Astroy (Astrid Cheylus), Ed (Edgar Cheylus), Ramb’s (Lalo Rambaud), Julo (Jules Michaud), J (Jean Tonnelier), Poy (Louis Pouvel) et Man’s (Manon Loschi)
Chapter 1: THE MEET-UP
Wooooah! I’d never have thought this could happen to me when I met Manon Loschi, aka Man’s, at the La Clusaz stand at the High Five Festival last October in Annecy.
I popped my poster signed by the next FWT rookie in my pocket, thanked her and said:
- Will I see you in La Clusaz this winter?
- It’s a date…
I didn’t think she meant it.
Chapter 2: THE RUN-UP
I’d not seen the Aravis peaks for 6 days with the clouds glowering around them. As for the snow, there’d still been no sign of it in the village. I was a mess… what with the thrill of picturing the snowy white Combe de Balme and the fear of not seeing a single snowflake when the clouds thin out.
A few days later…
The alarm went off at 7am. I couldn’t be bothered turning over to switch it off. I wanted to go back to sleep and dream about floating on my skis, alone in the middle of an endless slope towering above the planet, carving out smooth turns in the snow tinged pink by the setting sun.
BEEP BEEP BEEP! Right, I really had to get up now. Eyes heavy with sleep, I opened my shutters and was blinded by the white light. I couldn’t see a thing. It was all a blur. I rubbed my eyes to regain my sight… It was white, it hurt my eyes but it was beautiful. So beautiful! The clouds had finally gone and let nature put on a show. The snow glittered on Combe de la Creuse with the legendary Porte des Aravis reaching into the sky. Winter had finally woken up.
I scrolled through TikTok on the bus to school. Was I the only one who was excited and couldn’t wait to go skiing around here or what? They were all talking about France qualifying for the World Cup semi final and the penalty Harry Kane missed.
So I set my sights back on my phone… Hold on, La Clusaz just posted something. What? Are they gabbing about football too? No wait, they’ve announced Balme is open this weekend. Great! Bring on the weekend…
Chapter 3: DECEMBER
The alarm went off at 8am and I could be bothered turning over to switch it off. I’d never been so ready.
8.30am I was already at the Balme cable car and wasn’t the only one to have set my watch to La Clusaz time.
Even Man’s was here with her friends, the famous Seby gang she told me about at High Five.
- Man’s: Hey, how are you? You on your own?
- Me: Yeah
- Man’s: Want to ski with us?
- Me: Yeah, sure…
- Man’s: Come here, I’ll introduce you to the Seby gang.
- Julo: Hiya, welcome!
9.20am we were at the top of the pass and I was getting ready to ride with Ramb’s, Ed, Astroy, J, Poy, Julo and Man’s. They went ahead and I was already lost. Some went left, others went right. Come on, let’s go. It was a riot of double backflips, cliff drops, slashes and belly laughs. It was like watching kids playing at the playground. Ramb’s, Poy and J even started a pretty impressive double backy competition.
Chapter 4: JANUARY
We got 35cm of snowfall last night so Ed asked if I’d like to meet up with him at sunset at L’Étale with Astroy. Obviously I said yes.
It’s 3pm and we’re at the top of the Belvédère de l’Étale. The views are spectacular and it’s empty, you’d think we were the only people in the world who know this spot. We checked the AVD, strapped our skis onto our backpacks, opened our boot buckles and tackled the ascent up this little cliff to reach an off-piste called “l’Épaule” (shoulder). When you think about it, it does actually feel like you’re climbing on the Merdassier’s shoulder.
We’d been taking turns carving a path for the last 15 minutes to reach the virgin slopes that are ours for the taking. I’d never seen anything so beautiful when we reach the top. But that’s nothing compared to the joy of riding together. I felt so light on the snow that I had to look down to check I wasn’t floating. It was a magical moment that literally made me forget where I was, who I was… It was just me and the mountain.
- “Wooooah this is amazing.”
I was in a trance. I wound my way down at full throttle. Euphoria gripped my body and soul. That’s when I realised I was addicted to skiing.
Chapter 5: FEBRUARY
It was half term so the resort and pistes were heaving with tourists. I did what Ramb’s said and headed to Vorêt for today’s session. The forest surrounds Crêt du Loup and Fernuy. He actually came with me, along with Man’s and Julo, because it’s easy to get lost among all the trees and trunks.
It was like playing Mario as I watched them jump over giant mushrooms. I was weaving between trees when suddenly Man’s jumped over me and Lalo hit me with a wave of snow. Yummy, snow tastes so good! We ended the day with a chase through the woods.
The drinks were on me since I lost Julo’s challenge a few minutes before: last one to the bottom gets the drinks. We met up with Poy, Ed and Astroy after they did the La Clusaz grand slam. In other words, doing the Bella Cha as many times as possible in a day. But they didn’t beat Julo’s record who did it 7 times in one day. Cheers!
Chapter 6: MARCH
“Beware the rides of March on Fernuy! ‘Tis the season for cliff jumps and stratospheric skiing.” That’s what Jean said to get me to ski with him today. I went for it, but I was still scared…
I was joined by a prime crew on this mission to space: J, Julo and Poy.
It was a bit of a march (no pun intended) up because we had to do the La Lana corridor to reach the our launchpad before going into orbit: the Fernuy snow fences. Five, four, three, two, one… Blast off!
I got to see Poy do his thing. The double cliff drop master showed us what he could do. By the end of the day I’d realised how amazing the human body is, well, theirs anyway. We weren’t born with the same genes. And I’m pretty sure they were born with removable brains. They have this ability to switch their brains off when they want to and they must have gas cylinders for legs to nail all those jumps. They’re machines!
After tearing up the La Lana corridor, we moved onto Combe de la Creuse. A fabulous untouched space where we could ski our way. Twists and turns sent the glittering powder up like dust into the sky.
Is this heaven?
Chapter 7: APRIL
It’s already the Der des Ders. Winter flew by and we all met up in Balme for a slushy session to end the season on a high. It was a human firework display with tricks, skiing backwards, hilarious cliff drops, ski drives and a whole lot of love. It’s such a joy to ski in your t-shirt with the warm sun on your face and the cool snow on your legs. A carefree holiday mood took over. Que calor!
I must admit I’ve met an amazing bunch of friends. They’ve welcomed me like an old friend and I’ve had some incredible times with them. I’ve learnt two things from them: skiing is for doing together in La Clusaz and you should always have your arms in front.
Thank you the Seby gang <3
