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On a day like today, you can’t do much. You can either hang out with buddies in front of the TV or update your facebook mood status every second, which sometimes can be fun. Just after I changed my status this morning, I got a call from my friend Marko.
¨Dude I know you’re as bored as me. Let’s go do something¨: he said. So yeah, why not go to Klagenfurt, the city just behind Austria-Slovenian border. On Sunday you can cruise around the city or make the first turn towards an indoor skatepark with a foam pit.

Because I couldn’t take my BMX with me, I had to be on rollerblades. I was actually laughing at myself when putting on the wheels on the blades of glory. Getting tunes into my ears with my brand new Skullcandy headphones and getting ready to skate took me at least half an hour. Easy times on a day like that.

Marko and Tim were already on fire doing some cool tricks. I just wanted to shred with friends and throw some rotations into the foam pit. Marko went for some double backys and flatspins and I wanted to throw some corks after flats. On a cork 10 I twisted my ankle IN(!) the foam pit and ended the day with a big smile and big ankle.

I guess that is what it takes to have fun! I’ll be cooling my ankle down tomorrow by surfing. Can’t stop at the moment. I just have too much fun.

Five hundred kilometers from Vancouver, where the 2010 Winter Olympics will take place, the best alpine skiers participate in competitions in “speed” disciplines. Lake Louise, which lies in the heart of the Canadian Rocky Mountains in Alberta, is where the competitions in downhill and super G are traditionally organized. Canadians will not let anything to chance this year because they know that it’s their last opportunity to promote Canadian skiing to an international public and attract as many people as possible in Whistler during the Olympics in February, for the alpine skiing races. That’s why the Lake Louise races have no admission fee for spectators, there will be free hot chocolate for everyone and a multitude of additional activities to spice up the waiting time in between the races. Currently, an elaborate media campaign is taking place in North America, intended to increase the interest of the public in winter sports. As it was expected, Canadians are dedicating their full attention to Vancouver 2010 and are trying to market their project best they can.

The skiers themselves pay little attention to this, as they are all focused solely on the final part of their training. The Swiss and the Slovenes, for example, are in Nakiska. This resort’s name was resounding in the media these last few days – and not just because Didier Cuche, Didier Defago and Andrej Jerman were training there, but because Daniel Albrecht skied his first downhill after his horrible accident in Kitzbühl. It’s difficult to forget the excellent Swiss’ fall in the bottom half of the Streif slope. He was in a coma for a long time, but started rehabilitation shortly after coming back to his senses. He took things step by step, literally, as he first needed to learn to walk, before he took to skis again. Soon enough, he tried it and before long, he took up giant slalom and, finally, downhill. This is a discipline in which the skier reaches up to 130kmph, and that allows no room for mistakes. Sources state that Albrecht did a wonderful job, reportedly he was only 6 tenths of a second slower than Cuche and Janko in average. Some believe that he might compete in Beaver Creek next weekend, however this seems unlikely, though he might give it a try in the grand slalom, a discipline he is more prepared for.

Daniel Albrecht is training for the return to the slopes in the same place where Primin Zurbriggen won the Olympic gold in 1988. This can only be a good sign for the young Swiss skier.

This week, it took us less than 5 minutes to make up our minds and leave for Austria to spend the week. Some of you would call that a ski holidays, but I call it practice time and dialing new tricks just before the season starts over here. Because of really bad snow conditions all over the Europe, we couldn’t go anywhere else but the Dachstein ski resort has lots to offer anyways. Besides comfy apartment in the Kielerhof lodge and warm sunny afternoons, there are loads of medium sized jumps at the top of the glacier.

On the first day, I was kinda’ disappointed by how small the jumps are in comparison to the one we built at the Kanin resort last spring, but everything went smoothly. Started warming up my ankles and knees on the icy landings. Hard landing weren’t really good to my body but sometimes, you just have to be on it.

There were many of my skier buddies from all over the Europe, who were practicing for the Winter Jam in Stockholm. This event in the world’s biggest tour event, it stops in major cities to display man-made jumps. Ten of the world’s best skiers are invited to the series and they throw down the biggest tricks on the ski market at the moment. What has been happening in our industry for the past year is just plain crazy! Double corks improved so much that no one is throwing any other tricks in competitions. It is so dangerous to do the 3 or 3 ½ full rotation of the body with a combination of two flips over the head in the same trick, all that while grabbing your skis!

Photo by Daphne Levac Cornelissen

I wasn’t doing doubles on Dachstein but I sure had fun to practice natural (left), unnatural (right), switch (going backwards) spins on every jump. Definitely, I am ready for some slopestyle events from now on: I have my run dialed.

On the other hand, hanging out with my friends in an apartment and cooking food for them was best. We laughed so much when I was telling them stories from my summer in Down Under and Indo. We fell asleep after that, and woke up every morning ready for some action.

I am home now and I plan to do some photo shoot and interviews. Then, I’ll head back to snow and some waves.

I’m not going to sit here and pretend to know what you’re interested in doing with your ski holiday. Just as much as the next guy (or not), you would rather rub elbows with international crowds or ski down crazy slopes or snowboard in amazing snowparks or simply get wasted every night or find solitary in a reclusive cabin. To each there own and may each find there own version of happiness or something like that. At any rate, what I can do for you today is tell you two reasons to visit one or more of these next five resorts. Consider this a free highlight of what a popular place has to offer you.

Italy:

Cortina d’Ampezzo or Cortina as it is often abridged is a good place to come to if you like to avoid the applesauce feeling in your legs from skiing or boarding all day and rather confront local coffee shops, chocolate shops and fine dining. It’s more about sunny alpine days and less about getting sweating (no glistening) on the inclines.
Hypocritically, however, Cortina is the bomb (that’s a good thing) when it comes to skiing. The whole of the Dolomiti region is accessible by the affordable Dolmiti Superskipass, with over 500-some lifts in the Italian Alps.

France:

Chamonix in France used to be a farming community—can you imagine looking up at those Alps (Mt Blanc) and staying in the pastures? Didn’t last long. Today, Chamonix is one of the topmost adventure skiing areas in Europe. There is always snow, super-long runs, cliffs, chutes, headwalls and hundreds of slopes.
Oh, I have to give you another reason. There are other things to do like tobogganing, paragliding, dog sled rids, sleigh trips and things a-flurry for the whole fam.

Switzerland:

Switzerland and the Jungfrau skiing region houses some of the most common mountain peaks in the Alps. From the Jungfrau and the Eiger to the Schiltohorn. Try resorts Grindelwald, Wengen, Interlaken and Murren. ’nuff said.
The town is historic, picturesque and full of history. If you’re the camera-happy-clicker-person of the group, then bring extra memory cards for the scenes at sunrise and sunset. The mountains tend to glow a purple hue come nightfall.

Austria:

It’s time to get your snowboarding on with a ski holiday trip to Zell Am See Kaprun. There’s a boarder park up on the glacier with half-pipe, jumps, slides and boxens.
This is also a place to try the 20 km of skate or 20 km of cross-country skiing. If you like snow but prefer booty-down style, then try sledding, sleigh rides, snow tubing or hanging out at one of the 60 restaurants, 20 pubs or 3+ discos.

Germany:

Brauneck-Wegscheid in Germany makes my list because I like the options to try other snow-related pursuits. In addition to late night skiing and a snowboarding fun park, you can hike for over 30-km on marked trails.
And, secondly, there are over 100 cross-country and skating tracks for those who like pain with their pleasure. There are purportedly some nice views of the surrounding mountains and not a lot of crowds in your way should you choose to go backcountry.

The topic of my posts usually revolves around alpine skiing but today, I can’t help but mention football as well. You see, there is a country in the heart of Europe, on the sunny side of the Alps, that defies all expectations when it comes to sports. As part of Yugoslavia, Slovenia was considered as being successful mostly in winter sports, and Slovenes were seed as avid ski lovers. Yugoslavia itself was very successful in various fields, winning medals at major events regularly in basketball, handball, football and other prominent sports. Slovenia mostly added to the achievements in individual sports. Miro Cerar was very successful in gymnastics, the Petrič brothers in swimming, and then there are winter sports, which can mostly be regarded as being individual. Ski jumps and alpine skiing are two branches of sport which were considered as exclusively Slovene in the ex-Yugoslavia. Primož Ulaga, Bojan Križaj, Jure Franko and the list could go on and on… In alpine skiing alone, Slovenia played a prominent role on the international scene with Mateja Svet, Bojan Križaj, Rok Petrovič and other excellent skiers.

After gaining independence, Slovenia’s sports orientation was not completely clear. Football, which is widely considered to be the most popular sport in the world, was labelled as the «sport for the Southerners», meaning those from other republics of ex-Yugoslavia or their descendants living in Slovenia. But it took less than ten years for people’s attitude towards football to change. The credit goes to the Slovenian national team when it was lead by the selector Srečko Katanec. Slovenia qualified for two important competitions at the time: the European championship in 2000 and the World Cup in 2002. Realists were of the opinion that it’s impossible to repeat such an amazing feat, because a country with just two million inhabitants can’t possibly compete with those who invest huge amounts of money in football. One of these countries is Russia, which recently lost in the World cup qualifications to Slovenia. Russia’s participation was in everyone’s best interest, and above all, the FIFA’s, because this organisation runs on money, like all others. Despite all odds, Slovenia eliminated Russia. It would be pointless to enumerate differences between the countries but in sport, David sometimes ends up beating Goliath. There are prerequisites for this but most often, the key to victory is hidden in the drive and courage of the players.

In less then twenty years of independence, Slovenia managed to get through qualifications for a major competition for the third time, played in the semi-finals of the European championship in basketball and won gold in the European Handball Championship. And let’s not forget the Olympic gold medals in rowing, rifle shooting and hammer throw!

I would like to conclude this post with a reminder: Slovenia’s achievements in sports are in complete defiance with logics or rules that define success in sports. There are enough Slovenes to perhaps fill up a suburb of Munich, and they achieve things that people don’t even dare dream of. Added to the fact that working and training conditions are, compared to other countries, very difficult, you’ll understand the full extent of Slovenia’s miraculous success. If you ever visit this beautiful country on the sunny side of the Alps, you’ll find a proud nation of sports enthusiasts that supports its athletes to the fullest and don’t pick favourites. And if you don’t know this by now: There is a God and he’s cheering for Slovenia!

After surfing, staying at home and do nothing (well, not nothing, but just feeling that something is happening out there and I am missing it) wasn’t really all that cool. That’s why I called my friends Nejc and David, from Bled, to go to the Soriška Planina ski resort to check what were the conditions like out there.

Thirty centimeters of snow are always better than ten, so we managed to get some pipes and rails and had a cool jib session.

My Skullcandy team mate Nejc was just killing it on his snowboard. Threw down so many tricks I was impressed, maybe because I haven’t seen him for a while now. But as a rebel I always try to find something else to hit. I found a sick sculpture of a bear in the middle of the ski resort and I decided to handplant it over. Got some cool shots with my 4frnt manager David after just 3 hits. Great work for a Sunday’s afternoon!

On the other hand, that kind of skiing wasn’t quite the one I wanted at the moment so I decided to check the weather forecast and drive to the nearest glacier: Dachstein, in Austria. It has to offer one of the best snowparks at the moment. It is definitely not THE best one but it is always cool to meet riders from all over Europe who come here to practice at the beginning of the season. The crew of snowboarder buddies and me, as a skier, filled up two cars and we cruised to ‘Jodl land’. Bluebird, a few riders and us did laps for four hours on Tuesday.

People often go to work on weekdays… but we did a good job as well.

I work up some of my best appetites while taking to the slopes. I mean, the cold, the exertion, the concentration and the calories you burn out there are pretty amazing—even if you’re just going merrily downhill as a beginner. Skiing gives you one of the best excuses to eat as much as you can in one sitting. You get my drift—Christmas and Thanksgiving or whatever holidays you celebrate all rolled into one gigantic, gastronomic meal, every day. Whether you’re a snowboarder, cross-country skier, downhill skier or an expert at all, eating brings all these differences together. I’ve got a few restaurants out there that I’ve enjoyed over the years. If you got any to add to my “list” here, then by all means go for it. Any food will do, as long as you can stuff it in your gullet, and it’s at least somewhat tasty, tell us about it here.

Saas-Fee, Switzerland:

Sometimes the food wins me over and other times it’s the concept, while other times it’s the location. At the top of the world in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, you can ride the Alpine Metro to one of the most unique restaurants in Europe. At the end of the upward line of the metro you get to Mittelallalin, where a turntable restaurant awaits. It doesn’t go fast enough to make you call Earl (vomit), but once per hour, it spins 360 degrees at almost 12000 feet. There’s all kinds of foods, and nothing I remember that truly stood out, but there are self-service at certain meal times too. If you’re out and about already with your gear on, this spinning restaurant offers some great recharging deals for lunch.

Meribel-Mottaret, France:

La Tsaretta restaurant in Meribel France is near the center of Les Allues Village and offers a free shuttle. I dined here last year and our whole group could get any number of things to eat. They said that the menu had been updated and changed in 2007, I believe. My friend who eats only pizza got his dish; my girlfriend who wanted fish and chips got her dish; I wanted steak and red wine sauce, which they served perfectly. Though the restaurant likes to place pizza eaters away from “fine diners,” you can pretty much find anything you fancy on the menu, including a full bar downstairs and a super-attentive waitstaff.

Bormio, Italy:

Anyone who doesn’t like Italian food is by all accounts either insane, mental or a reject. I know that’s not any of you, so you’ll all love, love Vecchia Combo. Vecchia is an epicurean’s dream, with so many handmade things you wonder how they have enough time to prepare food in one day. Vecchia Combo considers itself a ristorante tipico, but it’s anything but typical, rest assured. I didn’t quite remember what I had there, but I think it was the Fried Buckwheat Balls. At any rate, I just visited the website to recount the menu and they have Hand-made buckwheat noodles in butter sauce, salads galore, grilled sausages with buckwheat polenta, pork ribs, cheeses and salamis and the menu goes on. Though you might not want to dine outdoors during the ski season, the indoors seating arrangement are cozy enough to make you fall asleep after dinner.

I’ve only added a few European ski resort and holiday restaurants to try either before or after hitting the slopes, so now it’s your turn. Do tell us about your fine-dining or hole-in-the-wall favorites.

Nearly three weeks have gone by since this season’s first giant slalom races in Sölden, Austria. The athletes will gather again this weekend, this time far up north in Levi, Finland for a new World Cup challenge. First, the ladies will compete on Saturday and next day, the men. The infamous Bode Miller will unexpectedly be joining the caravan in Levi. Apparently, he wants to prove himself so badly that he couldn’t bare not to join two weeks ahead of plan.

This week’s post is primarily meant to inform you about the upcoming races and where the world’s best skiers will be. After Levi, the skiers will enjoy a free weekend, or rather, they will try to fit in the most training they can, because in late November, the season starts for real. From 28 November to 14 March they will ski non-stop, from races in North America to the peak of the season in February during the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, to the World Cup final in Garmisch-Partenkirschen, Germany.

Men:

Women: