Weekly snow news roundup – 23/12/2009
The Bird's Nest Stadium will be filled with 25,000 tonnes of snow
THIS WEEK’S HEADLINES
Ski Racers Meet FIS After Spate Of Injuries Force More Out Of Olympics
New Six Seat chairlift for Isola 2000
Nevis Range Turns 20
Child’s Life Saved By Ski Helmet
Graduate Jobs Survey Offers Luxury Skiing Holiday Prize
China’s Olympic Bird’s Nest Fills With Snow
Salomon Launches ‘Grom Camps’ On UK Slopes
‘Augmented Reality’ For Skiers with iPhones
New Luxury Hotels For Kitzbühel
CairnGorm Mountain’s Oldest Employee Works Through 80th Birthday
6 seater chairlifts for Isola, snow in a bird’s nest, ski-nav on your iphone and a strong arguement for compulsory helmets. Read on for the full stories from our weekly snow news roundup…
Ski Racers Meet FIS After Spate Of Injuries Force More Out Of Olympics
A run of serious injuries in recent World Cup races has knocked several leading skiers out of the coming Winter Olympics, including the current defending downhill world champion, ahead of a scheduled meeting this week between downhill racers and International Ski Federation (FIS) officials in Val Gardena, Italy.
Racers Didier Cuche, Michael Walchhofer, Scott MaCartney, Marco Büchel, Werner Heel and Aksel Lund Svindal had what was described by the FIS as, “a productive meeting,” this week. The athletes presented some points that they think are important for the development and safety of Alpine Ski Racing. The FIS representatives Günther Hujara, Helmut Schmalzl and Mike Kertesz listened to what the athletes presented.
The Canadian team has been particularly hard hit, although athlete from several countries are out of the Olympics. John Kucera, the defending downhill world champion, broke his leg at Lake Louise in November, while teammate Jean-Philippe Roy injured his right knee during World Cup men’s action last week in Val d’Isere. Other Canadian team members due to miss the Olympics following crashes in Val d’Isere include Kelly VanderBeek who crashed during World Cup training on Thursday and Larisa Yurkiw who injured herself earlier in the week.
“This is a heartbreaking situation for the athletes, their families and all their supporters,” Alpine Canada president Gary Allan told Canadian media.
“The Canadian team is not alone, almost all major ski racing nations have been affected by injuries this year,” said Allan. “We were pleased to see the International Ski Federation taking the injury situation seriously, including meeting with athletes and coaches this week in Val Gardena, Italy. We look forward to impactful change occurring to help reduce the number of injuries occurring in our sport.”
This Val Gardena meeting represented a continuation of the two meetings with the athletes on the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup tour initiated during the 2008/09 season in Val Gardena and Alta Badia. This time around, the Alpine male representatives on the newly elected FIS Athletes’ Commission – Kilian Albrecht (Chair, BUL), Ivica Kostelic (CRO) for the men; Anja Pärson (SWE) and Marie Marchand-Arvier (FRA) for the women – facilitated the meeting, also selecting the participants and organizing the logistics.
Issues highlighted by the athletes includes Jumps, saying it is important that takeoff points are made easy to spot, and that there is a smooth preparation of the snow right before the takeoff. Flat landings must be avoided in the future.
In terms of speed control the athletes said turns do not automatically reduce speed. The combination of course setting and course preparation determines the speed. Smooth course means that the racers carry higher speed through turns.
For gate panels/gates the athletes believe it is important that panels are made to rip off easier in speed events.
For racing suits the athletes said there is a need to look for new technology in race suits and personal safety equipment. The question whether there should be one manufacturer for all teams of race suits needs to be investigated.
For course inspection racers suggested the inspection should be divided in to two groups so it’s easier for them to inspect the line. Also coaches, media and others should not block the racers’ view. Line inspection is a major safety issue for athletes.
For skis, bindings, boots and plates athletes say that if there is going to be a change in the rules for equipment, it should only be done after serious investigation by all stakeholders. Making the skis wider was most likely a mistake according to the athletes present. It is also time to proactively promote further development of safe bindings that open on impact. Since the bindings have developed little in the last 20 years, additional safety enhancements should be possible.
Athletes would like to see one professional medical team following the entire World Cup.
In terms of travel planning racers said that with athletes coming from different time zones/continents, there should be enough time to prepare fully before the next race.
Finally, the athletes feel that the course setting and preparation of the race hill are factors that should be possible to change at short notice. However, when it comes to equipment changes and changes in the protocol around races, these should be understood as long-term changes.
New Six Seat chairlift for Isola 2000
Isola 2000 in the southern French Alps is opening a new six-seat chairlift this winter, thanks to investment from the local Alpes-Maritimes Council.
The new lift, named “La Valette,” is 1,905m long and rises 500 vertical metres.
The lift improves people management on the slopes, reducing bottle necks, and providing a more comfortable uplift.
The ‘skier flow’ on the route increases to 3,200 passengers per hour thanks to the carrying capacity of the chairlift, which has a top speed of six metres per second.
On Saturday 19 December 2009, Scotland’s Nevis Range ski centre will celebrate its twentieth anniversary. It re-opens for its winter season exactly twenty years after it first opened its doors on 19 December 1989. Originally operating as a ski resort, the business has grown and diversified since that day. Today it is a major player in the Scottish tourist industry and contributes significantly to the Outdoor Capital of the UK.
The mountain gondola, the only one of its kind in Britain, was originally constructed on the slopes of Aonach Mor as a way to transport skiers to the pistes. However, from day one, the gondola became a highly acclaimed visitor attraction in its own right, attracting around 200,000 visitors annually.
Marian Austin of Nevis Range said, “The past twenty years has been both exciting and challenging. We can’t pretend that the ski industry has been an easy ride, but after twenty years, we’re still in business, and we still offer winter skiing and snowboarding as well as many other activities.”
“Today, we continue to employ some staff members who have been here since the beginning. As a business located in the ‘Outdoor Capital’ we are continually working to provide outstanding outdoor experiences for our visitors. We have our sights set firmly on the future and are working to improve existing facilities. We also have ambitious expansion plans that will add even more activities for our visitors over the next couple of years.”
www.nevisrange.co.uk
Child’s Life Saved By Ski Helmet
A young girl who collided with a tree when skiing at Afton Alps in Minnesota last week may have died had she not been wearing a helmet, according to a doctor who treated her.
The six-year-old broke her nose and her leg in the accident, but a dent in her helmet appears to indicate it saved her from more serious head trauma.
“The helmet is probably the thing that saved her from truly serious injury,” Dr. Michael McGonigal, head of trauma services at the hospital which treated the girl told local media.
He said it’s a risk faced by all skiers, especially amateurs. And he said he hoped Julia’s accident would offer an example to parents about the difference a helmet can make for their kids.
“You’ve got to make them believe it,” McGonigal said. “You’ve got to get them tuned in with the people that are doing it, and probably one of the most important things is to get them involved in wearing those things at a very young age, so it’s just a natural thing.”
Graduate Jobs Survey Offers Luxury Skiing Holiday Prize
Recent graduates working in the UK have the chance to win a luxury skiing or snowboarding holiday if they complete a short survey about their jobs on www.2iresearch.com/gradjobs.
All graduates who fully complete the online survey will be entered into a prize draw for a £2,000 break for two people in Val d’Isère with Crystal Ski.
Market research and consultancy firm 2i Research is conducting the survey to find out about graduates’ real life experiences of their jobs. The questionnaire is aimed at graduates from 2006-2009 and the results will help future generations of students make career decisions.
The survey leader, James Frith, has first-hand experience of the reality of the graduate jobs market. He graduated from Cambridge University, found a job with a leading financial institution, decided that it was hell on earth with a photocopier and a coffee machine and left six months later to follow his dream of becoming an acrobat and trapeze artist.
“Our survey has been designed to take an impartial and relaxed look at the working world for recent graduates,” he said. “If you can spare us five minutes to score your job on five scales and answer three short questions, you have a chance to win a fantastic prize.”
To fill in the survey and enter the competition, visit www.2iresearch.com/gradjobs before the closing date of December 31, 2009.
China’s Olympic Bird’s Nest Fills With Snow
China’s famous 2008 Olympics Bird’s Nest stadium is currently full of snow, for a snow festival which will continue through to the start of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Snowmaking guns have covered 10,000 square meters of the venue with snow up to a metre deep and created from 25,000 tons of ‘reclaimed water.’
The snow has been shaped in to an artificial snow hill inside the stadium some 20m (70 feet) high, complete with multiple sliding paths downs.
500 snowboards are available for rental and there’s also a warm up area. The snow slope is open from 9am to 6pm on weeks days and to 9:30 pm at weekends. Admission for adults is 120 yuan per person on weekdays and 180 yuan at weekends, children under 1.2m (four feet) high are free.
The recycled and purified waste water being used to make the snow is reported to have no risk to human health following a three stay filtration process. In a city constantly fighting drought, once the snow melts it is collected by the centre’s drainage system and will be reused again in stadium toilets.
The snowy attraction is scheduled to remain open to February 20, 2010.
Salomon Launches ‘Grom Camps’ On UK Slopes
Salomon is sponsoring a series of Freeski ‘Grom Camps’ at UK indoor snow domes and outdoor dry ski slopes to help get everyone from novices to experts airborne, grinding and generally having fun.
There is no age limit; the youngest camper so far was five and the oldest over 60. The camps are for all standards of skiers, from ‘never jumped before’ to sponsored riders, however all campers must to be able to ski down the slope in a controlled and safe manner.
The environment is purposefully relaxed and non-competitive but the coaching is top notch. There are different groups for different levels of skiers to make sure everyone gets the very best coaching from the professional skiers.
The camps are run by Pat Sharples, team manager for Salomon and Oakley, and he employs top name coaches in the industry including Andy Bennett, James Woods, Joe Tyler, James Webb and Becky Hammond.
After each camp video highlights of the day are shown and campers rewarded with prizes for the most improved, hardest working and best tricks of the day.
The cost to the public of each camp is £30 and this covers slope fees and coaching.
Camps are scheduled to run from January to August at the indoor snow slopes in Milton Keynes, Tamworth and Manchester and on outdoor slopes at Bracknell.
‘Augmented Reality’ For Skiers with iPhones
Skiers and snowboarders who own the latest iPhone 3GS, can enjoy an ‘augmented reality (AR)’ that will allow them to navigate ski trails and on-mountain features at selected US ski resorts. Using an application developed by Colorado-based Resort Technology Partners (RTP), REALSKI allows riders to view their surroundings while the app overlays digital graphics showing nearby lifts, runs and resort facilities in real view and real-time.
The initial version of the application is free and includes maps for Killington, Copper Mountain, Deer Valley, Northstar-at-Tahoe and Stevens Pass and is available via iTunes. Later this month a pay-to-use full version of the application will be available offering maps for most North American resorts.
With REALSKI, users move their iPhone up, down, and around to scan their surroundings. Digital overlays will change in real time to match what the camera sees. This allows users to find the location of facilities and points of interest, including: – Named runs including skill designation (green, blue, black) and directional heading – Lift names with loading and un-loading areas – lodges, restrooms and restaurants and special areas such as terrain parks.
The iPhone 3GS is the first phone to offer a camera, GPS, compass and an accelerometer. This combination enables RTP to augment the reality provided by the camera with digital graphics. REALSKI layers information on top of the visuals picked up by the camera using current location and elevation detected by the GPS, the compass heading and device accelerometer. Augmented reality mobile apps are new, and RTP’s REALSKI is the first available for major mountain resorts. Patents and trademarks are pending.
There’s a Virtual Visit Mode For those who are curious about the AR experience of REALSKI, but don’t live near one of the five initial resorts, a virtual visit mode allows users to sample the AR view from any location. The virtual visit mode “transports” the user to a predefined location at one of the initial resorts to see what’s nearby as if they were really there.
The new app comes with several health and safety warnings:
“Skiing is inherently dangerous. Don’t make it worse by attempting to use REALSKI while you’re moving!”
“REALSKI is for entertainment purposes and not intended for primary navigation. Have fun!”
New Luxury Hotels For Kitzbuhel
Kitzbühel’s first hotel in the ‘Leading Hotel of the World’ group has opened its doors for the first time this week.
The new five star isn’t actually in the famous village, but is located in the neighbouring village of Jochberg.
Named the Royal Spa Kitzbühel it offers its guests, “…a modern and luxurious stay with direct access to the slopes, state of the art spa area and individually styled dining rooms offering exquisite regional and international delicacies.”
A second new hotel also opens this month in another neighbouring village, Fieberbrunn, close to Kitzbuehel.
The new four star Austria Trend Alpine Resort features modern design and ‘blends comfortably’ with the surrounding alpine landscape.
www.kitzbuehelroyalspa.com / www.austria-trend.at/alpine-resort-fieberbrunn
CairnGorm Mountain’s Oldest Employee Works Through 80th Birthday
CairnGorm Mountain’s oldest employee Sandy Murray celebrated his 80th birthday at work in the ticket office last week.
Customer services team member Sandy has worked part-time at the visitor attraction for the past 10 years and still skis regularly at CairnGorm and annually abroad.
The former member of the Fleet Air Arm, time-share salesman, hotelier, lemonade factory proprietor and hot air balloon owner has lived in Aviemore since 1985 and when not working enjoys rally-driving, flying model planes and trading shares on the internet.
Cairngorm is currently open daily with fresh snow this week.
www.cairngormmountain.org
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