Gossip

Gossip to open Ischgl Wednesday 08 September 2010 The American rock band will play the Austrian resort’s legendary opening concert on 27 November Gossip Gossip will play at Ischgl's 2010 opening concert on 27 November Katy Perry wowed the crowds at the 2009 opening concert Kicking off the mountain music calendar, Ischgl’s opening concert on 27 November promises to be another rocking event with the recent announcement that Gossip, fronted by the indomitable Beth Ditto, will be performing. Taking to an open air stage near the base station of the Silvrettabahn cable car, Gossip will be following in the footsteps of Katy Perry, who opened the resort last season with a set that included hit song Hot n’ Cold. Reports suggest that this year’s concert could attract a crowd up 20,000 strong, who will no doubt be clamouring to hear Standing in the Way of Control, the record which brought Gossip mainstream success when it was released in 2006. The lifts, including two new chairlifts, will be running at Ischgl from Friday 26 November however the opening concert on the evening of Saturday 27 November will for many represent the official start of the 2010/11 season. The slopes will be open until 30 April when the Top Of The Mountain Concert will signal the end of the winter season at the Tyrolean resort. Skiing with a Ski Club rep will be available from 15 January until 1 April. Share the snow with the pros at Freeze Monday 13 September 2010 Relentless Freeze Festival is looking for a snow crew to keep the real snow ramp in top shape for all the action at this year’s event The crowd eye up the slope The crowd eye up the 100m long, 32m high real snow slope Working on the snow Working on the snow is hard work but reawarding Taking place from 29-31 October at the iconic Battersea Power Station, the Relentless Freeze Festival promises to deliver high quality skiing and snowboarding action with riders competing in the LG Snowboard FIS World Cup and Battle Of Britain UK Championships. In order to keep the 100m long, 32m high real snow ramp in perfect condition, festival organisers are searching for both paid and volunteer snow crew members to help shovel snow and side slip the landing throughout the three-day event. Crew members need to have a reasonable ability level and be relatively fit as there will be a lot of walking up and down the slope, but will be rewarded with stunning views and a unique opportunity to be part of a world-class event. The day shift will be made up of volunteers whilst the night crew is paid work. All helpers will get a weekend festival pass, which includes access to performances from Roni Size, Mark Ronson and Pendulum, along with food during working hours. Anyone interested should contact Graham MacVoy at graham@gmcevents.net with their age, whether they are a skier or snowboarder and which crew they want to join. Helpers need to be available to work throughout the whole event. Related websites * > www.thefreezefestival.com First resort in The Alps opens Sunday September 12, 2010 - Email this article to a friend The Austrian high altitude resort of Solden opened on Friday after some heavy snowfall. Some say it is the first European resort to open for the winter. In the USA one resort has turned on its cannons and got the skis out. In Solden four lifts have started up and the runs are open from 09.30 to 15.30. They include the Schwarze Schneidbahn and Kaleskogl lifts up on the resort's Rettenbach glacier. For a one day pass it costs €22 for an adult, €17 for a youth, €12 for a child and a senior citizen will have to part with €17. A mountain restaurant is also be open, so it is possible to argue that the resort has opened for the winter. But, is it really "open"? 30 lifts in the resort are shut and only a tiny fraction of the 148km of pistes are open. The resort is no stranger to early season skiing and hosts the first FIS skiing race of the season. This year it is being held 22nd - 24th of October. For further details on the race see here. Some other resorts are already open - mainly because they never shut. Always snow in, and above, ZermattAlways snow in, and above, ZermattZermatt boasts of being open 365 days a year and only closes when the weather closes in. Tignes in France has just closed for summer skiing but re-opens within the next two weeks. Some other resorts claim year round skiing and a handful only closes for a few weeks. For a full feature on this see our PlanetSKI story written by the respected ski journalist, and good friend of PlanetSKI, Patrick Thorne. Which resorts open first? Meanwhile an American resort has seen some skiing after firing up its cannons in the middle of the night when the temperature dropped below zero. Snow Valley Mountain resort in Calfornia can lay claim to be the first US resort to have skiing. Just. It was testing its snow cannons this week and with the snow on the ground it seemed silly not get a pair of skis out. Snow Valley's Vice President of Marketing Kevin Somes was the first person to ski in Southern California for the 2010-2011 season. "While it is unusual to ski in Southern California so early, it was great just to get out on the snow since the winter season is around the corner," enthused Somes after his short run. Laying it downLaying it down " Skiing down - justSkiing down - just "Our records indicate that this is the earliest we have made snow and this proves that our system is prepared to make plenty of snow for the upcoming winter season," says the snow surfaces manager, Nick Chatterton. 3am at Snow Valley Mountain resort3am at Snow Valley Mountain resort Whatever the arguments, claims and splitting of hairs about when a resort opens it is a fact that Solden is open and someone has been out skiing in the USA. It means winter is on its way.Smile See the vidoe below of the snowmaking this week in Snow Valley. We will have a report later, with some photos, on what the opening day was like in Solden.