Peak Retreats, the specialist for winter holidays in pretty, unspoilt, traditional villages in the French Alps, has won the prestigious Best Ski Operator 2009 in the annual Guardian and Observer Travel Awards.
It won the prize from many much more high profile UK tour operators, registering a satisfaction rating of 97.9% in a poll of nearly 20,000 readers in what was the 23rd year of the UK’s longest running independent travel awards.
The Guardian/Observer said: "Some of this year’s victors are long-standing favourites, others are newcomers, proof that it is possible to prosper in the hardest of times. Peak Retreats, for example, has been voted the number one ski company by pioneering a different type of product to its competitors. "
“While many ski companies seem happy to plug away at the same old resorts, Peal Retreats is ploughing its own furrow. Looking beyond the Meribels and Val d'Isères, it takes guests to smaller, more authentic French villages, several not featured by other British tour operators. And many of these hidden gems have lifts connecting to far larger resorts, giving the best of both worlds. Setting up in new destinations can be an expensive gamble, so we’re delighted to see if it is paying off for this dynamic company."
Xavier Schouller, who sold his own home to set up Peak Retreats with his partner Nathalie Soma in Portsmouth in 2002, said: “It’s a huge honour for a small, niche operator to be recognised in this way and we feel incredible proud.
Since then the Portsmouth-based company has helped British skiers ‘discover’ the real France and resorts generally ignored by the big name operators such as Samoëns, Notre-Dame de Bellecombe, Sainte Foy, Morillon and Termignon. These and the other 35 resorts it is featuring for winter 2010 offer huge advantages over more famous ‘commercialised’ resorts being not just cheaper and more pleasant to stay in, but with the added benefit of having queue-free, high speed cable car links to the major ski areas making them ideal back-door resorts.
Another key to success has been in providing the new generation of more spacious and comfortable self catering accommodation, with the majority of apartment residences having indoor pools and leisure facilities.
“When we started some may have seen it as a gamble, but it’s clearly paid off and our clients thank us for offering them an alternative to the big name mass tourism resorts to be found in France,” said Mr Schouller. “With a dedicated team we make it our priority to ensure our clients get the personal service they deserve which leads to lots of repeat business. They also have the confidence in their holidays being fully ABTA bonded to offer complete financial protection.”
The 2009-10 skiing season began in Kitzbühel on 24 October - earlier than ever before. The low temperatures combined with ultra-modern snow-making facilities and almost a metre of new snow mean that skiing is already possible in Kitzbühel ,two months before Christmas.
It's the second year in a row the 80 year old ski area has broken it's earliest-opening record, opening two months earlier than usual.
The heavy snow fills skiers with enthusiasm and forms a good basis for this season. Although the geographical location of the Kitzbüheler Alpen means that snowfall is very heavy here every winter, skiing in October is nevertheless a first in the 80-year history of the Kitzbühel cable cars.
From 24 October, Kitzbühel ski resort will be open at weekends and from 28 November, it will be open daily. All 7 of the ski resorts in the Kitzbüheler Alpen have received plenty of fresh snowfall already and are ideally equipped for the coming winter.
Kitzbuhel is often referred to as a ski area likely to suffer from global warming but it has produced figures showing snowfall averages have not declined and it keeps opening earlier each winter season.
Temperatures are currently in double-figures below zero at most of Europe’s glacier areas and the snow has stopped for now, to reveal clear skies, although more snow is expected at the weekend.
The big falls come in the same week of the year as those in 2008 when the huge dumps that set up winter 08-09 as one of the best in recent years began in the second week of October.
Again it’s Tux in Austria that is the first to report big snowfalls too, with a metre (40 inches) falling since the start of the week.
In Kaprun, the fresh snow has arrived in perfect time for a series of freestyle workshops that the Kitzsteinhorn glacier is planning to run from this Saturday onwards. It reports up to 76cm (30 inches) of new snow taking base depths on the glacier up to 1.5m (five feet).
Also in Austria, which continues to have the most choice of seven glacier ski areas open, the Stubai glacier has reported 135cm (14 inches) of new snow taking snow depths to a metre and the Molltal glacier was another to generate a Skiinfo.co.uk powder alarm with a 40cm (16 inch fall). There’s also new snow at Pitztal, on the Dachstein and at Solden where the World cup kicks off next weekend.
Snow has also been falling on the open glacier ski areas of France, Italy and Switzerland. Tignes received a much needed 5cm (two inch) top up on its Grand Motte glacier and the snow was also good news for Cervinia in Italy which now joins Val Senales and Passo Stelvio as a third skiing choice in the country, although only opening at weekends until November when it resumes full time operations.
In Switzerland Saas Fee and Zermatt remain the two choices with 90 – 150cm (3-5 feet) bases. Plans for Engelberg and the Diavolezza glacier near St Moritz appear to be on hold until more snow falls. Glacier 3000 at Diablerets has opened today for cross country skiing following fresh snow there.
In Scandinavia Ruka in Finland has opened for winter 09-10 and announced that it intends to stay open until at least June 10th, 2010. Two runs with two lifts are currently fully open with another five runs with snowmaking nearing completion of cover,
“Only the European glaciers beat Ruka in the race of opening for winter season during autumn. Ruka has never been forced to shut down prematurely due to lack of snow, so we can proudly call ourselves the most certain choice for skiing in Europe!” said a resort statement. “The secret to this accomplishment lies in the climate, as well as in the high-quality snowmaking machinery - not to forget the snow-how! The 70 snowguns in Ruka produce 1,250 square metres of snow in an hour at full capacity. In good conditions this means the first slope, Saarua number 12, can be opened after a bit over 24 hours of snowmaking beginning.”
Across The Atlantic in the US Arapahoe Basin has joined its neighbour Loveland in Colorado is opening limited terrain. Donner Summit in California has also opened. On the east Cost Killington in Vermont is reported to have begun snowmaking.
North of the border Mount Washington in British Columbia was among those reporting fresh snow, with 5cm (to inches) overnight tonight. The first Canadian resort to open is expected to be Mount Norquay at Banff at the end of the month.
Courtesy of skiinfo.com
Monday 12th October
Private Funicular Opens For Luxury Swiss Ski Hotel
Photo courtesy of: www.tschuggen.ch/en/
A remarkable new lift for the exclusive use of those fortunate enough to be staying in the Tschuggen Grand Hotel in Arosa, enters full time service this winter.
The Tschuggen Express, the futuristic mountain railway belonging to the hotel, is about to begin its first full winter season allowing guests to be up on the slopes in just 2½ minutes – unique in the Alps.
The new lift successfully completed its final winter test begun in February 2009, and in the summer, it brought hiking guests to the summit. And now the management and staff of the five-star establishment are keenly anticipating the official start to the first full winter season on November 27th for the hotel’s own rail taxi.
At the touch of a button, the two cabins of the Tschuggen Express take 12 hotel guests directly to the skiing area each trip. While guests enjoy the view over the snow-clad mountain peaks from the comfort of their leather seats, the train gains 150 metres in altitude over a stretch of 528 metres of track. The maximum incline is 52 per cent. The Tschuggen Express travels at a speed of four metres per second, allowing the journey to be completed in less than two and a half minutes
Sunday 11th October 2009
Val Thorens Invests In New Beginners Area
Val Thorens, the highest resort in the world’s largest ski area, France’s 3 Valleys, has invested more than 1.5 million euros to create a new 40 hectares area for beginners, equipped with no less than four new roof-covered magic carpets.
The new area has been designed not only to provide first-class facilities for first timers, but also improved access to the Cascades chairlift, getting progressing beginner skiers on to more green and blue slopes.
The two twin magic carpets that have been installed and named “Castor & Pollux” represent a triple innovation say Val Thorens.
In both cases a single roof structure covers both magic carpets for more comfort. The carpets are also the fastest so far installed in France, meaning more snow time, and travelling at up to 1.2 metres per second, increasing capacity to 3,000 people per hour.
The carpet lifts also run in two directions, providing a ride down when needed, as well as up over the 240m length.
There are two successive magic carpets, Musaraigne (the shrew) and Campagnols (the vole) which are more than 200 m long in the heart of the “grenouillère de Péclet” area.
To discover a larger area at your own pace, a special pass for beginners is available to access an area including nine ski lifts serving the easiest slopes at a reduced price of 50% off the full daily pass rate.
Thursday 8th October
This weeks ski news from skiinfo.com
Fresh Snow Across The Northern Hemisphere, Season Opens In North America
Continents With Resorts Open For Skiing: 4
Countries With Resorts Open For Skiing: 7
Ski Areas Open (Approximately): 20
* Colorado ski area opens for winter.
* More Fresh snow in Europe.
* Snow in Scotland.
* Cervinia opening this weekend.
www.Skiinfo.co.uk reports that Colorado’s Loveland ski area is claiming bragging rights as the first ski resort to open in North America for the 2009-1 season, yesterday, Wednesday, October 7th. This is the earliest opening day at Loveland Ski Area in 40 years.
Loveland started making snow on September 21, 2009.
"We took advantage of the cold temperatures and got an early start making snow this year. Those extra days paid off and we are opening a week earlier than last season," said Eric Johnstone, Snowmaking and Trail Maintenance Manager. "Now we can move some equipment to other trails and try to open more terrain as quickly as possible."
"We are proud of our snowmaking crew and extremely excited to offer the first skiing and snowboarding in Colorado and North America," said Rob Goodell, Director of Business Operations. "Skiers and riders have been waiting all summer for this day and we are anxious to fire up the lifts. We are opening a week earlier than last year but the coverage is great! We will open with an 18" base and tree to tree coverage on our opening day run."
For the first turns of the season, skiers and snowboarders will have access to a top to bottom run consisting of 1,000 vertical feet via Chair 1. The trails Catwalk, Mambo and Homerun make up this opening day run which is over a mile in length.
Elsewhere other resorts across North America and Europe have reported fresh snow falling, building anticipation for the coming winter. Loveland’s neighbour Copper Mountain has begun snowmaking and the preliminary stages of its new superpipe are being laid in place ahead of their scheduled November 6th opening.
Another Colorado resort, Silverton Mountain, sent pictures of the great snow cover there already, with staff skiing the first runs of the season.
North of the border new snow has been reported at Banff and Whistler.
In Europe there is little change from last week in terms of glacier ski areas open, although reports of snow falling across mountains in the north of the continent, including Scotland, has put a smile on many skiers and boarders faces.
Scandinavia is seeing the most fresh snow at the moment with Kvitfjell in Norway reporting 21cm (8 inches) of new snow in the past week, 7cm (three inches) of that in the past 24 hours, but it is not yet open.
However the glaciers still have rather a thin covering of fresh snow in most cases following the long warm summer, with only the Swiss glaciers reporting depths above 60cm (two feet), in most other cases coverage is 15-30cm (6-12 inches).
In France the only open ski area at present is the Grand Motte glacier at Tignes. In Italy Cervinia is due to join already-open-since-summer Val Senales and Passo Stelvio when it re-opens for weekends through October on Saturday, before returning to fulltime operations on November 1st.
In Switzerland Saas Fee, which is currently offering high-value ski test packages on its glacier, and Zermatt are open, soon to be joined by Glacier 3000 above Gstaad/Les Diablerets, glacier skiing near St Moritz and Engelberg’s Titlis glacier.
Austria continues to offer the most open glacier ski areas with Stubai, Tux, Molltal, Kaprun and Pitztal all open for snow sports
Wednesday 7th October
Intrawest Introduces Manadatory Helmets For Children And Ski School
Intrawest, operators of nine North American ski areas including Whistler, Panorama, Steamboat, Winter Park and Tremblant, are introducing new requirements for children and teenagers and anyone taking ski school lessons to wear helmets on the slopes. The group will also require staff to wear helmets on the slopes in some circumstances.
The group’s decision comes after the high profile accidental death of actress Natasha Richardson after she fell and suffered apparently very superficial injuries during a ski school lesson at Tremblant last winter, only to die of a resulting blood clot to the brain.
The new rules “underscore Intrawest's commitment to guest safety,” the company said in a statement issued Thursday.
The requirement for people taking lessons to wear helmets is regardless of age. Intrawest said it will require employees to wear helmets while on duty in any freestyle terrain parks beginning in the 2010-2011 season although some resorts are implementing the rule for the coming season.
It currently appears that the helmet-requirements will not be enforced on ski school staff working outside the parks, unlike for staff at another large US resort group Vail, which has said it will require all on-mountain skiing or boarding staff to wear helmets.
In ski and board school Intrawest previously recommended all children wore helmets but there was an opt-out waiver for parents, this will no longer being available for children and teens up to age 17 inclusive, however it is understood adults will be able to sign an opt-out waiver to not wear a helmet should they wish.
Intrawest has also announced that rental packages will now include helmets and that it is embarking on a programme of updating its brochures, website and other marketing material to show on-snow activity at its resorts being undertaken by helmet-wearing skiers and boarders.
The company also officially recommends that all skiers and snowboarders at its resorts use ski helmets
Wednesday 30th September 2009
Latest ski news from around the world
Fresh Snow On Four Continents
photo courtesy of Hemsedal, Norway
- Fresh snow in Europe.
- Fresh snow in New Zealand as season winds down.
- Fresh snow in Australia leads some resorts to extend season.
- Fresh snow for Whistler as Olympic season draws near.
- Fresh snow in Chile and Argentina
www.Skiinfo.co.uk reports that snow has been falling on almost every continent on earth over the past week.
In France the big news was the re-opening of the Grand Motte glacier at Tignes on Saturday, which is now due to stay open through to mid-May next year.
There’s currently nearly 500m of skiable vertical open between 3000 and 3456m high with the slopes open open from 8.30am to 5.30pm and reached in 7 minutes by the resort’s underground funicular. A one day adult pass is €32, children from 5 to 13 years old pay €26. There’s 20cm (eight inches) of snow on the glacier.
In Switzerland it’s still a choice between Saas Fee and neighbouring Zermatt’s glacier slopes, with Engelberg, Diablerets and st Moritz glaciers due to open in the next few weeks.
Italy still has skiing at Passo Stelvio and Val Senales with Cervinia due to re-open for weekends from 10th October and full time from 1st November.
Austria continues to have the biggest choice of glacier ski areas open anywhere. With 6 centres open. The choice includes the Hintertux glacier (15km/9 miles of runs, 55cm/2 feet of snow, 9 lifts); the Stubai glacier near Innsbruck (5 lifts, 2 slopes, 10cm/4 inches of snow); Pitztal (3 lifts operating); the Kitzsteinhorn Glacier above Ksapruin has 26cm (10 inches) of snow and 7 lifts operating ; the Miolltal glacier with 6km (4 miles) of runs to enjoy, and Solden where the "Schwarze Schneid" gondola and "Karleskogl" t-bar lift are in daily operation from 9am 1pm and the skiable terrain ending in the middle. As there are only two ski lifts in operation with three ru ns (total length 3km) and 6cm (3 inches) of snow, discounted ski passes are available.
The Kaunertal glacier currently has 7cm (3 inches) of snow and reports it will open as soon as there’s enough new snow and/or cold weather for snow making and the Dachstein glacier is currently closed.
Elsewhere in Europe, Are in Sweden and Hemsedal in Norway have both reported fresh snowfalls. Norway’s Bjorli was one of the best reporting 20cm (eight inches) of new snow yesterday.
Across the Atlantic it has been skiing in North America too, although unfortunately Timeberline ski area on Mt Hood in Oregon has been unable to re-open as planned last weekend due to a lack of snow.
Fresh snow was reported to be falling on the resort’s Palmer snowfield yesterday (September 29th) but not enough yet to re-open. “Pray for more snow,” the area urges its fans.
With the ‘100 days to go’ mark to the Vancouver Olympics imminent however, excitement at Whistler has raised yet another notch with new snow on the mountains there.
“Overnight Whistler Blackcomb received a dusting of the white stuff and there is more snow on the way with sub zero temperatures in the alpine over the next few days.” Ryan Proctor told www.skiinfo.co.uk, noting snowfall predictions of up to 27cm (11 inches) by Saturday.
In South America there’s been fresh snow in Chile. Portillo has recorded 3cm (an inch) more in the past few days and still has over 1.8m (6 feet) lying on upper slopes but is scheduled to close at the weekend. There were bigger falls for the 3 Valley resorts nearer to capital Santiagio.
There was also new snow at most of the major Argentinian ski areas, with Las Lenas still claiming the greatest snow deopths of 2.3m (nearly 8 feet) o n upper slopes.
In Australia up to 58cm (nearly 2 feet) of new snow falling on the Victorian Alps was a bit galling for resorts that were already closing, but others decided to extend the season for another week.
Mt Buller and Falls Creek resorts decided to extending their seasons due to the new snow but Hotham decided to close as scheduled last weekend, despite receiving 51cm (21 inches) of new snow over three days.
Hotham reports it had a total of 317cm (10.5 feet) of snow between 6 June and 27 September, staged 60 events including international ski races, the Hotham Snowsports School taught more than 50,000 people in lessons.
Mt Buller currently has a snow depth of 58cm with four lifts open. Bourke St and Baldy runs are currently recommended for beginners, Little Buller Spur and Wombat for the intermediates and the Wombat bowl is better than it has ever been this season for bumps and tree lined runs. Lift tickets are half price.
In New South Wales, Australia’s biggest resort, Perisher, also plans to close this weekend after receiving a further 36cm (13 inches) of snow since last Saturday, 26th September.
Perisher had a total of 321cm (10.6 feet) of snow fall between 6 June and 28 September.
Perisher’s three-year $19 million energy efficient snowmaking expansion culminated in 2009 enabling the iconic Towers Run on Mt Perisher to open in the first week of the season on a great top to bottom cover.
Fresh Snow In New Zealand As Season Winds Down
There’s been fresh snow In New Zealand As the season has begun to wind down there.
There’s currently good end-of-season conditions following snow top-ups this week, with spring skiing and riding conditions.
Of the three areras operated by NZSki Ltd, Coronet Peak ski area is due to close this Sunday on October 4, with The Remarkables following a week later on October 11, and Mt Hutt on October 18.
James Coddington, NZSki Ltd CEO, said it has been a fantastic season.
“We started with the best openings in over a decade and since then a phenomenal number of people have visited our slopes. Mt Hutt opened two weeks early and both Coronet Peak and The Remarkables started the season with record snowfalls. It’s been a massive season and has shown us that recession means nothing to skiers and snowboarders when conditions are prime,” he said.
“We’ve seen some of the world’s top skiers and riders passing through our ski areas, not only for the 100% Pure NZ Winter Games but also for international race training as well as various events held at our ski areas. “The world’s top competitors are happy to journey to our mountains for their off-season training. They know the facilities are world-class and they can rely on our experienced and willing Race & Events departments to supply what they need.”
The ski season is expected to continue for longer still at Mt Ruapehu where the mountain’s twin ski areas of Whakapapa and Turoa received another 10cm (four inches) of new snow in the past 24 hours, topping up bases of 1.5 – 2.3m (5-7.5 feet) respectively.
“Monday October 26th is Labour Day in NZ and is the last day of the season for Whakapapa.” the resort’s Mike Smith told www.skiinfo.co.uk. “However we are looking at keeping Turoa open into “Snovember” again for another 2 – 3 weeks. We can fly (via chopper) a section of our Sun Kid carpet lift up a bit higher to keep some beginner facilities operating as well.”
Over 150 (around a third male) competitors took part in yesterdays Rip Curl and K2 Bikini Downhill held simultaneously at Whakapapa and Turoa at the weekend. This is the fourth year the event has been run and the first time at both Ski Areas. All proceeds from event entry fees and spectator donations go to the Breast Cancer Foundation and just on $3000 was raised.
Whakapapa definitely had the better conditions with blue skies and warm spring temperatures while a cool southerly and passing clouds meant Turoa competitors had to trust to the thermal insulatory properties of their swimwear.
Friday 25th September 2009
This weeks ski news from around the world
French 2009-10 Season Kicks Off In Tignes This Weekend
photo courtesy Le Grande Motte - Tignes
Fresh Snow In North America As Snowmaking Begins in Colorado
Continents With Resorts Open For Skiing: 4 Countries With Resorts Open For
Skiing: 9 Ski Areas Open (Approximately): 60
* North America Opens For 2009-10 Ski Season.
* French 2009-10 Season Kicks Off In Tignes This Weekend
* Australian resorts begin closing for winter 2009.
* More Austrian Glacier Ski Areas Open or Re-Open for snow sports . www.Skiinfo.co.uk reports that the number of countries open for snow sports
will grow by two this weekend when Tignes in France and Timberline in the US
are due to re-open for winter 2009-10 just as autumn begins. There's been
fresh snow on both sides of the Atlantic this week to further build
anticipation amongst the millions of skiers and boarders eagerly awaiting
the start of winter 2009-10 In North America cold temperatures and natural
snowfall have arrived earlier than expected in Colorado, USA allowing
Loveland Ski Area, one of the world's highest altitude resorts, to
officially kick-off snowmaking for the 2009-2010 ski season.
"Our Trail Maintenance department has been busy preparing the hill, and have
started beautifully with all the necessary conditions to start blowing snow.
The weather forecast for the next few days looks very favorable for
snowmaking," said Eric Johnstone, Loveland's Snowmaking and Trail
Maintenance Manager.
Loveland Ski Area has started making snow on the Catwalk, Mambo, and Homerun
for Opening Day 2009. These trails form a top-to-bottom run of 1,000
vertical feet (330m).
"Everyone at Loveland is just very excited to start the new ski season. The
temperatures look good right now, the equipment is in place, and the crew is
fired-up to make snow. We got together this morning and decided that today
was the day." said Bob Magrino, Director of Mountain Operations.
Loveland usually opens in the first half of October, but other resorts in
the state which won't open until closer to Thanksgiving in late November
have also reported fresh snow for the start of autumn.
At Steamboat Ski Area the first snow of the season was reported just below
the top of Christie Peak at about 8,000 feet with between a trace to half an
inch as you moved up from the top of the gondola up to the summit of Mt.
Werner. The Steamboat Ski Area opens for the 2009/10 season in two months on
November 25, 2009.
North America's only 'near-year-round' snowfield is scheduled to re-open at
Timberline, Oregon this weekend after a few week's annual maintenance
closure, although some sources say that this may not happen as temperatures
have been too warm. The area's website currently reports lifts will re-open
on Friday (September 25) however.
Excitement is also mounting in the Alps as half a dozen glacier ski areas
prepare to open for the winter 2008-9 in the first weeks of October in
Austria, France, Italy and Switzerland. Cervinia, Engelberg and Tignes are
all on the list of areas expected to join the resorts that have already
opened, such as Pitztal in Austria, or have been open all summer like Sass
Free and Zermatt in Switzerland, Passo Stelvio and Val Senales in Italy and
Hintertux in Austria.
Austria once again has the greatest choice of snow slopes, now back up to
five for the first time since the spring with the Stubai glacier opening a
month earlier than originally planned, Solden's glacier opening two weeks
later than planned and the Kitzsteinhorn glacier above Kaprun, which had
closed due to lack of snow on the glacier in August, reopening. They join
Tux and the recently re-opened Pitztal glaciers. The Dachstein glacier is
currently reported to be closed although it notes therte's 20cm (8 inches)
of snow on the pistes.
Solden has only 3.1km (2miles) of piste open and three glacier lifts, with
quite a thin covering of snow on the glacier pistes, but fresh snow has
fallen giving a few centimetres of powder on top, so no one lucky enough to
be there is complaining. The lifts are open from 9am to 1pm and reached by
a bus service from the village.
Elsewhere in Europe Tignes in France will re-open this Saturday, September
26th for its long season through to next May, 2010. Saas Fee and Zermatt
are both still open with around 90cm (three feet) of snow each. In Italy
the choice is between Passo Stelvio and Val Senales, due to be joined
shortly by Cervinia, opening weekends, through most of October before full
opening in November.
The 2009 ski season in the southern hemisphere is beginning to wind down, in
Australia at least, where most of the country's still-open major resorts
will run their lifts for snow operations for the last time this season on
Sunday, September 27th.
At Mt Hotham the Road Runner, Village, Summit Quad, Summit Trainer and the
Big D lifts are all still turning and tickets will be half price for the
final few days of the season this weekend.
In New Zealand most ski areas are open for some weeks yet and most that are
still open are reporting healthy base depths. Whakapapa for example has
just over 1.5m (five feet) lying, at neighbouring Turoa it's still nearly
2.4m (eight feet) meaning a snowy October looks likely.
Construction has started and containers are in place to make way for the
Speight's Summit Methven Big Air this Saturday, with snow due to arrive from
Mt Hutt today (Thursday 24 Sept).
Fresh powder falling overnight at Mt Hutt has been a welcome gift for skiers
and riders but has meant plans for bringing snow to Methven have changed and
with more snow expected tomorrow, the pace will be stepped up to bring snow
in today.
Karyn Heald, Event Organiser told www.inthesnow.co.uk that excitement is
building in town as construction gets underway.
"The containers are in place, scaffolding is up, the dirt is in for the FMX,
and all hands are on deck," she said. "Everything is looking good and Friday
will be an exciting day when the snow is loaded onto the ramp and shaping
begins with snow from Mt Hutt."
The 17-metre high Big Air kicker will showcase a field of top athletes
alongside an FMX spectacular, live music and a whole host of entertainment
to make this one of the most epic days of the season.
It's a more mixed picture for snow depths in South America with
accuimulations ranging from 'not much' to 'still quite adequate' and typical
Spring snow conditions the norm with better skiing on upper slopes virtually
everywhere. Las Lenas in Argentina repoorts some of the deepesat snow on
the continent ranging from 90cm, (three feet) on lower slopes to 3.2m
(nearly 11 feet) lying on summit slopes.
In Chile, Portillo hasn't added much to the eight metre (26 feet)
tally-to-date for seasonal snowfall it passed some weeks ago now, reporting
only a centimetre (half inch) of new snow in the past week. However it still
has a healthy base from top (210cm/7 feet) to bottom (137cm/4.5 feet) of the
mountain.
Wednesday 23rd September 2009
Swiss Extravaganza
On Wednessday 30 October and Thursday 1 November, Switzerland Tourism, Swiss International Air Lines and their partners will host the "Swiss Extravaganza" at Broadgate Circle.
During the two-day event, visitors can sample delicious Swiss specialities and receive answers to all their winter snow sport queries. Switzerland Tourism will help visitors choose the right ski resort, while Warren Smith and his Ski Academy Team will have the answer on all your ski related questions, whether it's confidence building, ski carving or ski techniques. SWISS, the skier's airline, offers 29 daily direct flights from the UK to Switzerland starting from £77 rtn and has the experience and know-how of transporting your winter equipment safely. As the skier's airline of choice, SWISS will transport your first set of ski/snowboard equipment and boots free of charge (in addition to the standard luggage allowance).
Join the fun at Broadgate Circle, EC2, on 30 October and 1 November from 12pm.
source: www.swiss.com
Monday21st September 2009
Luxury Chalet Company Launched
A new luxury chalet company has been launched by the former Financial Director of bankrupt luxury chalet company, Descent International.
Consensio Holidays will have a new co-operative business philosophy which the operators believe will re-shape the future of chalet companies. Whilst historically chalet operators have retained chalets on a long-term fixed rental basis and paid in advance, thus exposing themselves to financial risk, Consenio Holidays works with the chalet owner directly and operates on a profit-sharing basis.
This obviously offers a far lower risk to both chalet operator and owner alike, an appealing factor in this recession-weary climate, that means neither party will be exposed to the scale of loss experienced by the likes of the deceased Descent. The added advantage for owners is that they have the flexibility and absolute right to use the chalet how and when they wish, rather than being restricted to set owner weeks at the behest of the operator.
France-based Ceri Tinley one of the founders of Consensio Holidays (who created the business model) and former Financial Director of Descent International said, “Our business plan has come about because of the down turn on the market and the forced change of relationship with chalet owners. Many chalet owners are tired of operators dictating terms as to how and when they can stay in their multi-million pound assets. This never felt fair to me. With our model, our owners can enjoy the 5 star service Consensio offers and share some of the responsibility for our company’s success.”
Back in 1932, Erna Low herself worked directly with chalet owners, rather than buying the seasonal rights to a chalet, thereby eliminating any financial risk. Fittingly Joanna Yellowlees-Bound, MD of the company Erna Low founded, has recognised the refreshing simplicity of this business model and has personally invested in Consensio.
The chalets already featured in Consensio’s portfolio are Ski Lodge Boreale, Ski Lodge Aurore, Chalet Les Brames and Chopine in Meribel; Hermine in Courchevel and Montana and Elephant Blanc in Val d’Isere.
Each chalet will be fully-staffed and well-stocked with the much-loved Perrier-Jouet champagne. In addition, Consensio is currently in discussions with Jo Malone to ensure that the nightly soak-in-the-tub remains a deeply enjoyable experience.
source: snow24.com
Wednesday 16th September
Additional flights to Geneva announced by Swiss International
This winter Swiss International Airlines have introduced an additional Saturday and Sunday flight from Manchester and 2 additional Saturday flights from London Heathrow to Geneva ideally located for the famous skiing resorts of Verbier, Zermatt, Crans Montana, Saas Fee as well as the French & Italian Alps.
SWISS offers up to 29 daily flights from the UK & Ireland (London City, London Heathrow, Manchester, Birmingham and Dublin) to Geneva, Zurich and Basel - 3 ideal gateways to your ski resort.
From the UK:
Geneva from £76 rtn
Zurich from £106 rtn
Basel from £75 rtnsource:/www.swiss.com/
Friday 11th September 2009
Mountain Riders’ Clean 30 Tonnes Of Waste From 55 Resorts In France And UK
The Mountain Riders environmental group has issued a report on its annual spring cleaning activities across French and now British ski areas and note that 3,500 volunteers turned out to clean up the slopes of 55 participating ski resorts collecting in total 30 tonnes of waste from the ski slopes, 56% of it recyclable, 57% of it left by tourists.
“Once again, volunteers responded to our annual call to keep our mountains clean and showed up in force for the annual spring-cleaning sessions organised in the Alps, the Pyrenees, the Vosges, the Massif Central and also in the UK with the Ski Club of Great-Britain. Many thanks go not only to these volunteers, but also to those who organised these positive actions.” said Stewart Sheppard of Mountain Riders.
The number of volunteers was up by 1000 on last winter which Mountain Riders believe is clear proof that raising awareness is key in getting people involved.
The amount of waste collected was nearly doubles last years total of 17 tonnes with rubbish collectors still finding large amounts of older pieces of rubbish in and around the resorts and on the slopes.
As always, this year’s spring clean yielded an interesting combination of rubbish, including cans, plastic wrappers, single-use products, bottles, paper, batteries, metal and cables, PET bottles and the ever-present cigarette butts.
The sheer quantity of cigarette butts received special mention in the report with up to 30 000 cigarette butts can be found under just one chairlift.
The idea of Mountain Riders’ campaign is both to clean up the slopes and raise awareness of the harm littering does with the aim of ensuring that leaving rubbish on the slopes becomes a thing of the past.
“It is vital for everybody to bring their own rubbish back down from the mountains then take their rubbish to the closest sorting bins.” Said Mr Sheppard.
“To take things further, we can all try to choose products supplied in packaging that can be easily re-used or recycled and where possible products that have little or no packaging at all.”
www.mountain-riders.org
source: snow24.com
Pierre et Vacances announce 2 new residences
Pierre et Vacances the French holiday apartment company, has announced 2 new residences at Arc 1950 and Flaine Monsoleil.
In Arc 1950 new for 2009/10 are Eight luxury residences in Arc 1950, Spacious, comfortable apartments for up to 10 people with Free internet, outdoor heated pool, fitness room.
Half board catering is also available - see more on the Pierre et Vacnces website
Flaine Montsoleil is a brand new extension to the Flaine, a large ski resort nestling in the vast 'Grand massif' ski area. Pierre et Vacances have introduced
A brand new, top of the range ski residence with Spacious ski apartments for up to 8 persons. Including a Swimming pool, jacuzzi, spa and saunas
Internet, restaurants, wi-fi and more... see more on the Pierre et Vacances website
source:pv-holidays.com
Thursday 10th September
Off to Verbier for the season? Make sure you buy your pass before the end of September
News courtesy of Caroline Face | Ski News Reporter - Verbinet.com
Televerbier and the 4 Vallees have announced the season and annual lift ticket prices for this forthcoming season in Verbier and the 4 Valleys skiing areas.
The biggest discounts are offered if you buy your pass before the 30th September before the discount is reduced slightly for lift ticket sales during October. If you buy your pass after the 31st October 2009 you will have to pay the full season price.
The season adult lift ticket prices are as follows:
Buy before the 30th September 2009
1073chf for Verbier
1184chf for 4 Valleys
Buy between 1st and 31st October 2009
1103chf for Verbier
1218chf for 4 Valleys
Standard price
1226chf for Verbier
1353chf for 4 Valleys
The annual lift ticket prices are as follows:
Buy before the 30th September 2009
1234chf for Verbier
1362chf for 4 Valleys
Buy between 1st and 31st October 2009
1269chf for Verbier
1400chf for 4 Valleys
Standard price
1410chf for Verbier
1556chf for 4 Valleys
There are also various other offers available for families, young and senior citizen skiers as well as individual area passes. More information is available from the lift pass section of the Verbier website. You can buy your tickets from the Medran cashdesk in Verbier
www.verbinet.com
Tuesday 8th September 2009
Record Snowfall in New Zealand
photo courtesy: Cardrona
Cardrona Alpine Resort in New Zealand has broken its accumulated snowfall record by over a metre, with 317cm of snowfall this season. The previous biggest year on record was 2004 (213cm).
The record amount of snow has provided excellent on and off piste conditions and will ensure that the resort's popular terrain park features stay in top shape as the mountain crew have ample snow to work with. Cardrona's high base elevation (1670m) also means the snow stays in good condition down to the base buildings. Cardrona received snowfall on thirteen days in August and currently holds an upper snow base of 170cm, the resort is set to stay open until October 4th.
Ticket Prices Held At 08-09 Cost In Andorra
Grandvalira. Source: onthesnow.com
The cost of a six day lift ticket at Andorra’s largest ski centre, Grandvalira, is dropping for next season – albeit by just half a Euro for a six day pass, other tickets will cost the same as last winter 08-09.
However the change is significant as the resort’s lift ticket price had increased at a percentage rate faster than most other resorts over the past five or so years as huge investment in state-of-the-art lifts and many other improvements moved the resort from a collection of small provincial ski centres in to the world top 50 by size.
The cost of a Grandvalira high-season, six day, adult lift ticket drops from 213.5 Euros to 213 Euros.
In another new development, both Grandvalira and the other Andorran ski region VallNord have introduced a ‘teen’ price range from age 12 to 17, during which time children in that age bracket receive about 10% off the full adult price, which was previously payable from age 12 up. in common with most French and Spanish resorts.
Both Grandvalira and VallNord also offer a ‘low season’ when prices are discounted by about 15% on the full ticket price. Low season dates in Grandvalira include December 9 – 18, January 11 – 24 and March 27 to the end of the season. Vallnord has more extensive low season periods.
www.skiandorra.ad
source: snow24.com
Monday 7th September
New Ski Site Goes Live
A new website about the mountains, created by people who love the mountains, went live this week.
PeakLocation is initially focusing on French resorts, with the website providing details on over 200 mountain locations. Each location is accompanied by key statistics and in most cases (for the larger resorts) a professionally written summary. Stunning resort photographs give a great impression of what’s on offer. The directory of resorts is also searchable allowing users to jump quickly to their desired area.
Over time it is anticipated that many new features will be introduced to allow website users to search the site using various criteria. A more interactive experience, mapping, more statistics and perhaps wider geographic coverage (more resorts) are just a few ideas being considered for the future. visit http://www.peaklocation.com/
source: snow24.com
New Ski Tour Operator Launches
Despite the economic gloom and the demise of several tour operators in recent months, two industry heavyweights feel this is a good time to launch a new ski tour operation in the UK.
Former First Choice, Thomson and Crystal Ski MD, Stuart McLeod and fellow TUI Travel colleague Katie Waddington, previously manager of Crystal’s Active division and Chamonix-based GM for TUI UK, have launched Zenith Holidays (www.zenithholidays.co.uk)
The new web-based venture features catered chalets, hotels and apartments in ski resorts in France and Austria and summer holidays in France, Austria, Jersey and the Czech Republic, with the emphasis on `service excellence’: “Taking the hassle out of travel” says McLeod .
Adept at contracting and creating ski holidays for some of the UK’s biggest winter sports brands the pair have already found their niche as the only UK tour operator in the resorts of Pitztal and Leogang in Austria, Isola 2000, Val d’Allos and St. Jean de Montclar in the French Alps.
Their new web-based ski holiday company is focussing on a “value-based product for the discerning holidaymaker”, with pricing per room, not per person, a web-only presence “absorbing cost savings into the holiday price” and finding value through featuring less well known destinations. “There’s more to skiing than the well-worn Three Valleys” adds McLeod and we’ll be adding more new resorts in at least two more countries over the coming months”.
The travel-savvy two are also building added value into their programme with a `flightwatch’ service, texting clients with latest flight information, and by giving first hand knowledge of the resorts, as well as advising on additional in-resort activities and excursions
Stuart McLeod continues “With a combined experience of over thirty years organising winter sports holidays Katie and I have taken on roles from Holiday Rep to Product Manager, Financial Analyst to Managing Director and we had the privilege of experiencing first hand how holiday companies should and should not be run. We’ve seen the pitfalls, we’ve experienced the hassles of travel and we’re now minimising their impact with a product that’s high on service and value”.
A well as a clearly written, plain English overview of each resort and ski area, the Zenith Holidays website has an `at a glance’, `what we like’ and `what we’d change’ section for all destinations, pointing out useful information such as free skiing for kids, shorter transfer times, or a lack of English speaking TV and scarcity of ATMs.
Winter 2009/10 holidays are now on sale on an accommodation/ transfer only basis, with separate flight booking.
“This season more than ever before skiers will be looking for a ski holiday provider who can offer them the very best value for money and insider knowledge that can only be gleaned from the kind of in-depth tour operating and travel experience that Katie and I have.” said Stuart McLeod.
source: snow24.com
Sunday 6th September 2009
Prices In The Alps Falling On 08-09 Peak
Although it may still be too early to say exactly how much Brits can expect to pay in the Alps this winter, the current strength of the pound against the Euro and the Swiss Franc means that even modest increases in resort are offset by the stronger pound, compared to winter 08-09, even though it currently remains weaker than 18 months ago in winter 07-08.
For example at current exchange rates a six day adult pass for the giant 4 Valleys area of Switzerland, which would have cost around £208 pounds in February this year, currently costs £196 pounds, a drop of nearly 7 percent..
A number of the world’s leading resorts are also offering discounts if lift tickets are purchased in advance online, so skiers who have already decided when and where they’re going to ski this winter should consider pre-booking and check if anything is available at their chosen resort. Some of these offers have cut-off dates in the autumn. On the other hand if the pound does continue to regain lost ground and increase in strength, waiting to closer to the season may be a good option.
Tour operators also have many offers available for the most price conscious skiers including all in inclusive holidays with the cost of lift tickets and rentals built in at some resorts on fixed dates together with other deals such asw free lift tickets at some resorts.
If anything, savings in North America compared to last winter are greater still.
source: snow24.com
7m Euro Super Chairlift For Saalbach
photo courtesy of Ski Circus - Saalbach
Saalbach is making one of the biggest ever investments in a chairlift this summer to upgrade the Hasenauerköpfl from a quad chair to a state of the art eight seater chairlift with pull down bubble weather-protection covers. The 7m Euro lift will also have heated seats.
The new lift is one of three the resort, one of Austria’s largest and most popular, is installing ahead of winter 2009-10. A further 5m Euros is being spent on a six-seater chairlift with orange panorama bubbles, heated seats and safety loops to replace the Turmlift.
Finally 1,.4m Euros is being spent on upgrading the Almlift, formerly a T-bar, in linked Leogang, to a quad chair.
Saalbach is also making on-going investments in snowmaking which covers 90% of its 200km of slopes which are served by 55 modern cable-ways and lifts. The resort also boasts 10km of cross-country tracks , a carving funpark, half pipes, GS race courses, flood-lit slope, mogul runs and snow parks.
www.saalbach.com
source: snow24.com
Saturday 5th September 2009
easyJet announces it's East Midlands operation to close and Luton to be reduced by 20%
easyJet today (Thursday) announced proposals to reduce its flying programme at Luton by 20% and to close its East Midlands base. The airline will move this capacity to more profitable airports and expects that most of the aircraft will be redeployed to continental European bases. easyJet is committed to developing Europe’s premier short haul network and its overall growth plans remain unchanged at around 7.5% per year over the medium term. At the moment the airline operates 37 flights a week out of East Midlands to various European destinations and employs 120 staff. The proposals to reduce flying at Luton are a function of the airport’s failure to recognise the commercial realities of the recession and that easyJet has opportunities to move capacity to more attractive locations elsewhere in its network as weaker competitors retrench in today’s tough climate. Airport costs at Luton have risen by 25% over the past three years which makes the base no longer competitive. easyJet has been in protracted negotiation with Abertis, the Spanish operator of Luton and its owner Luton Borough Council, which is understood to receive over half of the airport charges. These negotiations have broken down leaving easyJet no alternative but to reallocate parts of its flying programme.
Passengers were assured that all flights including those over Christmas and New Year would not be affected and the base is expected to close early in the New Year.
source easyjet.com
Youth charity Snow-Camp has launched a brand new fundraising event
The Snowball Rally is a brand new fundraising event offering teams of skiers and snowboarders the opportunity to complete an epic road trip, competing to ski as many of the country’s 43 artificial and indoor ski slopes as possible in 3 full on days. Funds raised by each Snowball Rally Team all go to supporting the work of youth charity Snow-Camp.
- Start : Milton Keynes SNO!zone at 11am Thursday 19th November 2009
- Finish: Milton Keynes SNO!zone between 6-7pm 21st November 2009
- Points for each slope depending on location – the team with the most points after 3 days wins!
- Cups and trophies for winners and best fundraisers!
- Big party finish for all teams at the SNO!raiser 2009
- The marathon for snow-sports lovers!
read more and apply at http://www.snow-camp.co.uk/snowballrally/about.html
Friday 4th September
French Summer Ski Season Ends This Weekend
Tignes At the start Of The Resort's Summer Ski Season
www.skiinfo.com reports that there is some debate each year as to when the old ski season ends, and the new one begins. The problem is that a few resorts like Hintertux in Austria and Zermatt in Switzerland never really close.
In September and October however ski resorts that have been closed for weeks or months open afresh and aim to stay open right through to the following Spring, which feels rather like the start of the ski season. The first scheduled opening of 09-10 therefore could be this weekend, at Solden, although warm temperatures mean there is some doubt whether it will open this Saturday, September 5th as planned. However the resort has just reported 10cm (four inches) of fresh snow on its twin glaciers. After Solden, Pitztal is due to open slightly later in the month. It, (along with Zermatt), is one of two resorts offering the new Israeli IDE snow making system which can make abundant snow at almost any temperature. Then Tignes will be the first ski area to open in France, later in the month.
Whether these early openings constitute the ‘start of winter 2009-10’ remains open to debate. It’s in October that more resorts begin to open in Austria, France, Italy and Switzerland, most offering ‘ski test’ weekends and start-of-the-season parties. So the momentum gains pace as we move towards November
Thursday 3rd September 2009
Snow Still Falls In Southern Hemisphere
Photo: Perisher
There's been fresh snow in the past 48 hours In Australia. Perisher, the country's largest resort, most recently reported 22cm (9 inches) of fresh dry flakes overnight with more at upper elevations
Cover is still in very good condition across the open trails, with 48 lifts, 4 fusion terrain parks, a Rider X course and the Superpipe all open.
The resort's Spring Carnival is coming up next week from 7 to 20 September. There'll be live music, family entertainment, fireworks spectacular, kid's
activities, special overnight deals, Flake Film Festival, night snow shoe tours and food and wine dinners, all at no extra cost to the lift pass.
In New Zealand resorts have been buffeted by extreme weather conditions in the past week, including low-visibility and strong winds, but there's still
a healthy snow base at most resorts - typically between one and two metres (3-7 feet). The strong winds did lead to temporary closures at most of the
country's ski areas last week however.
However the weather extreme has also brought plenty of fresh snow. 20 - 30 centimetres of new snow has landed at Coronet Peak and The Remarkables ski
areas in the past few days taking the seven day total to 62cm (over two feet) at Coronet Peak and 69cm (2.3 feet) at The Remarkables.
On Mt Ruapehu, Whakapapa reports packed powder on trails, variable off trail with pockets of wind blown snow. The resort received 10cm (four inches) of
fresh snow overnight and has an upper mountain base of 179cm (six feet).
Neighbouring Turoa received 5cm (two inches) of fresh but has a deeper 238cm (eight foot) base.
David Ovendale, General Manager Sales & Marketing for NZSki which owns Coronet Peak, Mt Hutt and The Remarkables, said the latest snowfall has set
the ski areas up perfectly for the southern hemisphere's spring. "There could not be a better time to come for a quick ski fix - it's
affordable, the conditions are fantastic and we can offer something for everyone," he said.
Source: skiinfo.com
Wednesday 2nd September 2009
Skiinfo.com Reports Europe Gearing Up For 09-10 As Snow Still Falls In Southern Hemisphere
picture courtesy of Hintertux Austria
In Europe we're in to the last week of the summer ski season at France's two open glacier ski areas - Tignes and Les 2 Alpes, both due to close this weekend. Tignes has taken the opportunity to re-measure the depth of snow on the Grand Motte glacier which it has been reporting at 1.5m (five feet) all summer, and has found the depth is 10cm (four inches), about the same figure as Les 2 Alpes where the base depth had dropped more gradually over the past few months.
Throughout Europe the warm August has taken its toll on the snow depths on the continent's open glacier ski areas, and Austria has dropped from four areas open to two in the past week with the Dachstein (near Schladming) and Kitzsteinhorn (above Kaprun) glaciers now closed until fresh snow arrives. The Molltal and Tux glaciers remain open however, with sunny weather predicted for at least the rest of the week.
At Tux, the glacier is holding steady with 165cm (5.5 feet) of snow, but the amount of runs open has been cut by more than a third to 15km (nine miles) with nine lifts running. Skiing at Molltal is also limited, down to 3km (about two miles) with a 170cm (5.6 feet) base, and temperatures on the glacier reported to be hitting a seriously melting 8 Celcius.
source: skinfo.com
Tuesday 1st September 2009
End Of Free Tickets for Under 5s and Over 75s For La Rosiere / La Thuile Area Pass
The Espace San Bernardo ski area which links the skiing of La Rosiere in France and La Thuile in Italy’s Aosta Valley is the latest to start charging young children (under 5) and older (over 75) pensioners to ski.The new charges apply only to the joint area, with young and old skiers who wish to ski only in the local resort areas (La Rosiere or La Thuile) still receiving free tickets.
Previously the area offered free skiing for children aged under five and older people aged over 75. From next season however children aged up to five will be asked to pay 11 Euros per day, and skiers and boarders aged over 75 will be asked to pay 12.20 Euros per day.
In recent years there has been a trend for lift companies to increase the age, or remove altogether, the free ticket offer for older skiers (usually aged at least 70) is offered, but it is more unusual for young children to be charged.
It is not known how many very young or elderly skiers and boarders would actually want to ski from La Rosiere over to La Thuile or vice versa.
Initial indications also suggest that the large The Milky Way ski area that covers 400km (250 miles) of runs across the French – Italian border is introducing a flat rate for lift tickets, regardless of age, with no child discount available.
source: snow24.com
Sunday 30th August
2009-10 Ski Season Kicks Off This Weekend Before Octosnow Fest!
photo: Autumn Skiing at Tux, Austria
SOLDEN IN AUSTRIA EXPECTS TO BE THE FIRST RESORT TO OPEN FOR THE 2009 - 10
SKI SEASON, ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5th. WITH GREAT SNOW IN THE ALPS LAST
AUTUMN, WHY WAIT TO WINTER TO HIT THE SLOPES?
Last autumn was a bumper snow period in the Alps with www.skiinfo.com
reporting heavy snow on Europe's early-opening glacier ski slopes from the
very start of October. This white abundance set up much of the continent for
an epic 2008-9 snow season, helping many resorts ride the economic downturn.
Will history repeat itself in 2009? With the first resorts in Austria and
France scheduled to open for Winter 2009-10 in the next few weeks, we don't
have long to wait to find out.
Solden's glaciers will open on September 5th, conditions permitting. The
official glacier opening party weekend is October 9 - 11 and the World Cup
rolls in to town for its annual northern hemisphere, outdoor kick off from
23rd October.
The Pitztal Glacier is always one of the first to open for its long winter
season, which will continue to May 2010. This year the lifts, including a
new six-seater chairlift, will start operating on 12th September.
The Kitzsteinhorn glacier above Kaprun should also be open, with the centre
offering freestyle workshops from 17th October for three weeks.
Tux never really closes and by October is likely to have more terrain open
than pretty well anywhere with a target 60km (Nearly 40 miles) of runs to
enjoy, all easy to access with the area's three Glacier Bus high capacity
lifts. The resort stages its Octoberfest in September, unusually, on the
25th - 26th and then has a series of special season opening weekend
festivals on 2nd - 34th and 9th - 11th October.
Four more Austrian glaciers are likely to be opening in September and
October - the Dachstein, Kaunertal, Molltal and Stubai
source: http://www.skiinfo.com/
Friday 28 August
In South America, Chile continues to have the best of the snow.
Photo: Portillo
Portillo has some of the deepest snow on the continent and after another 10cm (four inches) of snow took seasonal accumulation past 4.1m (Nearly 14 feet) in the last week it reports conditions as ‘packed powder'. Base depths range from 1.2m (four feet) at the hotel to 1.55m (over five feet) on the mountain.
La Parva is also reporting great snow conditions with base depths of up to 205cm (just under seven feet) while Valle Nevado says it has received 265cm (nine feet) of snow to date but that slope depths are around 60cm (two feet).
In Argentina, Las Lenas reports a base depth of between 90cm (three feet) at the base and 125cm (over four feet) at the summit of the slopes. All lifts and runs are open, as well as the resort's terrain park. Elsewhere in the country the continent's biggest resort, Catedral, reports a 90cm (three foot) base. Other Argentinian areas have more challenging conditions, for example Chapelco notes only 32cm (13 inches) on the mountain and no snow at the resort's base. source Sally Brookes - skiinfo.com
Wednesday 26 August
Skiinfo.com Reports Fresh August Snow in Northern And Southern Hemispheres
picture courtesy of The Remarkables ( New Zealand) showing girls having fun on the Nikita
Chickita camp (Kat Hood, Laura Doherty, Lindsay Fenn, Jane Farnell,
Ann-Louise Riddell, Jenn Mulrooney and Rachel Cunningham).
www.skiinfo.com reports that there has been fresh snow in northern and southern hemispheres this week as the Alberta Rockies got a healthy August snowfall, and it’s now only 10 weeks until the first Canadian resorts will be opening for the 2010 Olympic Winter. South of the equator it’s Australia that has the most fresh snow to shout about in the past 48 hours.
In Europe we’re in to the last week of the summer ski season at France’s two open glacier ski areas – Tignes and Les 2 Alpes, both due to close this weekend. Tignes has taken the opportunity to re-measure the depth of snow on the Grand Motte glacier which it has been reporting at 1.5m (five feet) all summer, and has found the depth is 10cm (four inches), about the same figure as Les 2 Alpes where the base depth had dropped more gradually over the past few months.
Throughout Europe the warm August has taken its toll on the snow depths on the continent’s open glacier ski areas, and Austria has dropped from four areas open to two in the past week with the Dachstein (near Schladming) and Kitzsteinhorn (above Kaprun) glaciers now closed until fresh snow arrives. The Molltal and Tux glaciers remain open however, with sunny weather predicted for at least the rest of the week.
At Tux, the glacier is holding steady with 165cm (5.5 feet) of snow, but the amount of runs open has been cut by more than a third to 15km (nine miles) with nine lifts running. Skiing at Molltal is also limited, down to 3km (about two miles) with a 170cm (5.6 feet) base, and temperatures on the glacier reported to be hitting a seriously melting 8 Celcius.
In Switzerland the neighbouring high-altitude, car free, resorts of Saas Fee and Zermatt are both open with about a metre of snow (over three feet) on each of their glaciers.
Saas Fee has the smaller area open, with just three runs to choose from, but the resort’s summer terrain park and half pipe are still open.
In Italy there are still three ski areas to choose from, which thanks to the two closures in Austria, means the country now has more ski areas open than any other in the northertn hemisphere. The choices are Cervinia – which has six ski slopes shared with Zermatt, Val Senales and Passo Stelvio.
In Scandinavia, two ski areas are still open in Norway. Folgefonn is reporting a metre (just over three feet) of snow. Both it and Galdhoppigen, Norway and Northern Europe’s highest mountain at 2,469m, have a single drag lift operating.
Across the Atlantic In Canada Banff National Park has been enjoying its first glimpse of winter2010 – in August, with a summer snowfall blanketing the mountains at the ski areas of Mt. Norquay, Lake Louise Ski Area and Sunshine Village.
The announcement of tentative 2009 opening dates is adding to the excitement. Mt. Norquay is planning to kick off the season with a Halloween party on October 31st and will then open at weekends only through to Decemer 5th.
Lake Louise Ski Area is scheduled to open on November 6, with preparations well underway to again host the first, and Canada’s only, stop on the World Cup circuit. The Men’s races will take place on November 28 to 29, and the Women’s races on December 4 to 6.
Sunshine Village plans to open on November 11, with the newly-renovated Sunshine Mountain Lodge opening 30 new eco-luxurious rooms shortly after. The multimillion dollar wing replacement has not only added luxury to the Lodge, but also lowered the resort’s carbon footprint.
“We’re very excited for the upcoming season,” said Dan Markham, of Ski Banff-Lake Louise-Sunshine. “We’re hoping to yet again be the first resorts to open in Canada, with a great start to this Olympic season. We’ll be joining the world to enjoy the spirit and energy of the Games, cheering on our local athletes and celebrating our sport.”
South of the border at Timberline in Oregon the slop[es remain open for advanced skiers and boarders now, although the centre’s terrain park and pipe remain closed and the annual September shut down is drawing nearer. Snow depths are just below a metre (three feet) and the weather largely sunny.
In the southern hemisphere, Africa’s ski areas are still reporting low temperatures and good conditions. At Tiffindell in South Africa the resort reports 1.2km of piste open and a snow depth of 50cm (20 inches) with temperatures ranging between -2 and -7 Celcius. Afriski in Lesotho has not uipdated conditions since 15th August when it said it had a 1km slope open with a 40cm snow depth and temperatures below freezing, however the lack of an update for more than 10 days appears to indicate the centre may have closed for the season.
The end of the season seems much further off in South America, where the huge falls of lasat week have eased with skies and access roads cleared. Portillo in Chile is still reporting some of the biggest accumulations with season-to-date falls of more than 6.8m (23 feet) and snow lying at the top of the slope nearing 3m (10 feet). It reports receiving about a metre (over 3 feet) of new snow in the past 7 days, although this was mostly part of a larger fall of more than double that volume which ran through last week.
Several other resorts in Chile have similar big snow bases, especially the 3 Valleys resorts around Valle Nevado close to capital Santiago. It’s a more mixed picture over the border in Argentina but the two laregest resorts of Catedral and Las Lenas are both reporting healthy bases.
Back across the Pacific there’s been fresh snow in the past 48 hours In Australia. Perisher, the country’s largest resort, most recently reported 22cm (9 inches) of fresh dry flakes overnight with more at upper elevations.
“There are plenty of wind blown stashes and powder pillows to be found across the resort ready for guests to carve up.” said a resort spokesperson.
Mt Buller has had fresh snow too, reporting 12cm (5 inches) of new snow and temperatures staying below zero to keep the snow in great shape.
In New Zealand the biggest international competition ever staged in the southern hemisphere is currently underway with snowboard superstars hitting the resort of Cardona’s Olympic halfpipe earlier today as the 100% Pure New Zealand Winter Games continued in extremely variable weather.
The world’s best riders did not disappoint an expectant crowd, defying the conditions with some outstanding performances. In the women’s heat, the triple challenge of whiteout, snow and wind tested riders’ concentration and technique to the limit. World number one, Liu Jiayu from China led the way with a magnificent display in her first run which included 5-to-5 and 7-to-7 combos. A score of 45.0 reflected huge amplitude and incredibly smooth riding.
“She jumps as big as the guys with great control. Everything was good,” said Head Judge Ola Sundequist.
Conditions stayed poor as the male riders completed their first run. Pre-event favourite Shaun White lived up to his billing with a smooth run through the snow including a switch frontside 10 and super-big amplitude. No one could touch White’s class even as blue skies returned and the flame-haired American’s chose not to appear for his second run.
Other resorts in New Zealand are currently reporting challenging conditions. Turoa has a 2.2m (7 foot) base but is closed today because of severe gales and rain. Mt Ruapehu neighbour Wakapapa, with a 1.8m (six foot) base, is also closed for the same reason.
Tuesday 25th August
First Choice Launch 2009/10 Brochure
First Choice is the latest of the UK’s ‘big five’ operators to launch its main 2009-10 brochure.
The company will run ski holidays to 72 resorts in nine countries in Europe and North America from 72 ski resorts.
New for First Choice this winter are lift-linked Valloire and Valmeinier in the French Maurienne Valley and Winter Park in Colorado, USA.
As with most other operators the company is pushing ‘all inclusive’ packages on low season dates which include lift tickets and ski or board and boots rental (or free carriage if you have your own) in a selection of resorts.
For First Choice these are three and four star properties ranging from self catering to half board in Andorra, Bulgaria, France, Italy or Slovenia for departures on any January date or the weekends of March 13/14th or 20th/21st. Prices range from £449 for a week at the Poblado Apartments in Arinsal, Andorra including breakfast to £759 for a week at the four-star, slopeside Sport Hotel in Soldeu on half board, with departures from Gatwick in both cases.
The company is adding a new flight from Belfast to Grenoble; double the number of flights from Stansted to Chambery and added a third flight from Gatwick to Chambery.
For families, a major part of First Choice’s efforts, there are free holidays for kids on every departure date and hundreds of holidays from £179.
First Choice operates its Pepi Penguin Club in 15 resorts for children aged from 6 months to 4 years. Qualified nannies look after babies and infants for 6 half or full-day supervision, with or without lunch. Prices from £110 for 6 mornings or afternoons. There’s also the Whizz Kids Clubs in 11 resorts for 4-11 year olds with 3 different choices of ski childcare including ski school escort service, lunch and lunchtime supervision, 6 half or full-day supervision. Prices from £95 for 6 mornings or afternoons (ski school escort service included with morning sessions) and the Pyjama club with games, quizzes, videos in six hotels for children from 4 - 11 years on five nights per week and the Snuggle club tailored for the needs of younger guests (6 months to 4 years).
Guests booking six full days childcare saying in a family club hotel have five nights free evening children’s clubs plus a free night babysitting.
www.firstchoice-ski.co.uk
source snow24.com
Fire Beneath Chamonix Gondola
A fire broke out last week beneath the Planpraz gondola high above Chamonix, leading to the evacuation of 200 people on the lift and in the area.
The lift carries about 3,000 passengers per day in summer and it is thought one of these threw a lit cigarette butt from one of the gondolas cabins, which caused the fire between the tenth and eleventh support towers, close to the lift’s top station at Brévent (1900m).
The fire grew rapidly with flames reaching more than 5m reported to lick around the cabins moving over the brush wood fire until the cabins were safely stored in the lift station.
Initial attempts to fight the blaze by the Chamonix fire brigade from the ground were thwarted by strong winds and toxic fumes so Chamonix’s CMBH helicopter was called it. It made 38 water dumping trips over the fire, collecting 900 litres of water each time from the Champraz lake.
This rapid action stopped the fire from getting worse and after two hours it was brought under control and firemen spent the afternoon damping down the area.
One cabin was damaged by the fire but there were no injuries. The Mont Blanc Lift Company provided seven 4x4 vehicles to get people who had gone up in the gondola in the morning back down the mountain .
The lift was inspected later in the day and the cables declared safe so that the lift could resume operations.
The fire was the second this summer beneath the same lift, although the earlier fire had been less severe.
“The risk of fire on our facilities or under the lift cables constitutes is always a danger and a situation we dread,” said a Mont Blanc Lift Company statement, “Considering the practical difficulties in accessing our sites, we remind all our customers that there is an absolute on smoking in the cabins and in the lift stations."
source snow24.com
New High Speed, High Altitude Cable Car For Monterosa
The new lift will link Passo dei Salati to the Indren Glacier high in the Italian Monterosa ski area.
The Doppelmayr built lift will ascend from 2960m and travel just over 1.5km (just under a mile) in just under five minutes to reach the glacier at 3275m.
The two cabins will travel at up to 10 metres per second and carry up to 60 standing passengers each, a maximum of 740 people per hour with 2 cabins for 60 standing people each. Only one support tower is required between the two stations and the operators are looking at using a photovoltaic solar energy source to partly or fully power the lift, although that has not been confirmed yet.
Unusually in the modern era, the lift will follow a new route, never traced before by a lift and will cross the border from the Aosta Valley to the Piedmont side of the skiing area.
“Passo dei Salati, the historical watershed between Aosta Valley and Piedmont, and the ‘flagship’ of the Monterosa Ski skiing area for its inter-regional skis-on link, will become the launch pad towards the Gotha of the free ride tracks in Monte Rosa.” said a MonteRosa SpA company spokesman.
Construction of the new lift has taken three years, with construction work begun in June 2006. It has been a complex project, in part because of the extreme conditions at this altitude leading to sudden changes in the weather at all times of year.
The new lift has cost more than 17 million Euros to construct, and with a further 15 million Euros spend on a funicular railway down the valley, it looks like MonteRosa is the biggest spender in Europe’s mountains for the coming winter.
Indoor Snow Centre Fund Raiser For Ghana’s Downhill Olympic Racer
Winter-loving Brits didn’t let a little thing called summer stand in the way of them getting their snow fix last weekend.
Snow enthusiasts headed to The Snow Centre at Hemel Hempstead on Saturday in their droves to hit the slopes to raise more than £3,000 for charity and to support Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, AKA The Snow Leopard, in his preparation for the Vancouver Winter Olympics.
The Snow Centre and The Snow Leopard, Ghana’s first and only athlete to qualify for a Winter Olympic Games, hosted The Snow Leopard Challenge, an annual racing event that aims to raise money for various charities.
Since its launch four years ago, the competition has raised over £6000 toward The Snow Leopard Trust, a charity that provides free ski lessons to local children who would not otherwise have the opportunity to try the sport, and toward supporting Kwame’s ski race training and Olympic preparation. This year, the challenge also supported two additional charities, The Sabre Trust and The Snow Camp.
Kwame said: “Saturday’s event was fantastic and we had a great turnout. The facilities and race conditions at The Snow Centre were just perfect and it was a great evening of skiing, snowboarding and entertainment. We shared a lot of laughs along the way raising money for our charities!”
All levels of skiers and snowboarders took park in the knock-out dual slalom race and spectators had panoramic views of all the action from The Snow Centre’s superb viewing balcony. Whyatt Laurence was the eventual winner of the challenge bagging a holiday in France.
Peter Gillespie, director of snowsports at The Snow Centre, said: “We were delighted to host The Snow Leopard Challenge at The Snow Centre. As the official indoor training base for Kwame we are committed to helping him raise as much money as possible for his chosen charities.”
Kwame first learned to ski on indoor snow just over five years ago at the Milton Keynes SNO!zone where he worked.
source snow24.com
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