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Race Training
The glacier opens on 27 September, so the resort is gearing up for
race training, race training & race training… racers and instructors
are due to touch down soon.
Emphasis continues on
freestyle skiing & snowboarding, with teams from around the globe
due to start arriving shortly to commence their preseason training.
After a bit of a dodgy summer snow season, the glacier is looking
mighty fine and I for one can not wait to get up there!
Piste & Lift
News
The Espace Killy opens on 29 November and there are a massive 103
new snowmakers going to be present on the slopes. The Tignes Snowpark
has moved! No longer in Le Lac, the Snowpark is now located at the
bottom of Double M and Carline in Val Claret and is accessed via
Les Lanches & Tichot chairlifts. The park has a vertical drop of
120m and includes a half pipe, quarterpipe and loads of bumps, jumps
& rails.
In a totally new move
for Tignes, three new black runs have been opened, Pâquerette, Epilobe
& La Face on the Aiguille Percée. These are black runs with a difference,
formally know as off piste runs, all three will now be made safe
but left ungroomed for that extra challenge.
Off Piste Safety
In a move that encourages safe skiing & boarding, everyday in the
Winter the Régie des Pistes are running introductory sessions open
to everyone on how to use a transceiver & basic snowpack knowledge.
These sessions are designed to raise awareness of the hazards of
skiing off piste and to encourage all aspiring freeriders only to
venture off piste fully equipped. More details available from the
Securité des Pistes in resort.
Dates for your
Diary
Tignes are playing host to a number of high profile events next
season, including the 26th Freestyle World Cup (10-12 December),
the Salomon International Saab Cross Series (17-18 December) and
the Disabled Skiing World Cup (18-24 January) in which Tignes home
grown champion Romain Riboud will be competing.
What’s New for
2004?
Harry’s (otherwise known as The Censored Bar) has got a new swimming
pool, not of much use to winter visitors but provided great amusement
in the summer!
The Helly Hansen shop in Val Claret is no more, it is opening at
the end of October as the new Precision Boot Lab. Equipped with
the latest state of the art equipment, the Boot Lab is a certified
Conformable Fit Zone. Also in Val Claret there is new Quiksilver
Boardriders shop opening at Rond Point des Pistes.
The usual hotel renovations
have also been going on in the summer, in Lac the Gentiana and Le
Refuge are now 3 star hotels complete with Turkish Baths & Jacuzzis.
Tignes also has 2 new hotels for this season, Le Lévanna in Lac
and L’Ecrin des Neiges in Val Claret, both are 3 star and feature
a whole load of creature comforts.
Celeb watching
This summer we have had a summer of rubber-necking! With visits
from the French national women’s football team & the Lyon Football
team Olympique Lyonnais there has been plenty of opportunity to
watch high altitude training rather than actually having to do any!
The cycling team fdjeux.com also passed through town for a bit of
practise on the Cols before the Tour started.
Lastly but by
no means least
Fingers crossed for the three British girls hoping to buy a bar
in Val Claret, if rumours are to be believed it’s going to serve
funky cocktails and be open all day for food… I’ve even heard that
it’s going to do nice sarnies and different types of bread (unless
you’ve lived out here you wouldn’t understand not being able to
get decent sandwiches!) … Guess where I am going to be hanging out!
More news on this as it happens!
Report by Antonia, Snowtec/Precision
Ski, Tignes
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