Alpine Winter Sports – Page 54 – Everything you need to know about skiing and other Alpine winter sports

12/12/201314/09/2014

Radio Channels for Skiers and Snowboarders

So, you are in the mountains and you want to hear what the snow conditions are like or you just want to hear some chill sounds? Well, you are spoilt for choice if you are a native speaker of the language of the resort you are in, but if not do not despair. The options are limited but increasing, and with more places offering WiFi, it has provided what could be an explosion of stations targeting English-speaking skiers and snowboarders.

Well-established is Mountain Radio Verbier, servicing the Four Valleys. From the web site you can download the Mountain Radio app from iTunes or Google Play. You can also listen to Mountain Radio Verbier on 96.9 FM Cable (Pays du St. Bernard, Verbier), 94.0 FM Cable (La Tzoumaz, Thyon 2000, Nendaz). It is also on the Netplus or Netbox networks.

The good news for those visiting Chamonix is that, from December 16th 2013, there will be the exciting prospect of the English-language Summit Radio in Chamonix Mont Blanc. The station will broadcast on www.summitchx.com. Summit Radio says it will be the ‘go to’ radio station for those living in or travelling to the Chamonix valley providing great music with local news and content, in-depth discussion and chat. Live programs will be broadcasted from 06h00 to 22h00 during the week and specialist shows during the weekends. After the winter season, Summit Radio will look to expand its team and gain an FM license to broadcast in the local area.

And if you fancy yourself as a radio presenter, they are now hiring! See here.

Of course I can’t finish this piece without drawing your attention to the English Show, servicing English-speakers in the Basel area every Tuesday evening at 6.30pm on 94.5 FM locally, and anywhere you happen to be on the web. During the winter months I have a regular slot where you can get an update on the winter sports scene in Switzerland.

Now, go listen!

05/12/201305/12/2013

Feldberg Open for Winter Sports

Feldberg is open for the 2013/4 season, albeit only one side of the resort, around Feldbergerhof. This is the less exciting part of the resort, but for a chance to try out your ski legs or to begin learning, it is perfect. The snow is pretty good, and with temperatures falling quite substantially over the next few days, the outlook for a long season in Feldberg looks promising.

The ski shops and schools are in business, but the catering facilities seem a little slower in offering service. Still, it is early days and the delight of being able to ski good snow with stunning views over the Alps and the Black Forest only a short drive from Basel is irresistible. I suspect that the Fahl area will open up at the weekends, possibly not until later in the month, before the resort is in full swing for the Christmas period.

For people who don’t ski but enjoy a seasonal walk in a winter wonderland, especially with those exceptional views, Feldberg can’t be beat. And there are even a few folk out ski-kiteboarding and out on cross-country skis.

Details on the resort are here and some footage of me skiing the resort on 4th December is on Youtube: Snow in Feldberg.

29/11/201329/11/2013

Early Season Skiing

I got my first runs in for the season, at Zermatt and Cervinia. The snow was good, the temperatures suitably cold and enough lifts were open to make it a pleasant enough day. However the one problem with early season skiing is that few resorts offer much in the way of terrain, valley runs are roped off even if the snow conditions are good (to save them for the Christmas period), many lifts are closed (to save on staff costs I guess) and you still have to fork out the full price.

Not a lot of skiers out, mainly a lot of Americans and Brits – and the Italian national team on the Italian side. Lots of unfit bodies crashing around by the end of the day and a few injuries look like they got sustained. A timely reminder to get ski fit before hitting the slopes.

My ski legs seemed to work pretty well, but harder to get used to was altitude sickness. By the end of the season I am acclimatised to it, but in the early part of the season where most of the open runs tend to be over 3000m I need to pace myself to avoid getting nauseous.

Now where to ski next? A lot of resorts are open, but with the provisos I have previously made. There is good snow at altitude, but hopefully there will be more before Christmas. The snowline seems to be about 1300m, but there is only a few inches lower down.

Interestingly 20minuten has a deal to ski the Jakobshorn for CHF 59 including rail travel on 30th November. The deal is here. Note this is not the Parsenn, but the deal has lots of extras and is worth it for the rail pass alone. You can get information on getting to Davos Platz (the stop for the Jakobshorn) here.

That apart, the usual suspects have got some pistes open. I would tend to aim for the larger resorts with high valley stations. If you can get across to Ischgl/Samnaun, that seems to have the most open terrain, followed by Zermatt. Saas-Fee, Diavolezza (St Moritz) and Davos have enough open lifts and runs for a day out. Engelberg, Andermatt and Adelboden have around 15km open, and these and other resorts may open up more runs at the weekends. Off-piste conditions seem to be generally pretty good with moderate risk of avalanches.

26/11/201326/11/2013

How to Pronounce Swiss Place Names

Today 20Minuten features a map from Dee-dee, on the same basis as one for Germany in a blog by Harald Havas. Designed for English-speakers, it provides a phoenetic guide to pronouncing both the cantonal name and the name of the capital of the canton, in each case in the language of the canton.

So Fribourg is “Free Boer” or “Fry book”. Luzern is “Loot CERN”, the Grisons is “Grow Burn Den”, with a capital of “Cooer”.

For avid skiers and snowboarders, this is one very useful map to demonstrate that your prowess on the slopes matches your knowledge of the Swiss Cantons, and how to pronounce their names. The other map to have, of course, is the one at the Swiss Winter Sports web site!