Messages posted by : admin
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Laura - no, sorry I don't actually behave like Ozzy (as in Osbourne - not an Antipodean!) and my family are largely functional... (;^)
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Hmm, presumably the conversational abilities of Ozzy, ability to ski whilst drinking and presence of entirely dysfunctional family will be an advantage??? %-6 |
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A recent tragedy at Meribel (<a href="http://www.pistehors.com/weblog?id=P214" target="_blank">described here at pistehors.com</a>) has provoked a debate as to whether or not off-piste hazards should be marked (or be required to be).
My own feel is that it's just not practical; that's the essence of off-piste isn't it? You take responsibility for yourself and recognize that you're away from the beaten track. Many mountains have off-piste areas so vast they couldn't possibly be completely marked (at least not without great risk to the ski patrol). The best route to safety is surely education, but I think there is a responsibility on resort operators to make the dangers of off-piste ever more apparent. The popularity of boarding (and the relative rapidity with which one can gain the ability to handle powder) plus the explosion of mid-fat and fat skis leads ever more people off the pistes, without necessarily having the opportunity to properly understand the dangers. What do other people think? Leave it as is? Educate more? Require skiers to pass an off-piste driving test??? What? |
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Hey, Mac? You back? Was it good??? 8) Full SP please (and interested to know how you progressed too!). |
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Hmm, beats me! On some page refreshes I see your jester, and sometimes I don't... I shall slap the programmer, or give him some more fish or something. <img src="http://www.stopstart.freeserve.co.uk/smilie/jesterlol.gif"> |
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Well... it all depends... 8)
A lot of people like Val d'Isere, and some don't. Very briefly: Plus points:It's generally well connected with good, modern lifts (with some surprising exceptions) and a big ski area. And it's pretty snow sure, being fairly high. Transport connections are good, and a reliable ski bus service connects the different area. Minus points:Poorly graded beginners runs ("Greens" with moguls?), and "Expert" runs spread out all over the place (it's a great place for intermediates and those who like to cruise!). Generally high prices (e.g. 3Euro for a can of drink), especially at peak times. Too many lager-skiers. Tick-the-box-run 1: The Face, Black run returning to the village. Pretty easy (for a Black) except for the top of the final section which can be icy, bumby and narrow. Ski it early in the day, with fresh snow, and it's wonderful. Avoid it late in the day - half a mountain of over-tired intermediates make it their last run down, scrape all the snow off, get stuck, can't see the bumps in the fading light, fall over each other and... etc. Tick-the-box-run 2: The downhill competition run - marked as a Red and worth doing just to see if you can get within 20 minutes of the average race time! Caution: There is a lot of off-piste that looks very enticing, and can make for great skiing. Much of it is prone to avalanche so always check the risk level for the area you're hoping to ride in - and don't venture far from the piste without a guide. So, depends what you want really... |
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Hmm, interesting one this. It does seem that Carvers, in particular, have centrally fixed bindings. That makes sense I guess, as the curve from tip to tail will be constant and the pressure point being central will require less effort.
But, but, but... my Screams have around 47cm of ski behind the heel binding, and about 70cm ahead of the front. I would guess it has something to do with a compromise on "floatation" (or whatever the ski-related term is). When in softer stuff or blasting over crud you definitely want more area in front to keep the tips up. But given that Carvers are really aimed at piste work, they're made to be the absolute easiest to pressure into the carve? I'm guessing really... we got any ski designers around? |
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Just pulled my Screams out of their tube to measure them (see Mac Daddy's thread), where they were safely stored this last month. You'd think yer spare room would be a reasonable place to keep them, no? ... ugh, no.
They were quite close to a draughty window, and close to where we hang our washing to dry. So, nice cold draught on skis equals nice cold surface to condense water onto, dripping all down the edges and making 'em rusty! x) Not a happy bunny. Why didn't I just hang 'em on the wall like I was going to? Beware the sanctuary of your spare room! Hidden dangers there are... |
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