New Avalanche article on line!

I've just finished a new article on Avalanches which is now on line on the www.mcnabsnowboarding web site in the 'our library' section.

I'd post a link to it here but am technology illiterate so you'll have to just go find it!

I've also posted a heap of other articles that I've written over the years but not always up loaded so check them out.

Neil.

I love Snowboarding!

After all the amazing snow last week we've just had 2 miserable days of rain.

Boo!

Ok, well it's not that bad, it kind of settled the snowpack a little, as in everything slid!

We've had loose snow avalanches to full depth low down in the valley and a massive assortment of Slab avalanches up high.


This doesn't look so big but that crown wall is 2 meters high!


Just below the top of the Herse on the Grand Montets there are an assortment of perfect example slab avalanches.

You can just see the rocks on the scoured ridge above and how the slope has been cross loaded over the ridge.

A scoured ridge above a sheltered wind loaded slope with a 2 meter crown wall and perfectly smooth sliding surface presented by the old snow surface, affected by the cold clear days in November.

The Face on the Glacier above the Herse has also slid with massive crown walls and over towards the Chardonnet there are perfect examples of loose snow slides starting on steep rocky buttresses and triangulating outwards until channeled into the valley through the gullies below. Low down these are full depth, so its interesting to be able to see the affect of altitude on the Avalanche activity with the colder temperatures higher up affecting the snowpack very differently from lower down.

I've just been writing about all of this stuff this last week, so it was interesting to see it all on the mountain exactly as it should be after a big snow storm, some wind affect and then a massive temperature increase.

Not all the snow dissapeared though and up on the Herse I scored some really nice turns down the face under the chair lift. I'm not really into riding Off Piste so much at this time of year because the snowpack is still quite thin, but here with a little caution there was some very nice riding to be found.

Ruth came up with and rode the Grand Montets for the first time in 8 years! Is that's what having kids does to your riding? It was the first time we'd ridden together in 8 years as its the first year that both our girls are in school and we could both find a little time to go play.

We had a great day and I'm happy to say she can still ride very well so if you're calling up for info or bookings be ready for her to rabbit on about how good she is!

I was out riding on my new Jones 164 Wide All mountain Twin for the first time. It's a really nice board to play around on, super easy to turn.

It has camber under foot and rocker tip and tail which helps it just float effortlessly in the powder but it also brings the turn initiation points (contact point) closer to your feet. This makes turn initiation super easy and it took me a little while to work out that I didn't need to move pressure so far up the board to start the turn. The rocker makes it initiate turns like a much shorter board but then once its in the turn and on the edge you have the full edge length coming into play so it has the stability of the given length.

Its a nice concept and it seems to work well.

For me and my wide 70cm stance the 164 is about as small a board as I'd go and I found it lacking in stability at super high speed which is where the Flagship comes into play. For an 'All mountain' board for jibbing about on though it does exactly what it says on the packet!

My legs felt super strong, I've been stacking in the squat sessions and building up some leg power on the turbo and it seems to be paying off with top to bottom runs not a problem!

Anyway, we had a great day and I came of the hill super stoked about the season ahead.

Yeah, I am just loving Snowboarding right now and there's more snow and even some sun on its way for the weekend.

We've had a few spaces come available this last week due to cancellation. You guys need to be more careful riding your bikes on all that snow and Ice over there in the UK, you should know better!

Check out the updates and availability (www.mcnabsnowboarding.com) and also I've been getting quite a few inquiries for the Q&A blog so check those out though the link on the web site home page.

All is good in Chamonix!

Neil.

Chamonix is open!

These days will come soon eneough!

So Chamonix, or the Grand Montets, is open for business as of this weekend and its official the winter season 2010/11 has begun.

I headed up there today for a quick slide around and am happy to report that the conditions are good, well on the piste at least, very good!

It's that time of year where the Off Piste looks pretty good but there is still very little base to the snowpack and hidden just underneath is a jagged, spikey rock garden just waiting to bite your board and your ass, so beware!

Of course this being Chamonix, there are tracks absolutely everywhere and because of this a lot of the rocks are now visible as excited seasonaires have ridden over and into them, I'd hate to have seen the state of some peoples new boards and skiers after yesterday, the first day of opening after last weeks storms!

For me, I look forward to the long season ahead. There's going to be plenty of time to mix it up out there and I'm happy to bide my time and just play around the pistes until the snow base gets deeper and all the rocks are filled in and well covered. For me, this is the time to focus on the feelings of riding, get the control and precision back in your feet and perfect your technique. Its time to play around and jib it up a little here and there but definitely I'll leave the cranking it up Off Piste until we've had a couple more big storms come our way.

For the time of year, the conditions are great1 It looks like we're going to get some milder weather coming our way and some rain quite high up. In a way this isn't a bad thing as it will consolidate the snowpack and melt out any dangerous hoar crystals that might be growing in there due to the cold conditions and the shallow snowpack (faceting through temperature gradient metamorphisis for the snow geeks!)

It's due to get colder again afterward so snow should follow the wet weather and conditions should just get better and better from here on in.

I picked up a Jones 164 Wide 'All mountain Twin' yesterday and so will try it out over the next couple of days, really looking forward to it.

I hear that the Jones boards are now arriving in the UK, so all of you that have ordered them through our TSA deal should be getting hold of them any day now.

I've also updated a few changes to the course bookings as we had a cancellation on a couple of spots so check out the latest course news.

Busy writing BC safety articles at the moment for various sources, some of which I'll post on the site once they're free from the publishers.

Time to get excited, bring it on!

Neil.

Snow and more snow!

Bring it on!

It seems like its been snowing pretty much everywhere this last week! From what I've seen on the news, the UK is pretty much snowed under and most of France was in similar chaos as massive winter storms swept across the country.

Chamonix has received loads of snow, around 50cm here in the valley and it looks like the perfect start of another great winter!

The Grand Montets is to open again this weekend and the word on the street is that it might stay open for the season if the conditions allow!

After 2 days of digging, wading around with the dog, powder sledging with the kids and skidding around in the car, it has cleared up again today and from the office window I can see the Midi towering up there in all its glory covered in a deep blanket of snow. The sun is coming up behind it lighting the snow blowing over the ridge at the top like a halo. It looks amazing!

The Midi is unfortunately closed at the moment but with this much snow in the valley you can pretty much ski anywhere at the moment as long as you don't mind a bit of a walk. Tomorrow I'll skin up to the top of Les Houches or the Grand Montets and see if I can get Ruth out with me for a bit of a slide around.

I've just updated some questions on the Question and answer blog, 'Ask Neil' on the home page and the 'latest course updates' as I think someone has transferred from an early course to a later one, anyway there's a space come up on a BC Intro in Jan and I think there's a couple more single spaces on 2 other BC Intro's in March and April. If anyone is interested, get in touch with Ruth asap as I don't think they'll be available for long!

I've also booked my tickets for Greenland, very exciting! There's a space available on this trip if anyone fancies joining us on a very Jeremy Jones, 'Deeper' style adventure.

I'm hopefully picking up a Jones 'All mountain Twin' 164 at the weekend so I'm looking forwards to giving that a bit of a rip around. A lot of you have taken advantage of the Jones deal we have running through the TSA but I don't think anyone has received boards as yet!

Don't worry, there is a bit of a delay due to the massive demand but I have it from the factory that all orders will be supplied as soon as possible and before the winter fully gets into gear.

My bike is now firmly attached to the Turbo trainer and I've started training for leg power with lots of squats to compliment the cardio work I've been doing. Need to get on top of the stretching a bit but feeling pretty good and ready to go.

Wow, full clear skies outside now, looks beautiful so I've got to get out there.

I need that feeling of powering deep turns in feather light powder! You remember it? If not I'll describe it to you after this weekend!

Get ready!

Neil.

And we're off! Chamonix is open for business!!

Looking forward to some of this. Heading down Glacier Midi des Grandes with about 3km of untracked still to go!

The Grand Montets has finally opened for the the first weekend of the winter and the 2010/11 season is officially a go!

We've had some pretty good snowfall this last week and the whole valley is in full winter cloak. We're now into that final prep period before everything goes full speed a head and those little jobs that didn't get done, (like washing the van for example as it would now just freeze) are no longer a priority on the list and anything that got left outside is now buried and of no concern until the spring.

My bike is now firmly attached to the Turbo trainer in my newly renovated Garage/Gym (my successful Autumn project), my summer guiding kit is packed away and the winter goodies are getting ready to rock.

Yep! From now on its all about the ride and the slide!

One of the best gadgets I have received so far this winter is the new Ortovox 3+ transceiver. A very nice bit of kit, simple and quick to use, very efficient and powerful and it comes as a nice tidy package. It uses some thing that Ortovox call a smart antenna so as to always give and receive the strongest signal however the transceiver is orientated, especially useful in a burial!

Seems, very good for single and multiple signal searches, does just what it needs to do and nothing more so stays simple to use when everything around you might be getting a bit hectic!

Definitely the best transceiver I've come across in recent years and the one that will be firmly attached to me for this coming season. If you're looking at getting yourself kitted up for the Backcountry this winter then this is one bit of kit that I'd definitely recommend you put at the top of your list!


Ortovox 3+ very nice, check it out!

There is also a special Ortovox deal available to anyone booked on one of our courses and the Ortovox range of outerwear and merino wool layers are also very tidy!

This offer is only available to those that are currently booked on one of our courses this winter and if you want more info then give Ruth a shout.

Loads of you have also taken advantage of the Jones Snowboards deal we have running through the TSA so it looks like there will quite a few of us powering around on the Flagship.

Again an amazing bit of kit which is making me smile even whilst I'm busy writing in the office! If anyone wants more info on the Jones Snowboard deal and haven't had the info then please get in touch with Ruth. (Again this offer is only available to those that are currently booked on one of our courses this winter).

Well, its dumping with snow again out there so it's looking like the start of the winter that we've all been hoping for. Hope you're all getting excited about it, getting your fitness up, powering up the legs and feeling ready for some steep and deep.

All is good in Chamonix,

Neil.

More Snow in the valley, is this it?

Twin peaks tower above the sea ice and a frozen in place Iceberg, Liverpool land, Greenland.

It's dumping again in the Chamonix valley, however we had a mild spell last week and so most of the snow from the previous snowfall had melted away. I managed to get a couple of great days out on the bike, down the valley in glorious sunshine and 17C temps!

It's obviously got colder again and the forecast looks like its set to keep coming, snow is forecast for the next few days and then again after the weekend.

The Grand Montets was set to open last weekend but the snowpack was deemed to be to thin between 2500m and 2000m and so the opening has been delayed. Maybe this weekend things will be different after this latest storm.

The snow has just stopped falling at the moment and through the office window the Aiguille du Midi has appeared, beautifully white and ghost like against the white storm clouds behind. Very atmospheric and not a bad view for a morning in the office.

I've just updated and put details of the Greenland trip on line www.mcnabsnowboarding.com so check it out.

Check out the faces on these peaks, now that's what I'm talking about! Liverpool land, Greenland.

This trip will be very much a Jeremy Jones 'Deeper' style trip, using the Jones 'Solution' Splitboards to access, explore and ride the massive potential that the east Coast location of Liverpool land has to offer.

A massive amount of riding potential, Liverpool land, Greenland.

24 hour sunlight and endless possibilities. Liverpool land Greenland.


Imagine having an area the size of the Mont Blanc massif with Verbier, Zermatt, Sass fee and the Aosta Valley added on, all this area to yourselves and mostly never snowboarded in, and you're beginning to get the picture.

Winter is a coming, can you feel it?

All is good,

Neil.

Ok, its official, winter is here!

Ok, it's snowing, getting deep and and the kids are sledging to school, it's official, winter has arrived.

Time for me to start getting all my winter kit out, both for myself and the winter courses, I need to get the snow tyres back out and on the vehicles and generally get ready for 5 months of deep snow and winter whiteness.

I've just been going through the final details for the Greenland expedition this coming April/May. All is looking good now and I'm already very excited about this trip.

We'll basically use ski doo access to journey into a massive isolated mountain range in the area known as Liverpool land.

We'll build a self contained base camp and hike, ride, climb and explore the area and peaks surrounding our base.

We're talking steep and deep with a difference, ice bergs, frozen seas, midnight sun and endless peaks. We'll access everything by foot, splitboard, snowshoes or crampons and ride first descents every day in true Jones 'Deeper' style.

This will be the 2nd trip I've run to the east coast of Greenland but to a completely different area with a completely different feel. A bit more 'out there' and a bit more 'massive' in terms of terrain and potential.

Yep, I'm looking forward to this one already!

Well, I can just about still get out on my bike if I drive down the valley, but it is starting to get a bit colder now even down there and the snow line is creeping ever downward. Might have to resort to the turbo trainer in the Garage soon, nah, I'll keep braving the cold till snow changes play.

Looks like I'll be able to get out touring before too long if this snow keeps on falling. Amazing, I hadn't really thought about it all yet, up until 2 days ago I was still focused totally on riding ,my bike and now its looking like I'll be hiking and riding before you know it.

I hope the split boards arrive soon!

All is good in Chamonix!

Neil.