Messages posted by : steverandomno
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Sure... Not specifically skiing related. But, I've met loads of people who have travelled arround the world by themselves. You just have to take the same precautions that you would anyware (don't pick up hitchers etc...). If I were travelling by myself I would spend a bit of time at one of the banff or Fernie youth hostels. The best thing about these places is that you will meet a whole bunch of people, young and old, who are travelling independently. It might be a good place to meet other people who you may want to team up with. They are also quite comfortable these days, some being much nicer than your average motel. I have done it a few times, a while back now. It can be a liberating experience.
If you are worried about driving in the snow just check out some of the winter driving advice on the canadian weather websites. Make sure you buy a big bottle of antifreeze windscreen wash. If you hire a 4x4 SUV you won't have to worry about chains. Also pack some emergency supplies should you be stuck in the cold for a few hours (water, chocolate etc...). |
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Because its the sort of worthwile charity that I wouldn't mind giving some cash to. And I'm sure there are a lot of others who read this who would feel the same way. I would be interested mostly in skiing related charities. |
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Depends on what you are looking for and what you mean by better. If you are looking for a huge choice of accomodation and bars restaurants then Banff/Whistler are pretty good places to start.
For challenging ski terrain with a quieter small town atmosphere, then Golden/Kicking Horse is a great choice. It is only 1.5 - 2 hours further than Banff from Calgary. There are several decent restaurants and some good places to get a drink but there are far fewer choices than Banff, which is a plus or a minus depending on what you want. Fernie is similarly an extra 1-2 hour drive from Calgary compared to Banff and is a bit more developed than Kicking Horse. It has great terrain, is great after a major dump, but can suffer more than Kicking Horse when there are warmer temperatures. Revelstoke is a good 5-6 hour journey from Calgary, has some of the best and most extensive (highest vertical) terrain I have ever skied. The resort is just beginning to develop. There are a few decent accomodation options but nothing like banf or the other kicking horse / fernie (yet...). It is definately worth a day trip from Golden if you are staying there. Two other great resorts are Big White / Silver Star have extensive terrain and some great value on hill accommodation. They are aimed more at the family market that the other alternatives mentioned, so they have a wider variety of different levels of terrain. Some of the tour operators had plans to fly directly to Kelowna (1-2 hour drive from BW and SS) which has a recently upgraded runway, but I don't know if those plans have materialized in the current climate. Otherwise they are a full 5-6 hour drive from vancouver or a 6-7 hour drive from Calgary. Panorama is a similar resort that is another 2 hour drive from Banff. Great value accommodation and some good lift accessed pseudo back country areas like Taynton Bowl. A great way to see what the other resorts have to offer is to do a road trip. I've done this a few times and it is great so long as you can stomatch a few long drives. Pay a bit extra and get a flight that goes into Vancouver and out of Calgary. Most major car rental firms will do a one way rental between Vancouver and Calgary. This way you can have a couple of days in Vancouver and then take in, Big White, Silver Star, Revelstoke, Kicking Horse, Panorama, Fernie and then back to Banff or straight to Calgary. It just requires a bit of planning. If you want to stay in one or two places rather than travelling so much then I can highly recommend staying in Kicking Horse for a 4-5 days then doing a couple of days in Revelstoke followed by a few days back in Banff. You will find most places outside of Banff and Whistler better value for money for accommodation and food/drink. I'm sure RossF has some wise words also. |
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This, and your recent post got me thinking. I know there are some charities that aim to give deprived kids/teenagers/young adults an experience of mountains. Does anyone have a good list of these charities?
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Nice.
However good you become there will always be: - terrain you have never experienced - snow you have never encountered - steepness you never though possible - habits you never acknowledged - other skiers who are better and more experienced Part of the fun of skiing for me is to constantly strive to improve. I've had some days where the snow was bad, but had fun trying to develop carving technique on some empty easy groomers. In addition you develop a real respect for the people who are masters at it, and try and learn from them. I guess that's why pavelski's post "A Male problem and one possible solution" touches a nerve. |
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My other half has this same problem (circulation - cold hands not ripping them to shreds.)
She found the best way to solve it is - Wear mitts instead of gloves - much warmer since your fingers are closer together and share each others warmth. They also make it easier to use hand warmers. Swany make some good ski mitts. The other must is to buy some silk inner gloves, this wicks away your sweat and stops your hands getting wet and cold. I have a pair and wouldn't ski without them. Trust me, you will be amazed at how much difference they make. You can get some from Decathlon - only cost 5 quid. |
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You can get this stuff on google finance - for pound to loonie type in GBPCAD into the quote box.
The six figure quote code has two parts - the first part is the currency you are buying 1 unit of (GBP in this case), and the second part is the currency you are selling (CAD in this case). So it will currently cost me about 1.84 CAD to buy 1 GBP. http://finance.google.ca/finance?q=gbpcad You will never get these prices as they are 'mid' - meaning that the bank or FX place will give you a price with a small spread so that they make money. |
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