Compared to what I have in California, it was high above the tree lines so it felt very opened. No worries about carving with a big sidecut board on narrow trails then hitting trees....
Jacques gave me a 5 seconds tutorial on the T-bar because this is something new for me
.....stand on your front leg, with front shoulder facing the nose Many of people here are familiar with Zinal and its Barthelemy and La Corne slopes so I won't describe it but my first impression of it was actually a sense of comfort because it is *so* wide. I loved how steep/wide/steady/long this slope is. I found the snow to be a lot harder and not the hero snow that I often have here in California. It really reminded what carving on hardpack meant because it really emphasized any mistakes I made
At the same time, it made me appreciate J&P carving levels in any snow conditions.
. While I had a hard time on certain snow conditions, those two were ripping it up and tearing the snow apart. Very impressive indeed.I also saw Jacques on the new prototype and to be honest, I did not see a difference in his riding performance vs. his "old" Swoard. From what I gathered Jacques seem to be quite happy for the new prototype characteristics.
I would like to make a special thanks to Jacques and Patrice for welcoming me at Zinal. It was quite a humble experience but I learnt so much riding with the masters.
Peter
, so I will be able to feel once more like you did...