65: The Big Freeze
Europe has been grasped in any icy chill and the Alps have been no exception; inside the ManxSki chalet all is warm and toasty but outside the mercury has plumbed new lows in the minus twenties. Great for preserving the impressive snow accumulations but challenging skiing conditions; in Flaine a man is reported to have lost a glove, skied on and subsequently lost 3 fingers through frostbite. I invest in mittens and face-mask, but chair-lifts are still an icy purgatory.
Jack Frost attacks every chink in our armour; first the cold feed to bathroom 4 freezes up, eased by skilful application of a hairdryer to exposed pipes. Then the hot feed to room 1, followed in quick succession by the cold to suites 2 & 3. Hamish the plumber becomes a regular visitor and clients adopt the Dunkirk spirit – showers are for wimps and clean your teeth in gin... Then it’s kangaroo time again in the Shogun – the diesel has frozen, and this year not even the minibus is exempt. Research establishes the new village retailer is selling puny -15 protected diesel so it’s down to the valley for 2 new fuel filters and to join queues for the -23 premium fuel.
Check out the corporate branding! Just in time for the big freeze trusted ski-shop partners Fred & Michelle have provided us with snug body warmers for the morning lift runs, resplendent in ManxSki blue. And the ManxSki banner flutters proudly at the roadside above the terrace where nightly white-robed guests rush through the chilly air to and from the hot-tub to the bemusement of our neighbours.
So midway through the season now and high-season in the village; huge numbers queue for the morning lifts, restaurants are booked solid and car-park full signs go up at the telecabine. We’ve extended the ski-guiding service; having driven in it only seems sensible to grab an hour or so on the slopes and most clients are grateful to have a whistle-stop indoctrination to the bewildering array of pistes. Sunday saw me tumbling spectacularly in thick fog down the red to Vernant, a trusting family in tow – we all made it in one piece and lunch tasted all the better for the experience. But now it’s wall to-wall sunshine again – the mercury has risen, and like the first cuckoo of Spring the Boss is to venture onto the slopes today – truly a harbinger of warmer times to come. And she’s not the only one thinking of the slopes; the internet is sizzling with enquiries for March & April; people are waking up to the fact this is already the best season for decades and not to be missed. This show’s not over by a long chalk...
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