European Snowsport

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

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    More snow and it’s going to be FREEZING

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    As predicted the sunny weather has disappeared and been replaced by some pretty wintry stuff. So when the clouds parted for a few hours this morning we were treated to views of the resort that usually belong on the front of postcards.

    Not a bad day at all, and made even better by the fact that top British instructor trainer and all round skiing guru Kevin Mocherie has flown in to run a week of training for ES instructors, giving us some inspired tips and advice as well as generally keeping everyone on their toes and terrifying us with his video camera…

    And the wintry weather is set to continue for the rest of the week, getting even nippier – with the wind-chill the temperature could dip to -27°C tomorrow morning.

    So training could be interesting.

    More soon.

    Snow forecast for the next week in Verbier

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    Verbier is expecting some more snow and lower temperatures over the week to come. Apologies for those of you missing the reports as I’ve been in Pila, Italy for the last week where conditions were even hotter than Verbier – 20 C during the day!!!

    Conditions on the mountain are reported as good on-piste down to the 1936 bar – level with Carrefour. Below that things are distinctly slushy or bare in places – OK if you are on rental skis but best avoided otherwise.

    The top of the mountain is still the place to head for better skiing conditions and Tortin, Mont Fort and Col des Gentaines are excellent if you enjoy moguls.

    The next few days are forecast to have temperatures of around

    -9C and some snow which is set to continue for the rest of the week. Wind speeds should be low so enjoy the new stuff

    More blue skies but it’s all about to change…

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    There have been very few surprises over the last couple of weeks – the skies have been blue, the sun’s shone, Louis’ been a bit camp and the weather has been consistently amazing.

    However, to continue with the topsy-turvy way that things have gone this winter, now spring has arrived, it’s about to get absolutely freezing…

    January and February were mostly warm and sunny, then the moment we get to the time of year when it’s supposed to be warm and sunny, arctic temperatures descend on us.

    Bonkers.

    Still, the snow will be a welcome sight as the lower pistes into resort are looking a little ‘agricultural’ to say the least.

    And we have some brilliant news – all the ES instructors who took their Off Piste Mountain Safety instructor module last week passed. And all six of us have spent today looking a trifle pasty after celebrating rather enthusiastically at Louis’ gig last night in T-Bar…

    Crikey

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    Now, as you may have guessed, the only reason for an gap on the continual stream of ES blogs is going to be one of two things…

    Either there’s been an enourmous staff party and the entire ski school is still recovering, or the conditions up there are so good we’re all so exhausted at the the end of the day we neglect to let you know what’s been happening.

    Suffice to say that we’ve been pary free as the conditions here at the moment are amazing, and the fact that I’m in the middle of an off-piste instructor exam means that I’ve been enjoing the sunshine and brilliant snow from places so remote that even the music from the Powder Spirit bar can’t reach us.

    I know – it barely seems possible.

    The gret news is that the sun is staying with us for a few more days and then the snow will be back – and judging by the forecast there should be some pretty heavy falls coming our way…

    In the mean time, here are a few pictures of us in the mountains. I’ve also sneaked in a shot of Claire and the girls – I know this shouldn’t be a forum for me to show everyone picture of my clients, but I promised…





    A pretty amazing day

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    As you may or may not be aware, the training for Ski Instructors is a very lengthy and ongoing process, and we all have to keep taking modules and assessments.

    Which is why six of ES’s instructors have disappeared off on an Off-piste Mountain Safety course for the week.

    Suffice to say, the skies have been perfect and blue, and there’s been a lot of bouncing down the off-piste, as well as looking at maps, climbing up things and digging snow pits, whilst all the time Roy (our guide and trainer) makes wise and intelligent observations, tells us about avalanches, animal tracks and all the kind of stuff that only he and Grizzly Adams know about.

    And so far – with two days of the six completed – everybody’s walking around grinning a lot. Hopefully the grins will still be about after Thursday and Friday’s assessments.

    Here’s what it looks like when six instructors get handed a load of maps and are sent up a mountain with the most enthusiastic man on earth…


    We can see at last……….

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    Weather conditions in Verbier have been changeable. With a couple of days with white-outs then clouds then blue skies again today

    The avalanche risk has now reduced to 2 and the off-piste is once again more accessible. With a couple of centimetres of new snow last night conditions were soft snow on a crust. On Crevlet jump turns were necessary but still great fun and a good depth of powder was to be found. Col des Gentaines and Tortin both have great coverage of snow although moguls are developing rapidly.

    On-piste skiing remains excellent above the Ruinettes station although somewhat slushy lower doen and bare in places on the run into Medran – take the lift down and enjoy it higher up is the recommendation.

    Lac des Vaux 1 lift is again operational so no need to use the traverse to get back to Attelas. However, there were some problems with the La Chaux Express later on today.

    At the top of the Funispace there is the opportunity this weekend to try out a variety of snowboards for free. Although watch out for the wild animals taking advantage of this – see picture.

    The next couple of days should be sunny with temperatures of around 2C and good visibility. Winds should also be light, more cloudy weather is due on tuesday but not the overcast low visibility we have experienced in the last few days.