Jonesieblog

I’m leaving on Saturday morning on a 26 hour coach journey to Italy, where I and the rest of our party of 116 (including my wife and son) will be enjoying a week of skiing and snowboarding.

This year I’m not in charge, which is a huge relief!  I’m planning to relax and enjoy the week in a way that I wasn’t able to last year - pressures of high office and all that.

I’ll be tweeting our progress here on a temporary account I’ve set up.  May also upload some photos to flickr with tag skitrip08 if I get the chance.

Stumble it!

It’s over! I’m too tired to say much, other than that it went well, and that being responsible for the safety, enjoyment and learning of 149 people was an intense, draining and fascinating experience. I’m glad to be relieved of that responsibility now though! Here’s a wee video clip of one of the boys getting over-ambitious on a wee kicker we built:

Stumble it!

Our annual S2 ski trip to Courmayeur in Italy departs from the high school at 9.30 am on Saturday morning in 4 coaches, with 149 people including the adults.

I’m the party leader!

Whilst I’ve been trying to keep a hand in on-line this week  (with disasterous consequences in one case) I’ve reached the point where I really need to get off the computer and concentrate on the task at hand.

Expect radio silence from me until I get back on Sunday 28th January, and wish me luck!

Stumble it!

The boys having fun at Xscape last Friday.

I know it’s pretty poor quality. I keep trying to do some decent filming or photography whilst I’m boarding, but I just can’t seem to keep still long enough. Once I’m on the snow, boarding always seems to be a better option than standing still recording someone else doing it

Indoor snow is all well and good, but I can’t wait to get back on the real stuff - here’s a bit of footage from Rendl, by St Anton last April. Now that’s more like it!  If you look carefully you can see Fergus cut across my fresh tracks.  Ahhhh fresh tracks.

Stumble it!

I switched my wee voting plugin yesterday to ask what you like doing most in the snow.

I should say before a ski vs snowboard flame war erupts that I do both, and love doing both.  I prefer snowboarding, in fact I would describe myself as a snowboarder that also sometimes skis, but I’d like to think that the bad old days of animosity between skiers and snowboarders are over.  We’re all just riders now aren’t we?  In these days of twin-tip skis in the park and hard-boot snowboarders blasting down slalom courses the old division makes no sense.

Stumble it!