Crookhorn College Ski-ing Austria Tuesday 18 February 2014

Tuesday 18 February

I am up at 06:10 feeling knackered and stiff!

We once again are away at 07:45 but today are going Flachauwinkl, the resort on the other side of Zauchensee. The coach park and lift are immediately as we pull off the motorway and as soon as we stop I go to the cash desk and update my pass so I can ski again today.

There is a coach from Blakes in Devon and I know one of the drivers, Mike, who I first met in Portugal about 17/18 years ago.

Off we go through the mist in search of the promised sun and as we come out of the gloom it is stunning with clear blue sky and lovely bashed slopes.

I am in the same group today but we are being guided by Steve instead of Chris.

The ski-ing today is everything it wasn’t yesterday and is absolutely delightful. Steve is another excellent guide who is a superb skier.

The morning flashes by with lots of better ski-ing and I manage to stay on my skis without any wipe outs today!

We stop for an early lunch and sit out in the sun overlooking the spectacular  mountains enjoying Goulash soup mit brot!

As with anything in Austria you are either going up or going down and the toilets are the same, they are always downstairs! Not easy in ski boots and tired legs!

It is a good shout having an early lunch as the restaurants aren’t too busy and it doesn’t take too long to be served.

We are just starting our first run after lunch when we meet Chris who says one of the girls, Storm, has skied into a tree and knocked herself out as well as hurting her shoulder and knee. It is all very concerning as three of the groups meet and wait to see what is happening.

Storm is going to have to go to hospital and is being flown there by helicopter. We can see the helicopter higher up the mountain. Steve asks us all to wait while he sorts it out. With that he takes his skis off, puts them  on his shoulder and proceeds to walk up the mountain to the helicopter! It is quite a way up and not something I would fancy. He is quite an impressive man!

Steve soon returns to update everybody ski-ing with Storms boots and poles in his hands.

Steve says that the short helicopter flight to the hospital will cost about €8,000!! Now you know why insurance is so important!

Three of the groups meet and wait for news on what to do as Chris and Libby ski to the bottom to the car and drive to the hospital.

Simon has sorted the medical people out and settled Storm into the helicopter and then skis down effortlessly with Storms skis on his back.

Roy takes his group off soon followed by Simon’s group.

Steve skis us down to the top of the first chairlift where we have a break. It is from here that I decide to go back down the mountain as I am a little tired and don’t want to risk any kind of injury. I offer to take storm’s boots and poles back to the coach as I don’t need a lot of persuading to take the chairlift down!

At the bottom I walk to the coach but it is locked and Brian has gone off for lunch! I can see my keys the other side of the windscreen on the dashboard!!

I dump my stuff by the door and go and have a chat with Mike from the Blakes coach. He is off to Russia later this year and as envious as I am of him am glad to help with timings and mileages from one of my previous trips. He knew I had been before and asked if I could help. This is not the first time I have helped somebody with Russian information and am only too pleased to. I just wish other companies had helped me when I asked before my first trip but received zero help from the big boys who had been a few times.

I then go back to the chairlift and the little bar next door for a water and coffee before walking up the slope (not easy in ski boots!) in the snow to the nearest restaurant to see if Brian is in there. He isn’t so I stroll back to the bus and he is there having walked back a different way!

Once back on the bus I sit down to do some work but my laptop loses all of its power in an hour! Not good as it used to stay powered for 2½ hours. Must get and I-Pad!

I drive back this evening as Brian sits in the courier seat and then proceeds to fetch a can of cider and drink it!

We arrive back at the hotel at 17:00 and once everyone is off I drive back to Golling and the new fuel station to top up with diesel before going back to the hotel for a shower and beer before dinner.

Once downstairs I sit with Brian and Phil and we are soon joined by one of the younger girls Daisy who is fed up with her roommate’s heavy breathing and noisy drinking!! She is quite a character with unusual opinions on many things!

Elliot then joins us and Daisy says he doesn’t look like a teacher (he goes back to teaching next week) as he is a bit small! He is 6’ 1” and bar Steve the tallest here!! She also said he did crazy things and that is probably partially true as he has led an extremely active and exciting life. I could listen to his stories for hours as there is no sense of ego or self important and you know everything he says he has done.

The stories get onto to tattoos and piercings and Brian is proud of his Welsh tattoo.

He then tells us all how he played rugby at international level for Wales all through the schoolboy ranks before a fight in Aldershot that left him cut/stabbed with a razor/knife ended his career.

He was a hooker!!

Dinner at seven included homemade lasagne which was gorgeous. Brian left before dessert to go to his room and I went and sat with the adults for a while before having an early night myself.