La Grande Motte...

...rhymes with the snow sure is shot.

With the entire Espace Killy beginning to resemble an enormous downhill run (frozen hard packed ice), those skiers with race training must be enjoying themselves. And judging by the speed with which some people are getting around there are plenty of them in town. But don't forget speedfreaks, it doesn't matter how good you are; if that nervous beginner below you, wishing they were still on a nursery slope and cursing their friends for dragging them way out of their comfort zone, should make a sudden panicked turn whilst you are passing at 30mph not 5 meters away....ouch, and maybe contact a lawyer.

Anyway, where was I....well, for those of us who prefer to make our turns in actual real snow, there's not a lot of pleasure to be had on the pistes in the present conditions. The temperatures are dropping to well below freezing and even though there are some clouds around there is not even the hint of a smidgen of condensation dropping out of the sky in the near future. Which doesn't bode well for the rest of the season. It's fairly quiet in the resort at the moment, but if the busy holiday period begins (in a week or so) and there still isn't any new snow, I shudder to think what conditions will be like with all those extra skiers around.

If you then take into consideration the ice rink condition of the sidewalks in the village, the smart move would be to buy shares in whoever makes all those knee and shoulder braces that are currently being modeled by the not so lucky ones.

Now knock your noodle three times and say "I will engage with every step with Zen-like clarity"

I made a rare journey up to the top of the Grande Motte (Ok, not the very top because that involves climbing and stuff), and the panoramic view from 3656m above sea level is quite breathtaking and difficult to capture when it's blowing a hoolie and your fingers are getting frostbite trying to turn on your camera. The ski down was one of the most unpleasant experiences I've had on skis, and I wished I'd just stayed in the cable car for the return journey, like the sensible pietons.

If you have a spare moment please help out with a little prayer or ritual dance to Ullr, God of Snow. I don't mind if you are an atheist or follow another religion (and neither will Ullr).

http://14erskiers.com/brittanysblog/2009/11/ullr-really-the-god-of-snow/

And that's all for now folks.