J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by james_gray

Will there be snow in the Italian resorts by 16th December? Will they be fully open? Magic 8 ball said 'Ask again later' and i killed it.

Snow snow, i love snow, snow snow, i love snow. You're just frozen water but i love you so, snow.

pyrenees wrote:
Children are encouraged to wear them and it appears to be only English kids you see without these days.

The binge drinking we promote from the ages of 5+ renders English children impervious to brain damage or activity until the age of 25 or above and then only to the most modest degree.

They're nothing compared to the group of Italian 5 year olds i saw in Passe Tonale in March, all dressed in some sort of red uniform, screaming, beating the crap out of each other with their ski poles, systematically abusing the buttons and cutting up the poor bewildered beginners. Lord of the Flies on Ice. If anybody knows who they are tell them i still haven't found my glass eye.

james_gray wrote:Isn't this a little extreme? We seem to live in an increasingly fluffy world, I mean why not wear a helmet while driving a car, playing football, running the 100 metres, there is risk of potential brain damage through injury from any of these.

Has skiing become increasingly more dangerous now compared to 10 or 20 years ago?

Perhaps people that wear helmets think they can go more nutso than they normally would, increasing the risk of injuring themselves or others. I seriously think some of this new safety merchandising causes more problems indirectly than they solve directly.

Who would've thought strapping two long planks to your feet and shoving yourself down a mountain could be dangerous! The nerve of nature!

Just to note, i know nothing about skiing but through an old CIA technique i've put myself into the mindset of a jaded ski bum with nerves of steel and buns to match.

I don't know the origin, though from reading some articles they do appear to be a hadcore choice, along with North Face, Patagonia, Quicksilver etc etc . This is a bit worrying because a few weeks ago i went to TK Maxx and bought a Columbia Jacket, pants, and gloves as i thought, with my limited knowledge, that this brand was hardcore.

Is it pikey?

Will i get laughed at by my girlfriends expert ski family on our upcoming holiday?

Could i walk to the South Pole and back in it with only 20 nutrigrain bars and a towel?

Isn't this a little extreme? We seem to live in an increasingly fluffy world, I mean why not wear a helmet while driving a car, playing football, running the 100 metres, there is risk of potential brain damage through injury from any of these.

Has skiing become increasingly more dangerous now compared to 10 or 20 years ago?

Perhaps people that wear helmets think they can go more nutso than they normally would, increasing the risk of injuring themselves or others. I seriously think some of this new safety merchandising causes more problems indirectly than they solve directly.

Who would've thought strapping two long planks to your feet and shoving yourself down a mountain could be dangerous! The nerve of nature!

I've only done 2 weeks skiing in my life, once 10 years ago and once this year (though i am off to Italy Dec 16th, hope there is snow!), but now I'm hooked!

My experience of the 'pro' skier came this year, i went out in a group with two guys that lived pretty much on the mountain, one was the owner of the ski lifts/runs and the other an owner of some resort hotels. While i was doing my best to get down the hill in one piece keeping up with the group, they were merrily gliding down with poles in one hand, and regularly chatting on their cellphones with the other hand (!!), in the sort of manner i walk down the street.

p.s what's this carving business about? can it be done on rental skis? or do they need to have special edges? this year i did an hours snowboarding lesson and can get down a hill (beginners, green), turning etc, can i utilize the turning, balancing and edging technique in skiing?