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Editor: Celia Fielder
Latest NewsThe 2006 -07 ski season marks the tenth that Erna Low has been the official UK representative for Les Arcs, the purpose built popular French resort. Eighty new snow cannons have been built expanding the 12 kms of pistes which are already covered, which should go towards any negative effect felt by global warming! And a new 6 pack chairlift is under construction to run alongside the existing Plagnette lift in Arc 2000, replacing the elderly Les Bosses lift. For intermediate and advanced skiers, Les Arcs offers miles of exciting challenge, both on or off the piste, especially now that the resort links with La Plagne, a cruisers paradise.
Aubrey Fielder, who with his wife Celia, ran the SkiDrive website, died on 23 August 2005 after a brave fight with a brain tumour. An Olympic cross country skier in the 1956 Winter Games at Cortina d'Ampezzo, Aubrey represented skiing on the British Olympic Association and CCPR between 1979 and 1987. From 1984 to 1987 he was Secretary General of the British Ski Federation. His wise counsel will be sadly missed.
Discounted travel insurance is offered through Holiday Home Insurance Brokers for ski drive readers. For full details contact us at info@skidrive.com
Crystal, the Number One UK tour operator, is operating again its direct charter flights to Denver for the 2006 - 07 season. Departing Wednesdays and Saturdays from Gatwick, a ski holiday in Colorado is well within budget and with little snow in Europe and feet in the US, now is the time to book! Call Crystal Ski on 0870 160 6040 or visit www.crystalski.co.uk With FREE ski passes for all holidays booked at Copper Mountain, and the pound still strong against the dollar, this is the time to book for the forthcoming season. Crystal's brochure is out NOW!
Thomsonfly.com is introducing two new destinations from Coventry Airport this winter. Flights to Salzburg started in late November, with fares from £22.99 one way including all taxes and charges. With eight flights a week, this is a real bonus for skiers as the Ski Welt area lies within 30 minutes drive of the Austrian city. Kitzbuhel, Zell am See and Kirchberg are little further. For those who prefer the French Alps, Thomsonfly.com is have opened booking for their new flights to Lyon for the same £22.99 one way cost (taxes included), a short drive from Paradiski, Espace Killy and the Trois Vallees, as well as Les Deux Alpes, Alpe d'huez and Serre Chevalier. For further information or to book, click on www.thomsonfly.com or call 0870 190 0737. Boarders heading for Colorado should check out the Rail Yard Terrain Park at Winter Park where manager Bob Holme has recreated famous Colorado street rails such as the State Capitol, Investco Field at Mile High and Coors Field. Fifteen new rails have been installed in the park this year, hoisting Winter Park from 29th in the boarder's league to ninth position! The rails will be exact replicas of the best, most off-limit rails in downtown Denver. Winter Park, nestling beside the Continental Divide, has an enviable snow record and is one of the closest resorts to Denver. There are now three terrain parks and two pipes at the resort. For full details visit www.ridewinterpark.com
Two old school chums, Stephen Brittain and Fletcher Morgan, have quit their respective careers and joined forces to produce innovative 3-D piste maps. Best feature of the flip-open charts is the stiff, waterproof fabric from which they are made - no longer will your piste map disintegrate into a soggy mess as you struggle in the snow to read which piste or lift to take next. The Three Valleys map is MountMaps.com first venture - Ski Welt will follow shortly, with Whistler/Blackcomb and Big White in Canada due out by the end of the 2004 - 05 season. As you open out the new map, you can see at a glance how to get from one valley to the next - what is a run down, which lift will take you back up. Described as the "must-have" accessory for this season, the maps cost just £3.50 each or 5 Euros. |
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Jackson Hole, North America's legendary mountain for expert and fearless skiers, has announced that it will replace its aged gondola with a $25 million 100 seater Tram which will be installed by Dopperlmayer in time for the 2008 season. The existing gondola ceases operation in October 2006 but there will be alternative access to the summit in the intervening two years. While a mecca for expert skiers, Jackson has good terrain for intermediates and the less confident with the installation of the Sweetwater triple chair lift which links the beginner slopes with the intermediate runs at mid-mountain. Bought from Winter Park, the lift provides a vertical rise of 1058 ft. In addition, Jackson Hole plans a new 72 seat indoor cafe at the base of the Bridger Gondola. The Mountain Sports School and Private Guide desks will also move to the Bridger Centre to speed access to the slopes. Experts will still be able to ski the Crags terrain which was opened to the public in 2005. This area was till then permanently closed, but for a fit expert skier it should take no longer than 35 minutes to hike the Headwall "stairway to heaven" from the top of Apres Vous or above the Caspar Lift to access 200 virgin acres and 1000 vertical feet of chutes, bowls and tree skiing. The Crags will be snow controlled and will open, depending on weather conditions, under a similar schedule to the Headwall or Caspar Bowl. Visit www.jacksonhole.com for full details. Copper Mountain is offering British skiers a FREE lift pass with any holiday booked through Thomsons, Crystal, Ski Independence, Neilson, Ski the American Dream and Ski All America. This represents a huge saving - the daily pass at nearby Vail was $72 last season!
Erna Low has teamd up with top estate agent Savills to work together on selected developments in ski destinations including a rental service to ensure maximum return on investment. Joanna Yellowlees-Bound of Erna Low said: "There is clearly a huge appetite and interest in buying aborad, particularly in top skiing locations where families and indificuals return year after year. Erna Low and Savills have worked alongsie one another over the last decade and I believe our partnership not only confims the unravelling merger between tourism and property but that this alliance is the result of a natural evolution of where the industries are heading." Erna Low is currently the UK agent for Intrawest's development at Arc 1950.
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