 Poster: A snowHead
|
Pending - thanks for the praise. Didnt really do that much but glad you thought it was OK. Yes nice to bump into you - how funny after all these years. 7/8 years ago - blimey! Just checked it was 2018! I remember that outing.
Weather held up OK
It was slightly rainy first thing but only just and it was intermittent. Anyway the kids went off to school OK and I headed into town for work and the meeting point and the buses ran perfectly so I was very early. Hey ho.
Anyway I was wearing my rain cape as it was threatening out there. My client was on time and there was plenty of eager people to get skiing so the queues were quite big but off we went. I had a lovely GP lady from the conference first up and what a skilful little skier she was. She mainly just wanted to get her technique brushed up as it had been a few years since her last session she told me. The Bellevarde gave the best chance of working on things so off we went. Actually the conditions up there were not too bad at all and the weather kept moving in and out but nothing too bad! Meanwhile there was a little fresh snow to enjoy but it was pretty warm it really was.
We mainly worked on blue and red pistes all morning long and it was quite a fun session in the end and we had great chats - a nice session.
Down in town it was still raining on and off quite heavily one minute and then the next the sun was trying to come out - all very weird weather today. So lunch was the usual under the Sun Bar but I got a message from the pm lesson to say to make it a 1330 start so that gave me an extra 30 mins lunch break!
Anyway this afternoon I had my family that I had had the other afternoon and given the not ideal weather I ended up taking the Dad out for a tour of the resort as he has never been here before. In a nutshell we ticked off most of the reds up Solaise and Bellevarde in the afternoon as well as some of the blacks too. It is also the first time in quite a while I've skied the Face so late in the day with a client but it skied quite nicely mainly as the warm temps and soggy snow had NOT been skied to much therefore wasnt too bumpy but wasnt too icy at all either.
Talking of the Face... over the weekend when Clement Noel won on the World Cup circuit he became the most successful French Alpine ski racer on the WC tour of all time - so pretty cool he comes from Val!
Oh and also ahead of the Womens World Cup circuit next weekend over in Courcheval where there is a slalom race the AMAZING new up and coming racer Zrinka Ljutic has been training Slalom on the Face. For some reason she is training from 5-7 so they have the mountain open for her for those 2 hours last couple of evenings - not sure why during the day is not possible for her but anyway she is amazing and I think could become the next Michaela Shiffrin. We shall see.
Anyway after work I headed home and it has been a pretty normal evening this end.
Tomorrow night we have some friends popping around for dinner so the update could be late.
TTFN
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
| Steve Angus wrote: |
| Bonus Just goes to show you can end up in prison for manslaughter - the French convention is that the 'apparent' competent person can be done for manslaughter in cases such as this.... e.g. if someone who knows Val takes on the unpaid role of leader of a group going off piste for example then they could be held liable if someone dies as they have involuntarily been seen as competent in making a fatal decision.... its notable when I have said in the past then even when as an instructor im off duty im never really off duty at all. |
France is certainly a challenging territory for qualified group leaders like this UIAGM Guide. It’s clear from the article that his competency was doubted by the tribunal and the relatives. If he’d been more competent and had an early exit plan (amongst other noted failings), then the court might have seen it as more of an unavoidable accident. As it was, he sounds to have put his clients in harm’s way through his lack of: competence, planning and preparation. A more competent individual should have been able to avoid or mitigate the accident.
In the scenario you describe - someone who knows the resort well takes on the role of group leader and assumes the liability for the group because “they have involuntarily been seen as competent” - Yes, if you’re qualified and you’re skiing with friends I suppose there is a presumption that they should expect the same duty of care from you if they are paying or not. Someone like me who is totally unqualified but knows the area well: I would not expect to assume liability for the group so automatically. When we ski as friends, it’s usually pretty well understood and assumed by all, usually rightly, who becomes the de facto leader - we all know the “natural” pecking order. I don’t know how the de facto leader would be treated by the French Courts if there was an accident but there would be loads of factors to take into account, including qualification, experience, agreement within the group.
Interesting whether the qualified person’s insurance would be as effective if they were with friends as opposed to with paying clients? I’ve got no idea of the answer here but interested if you have a view.
One guide friend that I ski with has made the chilling observation a couple of times: “I’d like to do go there with you but if we do it then we do it on a day as friends, not as a guide/client”. He’s not trying to escape liability by “skiing with friends not clients” and it doesn’t sound like that would work in any event although it always helps concentrate my mind.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
| Steve Angus wrote: |
| Oh and also ahead of the Womens World Cup circuit next weekend over in Courcheval where there is a slalom race the AMAZING new up and coming racer Zrinka Ljutic has been training Slalom on the Face. For some reason she is training from 5-7 so they have the mountain open for her for those 2 hours last couple of evenings - not sure why during the day is not possible for her but anyway she is amazing and I think could become the next Michaela Shiffrin. |
The Courchevel race on Thursday will be a night slalom, she may as well practice with the kind of light that she will get for the race.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Steve Angus,
I was thinking of the Southern hemisphere as it would chime with the summer school holidays. And you could turn it into a round the world trip for the family.
But it sounds like you want something in the European winter. Andorra?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Beautiful photos!
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
Congratulations Olivia, well done!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
NoMapNoCompass - thank you!
A nice rest day
I didnt actually put ski boots on today which is a rarity! Instead I was barely awake when Clare got up and it was nice to have Sunday morning cuddles with Ben prior to getting up! So anyway Clare got sorted for work and the kids and I had a leisurely breakfast... I even had time to try a new way of cooking my poached eggs. So it was a leisurely hour or two and as the sun was shining brightly it was a beautiful day out there.
Anyway at 1000 Olivia and some of her girl friends became the cheerleaders for the boys race again over the road on the Raye. It is exactly the same set up as yesterday just for the boys! Anyway since I wanted to watch too, know plenty of the parents of kids participating and the kids too I headed over. Luckily plenty of Bens school friends would be there and with the weather as it was it was set to be a nice morning!
So over a couple of hours including a drink in the sun during the break between runs at Rosees it was such a nice morning watching the racing and chatting to other parents and kids. It was nice not really having a vested direct interest in the race for a change.
So by lunchtime we knew the results and Val had a 3rd place in the 2013 'scratch' race and the same in the 2014 race. There was also a 5th place so some decent results.
Ben brought a friend home for lunch and by now Clare was back from work.
So later on this afternoon after Olivia had spent time with her friends she came home to do some homework and meanwhile I took Ben to the swimming pool. Got a little annoyed as my 10 pass pool entrance which was supposed to NOT have an end date instead turns out does have and it had fully expired which meant had to buy a new pass to get in the pool - grrrr!
Alas Ben and I had a fun couple of hours in the pool even though it was TOTALLY deserted!
So this evening it has been the usual getting ready for Monday morning.
HAHA
Back to it tomorrow morning.
TTFN
Radio Val pic today pretty much sums up a lovely day in the mountains!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
Expectations
It was back to work nice and early this morning and I certainly was not ready to be up at 0630 - oh well! The kids were also hard to get out of bed today too but we got there in the end and they were off. Clare was not starting until 0930 which always take some of the time stress off things thankfully!
I headed to the meeting point and, as it will be most of the week, it was glorious sunshine out there. Its not mega hot or anything but when the sun gets going it certainly feels warm out there! You have to think carefully about the layers you are putting on thats for sure!
So it was the first time I have been at the meeting point in a while so it was nice catching up with some colleagues whilst I waited for the clients to arrive.
The clients were a couple of girls in their 20's from New York city and it seems as if they were here on a sort of gym club trip... some 150 of them and the club all go on various trips over the course of the year including to here skiing this time! Being intermediates I was trying to work out exactly what they wanted from the session. It might sound an easy thing to do but its not always obvious as sometimes people in their mind have an image of what the session will be about and what might happen, what the runs will be like, what the aims of how they will ski will be etc etc etc. Anyway people also obviously have to describe what they can or can't do on skis, where they might ski (run colour) or not and then as an instructor you need to work out in your mind how the session will go.
So off we went and you are always cautious when you start so as to make sure people are comfortable (when you haven't skied with someone and you only have their description of what they can or cant do to go on). Anyway we started with the big magic carpet and I spotted a few things that would need fixing long before we moved on. The problems with errors in peoples skiing is that you often cant guess how errors will manifest themselves when on more challenging terrain.... in much the same way as sometimes people will have an adverse reaction if a piste becomes icy or narrow or busy or whatever as these are largely psychological things as opposed to technical things so you can never second guess what will happen next ! Anyway as we set off up Madeleine I was a little worried how one of them in particular would react to the extra gradient... as it turned out although lacking in a level of control she handled it pretty well.
So the rest of the lesson im trying to show them terrain, give them some pointers to how to improve (in just one session it is often limited how much you can get done), trying to meet what I think their expectations are etc.... just what do they think we will get done in 3 hours. Do I need to give them more input or less, shall I challenge them more and risk them falling / losing their bottle or whatever else might happen. I guess it can just be a guessing game as it often is!
Anyway I finished the session and I just hope they are happy. I think they now have enough tools to get themselves around the resort for a few days and I tried my best to explain where some of the traps will be that might trip them up are e.g. encouraging them NOT to ski down from the Folie when they go there or that a run like Santons really is not for them no matter what colour it is.... guess plenty of local knowledge needs to play out!
So after that I headed home for lunch as was not booked this afternoon and have managed to get some bits ticked off my to do list this afternoon.
Tomorrow will be a busy day so not sure what time will post - we shall see.
TTFN
P.S. This rockfall on the road outside Moutiers at the weekend... well apparently it will NOT be sorted the issue by this weekend so expect more delays.... however at least the road will be open and it will be a 2 way flow of traffic no matter how slow it will be! Good luck!
Early doors the slopes were lovely and quiet!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
A different pace
I didnt sleep well last night and pre woke (is that a phrase / word?) up too as well which meant im shattered this evening and thats even before taking the days activities into account! Anyway it certainly helps when the sun is shining and shine it did from the get go this morning!
Clare took the kids to the bus and since I was starting over the road at the funi it was a very chilled start to the day! Yay! The kids were on form which certainly help make it an easier start.
Anyway at the bottom of the funi there was various BASI courses starting off so it was carnage getting people sorted and whilst I waited for my guys to arrive it was quite entertaining watching them all sort themselves out.
So my guys arrived and it was essentially a group of experienced skiers from Salt Lake City (used to skiing champagne pow!) who have never been to these parts before looking for a maximum turns / maximum showing the vastness of the off piste, type of day.
After a warm up run on the Fontaine Froide we started with a very nice Super Spatule which was in great condition. Then it was the Cairn and it was pretty busy out there actually I was most surprised but the snow was excellent! The forest was even better than normal too! A little piste ski in order to get to the Tour du Charvet and I did my usual out wide route which never lets me down but in equal measure the steeps were awful but thats pretty normal! For the first time this season I was able to cross over the river but it was way more tracked out than I was expecting over there - oh well!
Lunch was taken at the Lounge and it was nice to have a sit down and a break. I think I probably put too many layers on this morning as I was quite glad to take one off at lunch!
With lunch done it was time to head into the Cognai and we found some nice snow down there and around the corner and I went a new way today which worked out well! Next up it was time to start the trek out towards the fornet and to get in some turns as most of the world was coming back from that end of the resort so it was nice to be going the other way! Haha!
I decided we had enough time to fit in a quick extra which was the Pays Desert and that was my first in there this year. Since it is quite exposed to the sun out there I was a little worried there could be some sun bake to deal with but it was in actual fact excellent and again I was surprised how many fresh lines we could squeeze in bearing in mind its now been a week or so since the last snowfall!
One more trip up the Cascades chair and we headed over towards the Col Pers. Well as usual the Col hike up was not too bad and the entry still remains about as good as it can get! What was even better was that there is still loads of cold dry Winter pow to be had out there. We had a great time on the flats out towards the Grand Torsai and getting out and over that was easy enough! The ski down was actually quite interesting as it is now mostly nicely chopped snow verging on chalk.
So we bussed it back to La Daille as 5 tired but happy campers. What a day.
Ben was at Judo and Olivia got on well with her homework and we welcomed a friend around for a cuppa after skiing and now with the kids in bed ill be following quite soon. Tomorrow im on piste in the morning and I think ill be doing Col Pers in the afternoon again.
TTFN
The view from the Glacier Express was similar to yesterday once again!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
A day out of ski boots
I woke up far too early again today - not sure whats wrong with me - just want a good nights sleep! Doh! Anyway I feel OK on it.
So Ben in particular was hard to get going this morning so it was all a bit of a mad rush. Anyway the sun was shining which makes it all OK!
With the kids were off on the school bus I jumped in the car for my (fun - not) day out down the valley! I had all sorts of considerations from 'what will the traffic be like around Moutiers' to 'how busy will IKEA be' and everything in-between.
First stop was the dechettie as I still had a car boot full of rubbish from when we finally moved back in to our flat here in December! So with that out the way it was off to Moutiers to have the car have its bi-annual French version of a MOT. In France test centres only do that and nothing else but on the flip side the test is much more stringent than im led to believe it is in the UK! As it turned out the road was fine (it wasnt when I was coming the other way as the queue from Bourg side into Moutiers was a few miles long - but more on that below!) and I arrived in good time for the test.
All very French and I was told it would be a set 45 min slot so I headed off to the local shops to get myself a sandwich for lunchtime. When I came back I was a little shocked and annoyed that the car had failed the test. Turns out the brake pads are not as fresh as I hoped for doh.... I can live with that! However they didnt seem to be happy with some of the car seats.... I think (there are various codes given I can look up for more info) it was mainly the fact that the rear set of sets was missing (I dont have them in at the moment).... but then again the previous two times the car has been tested it has never even been mentioned so im a little confused! The third issue stumped me even more... apparently there is an error problem with the airbags.... but there is NO warning light on on the dash - so how can it be faulty surely! GRRRRRR rather p***ed off to be honest with you!
So no sooner was that done and dusted than it was on the road to Grenoble for an IKEA shopping trip!
Ikea was deserted which always makes it less stressful and I didnt have a massive shopping list thankfully. So it was pretty simple going around collecting the things we needed and trying not to buy extra things not on the list but as is always the case that was not entirely adhered too. Anyway all good!
I hit the road and made it back to Val about 1800 which was just enough time to pop to our office to collect some packs for tomorrow! As I said the road was OK back again thankfully but would not want to be in the queue going the other way!
So it was announced this afternoon that the road will FULLY reopen tomorrow and therefore by Saturday the whole area around Moutiers should be back to normal! What that means is 'normal' huge traffic jams but without the extra complication of the tunnel being two ways! So that is great news but as always arrive / leave early to avoid jams totally !
Tomorrow im doing a Bonneval heli day so fingers crossed for good weather! And then Saturday im off to watch Olivia in the Super G in Tignes!
TTFN
Stolen from Radio Val but it was like this up there today for sure!
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
Good to read anout Steve’s life. I’m driving out with 3 kids next Friday and then have a week with them and my wife.
Steve puts me in the mood. Thanks again for another year. Even if I read about the Bonneville heli taxi trip again and think “that could have been me” and then realise it can’t.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Steve Angus, good to see Val is quiet on a Saturday.. its hideous round ours in Austria...so many day trippers. You really have to be selective where you decide to ski
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Steve Angus, Are those beds from the empty Samover hotel or a detox after the recent Danish uni trip?
Hope you and Olivia start to feel better and get over the mid season bugs soon.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
| muppet wrote: |
@Steve Angus, Are those beds from the empty Samover hotel or a detox after the recent Danish uni trip?
Hope you and Olivia start to feel better and get over the mid season bugs soon. |
If they've been used by Danish students it'd be better to burn them - you can't be too careful. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
holidayloverxx - yes its interesting how different resorts and parts of the world have different visitor profiles, times, days etc etc isnt it? Being at the end of the valley means we dont get lots of day trippers from the cities etc... somewhere like Chamonix for example is pretty busy at the weekend. Its well known in parts of the States that weekends are busy too. Saturday is definitely the quietest day of the week in these parts and probably Sunday second quietest but then again we have other vagaries such as 'Frantic Friday' where everyone who has been eyeing up the Face piste will ski it no matter what just to say they have been down it and irrespective if they are ready for it or not! Haha
muppet / Kenzie - just dont know about this beds - intriguing! And yes feel better today thank you.
Pretty nice
I slept so much better last night and for a long time.... so feeling much better today (and so is Olivia - ill let you into a little secret - she had a duvet day today - haha!). I was still up first but it was pretty chilled and Clare slept in so the kids chilled in front of a cartoon. I decided to rustle up some poached eggs using my new frying pan... now dont laugh at me I am NO chef at all im really not. But my small deep frying pan produced some decent poached eggs for Ben and I.... yummy - ill be doing it again like that for sure!
So I headed out to work and with the sun shining it was set to be a nice day (although it was a little cloudy and colder up top for a few hours this morning). Myself, the 2 Daves and Gi were all on the same booking of 2 families and after sorting ourselves out at the meeting point I headed off with the lady I was with. A nice couple of families from Scotland coming to Val for the first time it was a case of some confidence building for her so initially it was the magic carpet before moving onto the Madeleine for a couple. It was a lovely few hours and she was very proficient for the small amount of skiing she had done. We had fun.
We headed down slightly earlier as I needed to show her how to get to L'Etincelle without the walking route from our meeting point so it was a case of showing her the Village chairlift route.
So I headed home for lunch and as I got home Clare headed out for her afternoon lesson - it was literally tag teaming it!
After sorting bit and pieces out Ben went out for a play with one of his friends for a few hours meanwhile Olivia and I watched the recorded Mens Downhill from Saalbach and was very lucky to be able to watch the whole thing which was nice!
So this evening it has been the usual getting the kids sorted ready to head back to school tomorrow morning with bath and hair washing etc and meanwhile I have been savouring the end of the weekend before the start of a new week. The weather for this week will certainly be somewhat up and down.
I forgot to snap a photo today so ill use Radio Val's one instead!
TTFN
P.S. The school holidays you can tell have started given the interesting collective groups on the mountain whether it be french families and their somewhat unique ski clothing and technique 'style' or the arrival of some large groups of kids in ESF lessons - oh yes the school holidays have started!
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
Weather cant make its mind up
Welcome to Monday morning... at least the sun is attempting to rise by the time the alarm goes off! So the first thing that happened when I got the teas made was Olivia appearing crying her eyes out.... poor thing had slept (well actually not at all) really badly and had a temperature, felt awful and was obviously not going to be going to school. So plenty of Doliprane which is French Calpol and water and a hot water bottle and she was off back to bed. Meanwhile Ben was on form and raring to go to school - he was particularly excited as it was school photo day so he proudly did his hair which is quite amusing as he generally has crazy hair most of the time.
So Clare and I quickly planned the day out and what we were going to do about Olivia... well I was only working in the morning so made sure my afternoon was blocked off and Clare was doing a strange 10-2 booking so it meant that Olivia would only be on her own from 0930 until about 1230.
So anyway the weather out there first thing was looking quite nice and I set off for the meeting point and the first thing I noticed was that it was definately school holidays - kids and stressed parents everywhere. The second thing to notice was that it was definately that 'combo' week of French families mixed with thousands of Danish students who basically dont seem to ski - just party and dress up to impress as if it it is a night out (permanently!). You can tell the girls a mile off as you smell their perfume before you see them and they all have little hip flasks too!
At the meeting point my team arrived and for me it is a one off lesson with a trio of fiends in their 30's from Manchester who have been to Val a few times but told me they are quite new to skiing some of the harder runs in the area. We decided that going Bellevarde would be the better option and for the first run or two we were ahead of the masses thankfully.
Anyway we did plenty of drills and had some nice chats but the weather moved in big time (and later on moved out again before moving back in big time again in the afternoon). I tried to take them to Tignes but decided it was just too hectic on some of the pistes so it actually made more sense to head to the quiet slopes of the stade which was as usual in great condition!
So no sooner had I finished the session but I dashed to the pharmacy in town to get some drugs for Olivia and also picked up some nice lunch for us both as I had called her and she was feeling much better.
At home she demolished some soup and quiche and watched some skiing I had recorded as we watched the weather move in before Clare got back from work! Yay.
So the snow is falling quite hard outside so lets see what tomorrow brings shall we but it will be an up and down week thats for sure.
For poor Ben his teacher has just been signed off school for a few weeks ill so he has a replacement teacher but the thing is Ben is quite a sensitive chap that takes time to get to know his teacher therefore he was a little unsettled today but hopefully he'll settle in over the next few weeks.
So got Olivia into a hot bath and an early night after dinner this evening and now settling down as Ben is asleep already!
We just got through the qualification list for the Coupe Argent and Olivia is safely into that. In practice there are 3 junior levels within France at the U12 and then at the U14 levels and that is the Coupe Bronze which is like each area of Savoie (so Val is in the Upper Tarantaise) having races together to decide the winners. So Val, Tignes club des Sports and all the way down to La Plagne. The next level being the Argent is the whole of the Savoie so the county champs if you like and then finally the Coq d'Or is a bit like a national Open champs. Thats the vague structure certainly in the Savoie. So Olivias has qualified as number 1 girl born in 2014 into that a week on Sunday in the Maurienne somewhere. There are 6 girls (2013 and 2014 year of birth) from Val going and it should be the top 100 girls going. We shall see.... she is happy and excited yet nervous at the same time but at least it is her favoured GS discipline.
Could be some pow about tomorrow.
Anyway TTFN
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
Soggy
It didnt rain or snow overnight and at first light it looked quite pleasant up there.
Olivia was back on form so the two of them were out the door and on the school bus in good time. I was starting at 0900 so needed to get ready but Clare was not starting until 1000 so she did most of sorting the kids!
I headed out the door to the meet point and I was back on the booking that I was on Sunday so the same lady! I had hoped she had taken my advice about where to go and ski and where not to go and ski and for the most part she had done that - bar one little mistake by heading over to Fornet and had scared herself heading down to the Signal from the up and over - whoops! Anyway so it meant that today was going to be all about taking her up Bellevarde side for the first time.
They were a few minutes early so we were able to get going a minute or two early and head to the Olympic to make sure we were one of the first on - perfect!
So when we got to the top there was pretty thick cloud but it was about 3500/4000m in altitude and therefore the vis was not too bad although it was quite warm. She decided walking down the steps would be a better course of action so after doing that we headed down the Verte which was in amazing condition! It was wonderful actually. We were still ahead of the masses to get on the Borsat and down the Genepy avoiding the steeps at the top. By now the clouds were moving in slowly but it was OK so we headed to Grand pre and had great laps around there as the weather moved in more and more until it was snowing hard and was flat light.
It was a great morning all in all and she got her confidence and mojo back! Bravo.
I left her at the Maison Loully where she was meeting with the rest of the family for lunch. By now it was wet soggy snow coming down.
I headed home as was not working this afternoon and have generally watched the soggy snow fall although it has cleared up more now thats for sure! Clare messaged me to say she was pretty damp up there poor thing.
So this afternoon I have been doing some jobs and emails etc and also watched the skiing on TV. Ben will have judo tonight so it will just be Olivia at home after school so pretty chilled all in all! Tomorrow I am off piste certainly in the morning and maybe in the afternoon - need to check my notes!
Maybe we will have some fresh snow to play with!
TTFN
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thats a first
The weather looked pretty promising this morning and Clare was able to get Ben to kids club whilst Olivia DIDNT have race training today so was taking herself off to a couple of flèche test races over the day and lunch with a friend!
I headed to the meet point and was due to ski with a young group of American friends from all over the USA (I still cant work out this evening how they all knew each other but they did). They were a nice group in their mid to late 20's.
The plan was a mix of being shown around but with the emphasis of going off piste! They had all their own kit so it was easy enough to get going and we headed up Solaise. I started with a tester as we had perhaps 5cm of fresh snow (10cm in some places) off Cugnai. Starting with the inbounds side it was more of 'dust on crust' than anything else but it was pleasant enough snow which bode well! So we headed back up Cugnai and dropped off the back and we were 2nd in. It really was pretty decent in there but having a boarder in the group I had to think the line carefully and that slowed us down a little. Anyway going down the guts we had a great time and the snow was pretty pleasant until the melt freeze level of about 2400m but even below that it wasnt too bad! They liked it which was the main thing.
After that we headed up and decided that a couloir would be a nice option for them so did Danaides into L'Avancher! Again it was really nice actually so nice all round morning although the guy who had a dodgy knee certainly slowed down as the morning went on so we had to be careful protecting him!
At lunch I headed to the office to get some packs before the afternoon session which was actually my last with my group of seasonnaires before we do a Bonneval heli later in the season!
Only 4 of my seasonnaires made it but they were keen to go and have a fun off piste blast of an afternoon. By now the sun was getting quite intense and it was warming up so it was really a case of north or as close to north as possible! So we started off a with good Super Spatule but again lower down in the forest you hit that melt / freeze level. They thought it was pretty cool though! Back up we went on the Funi and took a dive into the Cairn which like most places was mainly dust on crust but well worth doing as you could certainly get fresh turns in. Even down in the forest it was decent.
To finish the program off I wanted to show them a real couloir so for the second time in the day and as a first I took them down Danaides into L'Avancher which was just as good as in the morning - nice!
So that was that.
Clare was down the valley with Ben at the speech and language and then collecting a massive food shop to see us through the bust next couple of weeks of school holidays!
In Olivias racing practice today she had a pretty good run this morning getting her third fastest co-efficeient time ever so not too bad whereas in the afternoon it was not great as she got Argent which by her standards is not great - oh well it happens!
This evening I have been running around doing jobs left right and centre and need to get a laundry out the machine so will head off now. Tomorrow im working in the morning and then need to head down the valley to get the garage to have a look at our car.
TTFN
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
A fresh canvas
Once again overnight it had teased us with fresh snow but not enough to change things much out there. At breakfast time the snow just about started falling out the sky and we were in for a fairly flat light sort of morning BUT actually for the most part we could see about enough (well certainly in the morning as im not sure what the afternoon will have been like) to enjoy ourselves out there.
However there was certainly some duvet days happening out there as Clares clients called about 0800 to say they couldnt be bothered skiing today and then within a few minutes her pm lot did the same so suddenly she had the day off - lucky her. She would put it to good use by doing a LOT of housework so the house this evening looks nice and clean and tidy.
Meanwhile I had a busy day ahead of me. I headed into town and since the temps were quite high I should have put my rain jacket poncho thing on (my storm jacket) but alas I got away without it thankfully. At the meeting point my lady I have had every other day all week was dead on time and it was toss up which way to head but since they were having lunch Bellevarde way we decided to go that way!
So off we went and the visibility was actually not too bad up there. Most people were still coming up as we set off so we got the lovely clean snow to start the day. I reckon there was another 5cm of fresh snow on top of the lovely soft snow from yesterday so all in all perfect conditions even if the vis was average! We worked on 'dealing with the conditions' today and that involved everything from the lumps and bumps to not being able to see perfectly! She particularly enjoyed the Borsat green piste which with the fresh snow meant it was about the slowest ive ever skied it which was a little frustrating but hey ho.
My lady also discovered that the rest of her party had been stopping each day for a coffee break so today she really wanted to make sure we got one in and ironically we all ended up in the Empreiente Avaline at the same time!
All in all it was really nice morning and with great snow it was wonderful morning!
I left her atop the Bellevarde and she made her way down as I needed to straight line it to get La Daille as soon as possible as I needed down the mountain. So after eating dinner and getting sorted I jumped in the car and went to Bourg.
In typical french fashion I had sent an online enquiry as well as an email when the enquiry had no reply and when nothing came from that I had no choice but to drive to Bourg not knowing what would happen at the garage.... at best someone would actually look at the car and advise when / how etc it would be to repair it and at worst id walk away non the wiser. As it turned out a frustrating visit was over and done in about 1 minute as all they did was get their diary out and suggest a date for when they could look at the car as well as took a photocopy of the engineers report from the failed French car MOT ... all these things could have been done on email very easily - grrrr! The really annoying thing is that what is 'wrong' with our car doesnt seem to be apparent as there is no warning light on the dash etc. Anyway ce la vie!
So with something sorted out and booked in I headed to Super U and picked up a few things that had been missed of the shop yesterday before heading back up the hill.
So the car was put away, Ben got back from school and then Olivia and we have just finished the evening sorting them all out.
Meanwhile the snow has gotten heavier and heaver all day and there are really fat flakes falling so we should have a very decent accumulation by the morning I reckon. Tomorrow I have an interesting day as it doesnt look like I am booked in the morning but instead just in the afternoon. And the afternoon booking is with someone to do with the SnowCamp Charity so that will be interesting.
For the roads this weekend - well good luck it is going to be totally bonkers especially as there could be the odd bit of snow still falling then - hmmmm we shall see.
TTFN
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
|
Full car for the drive down tomorrow and Saturday. Dreading the crowds and traffic but can’t wait to be on a mountain again. It’s been a year…
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
| AndrewBailey wrote: |
| Full car for the drive down tomorrow and Saturday. Dreading the crowds and traffic but can’t wait to be on a mountain again. It’s been a year… |
Cool have a great week. Expect mega traffic tomorrow so try and get into the valley early or late. Good luck
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
Heading to VT tomorrow for a change. Roads show a clear patch at lunchtime (11-13h) which is what we’ll be trying to hit….
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
raino - good luck. Yea that probably means you need to be through Chambery and Albertville by 1030/1100 and through Moutiers not long after that to be sure of it but I still would not be holding my breath! Good luck
SnowCamp
Looking out the window this morning a things were apparent... firstly that there was about 15cm of fresh that had fallen overnight. Secondly it was quite windy from the north but nothing that would stop lifts from opening and thirdly it was still quite cloudy out there. Luckily I was not working this morning but Clare was.
So I took the opportunity to get some jobs done at home and sort a few bits out.
I finally braved the weather outside at about midday and headed to record my weekly snow report over the road before then jumping on the bus into town.
So my lesson this afternoon was an interesting one as it was with our partner charity SnowCamp. If you don't know it is a charity that takes disadvantaged teens and early twenty year olds (it is now nationwide having started just in London) and works them through learning to ski or snowboard all the way through to instructor exams should they so wish. They also work on enriching them as individuals and try and help them into a new way of life and potentially career! So anyway I had a 20 year old (who had quite a heavy cold actually) and a 17 year old who was quite hard to read and standoffish!
Anyway with the weather slightly better we headed up Solaise and boy was it cold up there. The wind from the north was quite powerful actually and it didnt help that the clouds were rolling in and out at exactly the wrong height - i.e. mountain top! So we warmed up with a run on the Glacier which was choppy snow to say the least but the young lads were keen for more challenge so we had a go at the Arcelle which was about the correct level of challenge for them! Although one of them had a spectacular and funny crash where he spun around back wards. Anyway he sat a lap out as I think he was just exhausted from the weeks exertions!
We finally finished after doing some work on moguls by skiing down the Plan M and onto the Rhone Alpes ... it was just mega bumpy and in between one of those 'also' icy days. But it was certainly challenging enough for them the session! It was nice to give them some input into their skiing as one of them in particular seems really keen to try and pursue a career into ski teaching - good luck!
I was pretty chilled when I got home as it was not warm out there today.
This evening I have been pretty lazy to be honest and watched the Mens GS from the World Champs but otherwise not done a lot. Clare starts her multi day Feb HT School hols booking tomorrow and ill be on kid drop off / pick up duty where necessary.
Weather wise it will be a little sunnier tomorrow and be like that for a few days now into the school holidays!
TTFN
The clouds did finally start parting later in the afternoon thankfully
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
Made it up from Geneva in 4h10, compared to the usual 2h45…
Traffic bad Albertville-Moutiers, but not as bad as it could have been, kept rolling along mainly at 20-50 km/h until the ‘reglemente’ traffic lights, then a clear run.
I deserve a beer now!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Steve Angus, Is it just some zip fit laces Clare needs ? If so I may know where to get some 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Steve - you were right on the traffic. Left home 8:40am, passed Geneva Airport 9:00, after some moderate traffic on the Annecy lake road cleared Albertville 11:00 on the dot. Lost an hour due to jams Albertville - Moutiers and made it to VT 13:15. And apparently that was the lunchtime ´window’ in the traffic schedules 
0700 departure latest next week from VT to join Moutiers 0800 (thankfully no Aime bottleneck this direction). A week of blue skies, sun, and skiing before then!
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
Traffic was busy but not terrible. We left Troyes at 7.30 and with two proper stops were in Albertville for 3pm. It was then 2h15m to VdI which wasn’t too bad I thought.
My wife then didn’t get off her bus from GVA in VdI and ended up in Tignes! Another hour or driving after all that was too much.
Also sat next to a Evo2 instructor with a client. She had a broken wrist from a EDF client crashing into her a couple of weeks ago and she lost time in telling me how the EDF instructor helped his client up and then skied off. She wasn’t pleased.
Made me wonder how often ski instructors get injured.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
chocksaway - yes it was a group of Frenchies in their 20's and 30's heading down to tour over (apparently) to the Fond du Four hut and 4 were buried but 2 perished! Sad! Ironically because it happened on the Maurienne side of the Col and therefore technically in Bonnevals 'land' it was the SAF in Courcheval that attended and the PGHM in Modane!
muppet - ohhhhh Clare and I are looking excited now!
raino - hmmmm yes I hate to say it it doesnt surprise me! 0700 departure from VT next week - yea make that time the absolute latest if I were you!
AndrewBailey - doh to your wife! Choice words perhaps! 'How often ski instructors get injured'.... well in my experience a LOT LOT LOT LOT LESS than your average skier on the hill. Im going to jinx it now but in all my decades doing this job ive picked up perhaps one injury I think directly because of skiing. Double jinx it and say that my colleagues - we perhaps get one injury every few years. Im not sure what that says (or doesnt) but like virtually all injuries they are more often than not self inflicted they really are. Right ill go out tomorrow and do myself in now you mark my words have jinxed it!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
