Ep 93 Ladies World Cup Downhill in Val today.

Good morning Val d’IsèreWhoopsWarm in townNo hat or gloves while dog walking warm….BBC say it will be cloudy and sunnySun particularly this morningWith light windsAnd sleet showers………….HmmmmRain ?? around lunchtime ??In town ? Hope not…Think will opt for the Meteoblue forecastAs it Gives us at least 2 hours of sunshineAnd doesn’t mentionShowers…Easterly Gusts of up to 30 kilometres per hourAre possible.Good news is that it is SaturdayAnd skiing on SaturdaysIs a treat.So many are Travelling to or from ValThe pistesAre definitelyQuieter than theRoads.So….The Ladies World CupDownhill is on Bellevarde today.Lindsey Vonn was fourth in training on Thursday and 3rd yesterday.Laura Gauché from Tignes was 6th on Thursday.Alice Robinson was down the fieldBut on flying form this seasonSo definitely one to watch.Five French ladiesAre on the start lineBut no brits. It is also the last day of the Mens races inItaly’s Val GardenaMarco OdermattWon the downhill in the fogon Thursday.His fiftieth World Cup win Equalling Alberto TombaPutting them joint fourth placeIn the all-time men’s listBehind Ingemar StenmarkMarcel HirscherAnd Hermann Maier…Mikaela ShiffrinProbably yawning Hearing this achievement…Her 105 wins Clearly beats even Stenmark’s 86Back to the downhill…2 French NilsWere fourth and fifthBoth have surnames beginning with AAnd live in St ChaffreyVal d ’Isère’sKen Caillot Came 49th Marco slid to 2nd placeIn yesterday’s Super g.the French again Just missed the podium Another 4th for Nils AllegreFollowed by Matthieu Bailet From NICEIn fifth placeBritains Roy Steudel Didn’t finish.There are 8 French men racing downhill todayNot even Royfrom Team GB.We were very sad to hear that a Twenty-four-year-old British skierDied in Les Arcsafter falling300 metresDown a steep couloir…And over rocks.His ski companionWho had watched From the topWas Understandablytoo scared to moveAnd Had to be rescuedBy a police helicopter We keep hearing about the OlympicsAnd this week’s Unpleasant queues Today another More unusualDolomite Tale…Dinosaurs….Or at least their tracks…Thousands of them High in the mountainsOn nearly vertical wallsWhen were they put there ?210 million years ago..When the Grass guzzling Long necked beasts Were plodding throughsoft tidal flats which later turned to rock The prints were spotted recently byA nature photographerFollowing deer and vultures.Don’t rush…You can’t just walk up and take a look…Not an easy place to get to…You will need a droneNice to think of February’s Olympianswalking in the shadows of a different kind of legendan Olympic Jurassic Park. Not sure if A dodgy sat navGoogle mapsOr Alcohol was to blame….A car was parked in the middle of a ski slopeSurrounded by grooming machinesAnd Early morning skiers.Austrian police Investigated….Woke up the driver and passenger…The officers were told It had been their dream to sleep on the slopes….They were breathalysedAnd Over the limit…This happened in SöldenJust two weeksAfter they designated an Alcohol-free-zone To tackle the problemOf unruly tourists…..ClearlyStill a work in progress…Not sure If we have priced them outVal doesn’t seem to Have thosegrimOverrun by Loud, drunkBritish Student weeksAnymore…..We can still suffer during the Scandinavian holidays…. La Plagne has had enough..This season is the Last chance saloonIf tour operatorsCan’t stop The seventeen thousand studentsFestiveNighttime noiseAnd damageThey will not be allowed back.Worth rememberingNoise after ten pm.In a residential buildingEven here in ValMerits a call to the police…After midnightThe gendarmes are involved….They are not alwaysVERY FRIENDLY.If you NEEEEEED to Dance And screamTo Loud musicGo to a night club…Emily RothneyBritains 17-year-old snowboard starIs gutted…The reigning European Youth Olympic championRecently tore her ACLHer season is overItalian Olympic dreams shredded….Global Go CarolingToday is the day toSing carols…Derived from a French wordCaroleA circle dance accompanied by singing… Started as Pagan ritualThen Middle Aged MinstrelsOr Minstrels in the Middle AgesResurgence in Victorian EraA sort of trick or treatgroups would go from house to housesingingIn exchange forfood, drink or gifts.Nowadays you don’t need to go outYou canSing on zoomI won’t bother with singingI am going for a Saturday skiThen a Doodle in the snow. See you tomorrow