Serre Chevalier is one of the best places to ride in France. This great resort has heaps of major terrain: tight, open trees to weave, extreme drop-offs to get the adrenaline going, big bowls, countless banks and gullies, super-fast flats to push the hair back, hits everywhere, and a giant, natural funpark – all located next to a few unassuming, old-fashioned French villages (with a hint of the new here and there).

As one local rider once put it, ‘Who needs funparks when this place is a complete funpark at every level and distinction!’ It’s not the highest resort in the world, so snowcover can sometimes suffer, but things are usually pretty damn fine.

The boarding area runs along the Le Grand Serre Chevalier range with the large town of Briançon at one end and the old village of Le Monetier at the other. In between, the villages of Chantemerle and Villeneuve provide the most convenient access to the slopes and are the most popular with holidaymakers. The slopes around Briançon get a huge amount of sunshine although don’t get the snow cover of the other areas. Chantemerle and Villeneuve areas are the most popular and extensive areas, whereas you can always find some untracked spots in the less-popular Le Monetier.

A few years ago, the resort was purchased by the Compagnie des Alpes who own Tignes, Saas-fee, and Chamonix amongst others, and a lot of cash is set to be invested over the next five years to improve the already good lift system.

Once you’ve shredded all the trees you can head to La Grave in just 30 minutes, and Montgenevre isn’t far from Briançon.

Piste Basher in Serre Chevalier 7th Nov 2009? We think not!

A piste basher in a very empty Serre Chevalier 1500 8th Nov 2009

It’s not often that I categorically know the mainstream media is blatantly lying (9/11 coverage excepted) to us but this article posted in the Guardian is just made up, or at least was written last year and found in a drawer the other day.

This article claims the author went out with a piste basher (yes you can do it during the season – which starts Dec 12th) and was published on November 7th.2009.

Unless Chris Madigan walked to the top, which I don’t believe, he, or his editor, is lying. The ski lift from Serre Che 1500 in Monetier, Bachas, is NOT on.

I love what he’s done for promoting the area, but it’s a lie. He claims to have had his lesson at midday “with busy pistes all around”, again unless these hoardes have walked up the non-ski lift serviced, pistes, without attracting the attention of the village (most hotels open early December such as the Rif Blanc, L’Europe or Choucas) and unless camper-van dwelling, invisble, monster snow fans, who love walking up to ski down patchy, snow covered pistes with their own kit, as the hire shops are all shut, are camped out in the empty seasonnaire carpark, which they’re not, this is a recycled article, which explains why the main stream media should be taken with a pinch of salt.

It’s a lovely piece, he’s got the word Sisyphean, spelt correctly, in it, and that rocks, but it’s an empty thing this article.
He’s taking the piste bashing facts, but he’s blown his wad prematurely. Come and do it, but wait for the season to start.

The original article is here.

An Empty Car Park - Serre Chevalier 1500

There have been some improvements to the infrastructure of Monetier this year, promising a more comfortable time for visitors to the village.

In no particular order:

• The commune has put in a pavement or trottoir along the main road in the middle of the village– for some reason I like that word, trottoir, mm – anyway this is good news for Ski Miquel clients as there is a yard of pavement between the front door of Chalet Charlotte (seen here) and the road. This trottoir carries on through the village on both sides, so that’s well safe.

• Hotel de L’Europe has refurbished it’s vaulted cellar from party place to kids’ corner. So the kiddiwinks can be parked up out of sight and more importantly out of earshot.

• The rather fabulous Plaisir du Gout provision shop has moved up the main road to a much bigger premises in the new chalet complex opposite the Chateaux, again on the Grenoble Road. A much bigger selection of fine Italian and French delicacies is now offered and you can even get a coffee on the sun deck out the back.

Stawug Sports is being refitted, for a while it looked like it had closed, but the hoardings have just come off to reveal a brand spanking new ski hire shop on two levels.

And you thought village life was dull.

For more information see here site here: Ski Studio Alps

Tariff, Studio Apartment, Le Bois des Coqs, Serre Chevalier

**    The studio is expected to be left clean, to the standard you will find it. If you

prefer not to clean, or if you don’t clean an additional charge is payable.

Pas d’épaule déboitée

Originally uploaded by Delgoff.

It’s now roughly six weeks/ two months till the start of the season and time to start preparation for hitting the slopes, as one’s mind turns to the lardiness of one’s legs and the pain avoidance techniques of doing a few exercises.

There is nothing quite like skiing, so it’s going to hurt regardless, which is the best excuse to not bother, but a half hour a day now, building to an hour nearer the opening bell isn’t a bad idea.

It’s said cycling and squash are closest to the motion of skiing, running for cardio – but at what cost to the knees? Swimming must be an all round help, it’s just access to a pool that’s the clincher and they say core strength is also paramount – but I grew up in a time where the only thing to have a core was an apple, so I’m generationally leery, not to mention ignorant of what I’m supposed to do to build that up.

Still a wee bike ride a couple of times a week should be a good start.

Having a look round the web it seems these are some fairly efficacious exercises that do not requiring any equipment pick a number to do and build up at your own pace:

• Bunny hops – imagine or draw a straight line on the ground and jump from side to side over and along it.

• Wall sits – the classic, sit against the wall till it burns and then sit against the wall some more.

• Moving lunges – take a big step forward and dip down, back up, pause with feet together and repeat with the other leg.

• Squats – feet shoulder width apart dip as if going to sit in a chair, keeping your knees behind your toes, stand up.

By starting now you’ll be way ahead when you hit the slopes.

Serre Chevalier

Originally uploaded by ejiii

When choosing your moment, coming when school’s out unless you have to is always a much better idea.

So here are the school holiday dates for the French schools:

• Christmas: Dec 18 – Jan 4

• Winter: Feb 5 – Feb 22

• Spring: Apr 3 – Apr 19.

For the UK:

• Christmas: Dec 19 – Jan 4

• Half term: Feb 13 – Feb 20

• Easter: Apr 3- Apr 17.

Weekenders, especially from Marseille and Grenoble, fill the car-parks, but Saturday morning is a still a joy as the pistes are empty as it’s changeover day and the new visitors are still getting their kit and passes sorted out.

Serre Che is fortunately blessed with a number of pistes where the early learners won’t congregate, but it also has some nice blues half way up the mountain, so by choosing your time and place wisely you’ll be able to get the most out of your day.

Serre Chevalier 23/10/2009

Originally uploaded by cristoff358

It’s official, actually it’s not, you’re not responsible for global warming that was just a load of old codswhallop to beat us into shape by the New World Order, (The Club of Rome ain’t called that by accident).

If any blame is to be ascribed, it seems the Sun is getting hotter, or at least it was when there was Sunspot activity and even that seems to be tailing off now.

The French are very proud that recently one of their own asked Al Gore that, if man-made global warming is the reason the Earth is getting hotter, why are all the planets in the solar system warming as well?

That old vampire Gore’s skies’ a fallin’ claims have melted away – unlike the ice caps. Guess he won’t be flying round the world to promote encouraging us to walk anymore. From New Jersey to Poland, from Pennsylvania (six inches) to Styria in Austria – where several “winter” resorts have already opened – its a fallin’ from the skies.

Serre Che was all geared up for snow the other day, the Meteo folks had said so, but all we got was a few flakes. We did get -10º in the early morning so at least everyone is wearing their ski jackets early, the Sun does come up to get us to 14º, so that’s nice, but an early start is somewhat shocking.

The mood is turning up as well, there is now a frisson of expectation for a good layer of snow, maybe even earlier than usual, and that’s got to be worth getting up early for.

I spotted this really neat photo by Henri Sourdet on Flickr, just thought I’d post it here so we can see what all this bloody rain is going to turn into!
I’m at about 1350m altitude and it has been regularly dropping in temperature to about -3C everynight, so I’m hoping to see a bit of snow tomorrow morning.