Snow Sports Thread 2019-20
- Thread starter kaptainmarc
- Start date
Caporegime
Bad dad, you don't let an 11 year old go anywhere on their own and you don't make general rules that you are OK if the kid breaks. He is so so lucky that his child is still alive and it would have been his fault if he wasn't.
Just back from my week of skiing in Val d'isere! What an incredible experience! I'd been to the snow centre a few times so I could get my skis on, and snow plough turn and stop but I also booked private lessons for 3 days I was away too. Ended up happy on blues on day 3 and then by the last day we went up on the grand motte glacier and did a couple of the easier red runs which I was really pleased with. Can't wait to go back now. 
Associate
Coronavirus cancellations have made this place a ghost town. Snow is pretty good and no lift lines. Feels like 8 years ago.
Caporegime
Planning a week in france or austria in a week and a half but waiting until the last minute to make sure we don't get cancelled on unexpectedly. Fingers crossed for cheap prices and no people!
Don
Can get a chalet holiday next week in Alpe d’houze for £400, a saving of £900.
Associate
- Joined
- 23 Oct 2013
- Posts
- 1,206
Came back from Alpe D'Huez last weekend - was a mixed week of 6 foot visibility and bad wind 1 day and pretty good powder the next, rinse and repeat. Probably some of the best powder I've ridden in the Alps in a good few years (to the point I was annoyed I took a park board and not a powder one).
Flight back was a bit subdued/odd with the virus panic.
Got/had a family week away to St Anton leaving next sat, but this evening I've seen it's closing for the season this weekend. So, now I need to get a refund and work out if it's worth trying anything else. It's a shame, but in some respects it's good to know it's not going to happen instead of the "will it, won't it" uncertainty over the last few days. My kid has only just started nursery ~5 weeks ago, so we've all had on/off colds for the last 4 weeks, so I was half fearing being turned away at the airport anyway...
Flight back was a bit subdued/odd with the virus panic.
Got/had a family week away to St Anton leaving next sat, but this evening I've seen it's closing for the season this weekend. So, now I need to get a refund and work out if it's worth trying anything else. It's a shame, but in some respects it's good to know it's not going to happen instead of the "will it, won't it" uncertainty over the last few days. My kid has only just started nursery ~5 weeks ago, so we've all had on/off colds for the last 4 weeks, so I was half fearing being turned away at the airport anyway...
Associate
Current in Les Arcs 1950, place is busy and no news of any closures yet. Due to fly back Sunday via Geneva so hopefully make it back without too much hassle.
Don
That's the french ski season over, along with Italy, Austria and Switzerland.
Don
Vail resorts now closing, they say for a week but that’ll be it for the season.
All Colorado resorts as well.
All Colorado resorts as well.
Soldato
Just got back from Bankso with my workmates and it seems it was very good timing as it's touch and go whether they'll close the resort. Also good timing as they'd had terrible snow and then had a massive 2 day dump just after we arrived, followed by some true bluebird days, skiing through the odd cloud.
Broke my new boots in with some nice Fischer RC4's I hired and had a very productive 6 days on the snow. When I arrived last year in January I'd never skied, but after 6 days there, 2.5 days in Austria and 0.5 days in an indoor slope since, these 6 days I:
- realised how much difference a well-fitting boot makes (as well as skis that respond to good technique)
- actually got onto my edges and made some half decent carved turns
- relaxed and separated upper body clicked a bit more
- skied every run in the resort without any nerves, including the black runs
- started to get the hang of doing flat 360s
- can ski bumps a bit better
- got to watch some pro women do slalom practice on the Tomba (the big black run), so inspiring seeing people appear to effortlessly get super high edge angles and get almost horizontal
Pretty damn happy and addicted to this sport!
Does anyone have some good recs for a hardshell jacket? Even though my regular jacket isn't heavily insulated, that + my base layer made me sweat half my bodyweight away on the warm days so I need something thinner if I do anything next March.
Broke my new boots in with some nice Fischer RC4's I hired and had a very productive 6 days on the snow. When I arrived last year in January I'd never skied, but after 6 days there, 2.5 days in Austria and 0.5 days in an indoor slope since, these 6 days I:
- realised how much difference a well-fitting boot makes (as well as skis that respond to good technique)
- actually got onto my edges and made some half decent carved turns
- relaxed and separated upper body clicked a bit more
- skied every run in the resort without any nerves, including the black runs
- started to get the hang of doing flat 360s
- can ski bumps a bit better
- got to watch some pro women do slalom practice on the Tomba (the big black run), so inspiring seeing people appear to effortlessly get super high edge angles and get almost horizontal
Pretty damn happy and addicted to this sport!
Does anyone have some good recs for a hardshell jacket? Even though my regular jacket isn't heavily insulated, that + my base layer made me sweat half my bodyweight away on the warm days so I need something thinner if I do anything next March.
Soldato
Aaaaand just got carried away and bought one of the last few retail pairs of 2019-2020 Head Supershape i.Speed skis - can worry about buying poles and a case later but now my boots and helmet have company!
Don
Hotel at Glen Coe is busy tonight, I think folks had the same idea I had after their holidays were cancelled for this week.
Soldato
i.Speeds arrived! God knows when I’ll actually get to try them out but in the meantime I’ll just stare at them admiringly and laugh at how they have a visible circuit chip at the back of each ski (KERS). Need some poles now and a case - thinking of getting a Sportube because I like the idea of a proper protective shell given how often I’ve seen baggage handlers launching stuff.
(KERS)The K.E.R.S. (or Kinetic Energy Release System) is one of the technologies found on these skis. What is it? It’s a “chip” (not like a computer chip) that stores kinetic energy caused by flexing the ski and releases this energy at the end of the turn by stiffening the tails. Here’s how it works. When you start carving and enter a turn the ski bends and creates kinetic energy. This power is stored in the chip. At the end of your turn, when the forces applied to the skis start diminishing, the chip releases the stored energy into fibers along the tail. This stiffens them and gives you a small boost into your next turn.
Associate
- Joined
- 23 Oct 2013
- Posts
- 1,206
Head did/does the same with their snowboards - a chip visible to "store and release the energy built up by flexing the board". Erm... batteries and capacitors store and release charge, not a chip... so I've always called it marketing BS. The materials, design and build of the board will likely influence the ride more than a chip moulded into the fiberglass.
Enjoy the new toys when you can - I'm sure they'll be great, but I'm unsure if it's those chips...
Soldato
I primarily got them because they’re on the approved list for the particular school of ski technique I’m interested in, as the design is conducive for executing said technique more efficiently due to things like the very narrow waist of the ski.
Goals:
I was going to wait but alas Head’s 2020-2021 skis are apparently a turn for the worse and these were on sale, so grabbed them at a nice discount before they were gone, since the other recommended skis are a lot harder to get in the UK.
Goals:
I was going to wait but alas Head’s 2020-2021 skis are apparently a turn for the worse and these were on sale, so grabbed them at a nice discount before they were gone, since the other recommended skis are a lot harder to get in the UK.