Boarding Morzine-Les Gets

We've just returned from a sensational week of snowboarding the Morzine-Les Gets resort in the French Alps.

The week began on Saturday afternoon when to my horror I realised that my passport was locked securely away at work. I leapt aboard the next Eastbound Hammersmith and City tube and sped (as fast as the H&C line can speed) my way to my work. To my disapointment the building was barred and chained [insert Fort Knox metaphor]. With only 66p left of credit on my mobile I managed to find the security company's sticker with their phone number and prepared my most panicked and desperate tone of voice. Luckily the young lady on the other end of the phone informed me that a security guard could drop around shortly and let me in to the premises - the visions of charging through glass windows with my shoulder and sprinting down alleyways to escape the authorities evaporated quickly.

Lucas and I treated ourselves and Tracy to a chinese dinner in celebration of Trakka's newly acquired job - good one Trace. Then headed to John and Lani's flat to try and get a few winks of sleep before embarking on our adrenalin-promised adventure.

Awake at 3:30am, mini-cab at 4:30am, flight at 6:30am, bus from Geneva airport at 11:00am, arrival at the little French alpine village of Morzine and our home for the next week - Chalet Charley. We then met up with our crew for the week - Damo, Amy, Ingrid, Tom, Tim, Tash, Damien and Kristen (making 12 of us in total). Supermarket was expertly located by Lucas and I, then boards and skis and boots were hired. All set for an early getaway onto those shining white slopes sitting at the back of our chalet - now where is the pub.....

As I explained to Lucas, there is only one night of a ski trip when you won't be feeling totally knackered - that is the first night. Therefore - the first night is the best night for exploring the nightlife of our village. We managed to explore two bars before making our way home around 3am (Lucas and I sharing the sofa-bed on the first night)

As you'd expect we woke up the next morning feeling bright as buttons and ready to take on the world. In case you can't tell I am being sarcastic (sorry - homer quote). We did manage to drag ourselves to the first chairlift very shortly after they began operating and any traces of a hangover melted away in the crisp sunny -7c morning.

The rest is history really - many of the group were begginers and soon got the hang of their respective skis/boards (despite some nasty looking bruises along the way). Each of us dragged ourselves back into the chalet exhausted and bruised every afternoon and shared our war stories over $2 bottles of Bordeaux while snacking on camembert, biscuits and baguettes only to thrust ourselves over the edge of some frighteningly steep and icy cliffs the following morning.

Now the first night is the only night when you won't be feeling exhausted - but the last night has to be the biggest. And it certainly was! Our team dominated the dance floor at the local bar until closing time when we relocated the party to our Chalet. Now I am an including sort of person, and when I knew that there were some lonely souls upstairs I charged up (making the most of the great acoustics by stomping on the wooden stairs) and told them how very welcome they were to join in the party with such illustrious snowboarding talents as were assembled downstairs. 'Not happy' was general vibe the following morning. But I felt warm for knowing that they weren't left out.

I've returned to London with a sinking feeling (and a twisted neck and strained hip flexor, will heal in a couple of chair bound office days), but after such an adrenalin filled week with a bunch of great people the only way to go was down and I'm still sitting on top of Pointe Nyon in comparison to the leaden feelings of the previous three months. With another six days of boarding in Italy next week I think the batteries and associated exuberance will have restored itself just enough to see myself slog through the last five months in this country.

A couple of new videos in the video gallery (right hand menu). A mini guitar session in Cuba that I recently discovered, and us about to hit the freestyle park on our boards.....