TOS wrote:
In my experience, the average French tourist is not as skilled at
skiing as the average tourist in Vermont. They love those long meandering
trails.
The French people that I met in the cities were regularly horrified when
they heard where I was skiing. They would tell me of the dangers. . .
I didn't do anything that any average Vermont skier couldn't do.
By our standards, I am pretty average.
A French colleague from Les Gets was very impressed with Stowe.
Looking down from the top Stowe he said sadly "obviously Les Gets is good
for families and children". Before that, he always telling me how great
it was.
---End of quote---
Last winter, we spent a week skiing in Wengen (Jungfrau region of
Switzerland), and the previous year we were in Chamonix. Overall, we loved
the experience, and plan to go back to Europe again this winter. The
scenery was amazing, the food was to die for, the prices were very
comparable to those here, and the challenge was certainly there.
What we did not find was trees. We like trees. Not only do they make for a
way more interesting ski, but they make it easier to deal with the vastness
of an open snow-covered slope.
My impression is similar to TOS's, that the typical European skier does not
have anywhere near the skill level of an intermediate skier in Vermont or
the West. And, they stick to the trails, all..day...long.
When I think of off-piste, I think backcountry, or perhaps sidecountry.
Europeans think it means just skiing anything other than the groomed trail.
We learned this when we hired a guide in Wengen, and told him we wanted to
ski "Off-piste". After a few preliminaries, he explained that well in
excess of 90% of his clients ski **on** the trail, a few ask to ski between
trails, and only a handful have any interest in leaving the clear, marked
and patrolled region near the lift system.
Once we had this pointed out, we started watching, and realized that we
could look for an as much as half an hour, and not see a single skier leave
the groomers. No wonder we could still find uncut powder, three days after
a storm, within 100 meters of the trail, and in sight of the trail and
lifts. This, alone, is a good reason to hit the Alps.
--David Merfeld
On Tue, 6 Sep 2005 22:31:28 -0700, Miguel Naughton
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>--- Leigh Daboll <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> The World's Biggest Ski Areas: 2005-06
>
>The grass is always greener on the other hill (or maybe that should
>be the snow is always whiter..)
>
>I've skied the Trois Vallees, Portes de Soleil and La Plagne (before
>it was connected). Believe me, a lot of the terrain is pretty boring.
>Sure, there's good stuff, but not nearly as much as the hectareage
>would suggest. And, remember, trees are hard to come by in the
>high Alps. Lots of fog in the high Alps too, which is hard to
>handle without any trees around.
>
>I think we've already got it pretty good in NA, at least as far as
>skiing is concerned.
>
>Mig
>
>
>
>
>
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