Vancouver 2010 mascots revealed

The mascots for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics will be Quatchi, Miga and Sumi.

Find out more about these cute little critters on the official Vancouver 2010 website.

Image credit: Vancouver 2010

Manchester Chill Factore snowdome opens

Manchester's new indoor snowdome, Chill Factore, opens today. It boasts the UK's longest and the world's widest real snow indoor slope.

The main slope is 180m long and 100m wide. There are also two beginner areas, plus a luge run and kiddies' snowplay area.

Alternatively you can try your hand at tubing or test your skills on the climbing wall. And there's a handful of restaurants and outdoor shops should you feel the need to burn some more cash.

Check out the Chill Factore website for full details.

Whistler Mountain to open early

Thanks to a powdertastic start to November (see entry below), Whistler Blackcomb has decided to open Whistler Mountain a few days early.

Whistler is now set to open on 17 November, while Blackcomb's season will kick off on 22 November.

All the usual early-season lifts will be open: Whistler Village Gondola, Creekside Gondola, Red Chair, Emerald Chair and Franz's (weekend only). A small park with five rails will be open at the top of Emerald.

The snow report should be returning at some point today.

Photo credit: Paul Morrison/Whistler Blackcomb

80cm dump in Whistler

It looks like it's going to be a great start to Whistler's season. The resort received 80cm of fresh pow over the weekend, with another 108cm forecast during the week.

Whistler Blackcomb opens for skiing and riding on 22 November.

Photo credit: Dave Lakey/Tourism Whistler

Canadian resort openings

If, like me, you're a sucker for Canadian pow, here's the latest on opening dates and current snow bases (where available) for some of the major Canadian resorts:

Alberta
Lake Louise - open, 34cm mid-mountain, 46cm top
Marmot Basin (Jasper) - 16 November, 30cm
Norquay - open (earliest ever opening on 1 November), 30cm (top of mountain)
Sunshine - 15 November, 44cm base

British Columbia
Big White - 22 November, 3cm (let's hope there's a big dump soon)
Fernie - 8 December, 15cm
Revelstoke - 22 December, base unavailable
Silver Star - 22 November, 20cm
Sun Peaks - 17 November, 49cm
Whistler Blackcomb - 22 November, base unavailable

I've not been able to get hold of dates for Kicking Horse or Red yet.

Quebec
Tremblant - 21 November, base unavailable
Mont-Sainte-Anne - 17 November, base unavailable

Kitzbuhel opens six weeks early

Kitzbuhel opened on 2 November, six weeks earlier than planned. It was the earliest opening in the resort's history.

The Austrian resort is already boasting a 130cm base, with 25cm in the valley.

Compared to last year's dismal early season snow, it seems even the low-level Austrian ski areas are seeing a stonking start to winter 2007/8.

Photo credit and further information: www.bergbahn-kitzbuehel.at

Copper Mountain opening day

The season kicks off at Colorado's Copper Mountain today, with top-to-bottom skiing and riding. The resort plans to open five lifts.

To celebrate the beginning of winter, Copper is running a three-day festival, Lift Off at Copper, from 2-4 November. Events will include showings of the latest ski and snowboard films, live music, equipment demos and apres parties.

Check out the latest snow report before you go.

Image credit and further information: Copper Mountain.

Keystone opens 2 November

Keystone is opening a week early, thanks to good dumps of early-season snow. The resort opens for skiing and riding tomorrow, 2 November.

The mountain has received 66cm of snow so far this season and currently has a 30cm mid-mountain base.

Check out all the details on Keystone's website.

Free skiing at Crested Butte

If you're a bit short of cash and looking for some early-season pow, head to Crested Butte, Colorado, where the skiing is free for the first three weeks of the season.

Yes, there's no catch. Ski or ride free from 25 November until 15 December.

They're also offering some enticing accommodation deals. Check out Crested Butte's website for all the details.

Crested Butte has 1,167 skiable acres, 121 runs and 846m of lift-served vertical.

Photo credit: Crested Butte

Tignes opens for winter

The 2007/8 ski season kicks off today in Tignes as the Grande Motte glacier opens for winter.

You can ski or ride 20km (13 miles) of runs on the glacier, which has an impressive 750m (2,400ft) vertical drop.

The Espace Killy, which is the entired combined Tignes and Val d'Isere ski area, opens on 1 December.

Visit the official Tignes website.

Mt Ruapehu erupts, closing ski areas

The New Zealand resorts of Whakapapa and Turoa were forced to close after Mt Ruapehu erupted unexpectedly on Tuesday evening.

About 50 people were evacuated from mountain ski lodges, while roads and train lines were also closed.

A 22-year-old climber was seriously injured in the blast when rocks flew through his mountain hut and trapped him. He later had to have part of his leg amputated.

Although the ski areas were closed on Wednesday, they are expected to open again on Thursday. Volcanologists, however, warn there may be further eruptions over the next few days and are advising people to stay away from the upper part of the mountain.

In 1996, an eruption sent ash directly onto the ski fields, closing them for most of the season.

Read Mt Ruapehu's latest news.

VisitScotland uses "misleading" footage

VisitScotland has been accused of "misleading" the public by using decade-old footage in its latest ad.

The advert, shown in cinemas and online, promotes sports activities in Scotland, including climbing up a frozen waterfall and boarding on powdery pistes.

But some clever clogs has pointed out Scotland hasn't received heavy snow or cold temperatures for seven years. VisitScotland has admitted the ice-climbing footage was shot in the 1990s, but hasn't been able to date the skiing film.

I thought everyone realised Scotland isn't exactly blessed with copious amounts of powder, but apparently ski and snowboard enthusiasts down south might be duped into believing they should ditch their annual Colorado fortnight for a trip to Cairngorm.

Photo credit (date not known, but there is snow): Ski-Scotland.

'Stash' to open in Avoriaz

European snowboarders will be whooping with joy when the Burton-designed Stash run opens in Avoriaz this winter.

You may remember last year the first Stash run was built at Northstar-at-Tahoe, and good old Jake doesn't want the Euro boarders to miss out.

The new all-natural run will be constructed in the Lindarets forest, with logs and wooden tables for sliding on, a secret passage to explore and even a cabin to hang out in.

The run opens on 10 January 2008. To get an idea, check out the Northstar version at www.thestash.com.

Find out more about Avoriaz's terrain parks at www.snowparkavoriaz.com.

Read my story about last year's Northstar opening.

Image credit: Burton

Portes du Soleil offers 'lazybones' lift pass

If you've ever had one too many in the bars of Morzine or Chatel and staggered onto the slopes somewhere towards midday, you may be pleased to hear that the Portes du Soleil ski region has launched a 'lazybones' lift pass.

The ski pass is valid from 11am and costs €35, which is €4 less than the cost of a full-day ticket.

The resort reckons the days of rushing for first lift and skiing until they close are long gone, but I know some of you would beg to differ.

Photo credit: C Margot/www.portesdusoleil.com

Snow in Colorado!

Winter is on its way in Colorado. Take a look at yesterday's snowfall in Breckenridge. Not long to go until season opening on 9 November.

Photo credit: http//breckenridge.snow.com

Wind turbine to power New England resort

It might not be up there with Vail or Whistler in terms of lifts and terrain, but Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in Hancock, Massachussetts has become North America's first ski resort to install a wind turbine.

The New England ski area held a dedication ceremony for the 1.5-megawatt turbine last Wednesday. The project cost US$3.9 million, but will reduce the mountain's energy bill by 49.4 per cent, according to resort CEO Brian Fairbank.

If the turbine produces excess energy, the electricity will be sold back to the national grid.

The resort recognises that skiers and boarders are beginning to question whether taking a ski holiday is environmentally sustainable and hopes to encourage other ski resorts to follow in its footsteps.

Read Jiminy Peak's environment policy.

Photo credit: Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort

Heavenly price for Heavenly season pass

Summer is the time of year when you can snap up a bargain season pass, and Heavenly has come up trumps with its pricing this year.

Buy your 2007/2008 pass between now and 3 September and it will set you back a mere $349. The following blackout dates apply:

23-24 November 2007
27-31 December 2007
16-17 February 2008

If you must ski or ride on these dates, the price is $548.

Other benefits include access to the gondola throughout summer 2007, plus three days' free skiing at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge or Keystone. You can also buy four $40 buddy passes.

To compare costs, a six-day lift ticket outside holiday periods is $384. And if you're wondering how much there is to ride in Heavenly, well there are 91 trails and 30 lifts across 4,800 acres. Construction has just begun on a new high-speed quad, the Olympic Express.

Photo credit and further information: www.skiheavenly.com

Future Aussie halfpipe stars at Perisher Blue

Now is a great time to spot fresh talent in Australian snowboarding, as the National Snowboard Halfpipe Development Team have begun training at Perisher Blue.

The programme, which is in its third year, is designed for up-and-coming athletes as a means of progressing towards the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia Snowboard Halfpipe Team. (Story continues below.)


Head coach Ben Alexander says: "It is giving athletes the opportunity to develop their skills to international standard so they are able to compete successfully in World Cup and Olympic Games competitions."

The team currently consists of five boarders: Nathan Johnstone, 17, Matthew Hunter, 19, Jarryd Williams, 17, Sam Murphy, 16 and Charlie Steinbacher, 16.

Riders are chosen at a Talent Identification Camp held at Perisher Blue each winter. The next camp takes place from 1-2 September.

Find out more at the Skiing Australia website.

Photo credit (showing Nathan Johnstone): NSWIS and Perisher Blue, taken by Ben Alexander

Jamaican dogsled team

You've seen the film Cool Runnings, based on the story of the Jamaican bobsleigh team heading to the Olympics.

But did you know there's now a Jamaican dogsled team? And I'm proud to hear Devon Anderson, Jamaica's first musher, completed his initial training in Scotland.

The team have just launched their latest promotional video and 2007/8 race schedule and are now planning to train with three-time Yukon Quest champion Hans Gatt.

Read all about Devon and his band of merry mutts on the Jamaica Dogsled Team website.

Photo credit: Jamaica Dogsled Team

Australia: Best snow for 17 years

Australian resorts have received the most snowfall in 17 years according to the Australian press, with several resorts passing the one-metre base mark.

Perisher Blue has a respectable base of 129.7cm. Temperatures are cold and more snowfall is expected this week. More than 200cm of snow has fallen so far this year.

Thredbo is boasting an identical depth of 129.7cm (hmm, suspicious). Snow showers and blizzards are forecast over the next three days.

Check out these links for further information on Perisher Blue and Thredbo.

Photo credit: Thredbo.