Posts Tagged ‘extreme skiing’

It’s that time of year again… the World Heli Challenge Big Air event held annually in New Zealand, and the competition got off with a bang… This year the scheduled dates are 30th July – 8th August.

Extreme Day

Cam McDirmid (Wanaka) and snowboarder Dave Schmit-Rodriguez (Canada) won the final two spots for the World Heli Challenge on a brilliant blue skied day, on 30th July.

However, since then the snow has been dumping up in the mountains of Treble Cone and the event has been delayed until Wednesday, 4th August – hopefully.

Do you need reminding about what this event is all about (skiingbg)?

The World Heli Challenge Big Air event is a unique event in the elite world of extreme skiing and snowboarding. It brings together a handful of top athletes from around the globe to compete in helicopter accessed competition.

Fifty of the world’s top skiers and snowboarders will converge on Wanaka for eight days, including two days of helicopter-accessed competition The goal is to find out which athlete is the best “all rounder” by combining their freeride and free style skills to showcase their overall talent.

Extreme Day is scheduled for the 4th, weather permitting. Athletes will be helicoptered into the Mt Aspiring National Park for a day of steep and deep extreme action with Back Country Helicopters.

Treble Cone has built the Backcountry Air in a little utilised area at the top of the Saddle Quad. With spectacular views over Glendu Bay and Lake Wanaka the site compliments the natural freeride terrain Treble Cone is renowned for and provides a stunning venue for Big Air competitions overlooking the famous Treble Cone view. This is a photographers dream as much as it is a spectators paradise.

And the prize for the winner?

The prize is one of the most incredible snow experiences you could ever live for or hope for: a week-long heli package at Points North Heli in Cordova, Alaska courtesy of Kevin Quinn. The winner will be selected pretty much on a respect basis: the respect gained from the judges, the safety crew, the heli loaders, the pilots and his and her peers competing. Now that’s fair… and have a look at this video to see what the lucky winner is in store for, with thanks to pnhalaska for screening it.

Good luck to all…

Yesterday I was dreaming of Alaska, but for all you snow enthusiasts who can’t wait for the northern hemisphere winter and possibly feel that New Zealand and Australia are a bit too far to scratch the itch, well then, have you thought about Argentina? Or Argentina and Chile?

The Andes Mountains are blessed with unparalleled conditions for skiing and snowboarding. Argentina and Chile feature many different ski resorts divided into world class and rustic areas. In addition to classic ski resorts South America offers two snowcat skiing operations as well as four heli-skiing destinations.

Skiing and riding the most challenging terrain in the Andes Mountains – what more could you ask for? Well, perhaps some wine tasting at the same time? and why not!

ARGENTINA

Las Leñas is a haven for extreme skiers and heli-skiers – thanks to freeski73 for the great video and if you don’t understand the small amounts of French spoken, don’t worry, persevere, it’s a great video! This resort is not only about extreme skiing, it  also has a good selection for beginners and intermediates.

RUNS: 28                  42 km / 26 miles

BEGINNER                  8%
INTERMEDIATE     23%
ADVANCED              31%
EXPERT                      38%

It is the highest ski resort in Argentina. The summit is at 3,430m and the base of the resort is at 2,240m which gives skiers a vertical slope of 1,225m. With its unbeatable snow, its trails for all levels of skiers and especially for the world class off-piste descents and cross-country ski, this resort is considered by many to be outstanding. Las Leñas  has a slalom stadium and 28 authorized trails with a maximum skiable surface of 7,050m or 46 kms, one of which is one of the longest intermediate trails in the world. There are 13 lifts and if there is not enough fresh snowfall, Las Leñas has a modern system to make artificial snow.

As for the back country trails – it’s hard to beat. Over 20,000 acres of endless powder. The best freeriding in South America. Endless opportunity for adventure.

The season stretches from June 11th to September 24th.

The closest airport is Malargue – 70 kms away.

Close to  Las Leñas is Los Penitentes. Established in 1979, Los Penitentes winter resort has at present more than 300 hectares of skiable runs. There are 25 runs of different lengths and something for everyone from beginner to advanced and expert skiers. The snow is generally dry and compact.

And you can take advantage of Portillo across the border in Chile. The snow quality here is fantastic. There is also an enormous amount of unexplored back country potential.

The season runs from mid-June to late August and the closest airport is Mendoza International – 174 km away.

The top of Cerro Catedral is 2,180m and the bottom 1,030m, giving a vertical drop of 1,150 metres. This resort is considered to be the most developed one in South America. In the 600 hectares of skiable area (120 km), the resort is divided into 53 well sign-posted trails of various difficulties: 17% for beginners, 42% for intermediate, 25% advanced and 17% for expert skiers only. There are 38 lifts and good access to back country skiing. The closest airport to this resort is Bariloche International.

With 22 trails of various difficulties and excellent snow quality, Chapelco combines extreme adrenaline and landscape. It has 140 skiable hectares (32 kms) with 31% of trails for beginners, 17% for intermediate skiers, 42% advanced and 10% for expert skiers. There is also a Snowboard Park at the 1,700 m platform where adrenaline seekers can find a half pipe, parallel slalom and big air jumps.

The landscape is magnificent. The impressive view of Lake Lácar, the silence of the lengas forests and the striking presence of the Lanín Volcano breaking the horizon add to the uniqueness of this winter resort. It is open from June 23 to October 14.

The closest airport is Chapelco 19 kms away.

Cerro Bayo is another beautiful resort with magnificent scenery. It is surrounded by forests and has a majestic view of Lake Nahuel Huapi. It offers 200 hectares of pisted slopes, with a 700m vertical drop (maurigar99).

Although suitable for beginners (28% of the resort is ideal), Cerro Bayo appeals to extreme skiers with its good black runs, deep snow in the ravine and matchless off-piste runs that go through untouched forests from the summit to the base. There are 800+ acres of trails with very good back country routes too. The ski season runs from mid June to October.

The closest airport is Bariloche International: 83 km away.

Cerro Castor is truly at the end of the world, way down there in Ushuaia. It is the same distance from the South Pole as Moscow is from the North Pole. It is Argentina’s newest resort and the southern-most ski resort in the world. Although not very high it enjoys very good weather and excellent powder snow. It has one of the longest seasons in South America – from July 09 to October 12.

With a skiable drop of 772m, there are 24 runs with different levels of difficulties and 20 kms of off-piste sectors. It also has wonderful back country trails with circuits that go through lengas forests. Also ideal for snow rackets/shoes.

The closest airport is Ushuaia, 26 kms away.

Caviahue is in the heart of the Andes Mountain Range, Northwest of the Province of Neuquén and on the Argentinian-Chilean border. It lies at the feet of the Copahue Volcano. This mountain village is 1,600 m above sea level and it presents a contrast between its natural environment and the almost lunar landscape of Copahue. The ski resort guarantees the quality of powder snow without long lines at the lift making it an ideal family resort for both downhill and cross-country skiing.

The closest airport is  the city of Neuquén – 353 kms away.

La Hoya is the last resort we will cover today which means we will come back to Chile another time… Standing at 1,350m above sea level its geographic location allows visitors to benefit from snow as early as the first few days of June. From the summit (2,050m) to the base there are 60 hectares of pisted slopes, with large runs for all levels although, as with all the Andes resorts, La Hoya prides itself on its selection of off-piste skiing. There are 10 lifts and 24 runs  and the resort is proud of its powder snow. However, for years with poor snowfall they do have all the modern amenities to make the artificial stuff.

The name La Hoya comes from the shape of the mountain which is a wide glacier above a circular basin. All the ski runs join at the same point at the base. In the 1930’s, pioneer skiers from the region discovered this attractive natural formation and began to visit the mountain.

The closest airport is Esquel Domestic: 21 km.

And more later…

Erik Roner has been a professional skier and avid BASE jumper for the past 6 years. He’s been published in over 30 different magazines world-wide, starred in over 10 major ski films, participated in numerous TV shows on Discovery, National Geographic, NBC, Showtime, FUEL TV and others. Each winter he travels the world and films a progressive big mountain ski segment with Teton Gravity Research from which the following video comes from (TheErikRoner):

Here, Erik, Teton Gravity Research Big Mountain skier, BASE Jumper & Nitro Circus athlete becomes the first person to Ski BASEjump off Cajun Coulior in Jackson Hole, WY. Cajun Coulior is near the popular Corbet’s Coulior.

Erik started skydiving and BASE-jumping in 2000 and quickly developed a passion for BASE-jumping. He has helped pioneer ski BASE-jumping, skiing numerous first descents all over the globe. Ski BASE-jumping is where you ski down a line that ends or closes out in a 200ft-2000ft cliff. The line is only ski-able if you ski off the cliff and deploy a parachute.

Roner, 31, first came to the publics’ attention when he ski-BASEjumped in the 2005 film, Tangerine Dream. Although generally hanging out at and around the Tahoe ski scene, if you see a guy wearing skis and a parachute floating down off the gnarliest cliff at your favourite resort, chances are Erik has come to visit.

What sort of a man is he? Well, when a friend asked him if he’d like to “ come BASE jump dirt bikes into the Grand Canyon?” His immediate response was, “I’ve never even been on a dirt bike but, yeah, I’m in!” and that’s the sort of man he seems to be… up to any stunt in the book and if it’s the first time it’s been tried – hell yeah, why not!

We’ll end with another visually breathtaking video of Roner, Morrison and Jones doing some seriously extreme skiing on some seriously extreme mountains (NewRISC):

In keeping with my comment over on Twitter, “Skiing:  the art of catching cold and going broke while rapidly heading nowhere at great personal risk” – I couldn’t resist broadcasting these extreme skiers and their even more extreme exploits (ZiGGAH):

Almost definitely not to be recommended if you’re planning a nice little ski weekend up in Gstaad!

And just because I can’t resist it, I’ll show the last jump again (skitchysays) – it was, after all, a world record at the time:

And then along came Fred Syversen determined to outjump Jamie Pierre and succeeded with a magnificent 107 m (351 ft) jump (homeboyskidotcom):

Hats off to them, and rather them than me!

We haven’t even had a look at the winter season in Japan yet, but know it’ll be worth a mention – last year we were amazed at the wonderful quality and quantity of snow they received…

And 2010 is no different.

An interesting fact is that snowmaking is banned in Japan, but fortunately that’s not a problem for the island of Hokkaido. Indeed the only complaint has been ‘too much snow’, with some visitors complaining of snow falling for weeks on end.

It is perhaps a little known fact that Japan has more than 500 ski resorts, and those on the northern island of Hokkaido experience more snow than anywhere else in Japan. Sub Arctic storms race out of Siberia across the Sea of Japan  and dump vast loads across the island of Hokkaido. It is some of the lightest, driest powder snow found anywhere in the world.

Mt Niseko is one of Japan’s most popular ski resorts. The mountain is home to 5 different resorts: Annupuri, Higashiyama, Hirafu, Hanazono and Moiwa, and your lift pass is interchangeable between them all except the smallest resort of Moiwa.

The prevailing weather pattern means that this resort receives dump after dump of great snow throughout the winter. Barely a day goes by without new powder snow coating fabulous slopes on which enthusiastic skiers can lay fresh tracks.

In addition, Niseko has the largest floodlit night skiing area in the world. The lifts are open from 8:30 in the morning until 9:00 p.m. at night 7 days / week.

A very efficient lift system  of  gondolas and covered chairlifts will get you to the top of each mountain quickly and in comfort. The terrain is varied. There are legendary tree runs like Strawberry Fields and Miharashi, and some huge powder fields off The Peak which will blow your mind. There are some great steep runs at the Alpen Super Course and under the Kogen gondola. For beginners, there are beautifully groomed slopes at the base of the mountain. All runs are long and the 900m vertical drop ranks Niseko up there with other world class resorts. The longest run is a fabulous 5,600m.

Being at a low altitude, 1,200m only, it rarely experiences true white-out conditions, although when it is snowing, visibility is reduced to around 200m.

The expected average snowfall during any given month is mind boggling: 1 metre in December, 3 in January, nearly 4 in February and over 4 in March.

Ski Rusutsu is about an hour from Niseko and has 3 main mountains – East, West and Mt. Isola. Together there are 42 kilometres of runs, including a long cruiser of 3.5 kilometres. Despite its low altitude by the standards of Europe’s Alps or the Rockies, Rusutsu is particularly well known for its remarkable natural snowfall.

Here you’ll find untracked powder runs,  amazing variety of terrain and some awesome natural terrain features not found in other resorts. It has the best tree-skiing in Japan, particularly on Mt. Isola, and the backcountry is superb. The uncrowded groomed runs are amazing,  resembling gigantic freeways with long consistent fall-lines. Add to this one of the best half-pipes and snow-parks in the area and you’ve got a resort that offers everything you could ever want in a ski resort.

And then there’s Furano, located in the middle of Hokkaido at the foot of Japan’s mountain range. It has a wide selection of varied terrain for every level of skier and snowboarder with cruising trails, beautiful views and high speed lifts plus the added advantage of a vertical drop of over 950 metres making it one of the steepest mountains in Hokkaido. It’s a powder skiing mecca, and usually receives an average 8 metres of the lightest, driest snow each ski season, and yet has more blue sky sunny days than any other resort in Hokkaido.

And we will end with Hakuba…

… which means ‘white horse’ in Japanese This is an epic valley with 10 different ski resorts and hundreds of kilometres of trails spread over a huge variety of terrain. Hakuba boasts the longest vertical run in Japan and other runs exceeding 6 km.

There is something here for everyone – skiers and snowboarders, beginners to experienced skiers alike. You’ll find perfectly groomed cruisers & super-long meandering trails for beginners, plenty of powder bowls for high alpine riding and powder laden forests for the more advanced. There are 4 terrain parks with jibbers and super pipes, rails and jumps to satisfy even the most spoilt adrenaline junkie, and for the powder buffs, waist-deep powder is pretty common here.

The town of Hakuba is nestled in the middle of a huge valley, towered over by huge rugged peaks, 10 ski resorts and spectacular alpine scenery. Cortina consistently receives the highest snowfalls in the Hakuba valley and the whole area sports a long season from mid-November to early May.

We did manage a day in the Alpes Maritimes at Isola 2000 last week – it was good to be back on skis – but…………well OK, we were spoilt last year when we were blessed with 3 metres of snow and so it was rather disappointing to find like only 50cms. It did however snow hard in the afternoon and so skiing for amateurs such as ourselves was none too easy.

We were looking at YouTube and found some evidence that we thought we should share – firstly this excellent compilation on how skiing is practised by the very best at their chosen sport – when skiing last week it would have been useful to have had just some of the skills that these guys are blessed with – respect!

Thanks to thesnowfiles for the video

Yes rather impressive you must admit – but, and there is always a but, the following video from roggezzinho demonstrates what can happen when you get it wrong – something we were so close to doing as the snow fell last week, visibility was reduced to zip – oh no it was not a good idea. Thankfully we survived as did the guy in the video.

And of course in researching for this blog we found another video from thesnowfiles which further shows the very terrible consequences of getting a bad line when out and about in the mountains………………………please be careful….but have fun.