J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by J2SkiNews

A group of 24 children from a swimming team have taken to the indoor slopes of Chill Factore for the Halloween Pumpkin Rolling Championships.

104kg of pumpkin plummeted down the UK's longest real snow slope as Aer Lingus Swimming Club raced against one another in a bid to be the first to the bottom.

After numerous (pumpkin) causalities, 12-year-old Dylan Egan, from Dublin, emerged eventual winner and was rewarded with a special goody bag for his efforts, which included a Snow Park Family Pass.

"The kids absolutely loved swapping the pool for the piste, and I think we've seen some real talent on show today," said Paul McMenamin, Group Leader for the Swimming Club.

The Championships have kick-started a week of spooky celebrations at Chill Factore, which is also running a 'scary selfie' competition in a bid to find the UK's scariest snow lover.

Between now and 2nd November, the centre will play host to ghastly ghouls, ghosts and gremlins, with the scariest guest in fancy dress being awarded a Chill Factore goody bag.

The centre is open to 11pm this Halloween night (and almost every other day) chillfactore.com

A new mobile sports therapy service will be available in the 3 Valleys this winter. Sophie Drake, who has a BSc in Sports Therapy and is the sister of GB Olympic alpine skier and skier x athlete Ed Drake, is setting up her own business in sports therapy based in Courchevel, but offering a mobile service across the 3 Valleys.

"Being a mobile sports therapist means I can treat clients in the comfort of their own chalet or apartment and they don't have to find their way around a resort to come to me," said Sophie who has been in close contact with Olympic athletes who have been through rehabilitation.

"I am combining my two passions of winter sports and sports therapy. I have a background of competing in skiing and rowing to a national level, so I am fully aware of the stresses and strains that sport and skiing in particular, can put on your body. Coming from a sporting background, I myself went through injuries and have watched my brother Ed go through injuries and rehabilitation; this made me want to be the person who fixed injured athletes and the sporting population and got them back to full strength," added Sophie

(http://www.sdsportstherapy.co.uk)

(Image courtesy of Alpe D'Huez/NUTS agency)

Alpe d'Huez have installed 72 snow cannons over the summer on the lower half of the world's longest black slope, the 16km (10 mile) long Sarenne descent. The snow cannons also carry lighting.

The aim is for the full 16km of the famous slope to be accessible and skiable by 6th December with the installation which covers the area from Marmottes 3 to the Sarenne Bridge at 1,600m. The Herpie Lake which supplies the water required will also become the highest artificial lake in Europe.

The financial investment involved is estimated at around 8 million euros (which includes the introduction of 72 snow canons, the lake and the snow factory).

Six webcams have also been installed along the route so skiers will be able to view real-time snow conditions on the Sarenne.

In addition and the length of the Sarenne will be illuminated by each cannon which is equipped with LED lights to create a 'slope to the stars' effect for night skiers, the resort says.

A new option for good skiers this winter will be the chance to ski the Sarenne at night.

Participating skiers will take the last cable car up to the top of Pic Blanc, to an altitude of 3,330m, and watch the sun set over the Grandes Rousses enjoying the mountains in the company of Alpe d'Huez qualified ski instructors and ski patrollers.

There will then be a short stop at le GUC mountain refuge for an aperitif before venturing down the 16km and 2000m vertical drop of this iconic run.

Once they have conquered the majority of the slope skiers can celebrate with a mountain dinner at the Auberge de la Combe Haute before returning by bus to the resort.

Hell yeh, this is fricking awesome! anyone know where it's going to be??

An artist who says he is trying to 'lighten the mood' in the French Alps by posting murals in public spaces in ski resorts has launched a crowdfunding effort to raise £1500 he says is needed to secure a permanent location for the next piece of art – two initial pieces that were posted up in Meribel at the end of last season were quickly removed by local officials.

The artwork, based on Bansky's famous 'Kiss' which depicts two policemen in a passionate embrace, instead has two ESF ski instructors locked together.

But the artist, who calls himself Caesar, has said that the intention is not to cause offence.

"Whether or not offence is taken is completely subjective, but the purpose of the piece is not to cause offence; quite the opposite," said a spokesperson for the artist, "Caesar hopes that ESF instructors may actually embrace and see the fun in the image, much like many police officers were seen to do with Banksy's original "Kissing Coppers" piece."

Caesar initially did two versions of the picture, one under the Altiport which was removed the day after it was put up, though it was there long enough for a few people to see it, and the second under the Saulire lift which also lasted just one day. There is also a promotional video on the crowdfunding page.

Caesar's spokesperson says there are several potential locations being considered for the new piece at the moment.

The spokesperson added that the artists believed that the image of an ESF instructor is an iconic one, synonymous with French resorts and said that Caesar had wanted to do an ESF inspired piece for a while.

The Simon Butler case, along with other instances of what the artist considers unfair treatment of foreign workers in French resorts, was basically the tipping point that led to the "Kissing instructors" idea becoming a reality.

"These events gave the piece a purpose, to lighten the mood during a very tense time in the mountains," said Caesar's spokesperson, adding, "The piece is not intended to cause offence. It is intended to make people smile. Caesar has absolutely nothing against the ESF whatsoever, but more against this perception that everyone seems to have that they own the mountain. The idea of the piece is to make people think of these instructors more than just these bright red guardians of the mountain."

The crowdfunding effort runs until November 20th:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/seasonaires-brighten-up-the-alps-this-winter

After the unprecedented five pairs of ski areas getting interconnected last winter, there have been few stories of resorts joining up for 2014-15.

However one Italian area will see the two separate halves of its ski area, located on either side of a mountain valley connected for the first time thanks to the installation of two new high speed gondola lifts with eight passenger cabins.

The two new lifts will link the Helm and Rotwand sectors creating a merged network with 90km of piste in total. This tally will include two all new runs, the new Drei Zinnen (Three Peaks) descent and the new Stiergarten piste will both be major assets to the area.

The lifts will reach2100m on the Stiergarten and provide a totally new view of the Sexten Dolomites, with magnificent views of the Drei Zinnen. The link, which is all part of the giant Dolomiti Superski pass, is scheduled to open in November 29th.

http://www.s-dolomiten.com

Eurostar has announced a new year-round service to Geneva via Lille, in partnership with international high-speed train service "TGV Lyria".

Previously only possible by changing trains – and stations in Paris, the new service which has just started operating, allows passengers to change trains by just crossing a platform at Lille bringing the journey time to a little over six hours.

This is likely to work out not much more than the process of travel to the airport, checking in, getting through security, waiting for the flight, the flight, waiting for bags and taking the transfer to central Geneva for connections to French and Swiss resorts for those travelling by air.

Costs are likely to be similar or lower than air too, particularly for those taking ski equipment, which is carried free of charge on Eurostar, compared to fees of up to £60 each way charged by airlines. Return rail fares start from £116.

Recent Eurostar customer research had revealed that Geneva is one of the most desirable destinations for UK travellers and there will be four daytime services each week on Mondays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays.

The service leaves London St Pancras just before 1pm and arrives in Geneva at 20.16 local time, with a stop in Ebbsfleet and 37 minutes to change trains in Lille. On the return trip the service leaves Geneva at 8.30am (except Sundays at 10.30am) on the same days each week and arrives London at 16.05, with 45 minutes to change in Lille.

For those wishing to venture further, the new route offers passengers a convenient way to travel to some of the most popular destinations in Switzerland, with simple onward connections from Geneva to the key ski hubs Aigle, Martigny, Sion, Sierre, Visp and Brig – located close to many of the country's leading ski resorts including Verbier and Zermatt.

A new look Eurostar terminal in Lille will be unveiled in December this year.

"This announcement marks another major milestone in our ambition to encourage more people to travel further by high-speed rail," said Nick Mercer, Commercial Director of Eurostar, "Our research shows a real appetite for a more civilised way to reach popular European destinations, and this new connecting service offers easy access for customers looking to reach some of the most spectacular ski resorts in Europe. With city-centre to city-centre travel and a generous baggage allowance, the new offer proposes an attractive alternative to flying."

The sun is out again in the alps after 48 hours of heavy snowfall and the glacier resorts that are open and hoping for bumper business over the coming weekend.

The snowfall was particularly heavy in the Eastern side of the alps with up to a metre of snow reported at some areas and even low lying areas like Kitzbuhel reporting 30cm of snow. The snowfall was also down to lows levels in valleys, not just on the mountain tops as is more usual in the first half of autumn.

The Stubai glacier (pictured this morning above) reported 80cm of fresh snow has fallen and received more than 2,000 Facebook likes when it announced that an epic weekend awaited.
Snowfall was heavy right down in to the Italian Dolomites where again up to a metre of snow was reported.

Resorts opening for the season tomorrow (25th October) include Glacier 3000 (Gstaad/Les Diablerets) and Engelberg in Switzerland. Les 2 Alpes in France will also be opening for a nine day stretch before losing again for three weeks before its permanent opening in late November.

They join 14 glacier ski areas that are already open including seven in Austria (including Hintertux, Kaprun and this weekend's FIS World cup hosts Solden), three in Switzerland (including Saas Fee and Zermatt), Tignes in France and three in Italy (including Cervinia).