The Little Piste at Eschach

Eschach is one of those little pistes that is sort of halfway between a practice slope and a... well just a wee totty slope. The tow was an effing nightmare and I managed to get up it once - the next two times I was totalled. From then on I went up with Susi as a clinging monkey.

Susi and I had a long discussion on the subject of ski-slope production lines where I observed that if a single tin of beans pops out of the Heinz beans production line that's a problem. The farmer was just making as much money as fast as he could by pouring skiiers and boarders up the slope like pellet out of a paint ball gun. The point being that he doesn't have any costs if the tins are popped. In the UK he would have a major lawsuit.

The slope though is pretty good, like Stuben, it has a long right hand side and this takes you on to great powder. There is a sudden crest and if you aren't aware of it, it will drop you on your face, however it is pretty cool going over it when you now where it is!

The tow is pretty tough and it eventually it stresses you out - well it stressed me out anyway and I eventually started to mistakes after about four hours. I caught the back edge when I was on the front and smacked into the mountain so that my head rang like a bell. By this time I could already taste the ketones in my breath and so it was not a great surprise. Next time I promised myself I would quit before that point.

Susi and I both have Dainese pants guaranteed to prevent Aviemore arse as it is apparently called at Glasgow Royal Infirmary. Susi told me today that she did have this severe bruising when she first snowboarded about seven or eight years ago. I never put my hands out when I fall so most of my smacks are head and shoulders. A couple of times I have had real haymakers that are so powerful you can feel your brain chemistry re-configure in a sort of bitter tasting surreal flashback about David Lynch.

Naturally I retired to the Red October for Rauchpeitschen dried dates and coffee, my normal snowboarding diet. The tow eventually caught Susi who is pretty good at tows with a board, but the operators were just f---wits. So Eschach is a great slope but the tow is a knee surgeons nightmare.