The SkiBike Shop

It's supposed to be another poor weather day at altitude, from my vantage point at McDonalds in Segny, the Jura mountains look to be getting a top up of snow and the webcams confirm this. Tomorrow I must get up there, but I needed a bit of a break today; long drives, long days skibiking, evenings writing the blog and editing pictures and under 5 hours sleep a night is too much to keep up for more than a few days at a time.
So let's leave stories of monster black runs and daring do for later and take a look at some new skibikers, hitting the slopes for the first time and representing both disciplines of the sport.

First up we have Clayton Wells, who due to arthritic knees thought he would have to sit out a ski holiday, pining to be on the snow. Luckily, his eagle eyed wife had spotted skibobs on a previous holiday and set about arranging hire and lessons for him.
Having chosen a Brenter skibob due to the convenience of a local hire shop in Les Arcs and the familiarity of the sensation for a former skier, the latest news is that after a few days riding he is loving it and eating up those late afternoon mogulled runs. Well done Clayton; A+ for effort and achievement, go to the top of the class.

Clayton Wells - eating up those late afternoon mogulled runs

Next up we have Gregory Vansillette who has been riding a Firem VS at Grand Bornand for the first time and seems to be jolly enthusiastic about the whole experience. In the last couple of days a new shop has started hiring out these bikes in Grand Bornand, so now you have no reason not to give one a go. Vivre la difference!

Gregory Vansillette - hire one like this at Grand Bornand

If you are reading this and think that your body is too old for any more skiing, or you are a mountain bike rider or motorcyclist wanting to take your riding into a new dimension of speed and control, please use the contact page to send a message, join our Facebook Group or leave a comment below. If you don't try skibiking this season you will be another year older when you do.

Without further ado, here's a great report on his recent trip to Ellmau, Austria by novice skibiker Andy Cadney.

I’ve got to admit I was desperate, trying to lean forward on a left knee that was pouring hot lava up my thigh while some smart alec Austrian sadist was yelling ‘no, you must more weight on the front have’ (or words to that effect and I’m not taking the mick, his English was still Kilometres better than my German).
Season 3 of snowboarding, this time in the Austrian resort of Galtur, and my past sins were catching up with me. Nine months before, walking down stairs I’d felt a stab of pain in my knee. Ah, a pulled muscle/ligament damage/sprain, off to the Doc, duly despatched to the physio who, after a moment of pummelling delivered the verdict ‘arthritis in that left knee, you’ve maybe 10 years with exercise and care, after that it’s an artificial one’. Oh crikey.

Maybe 10 years with exercise and care

Then ‘oh, can I take a photo of your legs, I can add them to the archive, for teaching purposes’. This wasn’t a come on, in the far mists of time, or 1979 as it was then known, I’d managed to bend a set of motorcycle handlebars into a ‘U’ shape by striking them firmly with my shins, during an attempt to vault the bonnet of a stationary Saab 99 while travelling at 70mph. Unfortunately the bike insisted on staying on one side of the car while I continued on my travels, in the process demolishing both shins, my left elbow, left arm, and collecting an impact fracture of the right wrist when the road came up to hit me.

Very bent shins

The result of this was not only bent handlebars and few scars on my arms, but also very bent shins, as all they could do to in the late ‘70s was slap plaster round broken bones (however badly fractured) and pump you full of penicillin.

Fast forward to the start of the 21st century and I start being able to afford skiing holidays. All great fun, but within 2-3 days of the start of each holiday unforgiving ski boots are wearing holes in my non-standard legs. I tried everything, gaffer taping (gaffer tape, the must have accessory for EVERY winter sports holiday) socks over the lumps, cotton wool, shaping bits of foam, coughing up for pricey boots and heat formable inners. I suffered for 5 holidays, gaining a lot of ski experience but never really being more than an indifferent skier, as I tried to learn carving turns not in snow like everyone else, but in a sea of pain.
Hence the switch to snow-boarding, ahhh...., comfortable boots at last  (but too late!). Now we find that like an awful lot of middle-aged people (how did that happen? Outrageous, in my head I’m still 21) my joints are falling apart, winter sports nemesis.

While all this had been going on I’d carried on with the motorbiking lark (are you MAD I can hear you shout, nope, merely reckless). I’ve largely switched to off-road motorcycle sport and I found that, despite snow-boarding causing excessive discomfort, I could still wear large motor bike boots and ride off-road bikes without succumbing to screaming agony.
So in an idle moment I did a little research on ski-bikes (I think I’d seen them in the ski-hire shop in Austria).
Thus I found Mark’s blog and also info about the Brenter bikes. Salvation!
I determined to have a crack, as it was my last chance to keep those wonderful winter holidays happening.
An Open University course and work meant that I had to wait a couple of years before trying it out, but finally, in 2014, the wife and I reckoned we had the time and the money to book a holiday.
I jumped on to the internet and fired off about 20 emails to hire shops in Austria which seemed to be the country where they were popular and common.
It was a mixed bag of responses, with plenty of ‘no’,  along with some ‘yes’ but quoting silly money or plainly only having one bike to rent out.
I finally got a line on a shop in Ellmau, Austria that was a Snow Bike centre. Prices were reasonable, and it was obvious there was a fair stock of bikes.

Sunday morning - meeting Hans

I booked everything I needed, including tuition, and then booked a holiday with Thompson to match! (no point booking a holiday in a place with no bike availability!)
So, all set.
Once we arrived I rolled up on Sunday morning to meet the owner, Hans, who ran the snow bike business along with Mike who looked after the ski/snowboard side. Hans’ English was a bit limited, but Mike made up for it by being pretty fluent. Both Hans and Mike were really friendly and helpful and I was duly issued with a bike and all the related bits and bobs, and given a kit run through (mostly about how to hang the foot skis round my neck when walking).
I was also introduced to the instructor and despatched off with all requisite equipment and directions to the meet up point.
Unfortunately my appalling sense of direction meant that I missed the meet, as I went in the wrong direction, somewhat embarrassingly.
Once I finally clicked to what I did wrong, I found the nursery slope, but it was bare of instructional resources. After a little dithering I decided to best thing to do was just start.

I decided to best thing to do was just start

A bit of mucking about got me sitting on the bike with foot skis on in the obligatory manner. The whole plot (me included) did begin to slide off, toboggan style, but as in total I had 4 sets of edges I found it incredibly easy to control. Having lots of ski and board experience did help but it felt dead easy and basic to dig the edge of a foot ski in to stop any undesired movement. The simplicity was helped by only being required to emulate a sack of potatoes, none of that tottering, leaning and squirming associated with initial struggles with ski or board.

I duly carved a weaving track down the slope with a semblance of control, appearing I suspect to innocent bystanders something resembling a tired water boatman skating the surface of a pond. Round the bottom of the button lift (I wasn’t going to have a crack at THAT, thanks very much) I was just considering skittering towards a ski bus stop, with the intention of dragging this contraption to the Funicular (Ellmau has an excellent, if somewhat aged Funicular railway that serves the nearest, rather low at 1900 metres, Alpine foothill), so I could get a bit of height without having to face an unknown like a T bar or chairlift, when hey, ho, I spotted a fellow ski-biker.
Well several, as I’d found the instructor with the other poor saps trying to get their heads round this lunacy.

Something resembling a tired water boatman

I managed to kind of loop round them, skidding to halt next to the line. ‘Hi Andy’, ‘Hi’, and off we go. And first task is up the next steepest nursery slope on a T bar, a little instruction and it’s pretty obvious and easy, T bar under the bum like a skier, and just  let the bike ‘freewheel’ (if that’s the right term) with the bars against the legs. It all worked surprisingly well.
Then we are instructed to do gentle curving turns down the slope, in single file. It was all very smooth and easy, I mean crikey, unlike any other snow sport appliance you’ve got STEERING. Top.
The instructor, Gerhardt (I’ve got to call him something, rather than just ‘instructor’) had a quiet word with me. ‘Just slide your bottom back’, my bum promptly dropped into the slot designed for it, ‘and keep your knees together’ this helped a lot, but I never did really get the hang of it, more on that soon.

Unlike any other snow sport you’ve got STEERING

This success meant that we were led over to the Funicular (with a bit of sliding and slithering) so that Gerhardt could get us into the big time at the top of the mountain.
We all stumbled out of the station at the top, and lined up in the snow on our bikes. I had been really enjoying myself on the run down to the railway, feeling in control of speed and direction (and so easy, so fast!) , more than I’d ever done with snow-boarding or skiing (well, not without pain).
From here Gerhardt took us down a long blue, which I found easy, but unfortunately fairly soon one of the party managed to get carried away and shot off the edge of the piste. A bit unfortunate, and it resulted in a slightly twisted knee. This slowed everything down a little, but we navigated down this quite long blue in stages, pausing to allow the injured to catch up.
The piste was actually quite a testing one, and conditions were not nice and yet I did feel completely in control most of the time. Having steering, skis on the bike, and skis on the feet allowed lots of options, no matter how pear shaped it all seemed to be getting.
It was a pretty long piste, and though initially I been following one of the other group members, about half way down I kind of politely overtook and happily completed the rest of it on my own, even taking the last half mile red option without any difficulty (this was entirely accidental, but it gave me a lot of confidence).

Taking the last half mile red option without any difficulty

Arriving at the bottom of that piste ended the training session (I got a little Brenter driving licence from Gerhardt). It really set me up for the rest of the holiday. I had 5 ½ more days of snow fun with my missus, going on the slopes I wanted to, at the speed I chose, stopping where I liked and when I liked, without too much effort or importantly pain. Oh yes, and experiencing a major advantage of the ski-bike, when I stopped, unlike most other people, I had something comfortable to sit on. What a wonder for the person of later years.

In hindsight, one of the things I liked about the whole snowbike/skibike experience was that, unlike skiing, there wasn't endless 'more technique' to learn (or so I felt in my arrogant way!), with some bleedin' instructor going on 'you must lean more forward/backward/stand up more/sit down more' as I try to figure out what my body's doing apart from hurting.
Saying that, though I took to it straight away and could make my way quite rapidly down slope in uncoordinated flurries of snow, I did find sometimes I was forced to 'step off my machine'. I worked out that what generally caused any 'face first into the snow-ism' was my inside foot ski flailing about.
Though I was feeling a little prima donna-ish during the instruction session, feeling like I want to just rush off and have fun, Gerhardt was incredibly helpful, and every bit of input from him made a massive difference. You feel like it’s going well and you’re in control, but just a few minor changes would make a massive difference.

Towards the end could not crash pretty reliably

I tightened it all up through the week, and towards the end could not crash pretty reliably, so was feeling pretty smug, possibly even arrogant. This didn't stop me getting a lecture from Hans the snow-bike-shop-man about keeping my knees tight to the bike, so keeping foot skis parallel. He even produced a bungie cord to wrap round my thighs as a training aid. I was a bit miffed at the time, but looking at the photos my feet are out about a metre from the bike, so maybe he's got a point.
The really important thing about the whole experience was how the Brenter bike didn’t pound my existing injuries. Where both skiing and snow-boarding caused me a lot of pain due to the amount of stress that was put through my lower legs and knees, this just didn’t happen with the Snow Bike. Most of your weight is taken on your bum, and your legs just contribute to ancillary control. My poor technique meant I felt a little bit of strain, but it would be easy to tighten up, and to keep legs virtually strain free.

Some of the others in my instructing group seemed to find riding the Brenter a little harder to pick up than I did (I think my two wheel experience helped a lot) but the progress of the whole group was certainly a lot faster than the average group of ski or snowboard learners. Several of the students in my group that I spoke to were trying out the snowbike as an option due to leg injuries. They do seem a great choice for those who love snow sport but are now struggling with body wear and tear of one sort or another. Sports people with disabilities get a lot more publicity than they used to, and quite right too, but there seems to be a dearth of information about options on how to carry on once you succumb to the ravages of time and earlier foolishness. Several people I spoke to on lifts were interested, and a couple of people since I’ve got back, who I just randomly chatted to, who were on the verge of giving up on winter holidays have asked avidly for details.

Most of the people involved in snow-sport holidays (reps, ski instructors, ski hire shop assistants) are young, fit and enthusiastic about either skiing or snowboarding so aren’t aware of the difficulties some more ‘mature’ holidaymakers face, or the options to avoid them. The medical profession’s usual reaction (apart from discussing the quality of the resort you last visited) is to say ‘you better stop that activity then’. Maybe Brenter’s marketing department need to get together with the package holiday industry to fill a gap in the market.

I was quite surprised how much I did enjoy the Brenter

I was quite surprised how much I did enjoy the Brenter. My ambition was (and still is) to get into the ‘pegger’ style ski-bikes, probably building one, as these appealed to my motorcycle dirt bike sensibilities (and riding style), and I’d booked the holiday really to get a feel for the whole thing, how difficult lifts, t-bars were, what the reactions of other slope users was, that sort of thing. However I really did get into using Brenter, and mucking about with it (I was experimenting with 360 degree turns half way through the holiday). There seemed to be loads more potential to try out, for instance I didn’t get into carving turns, even dealing with steep icy slopes looks interesting and my speed was still building up. So, though my ambition is to get into ‘pegger’ style ski-bikes, I can see myself having a holiday or two renting a Brenter, to really find out what they can do.

With thanks to Hans and Mike at www.snowbike-ellmau.com

Snowbike Wilder Kaiser
Hans Selb,
Dorf 31 – A-6352 Ellmau (INTERSPORT-Skiverleih),
Tel. 0043 664 1528757,
info@snowbike-ellmau.com

Introduction

It's been a busy start to the season with a huge jump in enquiries, it seems that a lot of people are excited at the whole skibike concept but are unsure about exactly where to go and what will be allowed. France is the closest skibiking nation to the UK, but unlike Austria, where you can go skibiking just about anywhere with minimum interference, this is not yet the case in France.


Do the French still hate skibikers?

France used to be skibike friendly in the 1970s, but hooligan behaviour and the resulting high profile crashes changed their attitude. It took 40 years of diplomacy to get allowed back out on the slopes, first on skibobs and more recently on freestyle skibikes too.

It took 40 years of diplomacy to get allowed back out on the slopes

Venturing behind the Glitzy website

A resort may market itself as the "Grand Valley" this or "Super Big" that, but behind all the corporate glitz are many disparate organisations that all have to be in agreement before skibikers are let loose on their domain.
The actual mountain is normally the property of individual farming villages, controlled under the supervision of their mayor. Unlike the situation in other countries, in France, the ultimate responsibility for safety stops with the mayor. An extreme example of "the buck stops here" attitude came after a fire in the Mont Blanc tunnel which saw the Mayor of Chamonix in court as a defendant.
With this in mind, you may better understand why some areas find it easier to say "Non" rather than "Oui" to skibikes.
The French skibob club organised written agreements with various resorts to simplify the process of finding a skibike friendly resort to ride at. Unfortunately they organised it in such a way that it doesn't include freestyle skibikes, indeed some agreements are exclusively for Brenter riders only. As a freestyle skibike rider you are more likely to find the most up to date information here.

Behind the Glitzy website - disparate villages and lift companies

Pedestrians and their Baggage

The second block to getting skibikes on the mountain, is the company that runs the lift network, once again there is often more than one company involved and they all need to agree on safe practices for carrying skibikes on their network.
The very first lift systems were constructed for the benefit of skiers and not for foot passengers wanting a lift up the hill to go for a stroll or visit a mountain restaurant. Therefore, the rules specified that to use a chairlift you had to be able to slide on and off. The first skibikers got around the tight regulations by wearing tiny skis on their feet, these so called footskis allowed them to ski off the chairlifts or even use drag lifts, just like any skier would.
The concept of freestyle skibiers walking onto lifts in high grip footwear and carrying a skibike as a piece of "luggage" is a novel one, especially in France's most chic and snobby resorts, some of which openly regret letting the snowboard brigade in, let alone these new veloski upstarts.
Some of the more forward looking (or cash strapped) resorts have started to change their ways and allow freestyle skibikers to use the chairlifts, there's even the odd place that is keeping the brackets on the chair more normally used for downhill mountain bikes in the Summer season.

There's even the odd place keeping the brackets on the chair in winter

Just about all these places will want you to wear a tether or leash between yourself and the skibike. This is in order to keep the risk of dropping a skibike onto the unsuspecting heads those below to the absolute minimum. Such leashes are cheap and readily available for Snowscoot or Kayak use from on-line retailers. I wouldn't recommend using them whilst riding though, as they are more likely to cause injury in a crash and to this day I have never ended uphill of my skibike, following an unscheduled involuntary dismount.


The AVEL Certification System Explained

The final block to getting your skibike on the mountain in France is whether you have the correct type approval certificate or AVEL. The AVEL system is maintained by the Service Technique des Remontées Mécaniques et des Transports Guidés, which is the organisation that represents all of the lift operating companies in France and is more commonly known by its acronym STRMTG.
One of the STRMTG's many administrative tasks, is to maintain a type approval system for "baggage" that covers not only skibikes, but a huge range of both summer and winter mountain toys.
The precise method by which one obtains AVEL certification remains a mystery to me and my friends who have managed to get one for their particular flavour of skibike are usually tight lipped on the subject. I can but assume that in the manner of all bureaucracy, it is a question of form filling (in French) and payment (in Euros).

As of the 203/14 season, the following skibikes and conversion kits are AVEL certified:

• Brenter Snowbike
• Winter X Bike (Now sold as Alpine SkiBikes conversion kit)
• Firem VS
• ATSB (Thierry Avrillon)
• SledgeHammer
• Gigantic (Conversion kit)

Note that there are also a couple of ski trikes and lots of SnowScoot models on the list too.

The full list in pdf format is available from the STRMTG website, as the name and location of this list changes from year to year, drop me a line, if you would like to know where to find the current one. Furthermore, it would appear that once a skibike is on the list, it is automatically included on the following year's publication.

Tignes 2011 - No AVEL, no skibike ride

Some of the smaller resorts don't check for a skibike's AVEL certificate, but it is much more likely in the large expensive resorts; it has happened to me in both Super Morzine and Tignes.  For this reason, I can't recommend you take a totally homebuilt DIY skibike to France no matter how good your engineering skills.
However taking a mountain bike converted using the kit from one of the companies listed above AND bearing the correct number on a sticker should be fine. It also helps to disguise the origins of your skibike conversion, by removing all the original bike stickers and making it look as little home-made as is feasible. Given the ready availability of excellent aluminium frames for pocket money prices on auction sites, there is a lot to be said for creating a dedicated winter skibike.


Conclusion

If I wasn't such a Francophile it would be a lot easier to join the majority of other European skibikers and head for the Austrian Tirol.  But in spite of it's many challenges, like a long pursued and hard won lover, France does have many rewards to offer, not least being a choice of 5 disparate mountain chains to play on. France has closest big mountains to the UK, if you live South of Coventry you can be in the French Alps in less time than it takes to get to Cairngorm in Scotland. Each year skibiking in France gets easier and more accepted, let's hope that trend continues as more novice skibikers head there to put in their first turns.

Gallic skibiking - many challenges, many rewards

I knocked up this pair of foot skis a couple of years ago, exactly at the point at which I was making the transition from ski bob style riding to freestyle riding as a plan B in case things didn't work out quite as expected.
As it happened, plan A worked and they never got used, so two years later I am putting them up for sale in the hope they will find a home with a dedicated ski-bobber.

Made from the tips of my ancient 80's Fischer skis, with some brand new old stock bindings from the same period. They are adjustable bindings, so should fit you regardless of boot size and could be useful if you were switching between different riders.

Up for sale in the hope they will find a new home

If you're in a hurry for some cheap foot skis or just not handy enough with tools to make your own I would like £30 for them. You can collect, or they can be sent out by courier for £10 to most locations in the UK.

UPDATES:

01/11/2016 - Now sold.

I knocked up this pair of foot skis a couple of years ago, exactly at the point at which I was making the transition from ski bob style riding to freestyle riding as a plan B in case things didn't work out quite as expected.
As it happened, plan A worked and they never got used, so two years later I am putting them up for sale in the hope they will find a home with a dedicated ski-bobber.

Made from the tips of my ancient 80's Fischer skis, with some brand new old stock bindings from the same period. They are adjustable bindings, so should fit you regardless of boot size and could be useful if you were switching between different riders.

Up for sale in the hope they will find a new home

If you're in a hurry for some cheap foot skis or just not handy enough with tools to make your own I would like £30 for them. You can collect, or they can be sent out by courier for £10 to most locations in the UK.

UPDATES:

01/11/2016 - Now sold.

Up for sale are a pair of pre-used Tyrolia SP 100 adjustable ski bindings. They came fitted as standard to a pair of Head Big Easy ski boards, which were subsequently re-purposed for my skibike. Prior to removal they had a few weeks use and as can be seen in the pictures, are still in very good condition.

For Sale - Tyrolia SP 100 adjustable ski bindings

Use these bindings if you are looking for an adjustable binding suitable for a large spectrum of people, or just as a cost effective quality binding replacement. This very dependable binding is lightweight for a fully adjustable adult binding. Great for families wanting to share set-ups, or if you are starting up your own rental shop. Perfect for DIY foot ski builders!

Summary of Features:

Din range:3-10
Skier weight range: >67lbs
Weight (both bindings): 2440g
Boot Lift (toe/heel): 27/33mm
Boot Adjustment Range: 263-391mm

Other Features:

Movable toe ABS
Both Toe and Heel pieces move so that you will always be centred.

Tyrolia SP 100 - movable toe ABS

This is a good inexpensive choice for the skier who needs adjust-ability in a binding for changing boot sizes, resale, multiple users, or whatever.

The retail price for these was originally around £100, but you can get these for just £30, which includes delivery to most locations in the UK.

Updates:

26/11/16 - Now Sold

Paul and I were so impressed with the ambiance at Notre Dame de Bellecombe that we decided to re-visit the area this morning to make a loop of the interlinked resorts of the Val d'Arly.
Our plan was to begin at Praz sur Arly, then make our way via; Cret du Midi, Ban Rouge, Mont Vores, Mont Rond to the 3 different Notre Dame de Bellecombe areas. Then we would return via Mont Reguet, Flumet and the roc des Evettes all the way back to our starting point at Praz sur Arly.
We only got going at 11am so it was a full on day to get round the loop, with no time for lunch, but we did manage a couple of Vin Chauds to keep us fired up.




Skibikers please note, according to the information the lift operators gave me, skibikes and SnowScoots can use the lift systems, but anything that looks like a skibike will require the use of footskis (if only for uplift). I opted once again to make my exploration by ski, as there were a lot of awkward drag lifts and chairlifts to negotiate and no free time to mess about.

The domain is much larger than the size of the villages would have you think; there are 120km of pistes in the Val d'Arly alone and 185km if you add the adjacent runs of the Espace Diamant. There are some reasonable vertical ranges of around 1000m or 300ft available, but some of the base stations are quite low, so the snow may not be the best at resort level.

The hills have a pleasantly rounded "TeleTubbies land" quality, ideal for cruising blue and red runs. Advanced riders might find the area unchallenging in comparison with other areas nearby. A large amount of the runs are through pleasantly wooded areas that open up from time to time onto stunning panoramic views. Anyone who wants to cover large amounts of intermediate terrain without any nasty surprises will not be disappointed. Tourist development has been very sympathetically carried out, with no concrete bunker developments, most accommodation is in small chalet hotels and individual chalets. I would go so far as to say that Praz sur Arly has all the attractions of Morzine, but without the overcrowding and disproportionate amount of loudmouthed Brits.

We arrived back at the car with aching leg muscles, with happy memories of our day going around the Val d'Arly. On the return journey to Cluses we stopped at an enormous hypermarket in Sallanches to stock up on provisions for the impending arrival of my sister in law Isolette and her daughter Sofia. Leaving the bright fluorescent lighting of the shops, we emerged to a stunning moonlit view of the mountains and the Mont Blanc in particular, you don't see that down Tescos in Purley!

A stunning moonlit view of the the Mont Blanc

Tonight was the first ever SnowBike race night to be held at Notre Dame de Bellecombe. I was invited along and was glad to attend, thinking that attendance would be low and I could add my support, although nothing could be further from the truth as I was to find out later. I was told it was to be a single marque Brenter only race, something that didn't bother me, I learnt on Brenter and have been back on them a couple of times since.

Arriving at around 3 in the afternoon, I registered for the race at James Sport, owned by skibike enthusiast James Mollier Camus. I got myself a lift pass and located Ric Platt from SkiBike Ltd. who had arranged for me to get a Brenter. I was assigned my skibike and footskis and went up the hill to refresh my skibob technique. I put in a few runs and slowly the technique began to come back to me although to be honest I think I was doing a lot more skiing with my feet than skibike riding.




Ric tracked me down after an hour and explained that there weren't enough hire skibikes to go round and could I do the race on my own. I didn't need any encouragement, but I retained the foot skis and hard boots for the drag uplift, the plan being to ditch the footskis for the race, I collected my race vest and headed up the hill.
We were allowed to view the slalom course 30 minutes prior to the start of the race, I was pleased to see that it was in soft snow and not the usual boiler plate much loved by racing types. That bit done we had to wait above the start gate in our running order for the race to begin.
It was a magical moment, sat high up on a floodlit hill in the soft snow waiting for the start of the race, the pa announcements from the village below drifting up whilst snowflakes softly descended all around us like a veil.

So how did I do?

So how did I do? If you want a quick summary - pretty dismal.

I made my first run in 1 minute 13 seconds, the only person slower was ESF instructor James Mollier Camus who had crashed out, recovered and still made it down only 5 seconds slower. On my second run I crashed monumentally after the first gate when I could no longer hold the pedals in my slippery hard boots.

I have only had the opportunity to bench mark myself in this way against other riders twice. Once again it has served a valuable purpose, as I have have learnt two things:

1. I am an irredeemably uncompetitive rider, perhaps it's time to quit racing?
2. Riding a freestyle/pegger skibike with hard ski boots is bad news.

Riding a freestyle/pegger skibike with hard ski boots is bad news

My thanks go to the sponsors and organisers of the SnowBike Race Night at Notre Dame de Bellecombe, it was brilliantly well organised. There was some seriously good kit being given to all riders, no-one went home empty handed. I hope that this will be a regular event, although I might duck out of future engagements and stick to falling down ice waterfalls, which I seem to be better skilled at.

Skilled lady skibikers

It rained last night, something you don't expect 1600m up in the Alps in January, it's just not cricket.
The humidity had successfully turned the crisp, crunchy access road into a skating rink with a gradient. My midnight stroll back from Le Diamant Noir was quite a challenge over the laws of physics.

Matters hadn't improved this morning, Carl struggled to gain sufficient traction to make it off the access ramp to the apartment. Eager to "seize the day" Carl, Andy and I made it onto the 3rd chairlift to put in some fresh tracks on our warm up run down the Grands Vans. In such freeze / thaw conditions it was hard and icy in places. Next we headed up the DMC cable car to the top station at 2500m to see how conditions fared at altitude. As you might expect, they were better, with lots of heavy buttery snow.

Organising skibikers is much like herding cats

We had to make our pre-arranged rendezvous with Ric Platt above Les Carroz. It would seem that organising skibikers is much herding cats! We were late and Ric had managed to get himself lost, thank Nokia for mobile communications.
Ric Platt, is very much "Old Skool" and has been skibiking since the early 1970s, so has seen the heydays, then the period when skibikes were banned throughout France, to now witness a re-emergence of skibiking. He has resisted abandoning traditional footskis and heading into the brave new world of freestyle skibiking, he intends to continue skibike riding indefinitely and eagerly anticipates the generous lift pass discounts available to the over 75s!
Having located Richard, we returned to Flaine for a succession of loops up the DMC cable car and back down again. The brilliant Mephisto Superieur "monster" run was now running even better than earlier. A fine afternoon of skibiking was had, including some enjoyable off piste excursions.
Towards the end of the afternoon we headed back towards the links with Morillon and enjoyed a fine Vin Chaud before heading our separate ways.

Old Skool meets New Skool - skibikers old and new at Flaine

The day concluded with a few sublime runs in soft, slow snow, hell for the tired skiers heading for home, but heaven for the feisty skibikers.

"Lies, damned lies, and statistics" is a quotation often attributed to Benjamin Disraeli, the 19th century British Prime Minister. The source for this view is the autobiography of Mark Twain, where he makes that attribution.  The phrase is often used to describe the persuasive power of numbers, particularly the use of statistics to bolster weak arguments.

That aside, Randy Kimball from the American SkiBike Association released some interesting statistics this week, based upon their membership.

SkiBikers somewhat below the average age (49)

News just in from Devin Lenz, founder of Lenz Sport SkiBikes, Vail Colorado will grant access to skibikes in the forthcoming 2012/13 ski season. Not only is Vail a premier ski resort, Vail Resorts also own; Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood.

Does this mean that skibiking has become respectable or is it just a cynical ploy to boost ticket sales in a faltering economy? For the moment, who cares, it's time to get your skibikes out there and have some fun this season.

In case you have never heard of Vail, PowderHounds have the following to say:

When one thinks about the legendary ski resorts around the world, a number immediately spring to mind. Vail is definitely one of those. Resorts don’t reach legendary status without good reason. Vail has it all - massive and varied terrain, a huge modern and efficient lift system, great vertical, tons of snow, classic après, vibrant nightlife and a booming “village” (err...town, um....city) with all the services one would expect from a mega resort. Vail is the quintessential world class ski resort that many others try to imitate.

Vail is BIG and pretty much has something for everyone. If you want to ski cruisers all day - you can do it. If you want some in-bounds back country style skiing and then cook a steak on a BBQ at 3,527m elevation – you can. If you expect powder - it will happen. If you want to ski steep trees and moguls or jump off cornices - guess what - it’s there. If you want to eat at five star restaurants and shop in fur boutiques, or just get a roll from Subway - you can do that too. If you want to economise and shop at Safeway to cook in your self-contained accommodation, go right ahead.... read more here

Epic Moms at Vail - source

Anyone who has waited for a bus knows the routine: you wait far longer than you should, then three come along at once, this seems to be the case with the current crop of classic Porsche skibobs coming up for sale.
Noel, from Pennsylvania USA, is the latest person trying to find a new home for a Porsche 212.
The current tally is 3 people with no fewer than 4 Porsche 212 ski bobs to sell between them. They are located in California, Pennsylvania and Ohio respectively.

Skibiker Duane Mullins, suggested another interesting alternative use for one of these collectibles; by using the body as a beer cooler.

Lastly, if you need to contact me, please make sure to include your e-mail address in the body of your message.

Chris, mailed me a while back as he spotted this article here on the Skibiker SkiBike Blog, whilst doing a search for ski bobs.  He is based in California, USA and has a couple Porsche Design Arova Ski Bobs for sale.

It is going to break his heart to part with them, but the harsh reality is that he's getting married and needs the cash. To the right are some photos of the skibobs in question.

Should they take your fancy and you would like to have one for your skibike collection, as a period accesory for a classic Porsche sports car or as a curious "conversation piece" to put in the den, please get in touch.
You can leave a comment below, or use the new Contact Page to send me an e-mail and I will make sure that Chris gets it.

Just in case you have never heard of the Porsche 212, here is some background with thanks to www.911uk.com:

For those of us who’ve always thought that the 912 or the 914 were some of the most unheralded members of the Porsche family, say hello to the 212 Skibob.

This small and collapsible skibob (basically a bike for the slopes) was built through collaboration by the Arvoa Company and Porsche design. Made in limited quantities for enthusiasts, the Porsche sled features a rather sophisticated setup (you know, for a skibob) of front and rear shock strut suspension. It’s also able to break apart, with the ski components stored inside of the hollow fiberglass body. Maybe most incredibly, despite its slight build, the 212 is made to carry two riders.

AROVA-PORSCHE 212 SKIBOB

By PORSCHE DESIGN and Built by AROVA

Limited production from 1970 and first announced in the February, 1970 PORSCHE CHRISTOPHORUS Magazine.

PORSCHE DESIGN in collaboration with the AROVA Company ventured into producing a limited supply of this revolutionary and patented snow glider. It was unique for it's time in several respects. It has both front and rear shock strut suspension. It also can be assembled from components contained within the hollow body in about 1 minute. The padded seat is able to hold two passengers.


Specifications:

Weight - 30 Lbs.
Length, folded - 44 inches.
Height, folded – 15 inches
Width – 5.5 inches.
Suspension – aluminum with angled shock-struts.
Body – Molded polyfoam, hollow for components storage.
Assemble time, est.- 1 + minute.
Other – 2 clamp-on shoe ski's.

"Autumn clean", no it just doesn't have the same ring to it as "Spring clean", but that's what I've been up to for the past few days. I have started to transfer almost all of the information stored at SkiBiker.org over to this blog to be archived as static web pages. I thought that this would be a few hours work, but as ever, it took much longer than expected as I realised some of the information could really do with updating and reformatting too.

So what are the changes?

Below the new and prettier header section, you will find links that should help answer 99% of the questions any skibiker newbie might ask, such as; "FAQs", "Where to SkiBike?", "How to SkiBike", "(How to) Build a SkiBike" or (Where to) "Buy a SkiBike".

There is now a contact page, with a proper mail form, any questions still left unanswered can be mailed to me, whilst avoiding having my email address available to the spammers.

I have also updated the lists of skibike manufacturers and skibike conversion kit suppliers, there should be a few new names yet to be added over the following weeks too.

I spent quite a while pouring over the list of skibike friendly resorts and have now given the countries with a lot of potential skibiking holiday destinations, such as; Austria and France their own individual pages. The list is very European centric currently, but I have pages for Canada and the USA waiting in the wings, which will need populating with information. I will harvest some information from the net, but there is nothing like a verified account from a local skibiker. I know that a fair share of the readership of this blog are from the USA and Canada, so please send the names of your local skibike friendly haunts for inclusion.

I have created a page for real world skibike clubs, there are only 3 national clubs that I know of, which cover, France, Great Britain and the USA. There is also a page listing skibike social networking sites, such as Facebook and discussion forums.

Lastly, as so many of the readership do not have English as their mother tongue, I have included a translation widget for their use.

I have had an idea for a skibike touring holiday bubbling around in my head for the last couple of years, I imagined something very different to the typical package ski holiday. On my perfect skibike holiday you would visit not just one, but many resorts, without the need to ever ride the same run twice, unless you particularly wanted to. You would cover huge distances and see so much varied terrain, from mighty high peaks, down to gentle wooded valleys. Riding skibikes, one wouldn't get burned out in the way a skier or snowboarder would. Returning home at the end of the week, you could recite a list of of the places you visited, listeners would think you had spent a whole season away, rather than a mere week.

My ideal location would be somewhere in or close to the Portes du Soleil, 12 resorts spanning France and Switzerland and the largest international ski area in the world. It has an enormous variety of slopes both around the treeline and above. There are gentle, wide open runs for beginners, endless intermediate terrain and for advanced skiers, there are demanding bump runs, plus a huge choice of easily accessible off piste and many hidden gems.

Stunning views - source Haig Ski

A possible itinerary for the week might be something like this:

Sunday - Easy Riding for early bird arrivals at Lelex/Crozet, Monts Jura
Monday - Cruising and Novice Lessons at Grand Bornand, Aravis
Tuesday - Wide Blues and Fast Reds at Les Contamines and Hauteluce, Mont Blanc
Wednesday - Big Verticals at Avoriaz, Portes du Soleil
Thursday - Eating up the Miles at Samoens, Les Carroz and Flaine, Grand Massif
Friday - Heading off the Beaten Track at Praz de Lys and Sommand Taninges
Saturday - Comfortably Numb at Morzine or Combloux
Sunday - Last ride before the flight home at Les Haberes or La Chapelle d'Abondance

My ideal accommodation would be a cosy mountain chalet that offered breakfast in the morning, a slice of cake or two in the late afternoon and a hearty meal with wine in the evening. A secluded natural location with stunning views would be a bonus. It would need to be located roughly an hour from Geneva airport.

Cosy mountain chalet - source Haig Ski

Needless to say, transport would be necessary to get everyone around, a mini bus with a trailer for the skibikes would be the ideal vehicle. It would need to be available for transfers to and from Geneva airport.

Much research has lead me to Haig Ski who offer; half-board chalet accommodation, transport and guiding throughout the Portes du Soleil and environs. Based at the quiet village of Le Biot, they are just 80 minutes from the airport.

The proposed date for the first ever skibike touring week is Sunday 6th to Sunday 13th January 2013. This period leaves Christmas and New Year free for your familly activities. It is a great time of year to be on the slopes; there is little in the way of crowds or queues, the lift operators aren't stressed out and good snow is as near to guaranteed as is possible. The Portes du Soleil - Doors of the Sun often live up to their name, whilst better know resorts shiver, this area often experiences mild clement days in between fresh dumps of the white stuff.

Avoriaz in 2010 - clement December weather, read more here

Whilst costs are anticipated to be higher than a "High Street" package, direct comparison is unfair. On offer is a unique customised skibike centric holiday, in one of the World's finest winter playgrounds. As far as I know, something never available before. A breakdown of the anticipated costs would be:

Half Board Accommodation Cost - £450
Touring Transport Supplement - £40
Transfers to / from Geneva Airport - To Be Confirmed
Budget Flights from UK to Geneva - £150 (Easy Jet LGW to GVA, with 20kg baggage plus a "bike" carried as sports equipment.
SkiBike Guiding - Included
Lift Passes - estimated at £210
Lunches, drinks & miscellaneous sundry items - estimated at £150
Optional SkiBike Hire - To Be Confirmed
Optional SkiBike Tuition - ESF skibike teacher available

If you bring your own skibike, don't require lessons and don't intend to paint the town red every night, you would be looking at a budget of just under £1000. Remember, this is a fair estimate of your final cost, including all the hidden items that the glossy sales brochures omit to mention.
Prices have been calculated in Pounds Sterling, to convert to Euros or other currencies here is a handy on-line calculator.

I have 6 skibikers who have already expressed an interest in joining this tour, if they all commit, this would leave only 1 space free, so if the idea of a skibike touring week appeals to you and you would like to join, please contact me as soon as possible.

Skibike touring in 2012 - read more here

Lastly, in the interest of fairness there are a few caveats to consider.

Accommodation costs are based on 2 people sharing a room.

There can never be a true guarantee of snow, but this area has a consistently good snow fall record and a micro climate influenced by its proximity to the Mont Blanc, which means "White Mountain" owing to its permanent snow cover, it is the highest mountain in Europe.

Resorts can be notorious fickle with regard to skibike access, it may be necessary to change plans at short notice to concentrate on skibike friendly resorts. Rest assured that I will be in the area in the weeks preceding the tour and will be able to verify what is practicable.

In order to take your skibike on a chairlift it will need to have an "AVEL" sticker; as of the 2011-12 season, these were available for some of the models produced by the following skibike manufacturers; Brenter, FiremVS, SnowScoot and Winter X Bike. If you are planning on bringing a skibike that doesn't have an AVEL sticker please contact me for further information.

Exchange rates vary, therefore the final cost of your trip may rise or fall substantially.

Meanwhile in France... Firem have been testing out their retrofit chairlift skibike carrier for compatibility with the ever popular SnowScoot. They manufacture a hook/clamp combination which easily mounts to the chassis of a chairlift, I saw and rode the prototype in action during the 2011-12 season at Grand Bornand in France see here.
On the prototype system, the lift operators did the hard work of loading and unloading skibikes. At the time, there were only 3 brackets on the chain of 100 or so chairs. As a skibiker you had to wait to one side, then get quickly into place as the special chairs came round. The prototype chairlift ran up to some easy green and blue runs and provided a very safe environment for novices to learn Freestyle SkiBiking (myself included).
Once they had gained in experience and confidence, they were able to move to more demanding terrain. From what I gathered at the time, Grand Bornand were aiming to expand into Downhill Mountain Biking uplift for the summer season and making chairlift brackets a permanent feature.

SkiBike and SnowScoot chairlift carrier system - from Firem

Other resorts nearby, have hooks on the back of the chairlift frame to mount your MTB on the chairlift in front of you. Typically they take these off in the winter season to avoid risking clumsy skiers impaling themselves on them.  The beauty of the Firem system is that the skibike stays to the side of the chairlift and doesn't interfere with other snow users, nor does the lift need to slow down for loading. If Firem are testing them now, it bodes well, at least for the Alps in the 2013 season and potentially as research data for elsewhere.

I had a different type of unsolicited mail the other day, which makes a change from laser eye surgery and car leasing. Tom Fortner from Monroe Michigan, (just above Toledo Ohio) has an unusual Porsche 212 skibob to move on.
Note that these images are not of the item on offer and are for illustrative purposes only.

I can't find out too much about this model, possibly it was more of a promotional item than a serious tool and I can't imagine the ride would be a patch on even the cheapest of DIY skibikes. However, riding merits aside, is still the ultimate James Bond gadget, in a very 70s way.
I can just see Roger Moore stepping into the cable car in his dinner jacket with the suitcase under his arm. At the top he pops on his footskis, assembles the skibob and is off to fight to the death with baddies, before entertaining a babe for the night "More Champagne Darling?"

I have already passed someone his way who was very interested, but you never know. So if you fancy having this curious item in your collection drop me a line or leave a comment and I'll put you in touch with Tom.

I want to pay tribute to 10 excellent items that I have used whilst skibiking, they didn't cost much and have all delivered fantastic value for money.
All of them cost under £60, to stay in budget, some had to be bought from secondhand from eBay, usually in nearly new condition having seen a weeks use or less. SkiBike related bargains are out there to be had, providing you buy at the end of the winter season right through to late September.

Item: Canterbury Knee Braces

Price Paid: £25 each

What was so good about this item then?

It was tough finding the number 1 skibiking essential of 2012, but on reflection I chose a product that is of great personal significance, but should prove valuable to skibikers young and old alike. Life is so full of irony, if I had worn knee braces when I first tried skiing, I might never have damaged my knees and found myself on a skibiking odyssey. Now, I wear them whenever I head for the slopes whether that's on a skibike or skis.
There have been a number of occasions where I have got into the sort of awkward twisting falls that in the past caused havoc and I have felt the metal side straps take the load and hold me together. I am certain that without these there would have been a fair few situations where injury would have compromised my skibiking enjoyment.

Any gripes or whinges about this item?

The are produced in a "one size fits all" design, which I believe will inevitably lead to some compromises in the fit. After roughly 6 weeks use the velcro straps are starting to loose their grip.

Canterbury Knee Braces - #1 skibiking essential