 Poster: A snowHead
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Took a drive up to Braehead for the day yesterday and was thoroughly impressed with the SnoZone at Xscape there. After having a terrible experience as a learner at Castleford a few years back this was a real breath of fresh air.
Over the last 3/4 years I have been skiing once a year with the missus and always seem to spend the forst 3 days getting back to the level I was at at the end of the previous years trip. So I've taken the decision to take a drive up to Galsgow or accross to Chill Factore once a month from now on. I was very please with the quality of the snow and the helpfulness of the staff, overall made it a great day out.
We really seemed to time things well, driving up at 2pm, skiing 3-6pm and missing the traffic in both directions.
The slow did seem a LOT slower than the real stuff but as far as getting some practice in it did the job. Even got a few videos for some technical analysis of my technique!
Was quite surprised that when I first learned at Xscape I thought the slope was steep! I now realise it is a 'friendly' green at most, ha! I guess you don't realise how much you improve without reflection!
Anyway, in conclusion Xscape @ Glasgow = Good
~Mac
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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My only gripe is the lifts. Often only one running, slowly, frequently stopping.
Ideally 2 lifts running one fast and one slow but in an ideal world....
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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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Skola, there was only one lift running but for the volume of users it was no problem. There were times we had the slope to ourselves!
Love the bar too! Signed myself up for some sort of discount 'fob'... not sure what it actually is but there is a probability of slightly cheaper beer!
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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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The reason the slope was so slow is because they have suffered two glycol leeks over the past week! Basically they have an underfloor cooling system that ani-freeze (glycol) runs through to keep the snow cold. But the guys who drill in the slalom poles sometimes drill too deep and burst the pipes, resulting in large sections of the slope having to be dug up and the snow ending up like sticky sugar. Was there on Saturday night and didn't have a great 4 hour slide  ... I must admit though when the slopes been pisted and doesn't have slalom tracks and the snow is fast, I do enjoy a slide inside. It's a great facility to have if you take it for what it is (Real lift served snow in Glasgow all year round)
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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've only ever been to the Glasgow fridge as have family up there so it makes sense. Friends who have been to Manchester say it's generally a better experience. Only thing that has ever annoyed me about Glasgow is them only having one poma running regardless of number the last few times I've been. It stops allot but people are learning so suppose it's going to happen. My mate reckons it didn't stop once at Manchester could have just been lucky.
I'll be up next Friday through the day if anyone is around.......
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Seen it stop at Manchester a couple of times. They seem to have both lifts running in peak times pretty reliably though.
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There was very few people on the slope when I was there so two lifts would have been totally pointless. Just saw a video of Hemell (sp?) that a guy posted in the 'Bend Ze Knees' section and looks like a total nightmare in comparison!
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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'll be there on Friday although I hope they've sorted out the snow after that leak!! I think i watched the same video as you Mac22, Hemmel looks really dark to me compared to Glasgow. That does look very quiet when you've been, I'm usally there only on weekends so I'm hoping Friday will be like the above with it still being term time.
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| Grizwald wrote: |
| I'll be there on Friday although I hope they've sorted out the snow after that leak!! I think i watched the same video as you Mac22, Hemmel looks really dark to me compared to Glasgow. That does look very quiet when you've been, I'm usally there only on weekends so I'm hoping Friday will be like the above with it still being term time. |
Snow is returning to normal, gate training went ahead as planned last night and snow making has resumed. Be aware the Friday will have two lines of freestyle features out as is the norm for the Friday park night. Still plenty of space to have a ski. If you like a flat slope, hardly another skier to be seen and nothing in sight apart from the bottom of the run then I would advise avoiding it Early in the week is when it is 1)quietest 2)free of features
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Yeah it was pretty sweet to have the slope to ourselves, but seriously though... why can't I turn left..? takes me ages!
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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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Mac22, Short answer is you are in fact Derek Zoolander........
This is actually quite common in skiers in one direction or the other. We all have a "better side" and are reluctant to commit to the turn on the other side. What is happening is you aren't releasing the edge of your outside ski (left ski on right turn) and then starting the left turn with the right ski. The left ski is caught on its right edge. To fix this, make sure you flatten both skis before you start turning them to the left.
This has to start happening on easier terrain before you will ever be able to do it on steeper terrain.
Let's also consider the alignment of your legs. Ideally, when the skis are flat on the snow (or the boots are flat on a hard surface) you knee is centered over your 2nd toe. If your are too far to either side your ski edge is dug into the snow and it is very difficult to release and turn. .
For skiing, where is your balance point? If you aren't balanced over the center of your feet, you'll have trouble turning no matter what you do. How far apart are your feet? Try a narrower stance if they're wide (or a wide stance if you're bowlegged). If you switch skis left-to-right, is the problem the same? One ski could have the edge protruding (railed) and if you always put the same ski on the same foot, you'll have problems. And, it can always be a combination of things causing your problems. Could also be poorly fitting boots, one foot can be bigger than the other etc etc.
This could be over analysis. When I hockey stop I tend to always do it the same way as I'm right handed and naturally favour my right side. Strange but true.
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Grizwald, first suggestion seems about right. (Not the Zoolander... the next one!)
This will be a point of focus on my next trip to the fridge.
| Grizwald wrote: |
| Mac22When I hockey stop I tend to always do it the same way as I'm right handed and naturally favour my right side. Strange but true. |
See, I always prefer to stop the other way. (Goofy stance when I used to skateboard too). I think my technique is just totally random!
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You know it makes sense.
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Had an interesting day at SnoZone today with a friend. We didn't take our own skis so we stopped off at Ellis Brigham on the way in and persuaded them to let us try some demo skis. They couldn't be more helpful. I tried a pair of Head Titans and my friend got a pair of Salomon BBRs (he has bought a pair which are due to be delivered in France next week, so he fancied trying them to see if he was happy with his purchase). Both pairs were a bit slow and sticky for the first couple of runs, but the rest of the morning was good fun. We came off after a couple of hours to have some lunch, and return the demos for different pairs, but stupidly we forgot to take boots with us to have the bindings adjusted. So, for the remainder of our time we used the Snozone's Rossignols. Never again ! It was like skiing in treacle. Don't know what the problem was, whether the bases were convex and sticking to the snow, but they were dire. So the advice is either take your own skis or get a demo pair from EB! The leaks had been repaired and the snow was fine otherwise. And my pal was happy with the BBRs so he's pleased he has bought a pair.
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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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deerman, yeah I thought that the Rossignols were VERY slow. Unfortunately, I keep my skis and boots out in Meribel with the mrs family (I hate travelling with skis) as we always head to the same places roughly.
Although, the hire ski's were soooo much lighter than my own, probably because they said the logest they had were 174cm. (I'm 6'2)
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Poster: A snowHead
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