than the arlberg where would you suggest |
Ischgl, Serfaus & Sölden all have more km black piste than St Anton. 45, 31 & 31 versus 30 km for St Anton.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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ischgl defn on wish list
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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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What about helmets ... is arguing about them out of fashion all of a sudden ?
Anyway,as it's the my mountain's bigger, gnarlier, steeper, icier than yours thread again (why isn't there a banging your head against the wall smiley ?) and just to prove I'm as sad as the next bloke, can I ask whether Scotland isn't in You-Rope any more ? If it still is, I can bet you a Pound to a Euro that Glencoe has a marked 'piste' steeper and a lot more intimidating than the Oster Reich's Hairy Cary.
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| DB wrote: |
| dan100 wrote: |
| if you wanted to go to a decent size resort in austria with a reasonable mount of challenging piste skiing other than the arlberg where would you suggest |
Ischgl, Serfaus & Sölden all have more km black piste than St Anton. 45, 31 & 31 versus 30 km for St Anton. |
Yes but that is just because they re-labeled their harder black runs as itineraries.
moffatross, the question was about Austria, not Europe.
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Fri 13-03-09 22:25; edited 2 times in total
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[quote="snowball"]
| DB wrote: |
| dan100 wrote: |
| if you wanted to go to a decent size resort in austria with a reasonable mount of challenging piste skiing other than the arlberg where would you suggest |
Ischgl, Serfaus & Sölden all have more km black piste than St Anton. 45, 31 & 31 versus 30 km for St Anton. |
Yes but that is just because they re-labeled their harder black runs as itineraries.
some of which were distinctly interesting
the iteniary from zurs to lech to weiss ring is one of my favourite runs
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| skiking4 wrote: |
| Deliaskis, the Harakiki, if it is actually 78% (38 degrees), is the steepest piste in Europe by a few degrees. |
snowball, one of the posts that prompted my mischievous response is above. Austria is most certainly part of You-Rope, as is bonny Scotland. 
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moffatross, DERRRRRRR . ... the question was about Austria (a small part of Europe)....not about the whole of Europe....Scotland is not part of Austria yet ! Although we could sell it in a bid to increase overall profitability
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| DB wrote: |
| Quote: |
At 78% (38º), Harakiki in Mayrlofen, Austria is the steepest piste in Austria, and highly possible to be the steepest in Europe.
But in nooooo way does Harakiki compare to ANY of the steepest pistes in North America. Unlike in Europe, America labels 90% of the mountain with runs. In Europe, it is probably a small 5-10%. Therefore, America has much steeper slopes.
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http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_steepest_ski_slope |
You do realize I wrote that.
Look at the bottom. Last edit was me.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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| skiking4 wrote: |
| DB wrote: |
| Quote: |
At 78% (38º), Harakiki in Mayrlofen, Austria is the steepest piste in Austria, and highly possible to be the steepest in Europe.
But in nooooo way does Harakiki compare to ANY of the steepest pistes in North America. Unlike in Europe, America labels 90% of the mountain with runs. In Europe, it is probably a small 5-10%. Therefore, America has much steeper slopes.
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http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_steepest_ski_slope |
You do realize I wrote that.
Look at the bottom. Last edit was me.
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So because an Austrian slope doesn't have a name it isn't steep even though it's 55+ deg?
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You know it makes sense.
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DB, uh no?
The answer would be way too complicated if off piste counted.
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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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| Samerberg Sue wrote: |
| Who gives a tinker's cuss where the steepest slope is |
Samerberg Sue, whilst I wholeheartedly agree with your sentiment, your use of that Pythonesque expression was entirely unexpected. 
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Poster: A snowHead
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moffatross, hey at least it's clean! 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Perhaps SnowGod likes tough runs and wants to ski in Austria. That doesn't seem an outrageous position.
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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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| skiking4 wrote: |
DB, uh no?
The answer would be way too complicated if off piste counted. |
So places like the Palisades and corbets are "pisted"? You don't appear to be comparing apples with apples. Are you trying to compare American "inbounds" with European "pisted runs"? In short if you are looking for tough runs in Austria you won't find that many labelled on a piste map or inbounds (avy controlled). There are however plenty of 45+ deg offpiste stuff with no fall zones and mandatory jumps etc.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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richmond, don't take life so seriously! I live in Austria so you can take it as read that I like it! but I also like skiing in Switzerland, Italy and even have been known to work a season or two in France.
I find the basic premise completely wrong - which country has the steepest, longest, most lifts, biggest area, ................blah blah blah so silly. Go where you think you will enjoy it, but to be honest until it's over you really don't know how a mountain based holiday is going to pan out. Exchanging info is useful but this is not really comparing like with like.
Take a known run like Charvanette in Portes de Soleil (aka the Swiss Wall), there are days when it is a pleasure to ski and I have skied down it many a time, hooping and hollering for joy, and there have been others when it is a nightmare and I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. You cannot compare because on any one day in any one year no slope is going to be the same as it was the day before, last week, last year or even 100 years ago.
Sue
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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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| Samerberg Sue wrote: |
| richmond, don't take life so seriously! |
Yes, sorry, I do tend to do that. Still, one does need an antidote to all the frivolity on here.
I'm not a tough run addict myself, BTW.
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very dumb thread! Only makes sense if you consider runs that are groomed. If its not groomed, it's effectively off piste, in Europe or North America, and local tradition governs how it's marked on the map (ski route, black, double black, whatever).
Try getting a groomer in Corbetts for example. But its a marked run .... piste - nfw
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hmm - this is all a bit misleading. First, Spanky's ladder isn't a run, its a few steps carved in the snow that open up several marked runs (and many unmarked!) down the back side of Blackcomb. I've skied 3 of the marked runs, and none of them struck me as scary steep, as in Corbetts scary steep. Same with Blowhole - skied it many times, and while it's steeper some years that others due to snow build up, I wouldn't call it scary steep like Corbetts. Or some of the steep coloirs in Whistler that have seriously scary get ins (I forget their names).
Dunno anything about Squaw, so I'm sure it's all true.
But it is all really a somewhat vacuous discussion. I read Ski mag, and more or less every issue has some article on some hill (eg Telluride, Big Sky) opening up more 'extreme terrain'. Stuff I'd consider scary steep. Like Corbetts (which you can guess I'll probably never attempt ). I even seem to remember Grand Targhee has marked some cliffs as a run!!
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| gortonator wrote: |
| I even seem to remember Grand Targhee has marked some cliffs as a run!! |
LOL, ever seen the Chimney Sweep in a low snow year? It's just a plain 100 foot cliff. But that's the only other cliff I can think of that's marked (even though it really isn't a cliff when there's actually snow on it). You can easily look at pics on google-- there's hundreds and a good quarter of them have little or no snow on them.
DB, once again I'll end up writing a book if I count off piste routes, and I wrote at the top that all the runs were located at ski areas. If you don't like it, you go edit it.
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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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There are no 'marked' runs in the Gemstone Bowls (accessed via Spankys Ladder) - and the Blowhole can be very steep, or barely a black depending on how the snow forms. It is never 'scary' though, as it is not exposed in any way - if you fall you simply end up in the bottom of it.
I think the steepest 'marked' run at Whistler Blackcomb is Colouir Extreme, while something like Excitation and Exhilaration are some of the steepest lines around (on Whistler, accessed via a boot pack off to the right of Harmony chair unload) - Hawaii 5-0 is basically a cliff this year, while some years it is manageable.
It all depends on how the snow falls......
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| wbsr wrote: |
There are no 'marked' runs in the Gemstone Bowls (accessed via Spankys Ladder) - and the Blowhole can be very steep, or barely a black depending on how the snow forms. It is never 'scary' though, as it is not exposed in any way - if you fall you simply end up in the bottom of it.
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Pretty sure the lines off Spanky's were named on the old trail map (not marked on the mountain) - they're don't seem to be on the abomination they've produced this year tho.
Never found Couloir Extreme too steep - 40%-ish I'd reckon? Thought the Cirque was nastier, if not steeper? But as you say, depends on how snow falls ...
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FAQ
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I'll repeat it. 
