The Méribel Times - Edition 1

Welcome to the Méribel Times, the independent e-newsletter that keeps you up to date on everything that is Méribel. Produced fortnightly by a team of residents with a collective fifty years’ experience in the resort, the Méribel Times will bring you current news plus insiders’ articles on property, politics, equipment, fashion, and of course, skiing.

By kind permission of Méribel Tourist Office

Flaming June, July, August etc etc

After a winter season that saw almost twice as much snow fall in late December and throughout January than in the previous two years, the deep powder and day-long off-piste skiing have given way to a summer that is breaking records. Temperatures have regularly been in the high thirties throughout July and August and what little rain there has been has generally confined itself to the night time, accompanied by some stunning thunderstorms and high voltage electrical shows.

According to Météo-France, the cause of this exceptional summer is a static cold air mass in the North Atlantic combined with warm air coming north from the Sahara. Hence air is simply not circulating as it would normally do and the temperature rises. The results of this have been clear: forest fires have affected widespread areas of France (including a fire in Champagny, to the east of Courchevel), aquatic life has suffocated as river levels have plummeted, glaciers are melting, and looking out of the window, leaves are already falling from the trees in August.

By kind permission  of L Collins

Some would no doubt claim that this year’s weather is the ideal climate – superb snow in the winter and then searing temperatures through the dog days of summer. However, if such weather were to become a ‘trend’ rather than a ‘blip’ what might the consequences be? Some believe that by the year 2100 the average global temperature could rise by as much as 6°C (the current average is 15°C) and the number of days per year in France when the temperature exceeds 35°C could increase by five times. Others say that the climatic regions of Europe could move northwards by between 400 and 500 km, meaning that Switzerland would have a climate similar to that currently seen in Provence. Alternatively, if the circulation of the Gulf Stream is disrupted we could find that we experience winters similar to those in Canada.

Heavy snowfalls in winter and long, hot summers are to the liking of many and make for great holidays in Méribel. Should this prove to be a ‘trend’, we should either start to do something to reverse it now or be prepared for weather changes to come.

Recent Méribel snow depths

By Simon Rowe

Now you see it, now you don’t

The much-hyped finale of Méribel’s festival of magic (21 August), an escape act suspended from a helicopter, was postponed and then cancelled due to safety concerns. A case of the escape act becoming a disappearing act? CS

240 day jail sentence for Drunk Boarder

A 20-year-old Texas man who crashed into a children's ski school class whilst drunk at Sunlight Ski Area was sentenced Thursday to the heaviest penalty ever handed out in a on the slope collision in Colorado.

 
Garfield County District Judge James Boyd sentenced Michael Wolff, of Killeen, Texas, to 240 days in jail for snowboarding into four children, three of whom were 5 and the other 6, injuring two of them. CL

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Méribel boasts a world-class skiing infrastructure, and one aspect of this which is little-understood by most holiday-makers is its system of artificial snow-manufacture. Méribel Alpina (the company responsible for half of the Méribel valley ski area) produced over 450,000m³ of snow from over 250 snow cannons last season.

Granted, artificial snow is not the thigh deep powder we all long to ski, but it is essential for Méribel. With meteorologists telling us that the average temperature in the second half of the 20^th century increased by 0.5°C. per decade, the importance of being able to create snow becomes apparent. You only have to look back a couple of winters to when Italian and Austrian resorts were closing in March, and yet skiing continued in Méribel until the end of April to see its value.

Creating artificial snow is quite a simple process. Compressed air and water are blasted into the air by snow ‘canons’ where the tiny water droplets crystallise into snow. The air temperature must be lower than -4 degrees C. and a computer controls which canons are allowed to spray. The water must be cooled before blasting so enormous refrigeration plants reduce the temperature of the filtered river water from 5°C to 1° C.

The cost is considerable and Méribel Alpina spent three million Euros in 2003 on snowmaking alone, which explains some of the costs of your ski pass. The infrastructure required to support such operations is substantial, but clearly Méribel knows where their future of the industry lies. 

The investment continues: last summer a reservoir to support the new snow canons in Méribel Village was created at a cost of €800,000 and you only had to look at the slopes at the end of April to see the dramatic difference to seasons past.

So, consider for a moment as you slide down to La Chaudanne this winter, where the stuff you are skiing on has come from. Let’s hope it is from the sky, but if Mother Nature does not hear our prayers then thank heaven for those snow canons.

By Chris Learoyd

Equipment Review – the pick of new skis for 2004

Ski design has changed radically in recent years. We now have the choice of all terrain, twin tip, off-piste, skier cross and slalom skis. Many of these skis are now extremely versatile and forgiving, it is just a matter of seeing what suits your style and budget.

The Salomon Crossmax range is completely redesigned for next season and compared to its predecessor has been stiffened up by use of Spaceframe construction and a new Pilot binding system that allows the ski to flex down its entire length. The stars of this range will be the Crossmax 10 Pilot and the Crossmax 8 Women Pilot. Salomon will also be offering its hugely popular Teneighty in the smaller size of 151cm to compliment the 161, 171 and 181 versions. Each length comes in its own colour. The Teneighty remains the easiest twin-tip to ski especially in soft snow conditions on piste or deep powder off-piste.

In the race department the Equipe 10 3V remains the most versatile performance slalom ski on the market. For 2004 we see the introduction of the Equipe 10 3V Race which is a wider stiffer version destined for competition use and available in two lengths.

K2’s Axis range is stronger than ever with the introduction of the Axis XT to complement the already popular Axis X and Axis XP. The X is the narrowest and the XP the widest. This range is hard to beat for all mountain performance and versatility.

Also new from the American company is the ‘The Public Enemy’. For a twin tip, this ski is amazingly versatile and is equally happy carving down a hard piste at speed or enhancing your reputation in the half pipe with its cool graphics.  For skiers looking for a performance on-piste, carving ski try the K2 Mach S Comp, with its amazing edge grip and turn radius. However, this ski is not for the faint-hearted.

Dynastar still have one of the best slalom skis around with the Speed Omeglass 64. Skiers looking for something a little tamer should try the Omecarve 10, 9 or 8. They also introduce the ‘Trouble Maker’ which is a performance twin tip with a wooden construction. Like the K2 model this also performs well carving on piste, and has graphics that change colour according to light conditions.

Head continue to go from strength to strength. Their highly celebrated Monster range of all-terrain skis now features the Intelligence system, designed to reduce vibration and improve contact with the snow. The Monster 70 is the perfect ski for cruising the Three Valleys and the Monster 75 provides a slightly wider, stiffer platform for the more advanced skier. In the racing department Head have two new excellent skis, the Worldcup i.XRC which is designed for skier cross and the Worldcup i.SL Chip which is an oversized version of what Alan Baxter used in the last Olympics offering incredible versatility for a short slalom carver.

Next issue we review new boots for 2004

By Darren Kennedy of Freeride.fr

Pedestrian rights

A new pavement is being built along the road running behind Casino towards 1600. This is clearly good for pedestrians. It may be time to put your car on a diet though, as the road will become notably narrower as a result. SR

Broadband?

Broad quoi? - I don't think that the French have ever really recovered from the fact that the Internet has superseded their invention the Minitel. On calling France Telecom to enquire about the availability of broadband Internet access, I was told that it had nothing to do with them and that I should speak to the town hall. A couple of days later I overheard a representative of the Office du Tourisme being quizzed on the same subject. Before running away at the earliest opportunity he commented that the access currently installed in the Office du Tourisme was perfectly fast enough for them and came at a reasonable price. Clearly it is not yet time to throw away my 56k modem.

SR

Thinking of buying a property in Méribel? An understanding of French property contracts is essential.

Méribel has a significant number of British property owners and the flood of buyers from the across the channel continues unabated. Whilst some transactions involve the resort’s sexier sites such as chalets in the Belvédère or the Route des Chalets, the majority are for the acquisition of more modest one to three bedroom holiday apartments elsewhere in the valley.

The vast majority of purchases will fall into one of two categories; buying new ‘on plan’ from a developer which is more technically know as a vente en état futur d’achèvement or buying an existing property from its current owner. The first type of acquisition may either be from the developer directly or through an estate agent whilst the second will most likely be via an agent. 

Contributors:

Ed Mannix runs London Overseas Consultancy, and specialises in advising British property owners in Méribel.

Darren Kennedy is Managing Director of ski shop Freeride.fr (www.freeride.fr)

Chris Learoyd is Director of luxury chalet company Alp Leisure Ltd (www.alpleisure.com)

Simon Rowe is an accounts consultant.

Francis Petex is a Guide de Haute Montagne

Next Issue: 

New lifts and pistes for 2003-04. 

The coming season’s new boots. 

What is a Guide de Haut Montagne?  Finding finance for your property. 

Your letters.

We’re interested in your views. Please e-mail us at yourviews@themeribeltimes.com  

For more information on Méribel see independent website www.merinet.com, and www.meribel.net, the official Tourist Office site

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