European Snowsport

Outstanding, independent ski schools in Verbier, Zermatt, Nendaz, St Moritz and Chamonix

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    Archives for December 2018

    Roped Up -Shared off piste lessons.

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    Our friends at Roped Up explain how skiing together can save you those precious pennies! 
    Many of us want to be safer off piste and better at skiing but finding a way to have affordable lessons can be difficult -at least it used to be… now that has all changed as a result of ES working with Roped Up.
    You can create your own “event”, saying when you want the lesson and what sort of skiing you want to do, which you and your friends can join. Then the “event” is listed on the site and others, who you don’t know, can request to join you. Anyone who you accept into your group then shares the cost with you meaning you get to meet new people, have a great lesson with a top ES instructor, and save hundreds of CHF.
    All members of the Roped Up community have profiles including ability level, experience, nationality and rough age, so you can make an informed decision about who will be joining you. Our system also deals with payment so you can be sure anyone who joins your event will pay their fair share. If there are 2 of you initially and you find 2 others to join you will save more than 200CHF on a full day lesson.
    ES is a great partner of ours as unlike many ski schools they don’t charge more as the group gets larger so with ES you get maximum advantage through sharing with Roped Up.
    To see how it all works have a look at the video below or visit our website here. Check out European Snowsport’s team of great instructors here to see who you want to book for your Roped up lesson.

    Women’s Ski Clinics

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    “Yes I ski like a girl -try to keep up!”

    We are bringing something new for the ladies at European Snowsport this winter. We have specially selected female instructors with a great range of experience and skills to deliver our new women’s two day ski clinics. Their infectious enthusiasm for all mountain skiing will help you to find confidence and enjoyment on snow.

    Reach your personal best in a safe and motivating environment where ALL women are treated equally as you expand your terrain and develop your skills.

    So why make the move to an all girl group?

    It’s not a hard fact that guys and girls approach things in a different way, but it’s not unusual to see girls evaluating the risks a little more when it comes to skiing. We’ve all been in a situation where we aren’t feeling ready to try the task but others in the group are pushing the pace and putting on the pressure. Everyone learns differently right? You might be a listener, watcher, feeler, thinker, doer. You might be all of the above. But how we process information personally affects the way we learn.

    We take this all into account on the women’s clinic ski days.

    Some people respond well to being pushed and there’s loads of inspirational female athletes out there who are shredding everyday to prove it. Take Mikaela Shiffrin, Lynsey Dyer or Lindsey Vonn for example.

    Mikaela Shiffrin has won world cup races in slalom, giant slalom, super-G, downhill and alpine combined. At the age of 23 she became the youngest skier (men or women) to win 50 world cup races.

    What is important to realise is that women’s strengths can lie in different places to men’s. In place of height and strength (although of course some girls have this too) technique, tactics and head space all come to the forefront. With these skills any slope can be tackled.

    At the start of each day, enjoy a fresh pressed fruit or vegetable juice. Here the group can discuss goals for the day before heading out onto the hill.

    Then out on the snow you can learn at your pace in a no-ego, non-pressure environment. These sessions are aimed at all levels. Whether you’re looking to improve your piste performance, mogul skiing, or try your hand at off piste and itinerary routes, anything’s possible. Because the camp is based on individual coaching, everyone can improve their confidence and technique, no matter what your level is.

    On the first afternoon, after skiing yoga is included, designed especially for skiers. Gently stretch out those well-used ski muscles so you can head out on the second day feeling refreshed.

    These sessions aren’t just about your technical skiing, they include sessions on reading the mountain terrain, choosing your route, and being prepared for the conditions.  Think coaching, rather than lessons; our women’s clinics will help you master confidence at any level of skiing.

    If you would like to join one of our women’s clinics get in touch! We look forward to skiing with you soon.

    Resorts; Verbier and Zermatt

    Levels; intermediate and above

    Cost; 400chf per person for the 2 days

     

     

     

     

     

    ES Zermatt Opening Party

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    Here in Zermatt we’ve had a great week out on the slopes for formation, getting our ski legs back and exploring the mountain. The team have been looking sharp in our new Black Diamond uniforms and we’ve had plenty of snow in resort, setting us up nicely for the winter ahead.

    The Zermatt team out for a ski in their new uniform

    To celebrate we collected the entire team together down at the Cuckoo Club for our annual opening party. Friends and business partners from around resort were also invited to help us get the season started in style.

    We would like to say a massive thank you to Cuckoo Club for hosting us and to our commercial manager Alastair and Director Hannah for organising such a great evening.

    Zermatt instructors Ben, Bryony, Hanna, Jack, Seb and Verbier Commercial Manager and Instructor Charlotte. (From left)

    Here’s a selection of pictures from the night. There’s plenty of familiar faces in the crowd as well as some new ones who we are very excited to welcome to our team this year. Maybe you can spot your favourite instructor?

    To see all the photos have a look on our facebook page HERE.
    We look forward to a great season and seeing you on the slopes!

    Instructors Harry (far left) and Chloe (far right) with ES Zermatt director Hannah and her husband Steve.

     

    Glacier Sport‘s Basti, Verbier’s Assistant Director Martin and Operations manager in Verbier Jonas.

     

    Bramble Ski team members made an appearance!

     

    Alex and Charlotte from Petit Zermatt, ES instructor Beth and boot fitter James.

    Off Piste Equipment Guide.

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    Many skiers looking to take themselves to the next level turn their ski tips towards the off piste. What can initially seem quite daunting, easily becomes an obsession driving riders to go again and again, pushing for bigger and better lines. But how does one make those first few tentative turns? What equipment can guide us through these new variable conditions? And what dangers should we be aware of when leaving the piste?

     

    Well, before we do anything, there’s a gear checklist and not a whole lot of negotiation on it.

    Anyone heading off piste needs to be carrying the Holy Trinity: Transceiver, Probe and Shovel. These three things together are the base line when it comes to straying from the pistes. In the event of an avalanche they can enable you to search and dig out your friends or save your life if it’s the other way around. Just carrying them isn’t enough either, knowing how to conduct a search properly can save you precious seconds. 

    See the source image

    Transceivers on the most part, are fairly straightforward to use. That’s not to say you shouldn’t practice with them. They have two settings, transmit and search. When transmitting they give off signals in concentric arcs meaning that sometimes they can be misleading to follow. You should always get out and practice with your transceiver and the stages of conducting a thorough search.

    Probe. Also very lightweight and compactable, probes fold down to little more than a forearms length. When extended however they will allow you to push deep into the snow and feel for suspected burials once you have carried out your transceiver search.

    Shovel. A shovel’s a shovel right? Well yes, but the one you would carry for avalanche safety will likely be compact, light and possible to separate the handle. You’ll be pleased of this when it saves you space in your backpack.

    Getting some mountain safety advice from Mountain Guide Brian Farquharson

    Powder Skis.

    Skiing off piste snow conditions isn’t all about wearing the fattest powder skis you can find. In fact you can ski variable conditions on almost any ski with good technique. Having more ski underfoot does give you a better surface area to play with, which helps to create more float in deep snow. But realistically, unless you’re in the fabled powder fields of Japan, you’re not going to need anything drastically big. Very wide skis can also be less nimble and trickier to roll from edge to edge when the conditions firm up again. That’s where a decent all mountain ski comes in.

    We asked our friends at Glacier Sport Zermatt to recommend some of their favourite skis in this category. Their answer? The Volkl Kenja for the ladies and Kendo for the guys.

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    The women’s Volkl Kenja in their natural habitat

    Repeatedly voted top in ‘All mountain’ ski categories, the Kenja and Kendo skis are well loved for their versatility. With 90mm under foot they are easy to manoeuvre in variable snow yet can be rolled from edge to edge with ease back on piste. They perform well at speed and feel stable. Both of these skis would be a great option for those looking at trying a more all mountain approach for the first time, or a more playful ski for someone who’s intermediate/advanced. Interested? Head into Glacier sport to find yourself a pair.

    If you’d like to perfect your new found love of off piste skiing why not book a private lesson with one of our instructors? In Verbier we’ve just released the Big 5 Challenge for those who are already confident in variable conditions. Get in touch with us on our bookings page here.