Igluski.com Latest Ski News

Team GB Welcome New Airbag To UK

2013-05-08

Without natural snow and high altitude locations in the UK, it makes it difficult for Team GB to get in practice for the upcoming Winter Olympics… until now!

A giant airbag that was manufactured by the Canadian company Katal, was made to simulate a real jump and provide a shaped landing surface. Making its debut in UK it will be based at the Chill Factore in Manchester, before being taken to other indoor and dry slopes around the country. This project has been funded by Sport England and could not have come at a better time, with the 2014 Winter Olympics just around the corner.

Such airbags are important due to the often difficult training conditions of British freeskiers and snowboarders. Ski tricks can be dangerous so being able to try them on the airbag before taking to the snow is becoming vital, especially as tricks are progressing.

Pat Sharples, the GB Freeski head coach said "Having our own air bag in the UK will be hugely productive as this is the perfect way to safely help develop our young up and coming skiers and snowboarders hone their techniques and continue to drive the journey from homegrown grassroots sport to the top of the international podium. This is a massive step forward for our grassroots programs and UK based training camps."

The 2014 Winter Olympics will take place in Sochi, Russia and begin on 7th February, so being just eight months away it is vital our athletes get all the practice they can. After London 2012 there is even more excitement for Team GB to be as successful at the Winter Olympics. It has been reported that the team has some realistic medal chances at Sochi, so the airbag is a huge benefit for them during the next few months.

Source: PlanetSKI

Image Copyright of: Merinet.com

Skiing War Heroes Honoured

2013-04-26

Skiing heroes of World War Two were honoured in London yesterday.

Joachim Ronneberg, the last surviving member of an operation to sabotage Nazi heavy water production in 1943, attended the remembrance ceremony at the SOE memorial on Embankment.

The success of the raid made it impossible for the Nazis to build an atomic bomb, altering the course of World War Two.

The operation, code named Gunnerside, captured the public imagination with the 1965 film The Heroes of Telemark, starring Kirk Douglas.

Two gliders of Royal Engineers were initially sent to carry the raid, but the gliders crashed in bad weather and the survivors were captured and executed by the Germans. In February 1943, a smaller group of six Norwegian commandoes were parachuted into the wilderness to carry out the mission.

Skiing was a vital part of the operation. The Norwegian commandos skied to the factory in Telemark, planted explosives and escaped to Sweden on skis, being chased for a fortnight over 250 miles by 3000 German troops and the Luftwaffe. Ronneberg nonchalantly described their extraction from occupied Norway as “The very best skiing weekend I ever had”.

Such a phlegmatic approach to danger was greatly approved of by the British, who gave Lieutenant Ronneberg the Distinguished Service Order for gallantry. Ronneberg said he was glad to come to the ceremony in London, which gave him “a chance to remember my friends”.

“Somehow, we were lucky all the way”.

So if you need to destroy an enemy deuterium oxide plant deep in occupied territory, skiing clearly a crucial skill to have.

By Bernard Goyder

Morzine and Avoriaz Link Improved with Super-Fast Lift

2013-04-23

Morzine has opened a new lift, vastly increasing capacity on the crucial Prodains Express that links Morzine with Avoriaz. The old Prodains Express chairlift is fifty years old, a relic of a more rarefied era. The new lift will whisk skiers, hikers and mountain bikers up to Avoriaz from the Morzine valley in a speedy four minutes.

The project has cost the Portes de Soleil €25 million. Thomas Moulton, who ran a chalet in Morzine before becoming a senior member of our sales team, views this as money well spent: "The new lift brings Morzine up to speed with its rivals in France, like Val d’Isere-Tignes and Meribel-Courchevel, which tend to have a more up to date lift systems than the Portes de Soleil".

Updating the Prodains Express is an important step in the process of boosting the popularity of Morzine as a world class ski destination. But Morzine has the advantage over rivals of not being as reliant on snow to function as a mountain adventure holiday resort. Legions of mountain bikers that head to the Portes de Soleil over the summer season, making the most of the extensive lift system.

The new lift will have considerably enhanced carrying capacity for both skiers and mountain bikers, taking over 2000 people an hour up the mountain, compared to 450 per hour for the old lift. As Mr Moulton says "this is an excellent investment in the future of Morzine".

By Bernard Goyder

More Spring Snow

2013-04-15

The snowman is back from carving up the Spring snow in the Trois Vallees and is happy to report excellent snow conditions for the final weeks of the season.

Switzerland has an incredible amount of powder due for late April, with Andermatt and Zermatt forecast astonishingly high snow levels, while the snow magnet that is Saas Fee is forecast 30cm over the next week.

Andermatt 33cm
Crans Montana 10cm
Davos 17cm
Engleberg 29cm
Saas Fee 30cm
Samnaun 24cm
St Moritz 17cm
Verbier 9cm
Wengen 17cm
Zermatt 27cm

France has a little snow on the way, but sunshine is the main theme of the week, with numerous bluebird days ahead. For the best of last week's powder, head to Val Thorens, Tignes and La Plagne.

Alpe d'Huez 0cm
Avoriaz 4cm
Courchevel 2cm
Chamonix 6cm
La Plagne 3cm
Les Arcs 4cm
Meribel 1cm
Tignes 5cm
Val D'Isere 6cm
Val Thorens 1cm

Italy is due for the final sprinkling of the season, with the highest resorts Cervinia and Livignio forecast some of the best snow in Europe.

Arabba 5cm
Cervinia 19cm
Champoluc 8cm
La Thuile
Livigno 19cm
Sauze d'Oulx 13cm
Selva 16cm

Austria is really where it's at this week, with massive dumps in the main resorts. St Anton is due 23cm next week to keep the party going, while 24cm are on way in Solden and Ischgl.

Alpbach 6cm
Ischgl 24cm
Lech 18cm
Mayrhofen 7cm
Obergurgl 20cm
Saalbach 6cm
St Anton 23cm
Solden 24m
Söll 6cm
Zell Am See/Kaprun 5cm

Skiers and boarders, enjoy these golden final weeks of the season, with skiing until 5.00pm and plentiful outdoor apres in the April sunshine. If you are quick, grab the chance to book the final spaces in the Chalet Cherrier in the centre of Val d'Isere at £349pp with catering, flights and transfers. And with next years deals now on sale, it is the perfect time to grab a great price for next year. See you next season.

The Snowman

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It's Still Snowing And Isn't Stopping

2013-04-12

This week has seen some amazing powder days on the slopes with even some veterans here in the office going as far to say that it's the best spring snow they can recall. These pics from our pals at YSE in Val d'Isere spell it out nice and clear. Stop reading this for a second and just — look — at — them. Sensational conditions.

The reason the slopes have held up so well is the half a metre of fresh pow we’ve enjoyed during the week. Add this to the cold temperatures still being experienced in the mountains and you end up with mouth-watering conditions.

So what does this week hold? Well, the best of both worlds — a great snow base, a bit more powder and plenty of sunshine. That’s right, bluebird days and deep snow, it could quite easily be January.

These are our favourite kind of days to ski and it just so happens some of us will be taking a cheeky office visit out there on Sunday. We just can’t get enough of it. The slopes will be quiet, so no lift queues and no excuses not to clock up those ski miles and earn that trip to the après bar.

If you’re thinking of squeezing a final season trip in — and let’s face it, you deserve it — you need to think high altitude and head off to a glacier resort to find the best snow. The great news is the snow base on the higher slopes has not changed from last week. In fact, it’s improved.

You also get a great opportunity to snag some bargains, as store-holders in resorts try to clear the last of this season’s merchandise. Not to mention the price of the holiday itself!

Here is the breakdown of what fresh snow is predicted and the snow base to expect on those higher slopes:

France

Alpe d'Huez: 4 metres
Espace Killy (Val d'Isere, Tignes): 3 metres
Three Valleys (Val Thorens, Meribel, Courchevel): VT 3 metres Meribel & Courchevel 2 metres
Paradiski (La Plagne, Les Arcs) 2 metres
Porte De Soleil (Avoriaz, Morzine, Let Gets): Avoriaz & Morzine 3 metres Les Gets 2 metres
Les Deux Alpes: 2 metres
Chamonix: 3 metres

Austria

A futher 10cm or so is expected to fall across most Austrian resorts, whilst again Solden boasts the most at 30cm! Great conditions there.

Arlberg ski area (Lech, St Anton, Zurs) 2 metres
Solden 2 metres
Ischgl 1 metre
Obergurgl 1 metre

Italy

We’ll see even more fresh pow next week, up to 15cm due expected across Italy.

Dolomiti ski area (Arabba, Selva) Arabba 2 metres Selva 1 metre
Milky Way (Sauze, Claviere, Sestriere) 1 metre
Cervinia 3 metres
La Thuile 3 metres
Livigno 2 metres

Switzerland

Switzerland is the place again to head off to next week, with Saas Fee & Zermatt due a fantastic 20cm each. Simply wonderful skiing to be had here, they’re our pick of what’s a great bunch.

Saas Fee 3 Metres
Zermatt 2 metres
Verbier 2 metres
St Moritz 1 metre

What an unforgettable week this will be on the slopes: superb snow base, temperatures on the up — and sunshine! Every request is ticked.

Make sure you make the most of the wonderful feast put on the table this week by Mother Nature, you might not get a spring this snowy for a long long time.

The Snowman

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