Wednesday, 28 January 2009

Goals

Since last weekend we've enjoyed fabulous skiing conditions. The snow deposited during those hefty storms has stayed fresh and light. Perfect for every visitor this week in Méribel. My main focus this week has been on helping Chris. Let me introduce you to him, second from the left on the chairlift.



I've skied with Chris for several winters and as always the main goal has been to 'stay as relaxed as possible to enjoy the holiday'. A totally understandable goal.

This goal could easily have been met by staying in the comfort zone of the fantastic Altiport (or officially named Blanchot) piste for five mornings. Don't get me wrong, it is an amazing piste for developing confidence and fine tuning technique. But there are other pistes that can be used to gradually ease the transition from greens to blues.


Chris is very analytical and precise in nature, skills he puts to good use as a Fund Manager. He truly understands the methodology of skiing. As always, isn't the theory of skiing quite simple? Putting it into practice is the tricky part. I've never come across anyone so driven, determined and intent on improving as Chris. We made it through the holiday, with improvement and staying relaxed. It looked as though Chris didn't want to stop skiing at the end of his last lesson, now that's a rewarding sign for me.

Next week promises plenty, I'm catching up with Sparkie, a motivated and successful equestrian rider. But also her husband of many (understatement) years of skiing. There's always plenty of banter with this bunch. But also Harriet is out again this weekend, just for a few days but I know she's looking forward to it.


Martin

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi Martin,

Just a quick note to say thanks for the great lesson last week. It really did make a difference to our last two days skiing to be able to think about what changes we could make.

We're already planning a return trip to Meribel next year so we'll be sure to give you a bell before hand.

Cheers

Phill Pearce

ChrisC said...

This is the aforementioned Chris...

You're right - I could have stayed another week - and I felt more relaxed than ever before and by quite a long way.

First skiing holiday when I have actually put on weight - shows I must have been much more energy efficient!