Author Archives
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Generation opens two new schools
THE BRITISH-RUN New Generation Ski & Snowboard School is opening two new outlets this season – one in Morzine, France and another in Villars, Switzerland.
New Generation’s award winning kids groups will be running in Morzine for 4 and a quarter hours each morning during holidays with an option to upgrade to two full days of lessons.
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60 second news
TEENAGER FOUND DEAD
The death of a teenager in the Canadian ski resort of Whistler is being treated as ‘suspicious’ reports The Guardian. To read the full story clock here.
FIRE AT YEOVIL SKI CENTRE
Firefighters managed to extinuish a fire at Yeovil Ski Centre before it caused any major damage resports the Western Gazette. See full story by clicking here
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More rumours and rumbles in Butler v BASI case involving French ski school
THERE have been several developments in the long running series of legal cases between British ski instructor and holiday company operator Simon Butler and the French authorities.
Mr Butler, who has been ski teaching in France for more than two decades without any known problems, was charged in 2013 with teaching without full qualifications in France and running a ski school which also did not meet French legal requirements and was ultimately served with a six month suspended jail sentence and €30,000 fine after a series of French court hearings last year.
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French court rules against Ski Club of Great Britain
THE OUTCOME from the hearing held on 8 December 2014 in Paris against Ski Club of Great Britain Leader, Ken Piddlesden has found against the Club.
The action was brought after Club leader Ken Piddlesden was stopped on the piste in Val d’Isère, France in April 2014 and questioned by the gendarmerie (military force charged with police duties) in relation to Art.L.212-1 of the French Code du Sport. Under this article it is a legal requirement to have the relevant and appropriate qualification(s) to instruct, lead or guide skiing (groups) if remuneration is received.
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James Bond heads for Austrian ski slopes – and it’s for real this time!
HERE’S a question for James Bond fans. Has 007 ever skied in Austria?
The answer is yes… and no!
At the start of The Spy Who Loved me (1977) Bond’s boss ‘M’ is told that 007 is in Austria and the story then cuts to one of the best openings to a Bond film ever when the British spy, in the shape of Roger Moore, skis off the side of a mountain while being chased by baddies and floats to the ground using a massive union jack parachute.
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Ski hosting dispute goes to high court
CHALET holiday firm Le Ski is taking its case against the ski hosting ban in France to the supreme court in Paris after losing its initial appeal in Chambery.
“This is only possible with the continuing support of our fellow tour operators,” said Le Ski’s boss Nick Morgan.
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Help guide a blind skier – and get a half price holiday
A company which operates ski holidays for blind skiers is seeking sighted skiers to help them on the slopes.
Traveleyes, now in its 10th year, is an award winning organization specialising in group holidays for both blind and sighted travellers alike.
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New ski area plan for Scotland
SCOTLAND is to get its sixth ski centre – only around 50 miles from the English border and not far from the M74.
Lowther Hills Ski Club in Dumfriesshire is planning a 600m tow to an altitude of 725m to create an intermediate run, and two 100m lifts to serve separate nursery slopes, all above a club house at 585m.
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Snowboarders stayed banned from Utah ski area
BOARDERS will stay banned from Alta Ski Area near Salt Lake City in Utah – one of the last three ski resorts in the US to outlaw the sport.
A federal judge threw out a lawsuit brought by four snowboarders and ruled that they did not have a constitutional right to ride boards in a private resort.
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SKI ODDITY
SWING HIGH: The Swingers Date Club (SDC) 3rd annual ski event is taking place in Obertauern in Austria from 6-11 December.
The blurb on the SDC website says: “This is your chance to party together with 250 of the hottest couples from around the world both on and off the slopes.
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Ski racer meets her match on Jungfrau
TWO sporting superstars played a special celebrity ‘Top of Europe’ exhibition tennis match on the Jungfraujoch in Switzerland recently.
But it’s fair to say that while top American ski racer Lindsey Vonn was more at home in the mountain environment, she was no match for her opponent on the other side of the net as it was tennis champion Roger Fererer.
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Ski club halt leader service in France
THE Ski Club of Great Britain’s hope that it would not be dragged into the ski hosting/leading dispute in France appears to have been dashed following the release of a recent statement by the Wimbledon-based organisation.France fired its first shot over the club’s bows in April this year when a Ski Club Leader was stopped on the piste in Val d’Isere and questioned by gendarmes in relation to Art.L.212-1 of the French Code du Sport.
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Early rush for school holiday bookings
SCHOOL holiday periods for next winter are already booking up quickly according to UK tour operators.
A key reason appears to be the much publicised stepping-up of the fines system for parents taking children out of school in England during term time.
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Snowboarder’s memory lives on through charity
A 26-YEAR-OLD snowboarder died as a result of being trapped for 45 minutes under a snow drift, an inquest heard recently.
Emily Watts, from the village of Lavenham in Suffolk was snowboarding in the French area of Chamonix on 8 December 2012.
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Environmentalists oppose 2018 Winter Olympics downhill course
SOUTH Korea’s largest environmental group, Green Korea, is attempting to halt construction of the Olympic downhill course on Mt. Gaiwang, according to the Korea Times.
The group is urging the PyeongChang Winter Olympics organising committee to use an existing run instead.
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Robbie wows the crowds at end of season concert in snowy Ischgl
SUPERSTAR Robbie Williams brought the Tirolean ski resort of Ischgl to a sensational close at the beginning of May with a mountain-top concert at 2,300m.
His open-air performance got 25,000 fans singing and dancing in the snow with songs from his Swings Both Ways album, interspersed with top crowd pleasers such as Let Me Entertain You and Angels.