They are staggered through February. Go at the end of January!Quote:
Originally Posted by str8line
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They are staggered through February. Go at the end of January!Quote:
Originally Posted by str8line
str8line, could you please direct me to some information about this camp?
I'd search it but what do I search for, str8line camp??
Last year the French school holidays were staggered from 5th Feb until 6th March.
The Italian ones were 12th-20th Feb.
Next year, I think it's 11th Feb that the French ones start.
Well, my site is:Quote:
Originally Posted by horizon
http://straightlineadventures.com
But there isn't any specific information about the Europe camp yet. Although it will have the same basic formula as the other camps.
you got me all stoked with your eurocampplans, so I did a quick google for you.
these are the exact school vacations in Germany (deutschland), österreich (austria), schweiz (switzerland) and the niederlande (netherlands) for 2006 (in dd.mm - dd.mm): http://www.familotel.de/service.php
that's for 2006 in france in:
[dd-mm-yy]
till
[dd-mm-yy]
http://www.education.gouv.fr/prat/ca...lendrier.php#2
I hope you'll be able to read those charts..
edit: oohh, ehm, to sum it up:
he is right! :DQuote:
Originally Posted by WTFH
Thank's Greg. That gives me a good idea of when to schedule in Switzerland vs. France vs. Austria.Quote:
Originally Posted by greg
I wish I had the extra $'s to throw at something like this. on a different angle... any chance in the future of a purely backcountry/touring oriented camp that focusses on how to safely access/ski the bc poop? theres a sled operation on the pemberton ice cap (http://www.totallyawesomeadventures.com/index.html) that could be a sweet stepping off point to ski amazing terrain (as you know Im sure). just a thought.
yurp school holidays gravitate in the winter around carnival, which is dictated by easter, which is dictated by when there's full moon...
2006 mardi gras (end of carnival for most of europe, milan and southern switzerland being the only exception because of a 17th century pestilence) will be the last day of febraury. Thus, the big mess will be in the second half of february
OK, let's make this way... I'll be very happy if you stay on line to go to the mont fort, so you don't track attelas couloirs (much more narrow and vert than anything on mt fort), col de creblet, vallon d'arbi, stairway to heaven, louettes econdues, bec des etanges, bec de rosses, col du momin, rosablanche, glacier du grand desert, glacier du mont calme, greppon blanc, plan de fou, l'etheygeon, le marlenaz....... ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by greg
agreed, last week of jan should be best!
Quote:
Originally Posted by verbier61
V61, mon ami. Will this be the season to finally show me the goods?
if les alpes vaudoises are dire (and, they were not last season), then i will be trippin' down to your 'hood. skins and all! :D
Last week of January would be the primo pick as regards timing. You'll have no school holidays and that means less queues and more affordable accommodation wherever you end up.
As regards vehicles, why not approach one of the major manufacturers and try to attract sponsorship? A car like the Audi Q7 SUV would be being launched at around this time, so if you could secure two of these vehicles and ensure a write up in Audi's in-house magazine or something (Audi are very good with snow sports sponsorship in Europe) that could be one way around the logistics issue.
Naturally location depends very much on solving these sorts of problems. If I had to be based in one place, I would definitely aim for France as it will help to keep costs in check. Austria and particularly Switzerland will work out considerably more expensive bases to work from.
The two biggies are La Grave and Chamonix. The downside of this is that everybody knows these areas and as a result there is plenty of competition from other camps/experiences. That said, the skiing at these two areas is absolutely bloody astonishing and is unlike anything in the lower 48. I think the Tarentaise region is being unfairly overlooked here. Yes, there are the moon stations and huge networks of pistes but people tend to forget that resorts like La Plagne, Les Arcs, Courchevel, Val d'Isere and Tignes have off-piste that's world class and plenty of local knowledge is available to help with guiding. Face Nord du Bellecote at La Plagne is real fun. Basing out of Bourg St Maurice or Moutiers would give easy access to many of these areas as well as St Foy and the heli possibilities out of La Thuile.
I'd personally stick with La Grave. Your camp's offering is sufficiently differentiated to not tread on Doug Coombs' toes, majoring as it does on instruction. It's possible to lap the top 1500m of vert between 3400m and 1900m if snow is thin in the valley which is still nearly three Silvertons piled one on top of each other. Guiding shouldn't be an insurmountable issue there, accommodation costs are manageable and the whole vibe of the place is attuned to the ethos of Str8line Adventures. Get people there and they won't want to leave. Get people there on a powder day and repeat business isn't going to be hard to come by.
Also chiming in late:
Zermatt is well worth the look. It rises to almost 4000m.
And it is a true Euro/Swiss experience. Plus, you got Cervina/Italian side.
I always enjoy Zermatt, some aspect of it!
Verbier = no. Way too many people already, and way too expensive.
Sorry Verbier61, until you invite me up to sleep over, I'll commute. :)
But, the place is still one of my favorite for it's excellent lifts and vertical terrain.
I simply hope for weekday dump & shine.
(ok, I confess, the place is full of babes too.)
And finally, always unmentioned:
G3, aka Glacier3000, aka Les Diablerets Glacier at Col du Pillon.
I won't go on about it because every TR with me in it shows the place,
an empty parking lot, and 2 or 3 other people
grinning like idiots at our home court gem.
Not sure what you are looking for exactly. Not sure what your camp is.
But, I teach Wednesdays, thus I am free the rest of my life.
Let me know if you need someone on this side to help coordinate things.
And Cell Block A is available if you need a place to crash.
Edit = Go G3!
I just checked your site, and you are looking for technical descents.
I suggest the North Face from the top back to the Col du Pillon.
2980m - 1450m.
The good news is, when the place is closed,
those 2 lifts which access the top, are usually open.
There are ridiculous lines there, and people are skiing them.
And yes, I will stand by my words on this.
Base out of Leysin, a town with 60+ nationalities, and The Yeti (beer & burgers).
Roo, is Austria more expensive than France? I always felt it was the other way round, in terms of food and lift prices - not sure about accommodation. But I never really compared the two properly.
I am currently working to fix 3 more beds in the apt. It will be the cheapest place to stay in Verb, guaranteed. Vaud wine accepted for payment :rolleyes: with a preference for the rougeQuote:
Originally Posted by TeleAl
I like the Montreux red. Very tasty!Quote:
Originally Posted by verbier61
Anything else from this area must be white (Aigle or Yvorne).
See you this winter.
And not sure you know, but there is snow on the Dents du Midi. :D
Verb, you have to be carefull with your invitations...or you might get a scandi visit there soon. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by verbier61
Austrian accommodation is more expensive - but with a qualifier. In France, almsost everybody stays in apartments and eats out. In Austria it's usually more of a traditional hotel/gasthaus sort of deal that works out more expensive and restricts choice. "Set menu, please."Quote:
Originally Posted by horizon
Ok, you win - I mean, verbier wins over lagrave/cham. ;) I didn´t say skiing sucks at verbier, I just said that there are places, that might suit a camp better. but you can't seriously compare les attelas with no matter which face of mont fort. (I'm not speaking of the backside) and you can't argue climbing bec de rosses or rosablache is a good option to get some vert. and where are the steeps in vallons d'abris and gl. des l.econdouè... mont fort offers still the best lift accessed terrain of verbier. (except for m. gele) that's why I was refering to it.Quote:
Originally Posted by verbier61
I didn't ski verbier so often because I don't like it, I think it's awesome. but I personally think there are better locations for a camp.
that is a very good point. if you could life with the total lack of spirit, those resorts would probably offer the highest potential of pretty much unskied and spectacular terrain. and you should know that just the next valley or village where you might come out after your decent could be just as original as it could be. (just as it is in the les deux alpes - la grave region)Quote:
Originally Posted by bad_roo
Str8,
I should add Murren to that list. And Grindelwald is next door.
The Eiger is staring at you.
I've skied Murren only.
There is some steep stuff there to be had,
some mountain goat type of stuff too.
About La Grave:
Has anyone ever seen a single woman there? :nonono2:
If you bring yours YOU might end up single!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by TeleAl
Yes. You saw one too when we met you. She's called Cathy and she was sharing our apartment when you guys came over for drinks.Quote:
Originally Posted by TeleAl
:) :) :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Hicks
Good one! To keep everybody happy, maybe one should invite the french female team for synchronized swimming up to LaGrave.
Hmmmm. If only I knew a writer specializing in the automotive industry. :biggrin:Quote:
Originally Posted by bad_roo
Are you interested in a trade out? I could approach Audi USA-you could write it and attend the camp.
Hmm, i recollect that i saw few couple years ago, 2001?Quote:
Originally Posted by TeleAl
They were quite butch though, leg´s as a treetrunks, and left me in the cold smoke wondering if i should pick up badmington or some other sport.
La grave, if you include, serre,montgenevre, les 2 and huez is a exelent choice. Alone, it´s skiing is relatively limited, and lot of runs have quite a lot of objective dangers ( pan de rideau,freux), wich is perhaps not the best thing if you are running a camp..
But otherwise.
Yeah, you could say that the place rules.
Few snapshots from last christmas.
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_45811.jpg
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_45813.jpg
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_45812.jpg
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_45810.jpg
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_45809.jpg
I can understand Str8line's desire to expand his camp, but the European camp doesn't seem like a natural fit. One of the reasons the Alta/Snowbird camp is such a great fit is that Gordy has spent much of his life skiing there and is able to impart an insider's knowledge to his campers. Where the snow is good, some secret stashes, where to get some good beginner air, etc.
With Europe, it seem's like Str8line's knowledge is just as limited as ours, which would limit a skier's desire to attend the camp.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Captain Gus
I think there is plenty of desire expressed on this thread already. Read back where Str8line mentions guiding. That will be local guides.
My bad. I did not read the whole thread. What's that quote about details? :rolleyes2Quote:
Originally Posted by Mrs Roo
Roo,
I'm not sure you are correct on the France is cheaper than Austria thing. It really depends how it is done. You can spend a lot in France if you do the half board Chalet thing which is very common and probably the Brit standard. I have typically stayed in family run Gastehaus's or something to that effect in Austria and it works out pretty darn cheap, although you are right, a few pesos more than a cheap apartment in La Grave. I think its more about what type of accomodation you stay in, not the country when looking at the cheapness factor. cheapest to more expensive: self catered apartment, hostel, bed & breakfast, chalet, schwany hotel would be my order irrelevant of country although even that could change a bit... Lift prices also seem to be similar and depend on the size of the ski area and schwanky factor.
Is it still true that Swiss is more expensive than any of the Euro denominated countries?
No, not in general - at least on the lower end of the scale.Quote:
Originally Posted by comish
Lift tickets don't differ much and if you go self catered it's not much difference as well. Suisse has higher number of first class accomodations but it finally comes down to the same, whether it's lifting or lodging - you get what you pay for.
maybe it´s just me :fm: :FIREdevil , but I´ve had more luck with women (single or otherwise) in La Grave (tied with Serre Chevalier) than any other ski town on the planet.Quote:
Originally Posted by TeleAl
People living in north italy now goes to south switzerland for shopping.... totally unbeliavable up to the euro eraQuote:
Originally Posted by comish
I only saw this until now - - this sounds awesome (tour style)!Quote:
Originally Posted by str8line
Any developments to report Gordy?
Gordy - clear your pm box!
Any news on this?
Something tells me that this trip is gonna KICK ASS.
There is news. I'm going to put up a new post within the next few days regarding the aforementioned news. I'm really pumped for this one.
Stupid achilles.Quote:
Originally Posted by str8line
It was his mother's Stygian avoiding heel grip that's to blame.Quote:
Originally Posted by truth