Messages posted by : Ranchero_1979
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Wow I always thought the best ski location was wherever you are at the time. End of day I think Andorra is exactly what it says on the box. Tax free (cheap and cheerful), limited vertical, limited altitude (i.e. not best snow in world) and too far south (i.e. not best snow in world) . Apart from that you should have great weather, great memories, and good friends. 10% of ski holiday is snow. Do you remember the snow on powder days or the face plants that come with it? Slushy snow at end of season or the late long lunch that takes you into après ski?
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You need to go and see a boot fitter. Take your old boots, see if they can be saved and if not get some new ones. It really is worth going to specialist shop, unlike skis which get better every year boots show very little evolution. Better to spend 25-50% more than off shelf price as they will last you 5-10 years and makes huge difference to your enjoyment of skiing. Sounds to me like current boots are too big and you compensate by cranking them. Unfortunately this will never compensate for having foot and heel locked correctly in place hence blisters and irritation.
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Have to say the best description of skier ability comes from way All Mountain Performance split their groups. With the 2 deaths in last 2 days of skiers offpiste have to agree with Pavel. Ski with a guide or be extremely cautious, only ski what you can see. If you have safety equipment, probe/shovel/transceiver/crevasse kit, make sure you know how to use.
Level 1 - Beginner You have never skied before or you are snowplough turning on green runs only. Level 2 - Low intermediate You are skiing on blue runs and turning parallel controlling a steady speed and direction by making skiddy parallel turns. You are not quite ready for our intermediate all mountain ski courses. We would recommend some private coaching to get you to the next level. Level 3 - Intermediate You are skiing confidently on red runs with good parallel turns. You know how to tilt your skis onto their edges and enjoy going a little faster. You can control your speed and direction pretty well on most pistes. You now feel ready to start skiing some steeper black pistes and some of the easier off piste descents. Intermediate All Mountain Level 4 - High intermediate You can comfortably ski red runs and have skied some black runs with no problems if the conditions are ok. You are now looking forward to try some easy off piste routes, steeper slopes and some bumps that are not too big! Intermediate All Mountain Level 5 - Advanced You can ski all pistes with no real problems including steep black runs. You can ski open reds at speed using your edges. You can make different size turns and can generally control your speed and line in medium sized bumps. You have skied some off piste and can get down if it's not too steep or too deep. You are now looking forward to feeling comfortable off piste and learning techniques for more challenging snow types and terrain. Advanced All Mountain Level 6 - Advanced All Mountain You are skiing off piste quite a lot and can ski most conditions and terrain. You may still find it hard in certain difficult snow types, or when it's steeper or with big bumps. You feel the need to consolidate and improve your all round off piste skiing skills. Advanced All Mountain Level 7 - Expert Rider You are getting pretty good now! You can ski off piste, deep powder, icy pistes, steep slopes and big bumps. You have fun all over the mountain. Sometimes you get cheers from chairlifts. You may also be a trainee ski instructor or just darn hot! Expert All Mountain Level 8 - Expert Pro The mountain is your playground. Skiing is your passion. You ski with control, versatility and expression in all conditions and terrain. You may be a skiing competitor or mountain professional seeking professional training. You still want to improve and enjoy the challenges. Expert All Mountain Level 9 - World Elite |
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Seems you have been outvoted and required to buy some skis :-). Describing yourself as weekend warrior now comes tricky part.
You need a ski that will carve as this is only way to get to next level of skiing. Something with rocker so you can confidently give off-piste a shot. Think I would go for Salomon Enduro 800 or 850, depending on how much off piste. Have never skied them but the X Wing they replaced were great fun when tried them out a few years ago in Whistler. I actually bought Atomic Blackeye, same trial, but top sheet seems to have gone a bit crazy on newer ones. People who have the Enduro rave about them and certainly weren't struggling in January when the big powder was around. Similarly before it arrived they were pretty handy in bumps and cruddy snow. |
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Biggest problem with owning is that you always end up with a compromise. I have 2 pairs at moment and still would like more :-). I.e. I rented for a week this year to get best ski for conditions.
Dynastar 4 x 4 for piste (probably done 10 weeks). These are now outdated 4yrs old and need replacing. Might just have paid for themselves. Will be replacing with slalom ski (think will be more fun on piste). Carving skis seem to take massive leaps every year so can't wait to get on new ones. Salomon Shogun with touring binding. These are 2 years old on about week 8 or 9 and will be keeping for another season. Given touring binding, skins etc think I need at least another 4 weeks to cover the cost of them. Skin width will also now likely dictate next ski purchase (more compromise). Really happy with these as compromise ski which are good for most conditions. That is the problem, renting is cheap, you can rent the same skis as you buy, you always get latest models which are always more fun. Can change every day for conditions or plan. Even with the loan of my skis to brothers etc I am struggling to justify cost. Fortunately these are kept in resort so no cost of transport to add into mix. Financially no sense for most people to buy skis. You would have to really stretch life span and end up on something pretty ancient. Technically am not sure makes sense but emotions are what make us human ?. |
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Weather is certainly warm but can confirm Chamonix is reporting great touring conditions. People over weekend were still skiing in to Trient from Le Toure (10cm powder), Buet from Felgere and obviously Grand Montets and Midi are offering good skiing. Definitely still a nice chill in morning and evening in town which seems to be keeping things in decent condition.
Recommendation would be to get a guide and some touring skis as there is still good snow to be found. |
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VSB, did just tear yours? Mine apparently is "completely ruptured", but apart from lack of full flexibility (I gained 10 deg in last 4 days so can bike again) due to swelling actually feels pretty good. Surgery is down for early May so no Mt Blanc. Also missed some great skiing last few weeks in Chamonix :-(.
Hopefully will be good for some mountaineering in August, although am now having images of catching a crampon and busting it again. |
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Was wondering if any skiers here could share experience on ACL injuries and recovery period. I ruptured my ACL in left leg, 12 days ago now and will require surgery once swelling has gone. There appears to be some positives, can walk without crutches (slight limp), squat, balance 1 leg etc all without brace. Not enough movement in joint now (swelling) to start biking but hopefully within next week or so should be able to start with low resistance.
Assuming surgery goes well will I be skiing 100% in December? Have been seeing physio to start pre surgery physio but was wondering if there any moves that people really found beneficial. Only have access to pretty basic equipment (no fancy machines). Any advice suggestions more than welcome. |
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