Some Snow Respite for French Alps
For those anxiously looking skywards in anticipation of their Christmas break in the French Alps the weather system has brought up to 50cm of snow in places. However the low pressure didn't bring as much of its bounty as hoped. The
Northern Alps saw a classic "
retour d'est" autumn weather pattern caused by a low pressure sitting just off the northern Italian coast. The winds whip over the Mediteranean sea, picking up moisture before heading northwards into Italy. They then turn east (Lombard wind) to dump snow on the Italian side of the Alps. Good for Italian resorts such as La Thuile, less good for the French. The areas close to the Franco-Italian border have benefitted from some 50cm of fresh snow but the bounty was largely spent further to the east in the
Vanoise where only some 10cm of fresh has been recorded.
The wind is shifting around to the south (Foehn) and the isotherm will rise to around 2000 meters which will bring a bit more snow or rain to the rest of the French Alps later in the week.
Related Links:
Snow and avalanche report
Lawyer wins ski lesson payout
You can file this one under:
never do anything for a lawyer. 53 year old criminal barrister, Les Webb, 53, was skiing at Mt Buller, Australia in August 2002 when he broke his back after falling from a two to three-metre ski jump while taking lessons from a Canadian ski instructor employed by Mt Buller Ski Lifts. This month Mr Webb successfully sued Mt Buller Ski Lifts and was awarded $278,000 compensation for pain and suffering as well as loss of income and medical expenses.
Still Smiling, Les Webb after his payoutSki lesson mishap leads to $278,000 payout
Driver crushed by Piste Groomer
A piste grooming machine (Snowcat) driver was killed in a freak accident at the Valdres Alpinsenter in Norway today. The man was apparently trying to warm the engine of the grooming machine when he stood on one of the tracks and was dragged under the machine when the belt started rotating. This is the second accident involving grooming machines in Norway, a girl was killed at Bjorli last Easter. The two resorts are under the same management.
Man killed at Valdres ski resort
Snow Drought Breaks in Colorado
Storms over Colorado have finally broken the snow drought there. Crested Butte has seen over 51" in the last 3 days. The big dump comes at just the right time, as resorts are preparing for the thick of the season. Saturday's figures - the most updated data available - showed the statewide snowpack had climbed to 103 percent of its historical average for this time of year, with southwestern Colorado seeing snowfall totals of more than 110 percent of average. Climatologists have been predicting that El Nino would deliver above-average snow to Colorado this spring.
Weekend dump of white gold sends ski resorts into ecstasy
Miller does the double at Lake Louise
The American, Bode Miller has won his first World Cup super-giant slalom on Sunday at Lake Louise to go with an earlier win in the downhill. This gives him his third victory in a row of the season.. He also enters the record books as the first man to open a season with wins in three different disciplines. Hermann Maier the defending champion was 2nd over the 2,285 course and said to be struggling with new boots - something many skiers can sympathize with.
American Bode Miller wins super-G race to join exclusive World Cup clubMiller earns first downhill victory
US resorts welcome snowboarders
Snowboarders made up a full 30 percent of all ticket sales at resorts during the 2003-2004 season, according to the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA). Resorts devote hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to build and maintain terrain parks, which were originally developed for snowboarders. That wasn’t the case in early 1980s, when resorts first began allowing snowboarders on their hills. Snowboarders were criticized for being reckless, ruining moguls and shearing snow off runs. The resentment has all but disappeared. Teenage skiers and boarders ride together in the parks and through moguls on steep runs. FourUS resorts still ban snowboarders: Taos in New Mexico, Alta and Deer Valley in Utah and Mad River Glen in Vermont.
Snowboarders, once shunned, now coveted by ski industry
Rossi hit by weak dollar
French ski maker, Rossignol's first half profits for 2004/2005 have dropped nearly 70% from 9.9 million € to 3 million € according to information released by the board yesterday. Sales also fell 0.4% to 199.09 million € at current exchange rates. The group blamed a number of factors, in particular exchange rate movements including a weak dollar and the launch of a distribution subsidiary in Japan. Profits were also hit by a what the group describe as a
'brutal' decline in the inline skate market. The group expects a better second quarter as orders have been pushed back in line with the general market trend.
Rossignol Corporate
Avalanche Risk in Northern Causcasus
Three Russian border guards have been hit by an
avalanche in the northern Caucasus mountains killing two. The men were clearing a mountain road with the aid of a tractor when the avalanche struck. A search was organised by the frontier guards based at Vladikavkaz.and other military units belonging to the northern Osseta emergency response units. They were assisted by local police and inhabitants. The weather conditions prevented planes and helicopters from reaching the zone.
www.mountain.ruThe snow depth in the region is currently between 1 and 1.5 meters. During the last 24 hours 20 avalanches have been recorded in the region controlled by the border guards. Some units have been isolated from their bases by the slides. The avalanche danger continues in the region.
Sugarloaf Opens
Brilliant blue skies and four soft corduroy trails greeted skiers on opening day at Sugarloaf/USA, Friday, Nov. 19. Consistently low temperatures allowed snowmaking to begin earlier than usual. Conditions still look a bit thin though. Conditions are said to be better higher up!
Warm nights have delayed
Saas Fee's opening until the 10th of December and the two feet of
pre-Halloween snow at Shasta has largely melted. This will delay the opening of their snowboard park. A spokemans for Shasta has said
"It's very, very disappointing", they now are aiming at the 3rd of December but with no new snow in sight.
Ski season opens: Four trails greet Sugarloafers
Avalanche Forecasting in the Sierra
"People want a black and white answer on whether it's safe to ski or not," says Mammoth avalanche forecaster Tim Villanueva, "I tell them we can't control the weather or the snowpack, but what we can control is the (backcountry) terrain we choose to ski."
Tim Villanueva teaching beacon useLocal ski guide gets to the bottom of thingsRelated links:
The North American Ski Training CenterAvalanche SafetyRoutefinding in Avalanche Terrain
Kaprun families sue for £83 Million
Lawyers representing the families of 155 skiers and snowboarders killed in an alpine cable car fire four years ago were pressing Austrian officials today for almost £83 million in compensation for the relatives.
Photo: AP/Georg KoechlerSki Disaster Families Seek £83 Million Compensation related links:
The disaster at KitzsteinhornKaprun Funicular Inferno Trial StartsKaprun Funicular Memorial
EasyJet in Dogfight with Tour Operators
Britain's largest low-cost airline, easyJet, predicted a fierce battle with "desperate" ski charter operators this winter after revealing that cut-throat competition in Europe's skies had ripped into its underlying profits. The airline is particularly concerned about the number of unsold airline tickets which charter holiday companies could dump on to the market at rock-bottom prices in time for the ski season from January. "They're cornered, they're desperate and therefore we've got to consider them a big threat," said the chief executive, Ray Webster.
EasyJet braced for fares war
Warfare on the Pistes
An institution in the resort, the Ecole du Ski Français has been accused of being unsporting with its competitors.This winter promises to be a hot one in the little world of French skiing. Most resorts will not open before mid-December but already trench warfare has broken out between ski instructors. On one side the
"red jumpers" of the Ecole du ski français (ESF), who count some 15000 to 17000 instructors in their ranks and on the other the
"greens" of the International Ski School (ESI), created in 1976 at
Flaine, in the Haute-Savoie, by rebel ski instructors. Today they number some 1700 who fight the quasi monopoly which the ESF has exercised since its creation in 1945. The ski school market is a juicy one, some 180 millions euros.
What has lit the powder? The publication on the 11th of November, 2004 of a decision by the Minister of Sports, Jean-François Lamour that simply takes away the rights of small ski schools to employ and train apprentice ski instructors and consequently an important resource. Philippe Camus, the president of the ESI says that
"twenty of our centers have less than ten fully qualified instructors and will therefore lose their right to employ trainees". Another blow, ESF schools that have less than ten instructors can benefit from favourable treatment because the decision allows small ski stations the right to let the main ski school continue training, at the moment only the ESF is represented on the panel that will give that right.
Of course all schools can continue to give lessons. Michel Catala, the boss of the ESI in Châtel, in the Haute-Savoie, has nine qualified instructors and the same number of trainees and sees that the directive will cut into his turnover. A spokesman for the minister says that
"our concern is to guarantee the quality of training, we don't want to interfere with the economics of ski lessons". Gilles Chabert, the president of the ESF claims that
"certain independent ski schools use trainees as a way of running courses and earning money, the ESF's priority is not business but training and security on the ski slopes". This statement has infuriated the independents who say that all ski schools work on the same principal.
Spanish Practises at Méribel, and Megève...Contrary to received wisdom the ESF is not a public body but a grouping of self-employed instructors. Depending on their experience they give between 2 and 40 % of their salaries (between 35 and 45 euros gross per hour) to their ski school in order to work. The independents have higher rates but they give better training due to limited class sizes and a better knowledge of new school techniques such as snowboard. Despite these arguments in their favour they have only taken 10% of the market from the ESF.
"We would have grown much quicker without the ESF getting up to no good" explained Philippe Camus.
"Everywhere they get favours, spots in tourist offices, in the kid's area, on the slalom courses, whereas we are turned down".
According to Camus the ESF is behind the minister's decision as a way of maintaining their monopoly. They are going to take this to the French high court. For the last 15 years most anti-competitive practises by the ESF have been banned by the French courts. For example in February 2003 the Mayor of Megève was sentenced by the administrative court in Grenoble because he rented office space to the ESF for only 3 700 euros per year, barely 10% of the market value. A rebate approved by monitors in the resort but not accorded to the ESI. It has to be said that the director of the ESF, Gérard Apertet, is also the deputy of sports at Megève. The town hall is appealing the decision.
The monopolies commission has also been taken a close look at abusive clauses in ESF contracts with its instructors. It has cancelled the clause stopping instructors leaving to work for competitors in neighbouring resorts. It has also sentenced the lift companies in Cauterets, in the Hautes-Pyrénées,
Méribel-Mottaret, in the Savoie, and Grand-Bornand, in the Haute-Savoie, because they refuse to give preferential rates for ski passes and the right to use priority lift queues for courses. Advantages that are given to the ESF, of course.
This case law doesn't seem to worry anyone. At
les Arcs the resort has decided to only give privileges to schools with more than six instructors. At Méribel, the tourist office is asking Pierre-François Papet, the boss of Snow Systems Ski School, for exorbitant rates compared to those of the ESF just to appear in its brochure. Papet say's he's been obliged to publish his own brochure.
According to L'Expansion, the director of the monopolies and fraud office is launching a wide reaching inquiry into anti competitive practises in the the ski school industry. He's certainly got meat on this bone.
Translated from the Expansion - 23/11/2004
Ecoles de ski: du rififi dans la poudreuserelated story:
Megève Ski Instructors Fined
Helmets wearers lose sense of danger
Have you ever had an SUV blow past you on an icy, snowy highway? More than likely, that driver was gunning it with the false confidence that hazardous conditions yield unconditionally to four-wheel drive and burly suspension. Experts think that the same delusion is at work with skiers and snowboarders who don helmets and consider themselves bulletproof. A study has shown that helmeted and non-helmeted skiers sustain head injuries at the same rate. But it's helmeted skiers who sustain the most serious head injuries.
Risky business?Ski helmets aren't license to speed
Crested Butte puts faith in snow-making
After a series of indifferent season Crusted Butte is opening a month earlier than normal. The difference is apparently down to new owners investing in snow-making. While many environmentalists think that fighting
climate change by burning more energy is short sighted snow making is spreading in North America, Europe and even to China's arid but cold ski resorts.
Crested Butte returns to land of the living
Snowboarder booked in slope pile-up
A sheriff's deputy has booked a snowboarder for failing to abide by the Colorado Skier Safety Act at Keystone resort. Lorine Miller said she was carving down the Silverspoon trail when she looked up and saw Nathan Scheid flying toward her. Scheid then crashed into her, cutting her right forearm and bruising her right shin. Both boarders were stretchered off the mountain.
Snowboarder ticketed for ski slope collision
Russian Ski Resorts need to lift standards
"The North Caucasus mountains are awesome. You won't find anything like it in Austria," claims Temur Kurbanbekov, but just getting here is extreme. An Aeroflot flight from Moscow then a four hour bone shaker transfer from Mineralniye Vody. (It doesn't sound that different from a UK Tour Operator - ed.). While there is no shortage of adrenaline rush for those who like to live on the edge, the inadequate, rudimentary facilities often dampen vacation expectations and turn away many potential winter sports enthusiasts from Russia.
"In France you spend 80 percent of the time skiing and the rest goes for the ski lift, With Elbrus, it's the other way around."
Mount ElbrusSki Resorts Lift Their Standards
Slovakia's Ski Areas Hit by Storm
Slovakia's main ski areas have been devasted by a windstorm that destroyed over half of the regions forests. Laszlo Miklos, the Slovak Environment Minister said that the windstorm was the largest natural disaster in Slovakia for over a century. The bulk of the damage was to farmed woodland not to natural growth. Winds gusted to over 100 mph and a Czeck hiker was killed by the storm.
Power to villages was cut by the storm. The clear up is expected to take months and severly affect the ski industry.
Over the border in Austria the St. Gilgen ski resort near Salzburg closed ski lifts. Local authorities also cancelled a mountain rescue exercise, saying it was too windy to conduct the training.
Storm bypasses Colorado Ski Resorts
Finally some bad news for North American skiing. A foot of snow was dumped in Colorado's southern mountains Saturday, but the winter storm largely missed ski areas in the north. Colorado is already suffering from a snow drought so the storm would have brought some welcome relief.
Loser of a storm for ski areasRelated articles:
Low Snow in Colorado
Skiing for tight-wads
Unless I won the lottery, Aspen was out of the question. In fact, almost everywhere was out of the question.Our choices looked stark: Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia or Andorra. We settled on Soldeu, a small resort with a huge network of pistes and a highly rated ski school staffed by English-speaking instructors.
My dad's a ski-holiday cheapskate
Norway Tests Avalhex
The avalanche season opened in Western Norway, blocking roads and threatening villages but the National Higway Authority has a new tool in its armoury this winter in the form of the French avalhex system. This is a five meter steel tower containing 17 ballons. Each ballon can be filled with explosive gas and detonated, producing a controlled avalanche from a safe distance. The system has been tested over a number of years on the Lauteret road pass between Grenoble and Briançon.
Norway tests new avalanche control system Related Link:
Avalanche Clearance Systems
Fire at Val-Thorens Club Med
A fire broke out at Club Med in Val Thorens early yesterday morning. Club Méditerranée were preparing the hotel for the opening of the ski resort tomorrow. 11 employees of the establishment had to be taken to hospital in nearby Moutiers suffering from smoke inhalation. Due to the nature of the fire police are considering arson as a possible cause.
There is fresh snow over the northern alps today. Here is a list of lifts Val Thorens plans to open:
Detachable chairlift 2 Lacs
Detachable chairliftCascades
Detachable chairlift Portette
Retour draglift
Lift passes cost: One day : 18 €, Half-day : 12 €
Lyon Neiges
Lyon, located on the Rhone at around 100 meters altitude isn't known for its ski domain, despite the proximity of the hills of the Monts d'Or. That is set to change with the second edition of the Lyon-Neige. Around 4200 meters cubed of snow are being transported by truck from
les Sybelles, the fourth (or maybe fifth after
Paradiski) largest ski area in France.
The Lyon Pistes in 2003This snow will be spread over the old Sarra ski piste which leads to the esplanade. This was Lyon's urban dry ski area from 1967 to 1975 but was closed due to the number of injuries caused by the dry-slope. The snow will create a sizeable mini-ski domain with the aim of permitting the largest number of Lyonnaise to experience the pleasures of skiing. This year there will be a proper ski lift and mountain restaurant hosting top chef Jean-Claude Caro
The event will be held over the weekend of Friday 10th to Monday 13th of December, 2004. Let's hope les Sybelles has some snow by then and the weekend weather is cold.
see the site:
www.lyon-neige.com
Low Snow in Colorado
Not everywhere in the States has been blessed with monster early season snow. Reports from 100 sites across the High Country that provide satellite feedback on snowpack levels show the state average at 93 percent. Most ski resorts will open with limited terrain and have been making snow to supplement what Mother Nature hasn't left behind. This is nothing unusual, Colorado is in the 7th year of a drought.
Snow MakingSki season starting with low snow
Utah Predicts Record Season
Ski Utah thinks it is heading for another record season with a 5- to 8-percent increase over the 2003-04 record season of 3.4 million skier days. This prediction is based on the fact the website doubled the number of pages views and all the 100 Gold Ski Passes sold out by the end of September. The massive early snow fall with 6 out of the 13 areas open must have helped too.
first tracks at SnowbirdRecord ski season
Ski Patrol Volunteers
Ski Patrol Volunteers try to keep thousands of skiers from hurting themselves and haul them off the mountain when they twist their knees or wrists, become hypothermic or otherwise need rescuing and all this for zero pay and no benefits. If you want to ski, buy a lift pass.
It's a cold, dangerous job but ski patrol volunteers love it
Quake Hits Japan's Snow Country
If spending the night on a stuck Austrian chairlift isn't bad enough Japanese skiers now have earthquakes to worry about. Since tremors shook the resort at the end of October 310,000 reservations to the "Snow Country" ski areas have been cancelled.
Tourists afraid to ski Snow Country after quake
Weak Dollar Hits Tourism
The weak dollar looks set to hit American tourism in Europe and beyond. Western Canadian ski areas are especially worried for the season ahead. The Canadian dollar is currently trading at levels not seen since 1992. Banff and Whistler have both received good early season snow but worries for the season have lead them to cut back on recruitment of season workers.
Ski hill operators fear rising Canadian dollar
Wag the Dog
Man's best friend is his dog, but not in any of Colorado state's alpine ski areas it seems. Journalist Cindy Hirschfeld investigates how you can take your pooch skiing, or even get him to do all the work and tow you along while you admire the scenery!
It's the trail wagging the dog
Ski Resort Tags Guests
Steamboat will be supplying parents and groups the MountainWatch system this season. This RF watch enables wearers to be tracked around the resort by a computer system. Parents and members of the same group can locate other wearers by using one of 6 electronic kiosks located around the resort.
Steamboat ski resort to use SafeTzone system
Strong Winds Cause Lift Chaos
Strong winds severed a cable carrying an empty gondola up one of Austria's most popular alpine ski slopes, sending the car crashing to the ground. Police said there almost certainly would have been deaths and serious injuries had anyone been aboard the gondola.
Empty Mountain Ski Gondola Falls after Cable Snaps In Soelden rescue workers mounted a dramatic day-long operation to bring 113 skiers to safety after another gondola became stranded on a cable suspended high over the Soelden ski resort at around 3000 meters. The operation, which took place at nightfall in bitterly cold temperatures, lasted eight hours because the high winds prevented authorities from using a helicopter. Rescuers lowered stranded passengers down on ropes over 50 meters distance one at at time. No injuries were reported.
Strong winds were also blamed for the derailment of the drive cable of the Tignes Grande Motte cable car on Friday. 90 skiers had to be winched to safety via trap doors on the bottom of the car in an operation lasting 2h20.
Ninety evacuated from Tignes Cable Car
Tower Block Planned for Davos
The owner's of Davos' Schatzalp (magic mountain) are planning a huge tower block which will dominate the resort. Until now Schatzalp has housed an art-nouveau style hotel and a couple of ski and a sledge run. However in 200
Schatzalp went bust. The area was taken over by Puis App and Erich Schmid and the new owners believe this development is the only way to make the area profitable.
Schatzalp Tower
How to be a Ski Bum
f you have ever dreamt of taking time out and becoming a ski bum, then a winter spent working in Whistler or Chamonix holds a lot of allure - you can make money doing it and even qualify as an instructor. It's not just an option for gap-year students either, but anyone who wants a career break or a change of direction.
How to be a Ski Bum - Observer.co.uk
Pyrénées Resorts Set to Open
It is not just the Western United states that are being blessed with excellent early season conditions. According to the comments at the bottom of this
French Snow Report three French resorts in the Pyrénées are set to open next weekend. Of course it all depends on conditions and temperatures during the week but it may be worth looking for cheap flights to Toulouse. Fresh snow is expected to relieve the drought in the Alps at the end of next week but it looks touch and go for the early season there.
Barèges on Thursday
Killington Launches season in NE USA
The 2004/2005 ski season in the Northeast has started. Killington kranked its K-1 Gondola and the North Ridge Triple Chair into life on the Nov. 9. With temperatures well below freezing Killington was showing it its snowmaking system one of the largest in North America.
Northeast ski season officially opens
Ninety evacuated from Tignes Cable Car
The tractor cable of the Grande Motte Cable Car in Tignes derailed today at 3,400 meters as the cabin approached a pylon according to the lift company, The Société des téléphériques de la Grande-Motte (STGM). The cabin was destabilised by a very strong gust of wind. The director of the STGM said he'd never seen such a strong wind from the east. The cabin was some 20 to 25 meters above the glacier when it the drive cable came off the pulleys. The cabin remained attached to the main cable and was in no danger of falling according to the lift company.
Grande Motte cable car after an earlier incidentThere were no injuries but the skiers had to be lowered down by ropes through trap doors in the cabin in an operation lasting a little of two hours. The cable car will be out of use for at least a week for repairs and inspection. Only the summer ski area is open at the moment and this will remain open thanks to the drag lifts.
Related Story:
Grande Motte Cable Car Closed
Drop in Turnover at French Ski Company
Turnover at French ski business, the
Compagnie des Alpes has dropped 1.5% to 372.3 millions Euros over the last 12 months. Over the last quarter has seen sales drop by 0.6% to 77.9 million Euros. However the part of the business linked to ski domains remains dynamic with a growth of 5.1%. The growth was impressive for the resorts of
les Arcs (+11 %), Peisey-Vallandry (+15 %) and
La Plagne (+7 %) which have benefitted from the creation of the huge Paradiski ski area. Courmayeur, Les Menuires and Samoëns also posted good results.
The CdA has diversified out of winter sports domains in recent years and It seems to be the family theme park activities that dragged the results town. These account for 34% of the business and contracted by 1%. CdA says poor summer weather and difficult economic conditions over last summer was partly to blame. The German and Belgium sites contracted by 11%. CdA will pay 0.8 Euros per share in December.
www.compagniedesalpes.com
French Resort Faces Closure
Despite good pre-season snow over the last few days the small Pyrenean resort of Artouste, close to the atlantic coast, faces an uncertain future. The mayor looks set to announce the closure of the resort after negotiations were suspended with Altiservice, a company specialising in managing ski areas. Local businesses are worried about their future if the resort fails to open.
Artouste Stares into the AbyssRelated Article:
French Resort 'Sexes-Up' Name
Kaprun Funicular Memorial
To mark the fourth anniversary of the Kaprun funicular fire tomorrow Austrian President Heinz Fischer and other dignitaries will dedicate the memorial in a private ceremony with relatives of the victims. The memorial, costing some $463,000 is said to be elegant but sombre. It is a stone building with 155 glass columns, one for each of the skiers and snowboarders killed when fire engulfed a crowded alpine cable car on Nov. 11, 2000.
Austria Commemorates Alpine Ski Disaster
French Resort 'Sexes-Up' Name
Sexing up the name of ski resorts to attract a new, hip clientelle is a trick almost as old as the hills. Just after the second world war Le Tovets became
Courchevel 1850 The name was worthy of the faux rock band Spinal Tap - 1850 was chosen becase it was 100 meters higher than arch rivals
Val d'Isère even though no part of the resort was higher than 1827 meters. Further south La Morte (the dead lady) transformed into
l'alpe du Grande Serre (prairie of the big greenhouse).
Now Orcierès-Merlettes is trying it on. From this season the resort will officially be known as Orcierès 1850. It is fair to say that Orcierès has something of an image problem. The infrastructure is dated, the Drouvet chair was buit by Pomagalski in 1962. The snow cover of this south facing resort, oft buffeted by the harsh
brafougne (Mistral) wind, is uncertain and the block-house style architecture without barely a tree to break the skyline conjures up thoughts of
magnificent desolation. The resort merits its nickname of
sorcieres skelettes (witches and skeletons) although new owners Remy Loisirs will be hoping that fresh investment in lifts and snowmaking and this name change will improve the fortunes of the resort.
website:
www.orcieres.comRelated:
French Ski Resorts Go Upmarket
La Rosiere adds new Chairs
The resort of La Rosiere in the French Tarantaise (Savoie) Alps is adding two new high speed six seater chairs for this season. These will be built by French/Italian constructor Pomagalkski.
La Rosière Adds Two Six Seat ChairsRelated Story:
French Ski Investment Breaks Records
Val Thorens Opens Ice Driving Circuit
Val Thorens Ice Driving School open the highest ice circuit in Europe this month. Courses aimed at first time individual drives cover everything from general ice driving to competition driving and use race cars similar to those in the Trophée Andros.
Val Thoren´s new ice driving cicuit is the highest in Europe
Colorado Ski Bums Move Upmarket
The image of the ski bumb is a long haired, badly shaved guy living the winter in a VW camper but today's bum in Colorado's high country are living in plush recreational vehicles and are anything but young. A real case of SKIing (Spending the Kids Inheritance).
Ski Bums older, wealthier
US Skiers go Extreme
A growing group of expert outdoorsmen and women seek the thrill of racing down slopes of virgin snow deep in the wilderness, whether it be on skis, snowboards or snowmobiles. Some, bored with the groomed slopes at ski resorts, are drawn by the thrill of danger in the backcountry — particularly
avalanches — while others simply want to test their skill.
Extreme skiing heads off the groomed trails
Cuchara, Tx: Ghost Resort?
Some resorts were purely speculative developements, others have been hit by climate change. Cuchara in Texas seems to mix both aspects of what makes up a ghost ski domain. Opened in the Texas hills close to New Mexico the resort has been dormant for nine seasons since opening in 1981 as Pandero. Texas isn't everyone's first choice for skiing and the windstorms can strip snow from the slopes leaving it with hardly any skiable snow but cuchara's problems were compounded when one of the owners absconded with local money and season-pass deposits
Still the current owners say they have big plans to restart operations.
Fickle forecast for Cuchara
Online Shop for Backcountry Launched
Big Mountain Sports, Inc. of Utah is pleased to announce the arrival of its new website www.randogear.com. Randogear.com is the first retail site dedicated exclusively to the sales and distribution of randonnee and alpine touring ski gear in the U.S. Carrying a variety of brands and labels, randogear.com is proud to offer randonnee ski gear from the biggest names in the business – Black Diamond, Dynafit, Silvretta, Naxo, Fritschi, K2, and Voile. Randogear.com is so focused on getting you the gear you need for randonnee skiing that we offer a FREE product with almost every product we sell – Free climbing skins when you buy skis, free ski poles when you buy bindings, and more. We also ship everything for FREE!
RandoGear.comcall toll-free 1-866-680-0872.
French Ski Investment Breaks Records
Fed up with French lft lines and poor snow. Well it seems resorts are taking action. Investments in
French ski resorts broke all records last season totalling 348.5 million euros, an increase of 7.5% compared to 2003. 60% of the cash went into improving ski lifts, 20% snow making and 20% work on ski runs enabling skiing at lower snow depths. Ski lift receipts have increased over the last 7 years, increasing from 618 million euros in 1997 to 919.5 million euros in 2004. France hopes to overtake Austrian ski areas this year.
80% of the investment was in the Alps, the big ski resorts budget 24% of their turnover for improvements. However for small resorts this figure rises to closer to 50% in order to keep up, but this is only possible because they receive
state and european aid.
The Vosges is worrying professionals where only 17% of receipts are reinvested. 69 new lifts were built this winter, including the Marmottes III at
l'Alpe d'Huez. 26 high speed six seater chairs were built. Pomagalski has 62% of the French market followed by Dopplemayer (17%) and Leitner (16%), the remaining 5% is shared by other lift makers.
Brits invent Ski Scooter
It looks like one of those scooters that mini-skirted lawyers used to travel to work on a couple of years back, but this one is fitted with a skid for snow and has won a couple of awards at the British Invention Show attracting the interest of manufacturers. It remains to be seen if the lifties will let you use them.
The Ski Rider
Snowbird Opens for Winter
Snowbird in Utah is starting the season with 60 inches of base, five of its 11 lifts are open. The early start is important for Snowbird, and the ski industry in Utah. The conditions were good,and there was nothing bad you could say about the weather: clear, sunny, and just cool enough.
Snowbird Opens For Winter Ski Season
Alternative to Snow Canons?
Many US resorts, including Vail Mountain and nearby Beaver Creek swear by it. Cloud seeding, while an inexact science, might offer the two ski areas a far cheaper way to bring on the white stuff than the costly, water-guzzling practice of snowmaking. But only a handful of Colorado ski resorts attempt to cover all their bases - or their slopes - by doing both.
Snowmaking tool or hocus-pocus?Cloud Seeding
Ski Resort Auctioned on eBay
Fed up with grumpy lifties, queues and high prices. Why not buy your own resort? We'll you are almost spoilt for choice with two ski areas up for sale in the USA.
A Vermont Ski Resort that has been closed for a few years is being auctioned on eBay by Granger Real Estate. It includes a 16,000 SF base lodge, 4,000' & 3,000' chair lifts, T-bar, tube lift, 16+ trails, night skiing, gravel pit, snow guns and water piping, river pumps for snowmaking, 300 & 250 KVW generators, skis, boots, boards, a groomer and so much more.
400 ACRE VERMONT SKI RESORT on eBay
Meanwhile over in New York State the 'lost' Snow Bowl ski area, owned by St. Lawrence University is now up for sale. The alpine and nordic area operated from the mid 1940s until 1982, when it was abandoned due to budget cuts.
SnowBowl
Loose Shoelace Saves Man's Life
Two Montana mountain climbers were killed when an avalanche swept them off Sphinx Mountain southwest Montana on the 30th October. The party of three were traversing the north face of the mountain by crossing several small steep bowls and slopes. One member of the party stopped to tie up a shoelace. Rounding the next bend he saw to his horror that his two buddies had been swept over 200 foot high cliffs by an avalanche. One of the men had been killed by the fall, the other was seriously injured and died some time later. Rescuers had to leave the bodies due to the risk of fresh slides. On October 31st, Madison County Search and Rescue and U.S. Forest Service personnel retrieved the bodies of the two men..
The Avalanche Scene at Sphinx Mountain
The Avalanche CenterSphinx Mountain Avalanche – 10/30/04
Kiwi Conquers Cook
Dare devil extreme free skier Todd Windle completed his free ski descent of Mt Cook, New Zealand’s highest mountain on Monday afternoon. Windle who recently returned from Tibet had spent the last two weeks on the mountain scouting out lines and waiting for perfect conditions.to descend one of the most treacherous parts of the mountain.
Todd Windle conquers Mt Cook descent
Cold Winter for Freeze Magazine
After the death of
2FreeSki magazine it looks like Freeze is facing hard times. Its parent company TransWorld Media (TWM) has decided to stop publication from January 2005. This will mean redundancies for the Freeze staffers as well as director of marketing and business development Mike Jaquet and vice president of marketing and sales Allen Crolius.
Freeze Liftie of the Month
Aimed squarely at the youth market, its 'liftie of the month' interview (always female) was a favorite but while it was credited with rejuvenating interest in skiing amongst younger people commentators feel that its busy insider feel was past is sell by date. According to a TWM VP Freeze was having difficulty hitting its circulation targets due to its narrow niche. TransWorld has decided to concentrate on its mainstream publications: Ski and Skiing Magazines.
Freeze MagazineTransWorld Puts Freeze on Ice - discussion on Teton Gravity
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