The Alps

It was still very early in the ski season, but since I had the opportunity, I thought I would try and ski.  I wouldn't be going just anywhere to do this either, I would go to ski in the Swiss Alps!

Living in Australia has always made skiing an expensive and difficult hobby to maintain.  It's been even harder with the knee injury and subsequent surgery.  The recent attempt at skiing in Dubai had been a nice test of the knee since the surgery.  It had been successful, so it seemed like it was now the time to increase the intensity of the testing.

It had been great staying with Zubi and his family in Bern.  He dropped me off at the train station and I started heading towards the Alps.  Of all the different ski resorts close to Bern, one of the closest happened to be Zermatt.  I had read about this place since I was a kid and most people are familiar with the unique profile of the Matterhorn (anyone who has ever eaten a Toblerone should be familiar with its shape).  I had been on a lot of incredible train rides recently, but the train ride up to Zermatt was probably the best I had ever been on in my life.  It was a slow and scenic train with big windows that covered half the roof of the carriages.  Sitting back, you could look up and see high into the mountains.

I arrived in Zermatt late in the afternoon.  The sun was setting and there was a chill in the air.  The two itself was quiet.  It was again, the very beginning of the ski season, and so the town was largely still in set up mode.  I didn't know it until I arrived, but Zermatt doesn't allow cars, so walking around the town is a relaxing activity free of any need to be careful.

It was too late in the day to go skiing, so I just wandered around the town.  It had been a while since I had experienced any real cold weather, so I was enjoying being able to breath the cold air and the chill on my skin.

The next day I headed straight up the mountain.  I was surrounded by skiers and boarders who were all chatting about how terrible the snow was, but none of this really mattered for me.  Being able to ski again after all these years was what was important to me.  I skied for most of the day and I was nothing short of terrible.  All those years away meant that my technique was gone and even basic carving was something I needed to relearn.  I didn't care at all though.  I had a great time!  Every now and again, I heard other skiers talking about how few runs were open.  It amazed me that they could complain about this.  Even with the limited runs, it was still possible for me to ski on runs that were 6 or 7 kilometres long.  These bad conditions were still twice as long as even the very best runs in perfect conditions in Australia.

As I carefully navigated myself down the slopes, every now and again I would stop and look back towards the Matterhorn.  It felt surreal to be skiing in its shadow, to be able to enjoy this experience of skiing in one of the world's great alpine locations with a backdrop this beautiful.  As I finished my day skiing, I sat in a restaurant looking out of a window at the Matterhorn.  I ordered a rosti with egg and bacon, which seemed to be the appropriate meal for the occasion.  I thought about whether to go and ski more, but before I could make the decision a huge storm started to roll in over the mountains.  The clear skies disappeared and the lifts were closed.  The skiing was over, but it had been a good day.

Snow in the desert

This is very silly.

This makes no sense and there's something about being part of this that makes me feel guilty.

But this was still an experience I wanted to try at least once.

I was skiing in the desert.  Not skiing on sand, but actually skiing.  Snow, skis, stocks and everything.

The complex is enormous.  You walk into the middle of the shopping mall and you walk towards a shop front that feels like the front of a large department store.

Of course, it isn't a department store, it's actually the entrance to one of the largest indoor ski fields in the world.

I went inside, paid my money, got my gear and went skiing.

It definitely wasn't the "best", but it was far better than I expected and it was much longer than expected as well.  There were two runs (well.... there was one run that was split in half) and it was a few hundred metres long.  I did my runs and it was enjoyable.  It had been a long time since I had been skiing, the first time I had skied since my knee reconstruction in fact.  Who would have thought that the first time I would ski again would in fact be at a ski centre in the Arabian desert?

At the end of it all, it just felt a bit wrong.  I was pretty much alone skiing, with only the occasional office worker coming in to do a few runs (clearly a European expat longing for home).  It all seemed like an enormous waste that was there purely so that whoever sponsored the project could tell people it was here, rather than for it to actually provide the benefits of skiing.  On top of that, the poor workers inside (who looked to be Indian foreign workers) looked truly miserable in the cold.

After being blinded by the whiteness of the snow, it was extra surreal to be outside again and looking at the endless sands of the desert.

The Nationals

It's been a while since I went skiing. About two years I think (well, according to my blog records anyway).

It has definitely been too long. Getting out onto the snow is something I would ideally like to do at least once a year. Once in two years simply isn't enough. I feel like I've missed out on something, as though the last two years have only been one. Skiing has become like a fulcrum for the year and not having it has made the years merge into one long unmanageable mess in my mind.

But finally, I was able to travel down to Thredbo. I had a couple of good reasons as well. First was that it was Angus' buck's party. He was getting married in December, but rather than have the traditional buck's party closer to the event, he wanted to go skiing (or in his case boarding) with his friends. It was great fun to see old friends (even if they were all boarding....) and we had a blast on the snow as you would expect.

However, the trip for everyone was done by Sunday. I on the other hand had decided that I would stay a little bit longer. It didn't seem right to only go for such a short time, but more importantly I would be catching up with Bryce!

Catching up with Bryce whenever I go to Thredbo is one of the priorities. After all, with his need to travel around the world for races, when else are we going to meet? The timing of this trip was perfect. I had arrived in Thredbo in time for the Nationals! Bryce and his brother would both be competing in the Slalom and the Giant Slalom. I had never been to a ski race, so I was looking forward to not only seeing the two of them race, but to see how a race took place.
The conditions were ordinary, but I was ready to watch a race! I had even brought along the cow bell that Bryce had given me years back to cheer with.
Thankfully for me, Hugh and Bryce's sister Cherry kept me company and kindly led me to the race course. She even directed me to the best places to watch the race.

Before Hugh and Bryce went, the disabled skiers raced.

These racers were truly awe inspiring. Seeing these racers flying down the mountain in the buckets or on one leg made me realise quickly the power of determination. It also made me realise just how slowly I ski....
Bryce got a decent result in his second race, but sadly crashed out of his first.
The speed at which these guys fly down the mountain is breathtaking. Skiing down the mountain from the top of the race course to the bottom made me quickly realise both how long the course was, as well as how slow I was going (my lack of speed was becoming a recurring theme). Many long minutes later, I was at the bottom of the course. Looking at the race timer, I could see the times for the racers light up ..... all of the times were under a minute. Again .... wonderful to know that see my own skiing inadequacies highlighted once more.

I really do love skiing. Being out here on the snow always makes me happier. There's something about the cold wind and the perfect white blankets of snow that seem to calm and relax. On those perfect white days, when the sun is blanked out by snow falls and when all you can feel is the spray of the snow in your face, you feel as though nothing can be more perfect.

Tune up

When you ski on an awful pair of old Rossignol skis..... you really don't care what happens to them.

Apparently they're filled with styrofoam anyway.
Things are a bit different for Bryce and Hugh though.

Every pair of skis they own is provided to them by the companies.

Racing skis that will never be used by the rest of us "normals".




But.... with such valuable skis....

Comes the need to tune them.....

On top of Australia

Skiing to the top of Australia!!!!

We wandered into the Eagles Nest for some brief shelter from the cold.

But then it was time to go back out! Visibility was VERY low and the winds were howling.

Didn't stop me though. I happily reached the highest ski lift in Australia.
Above the tree line, there wasn't anything to get in the way! Straight lining became far more fun.
The high winds produced some strange looking ice-crystals on all the rocks.
Isn't it perfect?
As the temperatures dropped again, Hugh and I retreated to the Kareela Hut for some warm drinks.Great views!
As we both skied down to the bottom again, Hugh decided to take a different run to me. We agreed that we'd meet at the base of the Gunbarrel chair lift.....

However, as I went down I stopped paying attention and flew right passed the turn I needed to make.... I ended up at a completely different location at the bottom. I didn't have Hugh's mobile number, so the minute I reached the bottom, I had kicked off my skis and ran to the shuttle bus. I got on that and travelled back to the lift I SHOULD have been at.... the look on Hugh's face as I appeared in the opposite direction of where I should have been coming from with skis on shoulder was priceless.....

Up the mountain

The skiing yesterday was tough..... really bad conditions..... awful conditions.

I got a little bit of frost burn on my lips and nose.

At one stage Hugh and I both ducked our heads to avoid the winds only for chills to go down our backs.

Today was MUCH nicer!

The sun was out and Hugh and I headed straight up Gunbarrel to find some nicer runs.

Isn't the snow beautiful?
Absolutely stunning.
As we got to the top, the winds started blowing again..... blowing even harder than the day before.....

At least the sun was out I guess.....

Look at that view!

Hugh looks happy with the snow as well!

Over the course of three seasons, I've had the pleasure of skiing with Bryce and Hugh, two of the best skiers in Australia (and the world for that matter). It's definitely been a great experience. Trying to keep up with these two, even on the traverses, is near impossible!!!

Cold as ice!!!!

I love the cold.

I also love the snow.

Skiing and snow... it really must be one of the best combinations ever!

When Bryce asked if I wanted to head to the mountain with his family... I jumped on the opportunity!
Pretty good snow! Not great.... but definitely above average.
Bryce and I also took this opportunity to head down to ''42''. This cafe supposedly makes the best coffees in Australia. I stopped drinking coffee two years ago... but I take this opportunity as the only time when I break this ban.

Getting down to the cafe was COLD, even when rugged up.

The coffees were good though, very good.

Bryce proudly displays his Are beanie. It's amazing how much stuff he gets from being a World Champs ski racer.

For competing at the World Champs, he and his brother were presented these amazing Crystal glasses.....

About to head off to the mountain!!!!