Messages posted by : OldAndy
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And probably the last instalement !!
I hear you chear :mrgreen: I had a lesson! Was planning a lesson last year but for one reason or another it didn't work out. Haven't had a lesson for a good number of years but have very fond memories of the last one and how it helped and sustained my skiing for many seasons. So .... 2 hours private booked with ESF, got a bit excited and had a shave as I thought I had a monitrice called Lauren :thumbup: But an ugly monkey called Laurent turned up. :cry: Anyway off we went at breakneck speed and before I knew it I noticed that we were off-piste - yes Adders this was that slightly hidden gem of a place you found in L2A! And then faced a cliff!! Well it was a good drop of 6' ... Didn't fancy that so went round the side. Next thing I know at the top of a chair instead of the normal stop, sort out poles say which way etc ....... He skied straight under the black and yellow rope and grinned back at me - so I had to follow! The photo below is the route we took. A good few turns on this wind blown crust, delightfully all the instructor was saying was ski slowly as there is a drop just over there! Thankfully I didn't know what the drop was until later. The red line on the photo below is the route we took (apologies for quality - mobile phone from a mile away in a restaurant recovering). Then we popped back over a cornice onto some soft spring like stuff which was fun. Linked a few turns and landed on my face - as you do :roll: 
After the fun was some hard work on piste with him trying to get me carving a bit more (well actually a lot more!) efficiently. Classically 80 euros for a couple of hours of abuse, ridicule and insult by a Frenchperson involves leather and a whip! All I got was in-touch with muscles I didn't know existed but ...... I got there! I had Laurent whooping with joy and punching the air with his fist after I carved the black "Super Diable" in big wide sweeping turns top to bottom. Completely empty and beautiful snow helped. That felt a real achievement and so effortless. He was very complementary about my technique but somewhat insulting over my fitness ...... and age (yes even my relatively young age Dave) Saying I needed 3 days of nothing else on quiet and gentle slopes to "get it" - which is a change in hip position in essence. Saying "it will take you 3 days of effort, if you were a teenager 3 hours, but for you 3 days" :oops: Anyway I feel it was well worth it, hopefully I will "get it" and can give this some time in Serre Che in March but the lesson/money was worth it just for that ridge and slope we did :D Lovely guy, similar age to me and we had a good natter. The only skis he has kept from the "old days" are Rossignal 4S, which were my complete lust after and dribble skis from the 80's, he takes them out once or twice a season for a burn! And his favourite place in the Alps is mine - The Prariond Valley above Val D'Isere. Well worth the time and money! |
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Last week I went skiing on my own for the first time for nearly 30 years .....
And really came a cropper. :oops: It all started at Gatwick, 5.30am, coffee drunk, croissant eaten, time on my hands so .... A rather lovely pair of Oakley sunglasses were purchased. Now, I couldn't find my skiing glasses but had a brought with me a perfectly serviceable but somewhat ugly spare pair but the charming lady ......... etc etc etc Then .... On the first evening I went for a bit of a walk, a little window shopping perhaps, supermarket for some chocolate, that sort of thing, you know how it goes ........ :cry: And an hour and a half later I owned a new pair of ski boots !! I'm really not sure how that happened, I'm sure if I had had someone with me I would have been safe. But ..... They are gorgeous and a scrummy fit. :thumbup: And then I was having a second piece of cake, rather delicious coffee cake if I remember correctly, the people I had been skiing with had departed, I was all alone ....... :roll: But this nice Frenchman in a red ski jacket was there and ....... A few minutes later I was the proud owner of a bit of paper saying I had a private ski lesson booked the next day. And, just like the sunglasses and the ski boots I really did need a skiing lesson didn't I?? So ........ Beware the perils of skiing alone! Skiing can seriously damage your credit card. :mrgreen: |
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Do you think he is alright? Should I go and find him? I am really concerned now :cry: Icemannnnnnnnnnnn !!!!!!!! |
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One aspect of Les Deux Alpes that is often commented on is the upside down nature of the resort with the easier skiing high up and harder lower down.
The mountain face directly above the resort on the main skiing side is steep with a number of black pistes and off-piste runs (moguls while I was there) and one green road at one end called Demoiselles. This run in my opinion should be avoided by anyone with half a brain and any sense of self-preservation and was one of the reasons I excluded L2A from my list of places to go after visiting 20yrs ago. Last week it was quite fun unless at the end of the day as the snow was excellent but I can see that when it gets icy it will be a death trap to anyone expectng a simple green run. It is remarkably narrow in places, maybe 3-4m wide in many parts. But ...... You can simply come down one of the lifts, either the chairs which are geared for descent all the time or one of the three bubbles depending on where in the resort you want to end up. The easiest black down off the hill is Valentin which is pretty wide and smooth, probably gets a bit icy sometimes but the sun will have softened it by the end of most days for the return. 
So a well mannered, even gentlemanly black as you can see from the photo. Not too tricky at all, but has a lovely twist in that the top is convex and looks like it disapears into oblivion from the road at the top. Just pop over, slip down the shoulder, where it does get the snow scraped off and woo hoo away you go. |
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Only in my dreams :cry: Have a good one - I've just got back from L2A and it was epic and another 46 days to go until Serre Che ....... But, seriously .... Do be careful - Iceman has been there this week and you will have to look out for holes in the piste where he has fallen after his fabled Guinness lunches. :thumbup: |
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TMI :oops: |
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Ho hum :oops:
L2A last week for an illicit and unplanned foray onto the white stuff. By lunchtime on the first day I was having a moment or two of realisation. This was the hardest/fastest I had skied for some time what with children of various ages to look after and my feet were taking a beating, particularly my left one which I know is slightly narrower than my right. Feet seemed to be wandering miles off course in my boots, tightening them up didn't work - just got painful. I thought I might just have a wander in town in the early evening and look in a few windows - as you do ....... :roll: An hour and a half later I walked out with a brand new shiny pair of boots. :D Made by Lange, they are brown and have a furry lining :thumbup: Very comfy and supportive and a wonderful rest of week was had. No adjustments, no pressure points but I stuck in my own footbeds which are simply a high quality off the shelf footbed rather than formed or anything. My feet are pretty bog standard. I have been wondering for a couple of years how much longer my lovely Technica bright red boots bought in 1997 would last. Getting a bit long in the tooth really and definately no longer on trend with design - you can see them in the snow dance video very clearly. Anyway .... Very pleased with purchase, but sad to leave my trusty old "Reds" behind, I did think about buying new liners but at the end of the day brand new boots seemed to win the argument. Got home and had a bit of a look at what I had actually bought and am really pleased. Lange Blaster Pro 100 and quite noticeably cheaper in resort than anything advertised in UK. Plus plenty of time to ski on them and take them back for a fiddle or even exchange if any problems - result :mrgreen: |
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Oh! Wind down the paranoia then :lol: Simples .... He told me before I went he would be there; his given/real/normal/usual name as per passport and birth certificate and even what colour ski jacket he would be wearing. It was then easy :roll: |
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