Snow

Tuesday, 12 February, 2008

Ski Accidentology

It’s said that journalists “never let the facts get in the way of a good story”. When the facts concern snow, avalanches, swanky Alpine ski resorts and junketting doctors the press pack is out in force. The office phone was ringing hot last week as British journalists tried to find an interesting angle on the death of a 40 year old doctor in Val d’Isère.

Posted by davidof at 10:19 AM
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Monday, 11 February, 2008

Missing snowboarder records “last message” on digicam

It was to be the perfect end to a week spent in les Deux Alpes. A trip down freeride Mecca of the vallons de la Meije above la Grave. The only problem, the five young Belgium snowboarders were not properly equipped and didn’t have the necessary level for the adventure that would turn into a nightmare.

girose glacier
The Girose

Posted by davidof at 01:07 PM
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Wednesday, 06 February, 2008

Climber identified after half a century

The remains of a climber, frozen in ice, along with a crampon were discovered in September 2007 on the Tré la Tête glacier at around 3000 meters altitude and started the High Mountain Police in Chamonix (PGHM) on a long quest to discover his identity.

Posted by davidof at 08:37 AM
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Boarder found dead at Pra Loup

There have been a number of accidents over the last couple of days. A ski tourer was caught by an avalanche on the north face of the Grand Colon close to Grenoble on Sunday. He was carried 100 meters over small cliffs but was not buried. He suffered from a broken ankle and other injuries and was taken to hospital by helicopter. Witnesses described the conditions as delicate because of around 40cm of fresh snow and very strong winds.

Posted by davidof at 07:32 AM
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Thursday, 31 January, 2008

Time to retire the Ortovox F1?

Ortovox have recently advised users of the ORTOVOX F1 Plus, manufactured in the early 1990s, that their beacons cannot be serviced and may need to be replaced. A recent study by Thomas S. Lund (Signal Strength vs. Signal Timing - The Avalanche Review - Vol 26/2) questions whether it is time to retire other analogue beacons including the venerable Ortovox F1 given that there may be compatibility problems with more recent digital beacons.

Please read ORTOVOX comments on the F1/F1 Plus

ortovox f1

Posted by davidof at 09:31 AM
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Tuesday, 29 January, 2008

Bust up between la Clusaz and the Croix Fry

Over the summer ski resorts have been busy. Improving ski runs modernizing ski lifts and, a key marketing tool, adding links between disparate domains. But not in the Haute Savoie where relations between some resorts have become decidedly frosty, unlike the above average temperatures this January.

croix-fry

Posted by davidof at 06:11 PM
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Friday, 25 January, 2008

The Beaufortain gets a Beacon Basin

A new avalanche beacon training area has opened in the Areches ski resort in the Beaufortain mountain range. The Areches is the home of the Pierra Menta ski mountaineering marathon so it seems appropriate they have made this move.

Posted by davidof at 09:14 AM
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Wednesday, 16 January, 2008

Management buy-out for Dynastar?

Rumours about the future of Dynastar have been circulating for the past couple of years. The Sallanches (Haute-Savoie) based company, part of the Quiksilver stable (NYSE:ZQK), is the last major ski manufacturer in France. Their factory has a capacity to produce 450,000 skis per year. Quiksilver has seen its share price plummet faster than a downhill skier over the last quarter.

Posted by davidof at 07:30 AM
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St Lary Freeride 2008

If you are in or can get to St Lary Soulan over the 17th to 19th of the January check out their Freeride festival. The 14 films in the competition cover a panorama of recent productions conceived and filmed in the Pyrenees as well as the United States and Canada. The event coincides with St Lary’s 50 anniversary.

Posted by davidof at 06:28 AM
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Tuesday, 15 January, 2008

Col de Porte ski station closed

The Col du Porte is blanketed under a meter of fresh snow. Perfect skiing conditions. But the five “Poma” lifts and the lone chair sit idle, the only sound the clinking of the perches as they move in the breeze. The Col du Porte started life back in 1935, one of the France’s very first ski resorts. Before the war motor transport was rare and the Grenoblois would cycle up early on Saturday morning, skis strapped to their backs.

Sunset on the col de Porte