J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by Grizwald

Hi OP,

Are you interested in tuition? A Warren Smith type academy may suit you-basically half days of lessons. Most of the clientel or solo skiers so you'll have no trouble getting ski buddies for free ski time. You're paying circa £300-£400 for this type of set up and tend to get a good deal of accommodation and lift passes.

If the above doesn't appeal pop over to Snowheads-they have a sub forum aimed at getting solo skiers together. They also have the Snowheads bashes which are good value and made up of solo skiers, groups, of all ages and abilities.

Are you comfortable sharing a room with someone? If not I think you have to be prepared to pay on average at least a £300 supplement in most places. A mate was going to join us in the 3V in March and he would virtually have to pay for two holidays. There are other set ups, there's a company specifically aimed at solo skiers and offers half days of lessons-the name escapes me. There's also ESF who do accommodation and lesson packages at a very reasonable price-Action Outdoors are their UK agent.

I also have a mate looking to room share in Val Thorens in March.

Depends on the country really as the tree line falls as you move further east. I'm not sure that there is an official figure to differentiate 'high altitude skiing' from normal or low? Areas which have the majority or all of there skiing above 2000m are a good bet for later in the season as it's colder so in theory the snow stays in better nick longer when the sun starts to beat down.

Snapzzz wrote:Ive not been to Austria and unless i can find some slope side apartments i doubt i will anytime soon.
Thats the major difference to me.
Hardly any self catering and not much Ski in Ski out either. I just can't be doing with all the faff of buses and stuff.

You're missing out on allot of good sliding then!!! There are several resorts in Austria that have ski in ski out but they aren't really on the radar of the British ski tourist. Hochgurgl, Hoch-Solden, and Oberlech are but a few.

I really don't mind using ski buses particularly as the ride is usually only 5-10 mins if you're staying in a ski town. To me the main differences between the 2 are France has a variety of huge areas, Austria's largest, the Ski Welt is 'only' ~280km of pisted runs which we all know is far too little for a week ;-) France has a variety of 'Mega Resorts' with hundred of Km's of runs. In the main Austrians ski areas are lower in altitude, more rounded hills than the jagged mountains that are synonymous with many areas of the French Alps-there are exceptions to this i.e. The Arlberg amongst others. Similarly reliable tree skiing can be hard to find being at those high altitudes although decent tree skiing does exist in France there's loads in Austria and ending up in some Farm yard is always good fun! There is the beauty of being below the tree line for so much of the skiing. This is where Austria comes in to its own. Some of the runs are truly magnificent. In the main Austrian ski resorts are a function of the towns themselves, which were very much there first. Many Austrian ski resorts are beautiful villages that continue to operate as fully functioning farming communities. A refreshing change from some of the less aesthetically pleasing purpose built French resorts.

When in France I tend to put up with the generally high prices of food and drink as most people do to just have access to the ski areas, I don't part with much cash when in France by staying chalet board. I've not been anywhere in Austria where I've not got a main course and drink for sub 10 euro on the mountain. I could go on and on but I think in summary both have their pros and cons, I do find Austria offers a better overall holiday experience for me than France when considering skiing, prices of food and drink and nightlife. This is the first year in 8 I've not skied in France (was in L2A over Christmas).

Ian Wickham wrote:South Africa in October/November :thumbup:

SNAP!

Honeymoon in May 3 weeks touring South Africa and then a week in Mauritius kicking back.

I would just go with whatever you can get the cheapest flights to. Innsbruck is more prone to closure/delays in bad weather due to it's location-it's quite a spectacular landing though!! I'd say Salz you're looking at 1hr 45mins to 2hrs Innsbruck 1hr 15mins to 1.5 hrs.

Both are small airports with not allot in the arrivals/departure areas.

Edited to add. When in December are you looking? Providing it's cold enough the snow making is extensive but I bet allot of people were getting worried (not just in Soll/Austria) until the huge dumps we had last December.

We're going to be heading over to Canada next year hopefully around the end of March into April (Vancouver Area) so plan is to sample Whistler as well a few local hills and Mt Washington on Vancouver Island.

Hopefully another group trip in there but don't know where.

Thanks for your comprehensive review Tony H. I'll be there a week on Saturday so that review has raised the excitement levels a bit. We're staying in Nasserrien . Already got a few guided days booked so hoping there'll be a dump before we go but it's looking in good shape.

There's a few lads going who are pretty inexperienced but aren't timid, which isn't always the best combination. I was hoping to convince them to get a few lessons but I don't think they well so it looks like it will be a baptism of fire…..

Does look busy in some places, was there any euro holidays or perhaps just that St Anton is a victim of it's own success?

Looking forward to Germknödel and Grostl.

In that case I'd concentrating on stregthening the legs initally. As an experienced skier you'll know the only way to truely get ski fit is to ski!

Seated leg extension-Quads

Calf machine. Most modern gyms will have a calf machine

Leg Press-Quadriceps

Hamstring Curl Machine-again common in gyms.

After that cardio do whatever works for you to increase your overall stamina, running. cycling, swimming.

Article here with exericses which you can easily do in the comfort of your own home if you don't have a gym membership.