On tour with Warren Miller

Once again the team at Worldski are pleased to be the online sponsor of the upcoming Warren Miller movie 'Playground' which starts its rounds of UK cinema's this month.

Warren Miller as we all know is an acclaimed filmmaker, entrepreneur, and author. His 50 year old career includes over 700 sports films, several books and hundreds of published non-fiction stories. His annual films are a renowned institution in the UK and herald the start of the winter season for many. With their perennial host Jim Odoire from the team at Black Diamond providing the lead, these interactive events are renowned for their high octane pace both on and off the screen.

So prepare to charge into winter as Warren Miller's 'Playground', the world's largest action sports film, hits cinemas on it's nationwide tour. From October 2007 through January 2008, Warren Miller's 'Playground' will dazzle fans with electrifying winter sports footage projected in crystal clear digital format. This cross country live event spectacle is saturated with deep powder, incredible cinematography, technical lines, and massive air

Dates and details on the Warren Millers latest film, 'Playground' can be found at Warren Miller


Paul@worldski

See us at the ski shows

It's that time of year when we hit the road and do the rounds of the ski shows, so come and put a face to a name and meet the team from Worldski

The team at Worldski will be on hand at the shows in London, Birmingham and Manchester, so check out the details below and pop along for a chat and let us provide you with truly indpendent unbiased advice on how to ge the best from your precious time on the slopes.

Paul

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London - Olympia

The Metro Ski and Snowboard Show - celebrating its 35th year - is back.

This year the Show is again over five days, and packed full of action. Special Features for 2007 - Trespass Quarter Pipe: Hosting the London Ride and the British Quarter Pipe Championships- The Burton Rail Jam - The Landrover Brand Arena & Fashion Showcase: all the main brands and catwalk models!-Teaching Zone: Beginners will be able to learn to ski and board for free on the dedicated slope- Plus the Gigloo, Ice Climbing Wall, World Resorts Village and more - Free for kids - To encourage our younger friends, it's free for u/10s

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Manchester and Birmingham

The British Ski + Board Shows will start at the Manchester Central (formerly GMEX) in Manchester on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th October and then move on to the NEC in Birmingham from Friday 2nd to Sunday 4th November

The British Ski + Board Show is set to return to the NEC and Manchester Central this year, with brand new features that will entertain and excite everyone from novice skiers to die-hard snow sports enthusiasts.

With a line-up that includes a huge ski ramp, ¼ pipe, talk theatre, equipment clinics and an ice rink, there’s no better place than the UK’s best winter sports exhibition to start your ski and snowboard season.The big ski ramp is the newest feature to the Birmingham show and will give visitors the chance to learn how to ski or snowboard, as well as watching thrilling demonstrations and competitions. In Manchester, a ¼ pipe will take centre stage with exciting racing competitions taking place throughout the weekend.

Truly inspirational and informative speakers will be appearing in the new talk theatre, bringing tales of their adventures and experiences, as well as advising visitors on the best places to visit. Equipment clinics will also take place throughout the shows, helping visitors to prepare themselves and their gear for the upcoming season.

If that wasn’t enough, retailers such as Ellis Brigham, GirlsSki2, TSA and Atomic will also be at the shows selling top brand names and the hottest gear for the 2007/8 season.

Once you’ve treated yourself to some new clothing or equipment, many of the world top resorts such as, New Hampshire, Canada, France, Switzerland and the Austrian Tirol will be represented at The British Ski + Board Show, giving you endless options of where to holiday this season.

Show Organiser Karena Cooper said: “We’re really excited about this year’s show and we can’t wait to hear what the visitors think of our new features.”

Low cost carriers announce new routes to Europe

All of the 'Low cost' carriers are focusing on the lucrative winter sports market and EasyJet, one of Europe’s leading low-fares airline, this week launched a new twice daily service to Zurich, with fares from just £27.99 each way. The airline expects to carry more than 160,000 passengers on the route over the next 12 months say Paul Cable, EasyJet’s UK Market Manager.

'Whilst Zurich is a great gateway for local ski resorts such Laax and Engelberg don't forget that with a mainline train station at the airport it's easy to hop onto a train to some of the best resorts in the world including my favourite, St Anton says Paul Quigley from the specialist ski agency www.worldski.com

These new routes come hot on the heels of new routes and major ski campaigns from Ryanair, Flybe and Jet2.com. Ryanair have in particular have been very aggressive with their early ski marketing by launching a dedicated ski website and advertising their winter ski destinations in the national by press offering free ski carriage.

Many however are using the low cost carriers for weekends trips and don't really understand the problems faced when trying to secure accommodation. Mike Pritchard, Holiday Manager at Worldski understands the problem well as he deals with customers in his Leeds city centre call centre.

' The winter season is short, normally 16-18 weeks' says Mike and accommodation providers need to maximise the occupancy in those rooms. 'They love the 7 night, Saturday to Saturday bookings' he says ' and many properties will only take these kind of bookings' Weekend travellers however are only there for a couple of days and typically like to travel Friday to Monday which breaks this Saturday, Saturday rule.' That's where I come in' says Mike. The team here at Worldski have tremendous experience in this market and can advise which suppliers will deal with weekend stay or odd durations.


Paul@Worldski

First snow of the Winter

I always love this time of year. Summer (what summer) has been and gone and crisper mornings and early evenings are the order of the day. So as we start to wrap up warmer it's nice to see snow on the ground in Colorado. The picture above came from the guys at Breckenridge and like us they have their fingers crossed for another stellar winter with record snowfalls in 07-08.

Paul@Worldski


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New snow update - 21st September 2007

Mammoth receives first dusting of snow

As clouds rolled in and nighttime temperatures dropped, Mammoth was blessed last night with the season's first dusting of snow. The light layer of white snow on the mountain has brought the feeling of winter back to Mammoth and weather forecasts are calling for scattered snow showers throughout the next few days.

The Mammoth operations crew reported about an inch of snow at the top of the mountain this morning. With the light dusting last night, optimism surrounds the approaching winter season. The crew at Mammoth has been hard at work on many pre-season mountain improvements. Leading the list of improvements is the new high-speed six-pack chairlift, Cloud Nine,which will whisk skiers and riders from the Eagle Lodge side of the mountain to an elevation of 10,371 feet near Dragon's Back.

Mark your calendars- opening day at Mammoth Mountain is scheduled for November 8,weather permitting.Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is the leading four-season mountain resort in California. With 1.6 million annual skier visits, Mammoth Mountain iscurrently the third most frequented resort in the United States

Paul@Worldski