The Ski Blog

Top Tips for Skiing in a White Out

After the one of the best starts to the ski season for several years, it looks like 2011 will be going out with a bang! Many alpine ski resorts are expecting something in the region of 80 - 110cms of snow over the next 3 days. There are already record snow depths, great conditions and snow cover even in lower resorts.

This all means that Europe is well and truly set up for this ski season!

If you're going to be skiing when the snow is falling and the fog is closing in around you take a look through our top tips for skiing when visibility is limited.

1. Wear goggles not glasses. Goggles really are the best kind of eyewear for white out conditions. If you really must wear glasses then look for glasses with interchangeable lenses. When skiing in heavy snowfall you will usually be experiencing "flat light" - this is when you can't make out any contours of the snow beneath you. Red, pink or orange/yellow tinted lenses will help.

2. Ski/board where there's trees. Skiing above approximately 1800-2000m (in Europe) means that you'll be skiing above the treeline. So there are fewer "landmarks" around to provide definition to your surroundings. Staying a bit lower, in and around tree-lined areas help to provide that definition so it will be easier to see where you're going.

3. Keep the piste markers in sight. If you're high up and in very thick fog it can be disorientating. Keeping sight of the piste markers at the edge of the piste will guide you. Piste markers on the right hand side of the piste have orange or yellow tips - whilst those on the opposite side are all one colour ie the colour of the piste; red, blue, green etc.

4. Do not venture off piste. It may be tempting when you know that there's untracked powder all around you, but as a general rule of thumb in poor visibility - stick to what you know. Foggy, white-out weather means you can't see holes, bumps, rocks, drop offs. Fresh snowfall can easily disguise hazards. If you don't know the area - and even if you think you do - stay on piste.

5. Buddy up. It's always best not to ski alone in extreme white out conditions - at the very least make sure you let people know where you're going.

There can be some great aspects to skiing in a white out. The first few piste runs are often the best of the day - a layer of fresh snow on top of a smoothly pisted run can be the closest thing to heaven on a foggy, snowy day. Get there before anyone else and you'll have had the best skiing of the day!

After that it's also a great opportunity to work on your technique and will provide challenges that you won't get on a sunny, blue sky day.

We all love fairweather skiing - but white out skiing and snowboarding is just as much part of the mountain experience. It's just Mother Nature reminding us who's boss!

 

Pre-Season Equipment Check

With your cardiovascular and core strength work-outs well under way, it's that time of year again to start thinking about the dreaded commute to the airport with all your luggage and equipment. Before it all gets packed away in the ski bags though, it's well worth a check over so as to not let you down when you're skiing and spoil your holiday.

via skiblog.chaletsdirect.com

With many people about to set off for their first ski holiday of the season we thought it a good time to re-post this great blog from Mark Gear, Chamonix ski guru from All Mountain Performance.
How to make sure your gear is in shape for hitting the slopes!

To see the full post click here!

Quick tips for Driving in Snowy Conditions

Ski resorts all over Europe are expecting their first big influx of holidaymakers over the next few days. At the same time they are also expecting massive snowfalls - around 40cms and more is forecast for many alpine resorts to fall in a short space of time.

If you're driving out to resort or are picking up a hire car at the airport then chances are that you could be required to stop and put on snowchains, so we've got together a few tips which will hopefully come in useful.

1. Firstly make sure you have chains/snow socks etc. If you're driving out to the Alps it is obligatory to have some kind of snow equipment available. If you're buying them for your own car check your manual so you know the tyre spec, if you're using a hire car make sure the rental company has provided them - check before booking and check again when you pick up the car.

2. Make sure you know how to fit them. It really makes sense to do a practice run at home on your driveway. There's few things worse than having to stop halfway up a mountain road as night is falling, trying to make sense of a flimsy paper instruction leaflet when the snow is coming down and said instruction leaflet is quickly disintegrating. Having a couple of dry runs, if you can, in more comfortable ambient temperatures in full daylight, with the prospect of popping inside for a cup of tea afterwards, can make all the difference.

If you're hiring a car at the airport it's worth opening up the chains before you set off and having a good look through so you're at least more familiar with them should the need arise to use them.

3. Dress for the occasion. If you're driving out from home it really makes sense to put an old jacket in the car - one that you don't mind getting dirty or wet. Putting snow chains on can be messy - so avoid wearing your brand new white ski jacket. It's also worth having something you can kneel on - again something old which you can put on the ground which will save your knees getting wet. If you're fly-driving then check the weather and road conditions before you fly so you can anticipate what to wear.

4. Know your car. This might seem obvious but, as seasoned mountain drivers will tell you, it's not unusual to see rear wheel drive cars with chains on the front and vice versa. So just make sure you know which set of wheels should be chained!

5. Other useful equipment to have in the car include a head-torch which frees up both hands so you can fit the chains and still see what you're doing. Fingerless or thin gloves will also be useful.

6. It's important to fit chains sooner rather than later. Don't wait until you're stuck as you'll have less room to manoeuvre. If you have standard summer tyres then it is highly likely that you will need chains on a snowy road. If you see snow on the road then start thinking about stopping to fit chains, as you gain in altitude the snow on the road will increase. If the road is clear then you don't need chains.

We've found a useful youTube video below - and there are lots more available - so spend sometime planning and researching.

If you are heading out this weekend we'd like to wish you a comfortable and safe journey - and it will be worth it when you get there!

Snow, Snow, Snow

Meribel - La Chaudanne at 1400m - http://livecam.meribel-alpina.com/

Yes it's been a warm, dry autumn in the Alps - but it's not the first time and it more than likely won't be the last. But now snow and cold, wet weather has descended across the Alps and, with maybe a brief respite here and there, it looks set to stay for a while.

Whilst the European ski industry was holding its breath and it's certainly come late this year, the late snowfall means that many resorts will be able to stick to the plan of opening this weekend 10th December.

Forecasts are also looking great - lots of snow across the whole alpine region today and tomorrow, a slight lull for the later part of the week and then a possible return after the weekend.

The reports in some of the UK press yesterday were certainly ironic - as they were spreading the gloomy message of sunshine and barren pistes, snow was dumping. Across twitter and facebook snowy photos and weather reports were being posted almost hourly. So to celebrate we've rounded up a few webcam pics from this morning that are sure to brighten up everyone's day!

Tignes - see the latest webcam at: http://www.tignes.net/en/skiing-in-tignes/webcams-290.html

Verbier http://panorama.simwatch.ch/index.php?id_webcam=3

 

 Argentiere at 1200m - http://www.chamonix.com/webcam,12,en.html

Pic sent to us by Heather at Ice and Fire - from Plagne Village, La Plagne

As Heather from Ice and Fire told us today:

"It’s often a bit of a gamble booking early season but get it right and you will have empty pistes and freshly groomed snow that stays nice and firm.....Over the last few days we have seen heavy snow falls down to the resorts and the temperatures have been dropping steadily. Over the next few days we are expecting a huge 40-50cm of fresh snow and it is currently snowing all the way down to Bourg Saint Maurice which is at the bottom of the valley. The piste bashers are hard at work preparing the pistes and the final preparations are being made by the lift company to get ready for the opening on the 10th December."

Thanks for the great news! It's looking like it could be a very white Christmas!