THE EDITORS

Gabriella & Nicola

A note from our Editors Gabriella Le Breton and Nicola Iseard

In today’s tumultuous times, when a simple hug from a child or grandchild has become a luxury, dreaming of travel can feel inappropriate. But we are skiers and snowboarders, and coronavirus can’t stop us from dreaming of the mountains – it's in our blood, a way of life. The American mountaineer and author Dolores LaChapelle's words sum it up for us: “Powder snow skiing is not fun. It is life, fully lived, life lived in a blaze of reality.”

So, in this issue of Ski+board, we doff our beanies to all those affected by Covid-19 while drawing together as a community and finding reasons for optimism. We take inspiration from the eternally upbeat Chemmy Alcott (page 24) and Ski Club Member Rosemary Hayward, who is eagerly anticipating her seventh Freshtracks holiday to Val Thorens this winter (page 28). We see the positives in the darkest moments, thanks to Club Member Robert Shaw's brush with cancer (page 14), and dare to dream of returning to the Alps with the ‘Canazei Escapees’ (page 11).

Coronavirus has simultaneously taught us to engage more with our local community and communicate virtually with family, friends and colleagues. For the Club, this has resulted in the new digital Ski+board, the implementation of a virtual Reps training course (page 12) and a new Ski+board series about skiing with family (page 16), inspired by the hundreds of Members who responded to our request for tips on skiing with children. 

This issue also lets you get up close and personal with the Ski Club Holiday profiles and reveals our all-new ski and snowboarding technique features by the acclaimed New Generation Ski & Snowboard School (page 48) and an insider guide to the winter’s hottest new ski gear (page 60). And, of course, there are our trusty Action Zone pages, where you can live ski adventures in Jackson Hole, Québec and Japan vicariously through our star writers. 

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