 Poster: A snowHead
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I'm looking for an early season trip (to use up some remaining holiday), so a week's instruction course looks a good idea, as a) I doubt the off-piste will be up to much that early in the season, b) I'll be going by myself, c) it's a while since I did any serious piste technique work on snow. I'm a moderately experienced/competent skier (20 weeks + one summer's gentle race-training on plastic).
The main candidates look like:
a) Warren Smith - Verbier 10-17/Dec - 5 days instruction with their staff
b) SCGB - Val d'Isere 10-17/Dec - 6 days instruction.
I've never done a Warren Smith course, but I've done a few SCGB weeks and found them excellent. It sounds as if the SCGB group is quite a bit bigger ( >50 punters ) than their usual setup with an instructor list of: 'Tchenko', Patrick Speciali, Alain Vaufrey, Elizabeth Charbert, Leon Empereur Remy Schmitt and Andreas Bjorklund, and mountain guides Pietro Barigazzi and Jean-Marc Pic.
Despite the SCGB reputation for being on the pricey side, this one is pretty keenly priced, and they will actually work out at least £100 cheaper than the Warren Smith course (but I'm trying not to think of what the bar-bill will come to  ).
Any thoughts/recommendations? Relative snow prospects that early in the season? Any experiences with the instructors/guides? Should I be considering alternatives?
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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 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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Snoworks definitely worth a try. Run by Phil Smith with his wife Emma Carrick Anderson and they are both extremely experienced and knowledgeable and a joy to ski with. i think courses will be running from Tignes so you are sure to get some good skiing in on the glacier at that time of year even if other bits are a bit ropey and trust me you don't need loads of terrain and miles to ski to learn something with them. Might be a bit more pricey than some of the others but definitely in the "you get what you pay for bracket". www.snoworks.co.uk
Other people to look at in the area would be the development centre and ICE (International Centre of Excellence I think) in Val D'Isere.
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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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I did a Snoworks race training course last Autumn at Tignes, and enjoyed it so much I've booked again for the last week of November. I did a review of last year's course here http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=3386
I know ise did an ICE course at the same time as me last November, and rated it highly.
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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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GrahamN, I have skiied a little with Andreas Bjorklund, Pietro Barigazzi and Jean-Marc Pic. They are part of the team at www.alpineexperience.com . They are all excellent skiiers and teachers with good English. During the season they teach and guide off-piste almost every day. Pietro and Jean-Marc also like leading multi-day tours to all sorts of interesting skiing places. Andreas is one of the leading presenters for www.henrysavalanchetalk.com . I cannot comment on the other people you named.
www.alpineexperience.com includes a page with more details of each of their guides.
Dennis Summerbell wrote about the Guides in Val d'Isere, including Pietro and Jean-Marc, see http://www.dimple1.demon.co.uk/skiing/skiingindex.html
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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GrahamN, I've been looking at the SCGB course as well. Would be a debut for me on SCGB hol, but the snowcraft course looks interesting. Price appears to include flights whish does make it good value. As you say bar bill aside...
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I should also say that Andreas, Pietro and Jean-Marc have been skiing and teaching in Val d'Isere for many years and so know the good places to go when the conditions are poor. They are also in radio contact with the rest of the Alpine Experience team and frequently exchange notes on where on the mountains is good or not-so-good.
I have skiied the middle week of December in Val d'Isere several times. Each time the Alpine Experience guides have found interesting off-piste for us. Not always deep powder, but who wants orgasmic powder every day?
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| Quote: |
Not always deep powder, but who wants orgasmic powder every day?
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Me ? 
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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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| Quote: |
who wants orgasmic powder every day?
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Well it is quite knackering 5 days on the trot...
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Thanks guys - looks like I'm spoilt for choice. Snowworks seem to have an all-terrain course that week(-ish) in Val D again rather than Tignes (where they have their Nov courses), so they must be fairly confident of snow. Looks like they'll cost a fraction more than the SCGB course, but a bit less than the Warren Smith. I must say I'm more tempted by Val D than Verbier - I've only spent a few hours in Verbier (passing through on the Haute Route, in not particularly flattering conditions), but from what I saw I much preferred Val D - and those testimonials to Snowworks do make it very tempting.
Martin Nicholas, SCGB trips are generally a pretty good balance of fun and work. The ones I've been on so far have all been geared towards the off-piste and been much smaller (<20). Actually I think the one I'm looking at (Premier Party) may be even bigger than I posted above - possibly up to 90...so I'm a little concerned whether groups may get a bit big there, and the Snowworks course may have a bit more focus. It's still tempting though as I'm now a solid purple grade (on- and off-piste) and I'd like to have a shot at getting a shade of gold into my grading - and a group that size should give plenty of opportunity for making up well-matched skiing groups. I suspect there will be some serious partying on that trip. The Mountaincraft one looks good (and I would expect that to be of a much more normal size), but I'm maybe going to save that up for next year - I have picked up a fair bit of that on other off-piste courses I've done, but I'm not really confident of my experience yet to head much off-piste without a guide (even in Chamonix, the area I know best), and I really want to hit the skiing technique this time.
ski, orgasmic powder's good, but there's a curious pleasure in making a good job of crappy crud too  , and getting some good wind in the hair also has its attractions too on occasions when there's no powder around. (And don't worry...the race training will continue too)
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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GrahamN, very hard to tell with respect to snow in Val d'Isère that week. Coincides roughly with the WC Criterium, and my memories of that last year were of pretty 'average' conditions, to say the least, off piste!
This photo taken December 9th 2005
I've heard very good things about Snoworks too. Emma CA as waitingforwinter says is a fun person - I suppose she'll be back on skis by now, she was looking rather pregnant last time I saw her mid-season in Flaine!
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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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Emma is skiing again - she said she took some race training over the summer now baby boy has been born. What a great skiing pedigree he is going to have!!!
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GrahamN, Can highly recommend the Warren Smith courses - I've done two. Verbier's a great place & Warren, Jamie & Phil are great guys & superb instructors.
I suggest that you do one (or more) of Warren's one day sessions at the MK Xscape in the autumn as you can then meet the guy & get a flavour of things to come.
Are you going to the Pre-Season Bash? If so I can have a chat with you then.
Have just got in from the pub & it's taken 5 mins to type this so do a search on my posts for previous reports.
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