Manchester snow dome

I am thinking of going to the Manchester snow dome for a lesson on mogul ski-ing, as a birthday present to myself, in June. It is a long way from here (West Wales), and will involve staying in a hotel overnight, and will probably turn into a big family outing with shopping etc.

Has anyone been there? How good are their moguls and their lessons? I've been to the one in Milton Keynes and it didn't have any moguls at all, that I could see anyway.

I am hopeless at moguls, and worried because my last ski teacher in Val Thorens said I should go up to the advanced group next ski holiday, and I know if they go down a slope with moguls I will be left miles behind, and get put back down into a lower group. If I don't improve on them before the ski holiday next year I might as well just start in the intermediate group.

Any advice much appreciated,

Ally

Hi,
I've only been once but I can't remember any moguls. I certainly wouldn't go there just for a mogul lesson, you're not on the snow long enough.
Mike

Thanks Mike,
I was planning on spending all day there, on the slope, to include a mogul lesson.

How can they do a special coaching lesson on moguls if they don't have any?

Ally

They must have moguls.

In reality a good instructor for an 'advanced' group will help you pick up mogul skiing pretty quickly as there are a number of easy tactics you can use.

I wouldn't be too concerned as they would not have suggested that you were to go to the 'advanced' group if you were not good enough, the chances are that the rest of the group will be in the same situation as you.

Chill Factore doesn't usually have moguls but they add them specially next to the right hand side lift at the same time as all the freestyle jumps, rails etc from what I can remember.

It would definitely be worth confirming when they have them as I've been there in the past when they've had a slalom course where the moguls were.

They put them up top on the right hand side away from the beginners using the slower left hand side lift.

Hope this helps you.

:-)

Hi Everyone,
This is what they say on their website:
http://www.chillfactore.com/main/Snow_Activities/Ski_Lessons-Prices/Moguls_Clinics

And, I just phoned them up to ask how many moguls they have, and the girl I was talking to said they only do the mogul clinics in the summer, and she thinks they specially build them for Mondays, because she says you can only do these special lessons on Mondays, and she thinks about half the slope is covered in moguls.

Well, I do seem to have answered my own question, and this explains why you didn't see any Mike - you wouldn't have unless you went on a Monday in the summer!

It sounds quite good to me, but they only book 2 months ahead, so I will have to remember to book in April/May.

Ally

Pablo and Clares, I've just seen your replies, thank you very much.

Pablo - the trouble is that different instructors have very different ideas about the levels, in my experience anyway. And I'd much prefer to be fairly competent on the different types of slope before the lessons start next year, in case I get a mean sarcastic sort of instructor. It may be pathetic of me, but I hate being criticised. I always try my best in my lessons, but sometimes it takes me a while to learn something new.

Last year, I skied Upper Intermediate at La Rosiere in lessons in the morning and the afternoon. I coped fine in the morning, but the afternoon instructor was ski-ing really fast, more like advanced level I thought, and I got kicked out back down to lower intermediate, which was too easy for me really.

And the holiday I've just finished, at Val Thorens, ski-ing level 2 with Prosneige, the morning instructor was really great and I could do everything she asked (including small moguls), and she promoted me up to 'advanced', or group 3, for next year. But my afternoon teacher expected me to ski huge moguls on a very steep bit of off piste, which I couldn't do, and he said I should stay at the same level next year.

Clare, thank you very much. What a strange place the snow dome at Manchester must be! Slalom courses and moguls that come and go, whatever next. They must have some very busy scene shifters, or whatever they call themselves.

Ally

Hi - I went there not long after it opened and was really impressed. To be honest the short run and constant sticking your paper pass into the reader got a bit tiresome, but believe me next to the Snowzone in Milton Keynes where I went at half term just gone it was BRILLIANT...

which probably just means that Snozone was miserable and Chill Factore (marketing geniuses at work in both, judging by the naming) was OK...