Ep 39 World Sight Day..... use your eyes.... avoid skiers and cliffs.....

Good Morning Val d’Isere !
After having to scrap thick frost off the

windscreen

At dawn yesterday morning

Today is another sunny Autumnal day.

With a temperature hitting

Thirteen degrees.

After getting up at dawn

And long journey

In traffic and fog

Arrived at Benoits…..

Before I had opened the glass door

A Very obviously very French

Tall maître de…

Raced towards me

Wanting to know what I wanted…

I hadn’t met him before

Immediately fascinated

His moustache……..

A central bar with

Prominent

Long

Very thin upturned hooks

No reservation….

Not expecting us…

Not under any of the names I tried……

No… not offering us a table………..

Wow I was taken aback…….

I remembered reserving online

And OF COURSE had put it in my diary…

We were early for what I thought I had booked

So I assumed that the

Two empty tables I could spy

Were for someone who had REALLY booked

As I was regrouping

And preparing my plea….

The sommelier rushed up and told

The maître de

That there WILL be a table for us…………

Top tip…..

If you are turning up at a posh restaurant

Looking tired

In jeans

With two horribly over enthusiastic doodles by your side

Check

Your table has been confirmed………

IT gremlins do funny things…..

Even with Zenchef……..

When I got home

After an AMAZING meal

I checked

Yes it was clearly in THE DIARY

Yes I had texted my partner to confirm it was booked

Before he booked his flight

And the history on my computer

From the date I made the booking

Had all the correct steps ….

Except

I didn’t notice I never received the

Confirmation email…

Before even the starter had arrived

The now extremely charming Maitre de

Was full of apologies…..

"I am new

I didn’t know who you were !

What BEAUTIFUL dogs

And soooo well behaved !"

I suspect Benoit had had a WORD.

If you are EVER going REMOTELY near Annecy…….

Benoit Vidal is the name.

His food is amazing …. Art on a plate

good quality local ingredients

Pure flavours

You leave feeling full

But not uncomfortably stuffed

you probably already know that

From the twelve years he was in le Fornet…..

If you didn’t even have lunch in his bistro

Shame on you !

You missed out

Team Carrick-Smith

The three sons of

British Four times Winter Olympian

Emma Carrick-Anderson

Are celebrating !

Freddy has been selected

To represent Great Britain

In the first FIS

World cup giant slalom

Of the season

At eighteen he will be the youngest

GB skier

In forty years

To compete in this race.

Solden 26^th October

Put it in your diary !

Also a date for your diary

The London Snow Show …

On Sunday 19^th

Freddy and his younger brothers

The twins Zak and Luca

Will be  on the main TALK stage

With Chemmy Alcott at TWO THIRTY.

You all know  Chemmy….

She also skied for Team GB

In four winter Olympics.

As a final note

I previously mentioned how hungry

Young males are

And expensive to feed.

Team Carrick-Smith

Are continually fundraising

To support their

serious

Skiing addiction !!

I will again add the link.

I feel very sad about the

Photo taker

Who fell to his death in China

Even more horrific

For his friends who witnessed

Such a sudden

And unnecessary

Tragedy………

Years ago I was off piste
With four friends.

In the Spring

In le Fornet

We were stopped

Chatting in the sunshine

Laughing !

One friend turned to ….

Not sure why…….she turned…….

I THINK it was to

Whisper some

Sweet nothing

To her boyfriend…….

Though could be making that up………

She wasn’t a really

Public sweet nothing sort of girl.

Something happened……….

QUICKLY

Did she catch one ski on another ?

It was just one turn

From a stop position………..

HOW wrong could it go……..

VERY

SUDDENLY she was flat on the snow

HURTLING

On the hard spring surface…….

TRYING

To slow herself down…………..

TOO LATE

I will NEVER forget the image of her

Star shaped

SCREAMING

Over the cliff………………….

Over rocks

Onto

WHAT ?

We couldn’t see where she was

We certainly were not going to

Go to the edge

Of the uneven

Hardpack to look……….

So we had to slowly ski around and down….

Hearts pounding

Legs trembling

Knowing we must not fall…………..

You know how it is when you are off piste

And the guide SHOUTS FIRMLY

DON’T FALL HERE

Which translates to

For those in the know

This is A

Fall and die slope

AS IF you EVER choose where you fall………

SOMEHOW

Janet had

Tumbled

Touched rocks

And grass

Before landing on something

REL A TIVE LY soft………..

Shaken AND stirred

BRUISED

ALIVE !!

And could ski back.

ONLY

A broken neck

To remind her

ALWAYS be careful

EVERY turn  counts……….

That was her last ski

THAT season

But she

Lived to ski

Off piste

Again and again

Though more carefully

More thoughtfully

Near cliffs………

Keeping in mind

How important it is to

ALWAYS look ahead…..

I don’t care HOW MANY TIMES

I remind you that

You must ALWAYS

AVOID

the skier or boarder

however useless

Further down the slope

And

Unless you are a talented Freerider

Or have a parachute

You must ALWAYS

Avoid

Skiing over a cliff………..

Todays celebration

World

SIGHT DAY !!

If your eyes work

Appreciate them

Use them !!

That is me for this morning

More tomorrow