6 Inches of fresh powder and bright blue skies in a winter wonderland Friday 24th March - snowing all day overnight temperatures rising Natasha arrived from England on Tuesday snowboarding with Natasha on Saturday fantastic scenery - all tracks covered virgin powder in Sansicario gradually everybody turns up - and we head to Sauze doulx back to Sansicario for lunch and some sun the temperature is rising and the snow is beginning to melt upper slopes still in good condition though afternoon spent in the powder above sansicario Sunday starts fairly warm notwithstanding a later sunrise the slopes are hard from the overnight drop in temp still preparing the piste 72 first thing morning after the lifts open where the cats have just been - is perfect Natasha is up later after a night out on the town we all meet up at 11ish and head to Sauze Doulx once round Triplex - a bit soft underfoot back to Anna's bar for lunch and sunbathing on the terrace 7500' a few trips round Colo/Rio Nero off Fraiteve for the afternoon even the upper slopes are slushy good for practising back-to-back 180s down the fall line Podsafe Music 101 - Swim To Me 101 PMN Page 101 Website American Heartbreak - Things Are Looking Up American Heartbreak PMN Page American Heartbreak Website Cyndi Vellmure - Could Cyndi Vellmure PMN Page Cyndi Vellmure Website [15.9MB 21:43 96kbps]

Overcast, horrible weather but fantastic piste bashing, including first trip to Sestriere via col Basset Saturday 18th March Almost considered using the hard stuff opted for the newly serviced Winterstick Low cloud but sunshine above to start the day Fraiteve is bathed in sunshine Canale Colo and Rio Nero are the places to be still some good powder even after last sundays high winds Higher level clouds roll in from France and it starts snowing fine dense snow in the afternoon very poor visibility everywhere call it a day at 4:30ish Sunday 19th March - Italian Fathers Day 3 inches of overnight snow piste 72 has an unpisted strip Fraiteve is above the cloud and Canale Colo is irresistible Rio Nero lift breaks down just after I drop into Canale Colo col Basset chair twice then Borgata - Sestriere Colle and back up in the Gondola milky way piste map Rio Nero is fixed so we can do it again Piste 21 from the top to get to lunch - fantastic piste bashing visibility even below the clouds is OK - much betetr than Saturday after lunch straight back up to Rio Nero off-piste right and left 21 twice and a single Baby Sansicario to finish at 5 PMN Music Supergene - Big In Japan (UK Indie Rock) Supergene PMN Page Supergene website Kanalo - Come On Over (Hawaiian Reggae) Kanalo PMN Page Kanalo website Laura Clapp - Let It Rain Laura Clapp PMN Page Laura Clapp website [18.7MB 25:17 96kbps]

High Winds and Rio Nero - first trip to Sauze Doulx this season via link lifts Laura Clapp - Hey Hey Sister Laura Clapp PMN Page Laura Clapp website 6 inches of fresh snow between Tuesday night and Thursday 2 inches more overnight Friday Friday storm force winds in Turin Forecast was for Strong wind Saturday, Very strong wind Sunday and calm Monday expecting the worst - Saturday variable cloud and strong winds Rio Baucet under the 8 man gondola - peach off-piste bowl unexpectedly Rio Nero draglift opens - first time this season get stopped by the police - told not to go off piste head back to San Sicario - great powder to be had in the trees Creation Science - Hot Wire My Heart Creation Science PMN Page Creation Science website Sunday - stronger winds - doubts about lifts opening La Sellette is open - and Roccia Rotonda - and then Fraiteve opens aswell Sestriere link gondola was open but Rio Nero is closed there are trials of Venue, Protein and Phiokka snowboards - c/o La Glisse too busy shredding pistes and powder in the trees to test anything Winterstick All Mountain 162 - still going strong from the top of piste 21 last run of the day hit rocks under windswept powder - well damaged straight to the repair shop - overnight repairs to be ready for Monday morning FigureOne - Beautiful Creation FigureOne PMN Page FigureOne website Monday morning - clear blue skies and freezing cold - no wind !!! straight to the top of 21 - all on our own - what a dream Rio Nero is open - twice round it on the way to Sauze D'Oulx 2nd time across the funnel into the powder in avalanche territory then on down to the long link draglift up to the top of Triplex lovely long piste under the new Triplex 4 man chairlift to the top of piste 29 piste 29 is a freecarve dream - so soft - all of the way down to clotes back up Pian della Rocca 4 man chairlift and the New Triplex back into the Col Basset valley and up the 4 man chair to the Rio Nero draglift round Roccia Rotonda, Fraiteve and another loop of rio Nero one more long top half of piste 21 and upto La capanina for lunch 2 hours later after 1 hour of which in the sun at 7500' a few more runs til 5pm when its time to call it a day Rachel Kann - I Know This Rachel Kann PMN Page Rachel Kann website [24.4MB 33:40 96kbps]

Granian - Sex In A Box Granian PMN Page Granian website After 2 feet of powder - another 1 and a half feet in 3 days Sansicario in the heart of the Milky Way What a fantastic weekend - a 3 dayer Snowing from Thursday til Sunday morning Winterstick All Mountain 162 up to the task Saturday its snowing fairly heavy couple of variations thru the woods and then Colombiere 2 hours later and Im still trying to get back to civilisation waist deep and then boot deep (thank god) afternoon a little bit more low key Urgencies - Strange Girl's Weird Boy Urgencies PMN Page Full Breach Kicks Records website Saturday night agriturismo in Fenils - as much as you can eat & drink snow had stopped but sunday morning further 6 inches of fresh slightly cloudy - and expecting the PN Snowpark gang out early to savour the powder - then guiding through the woods by lunch time - I am knackered - but recover for more afternoon pow back leg burn startting to bite finish the day with some hard and fast piste runs finishing with 21 Kingsdown - Next Train to Brighton Kingsdown PMN Page I had booked Monday as a holiday drop in temperature overnight of 10 degrees Centigrade perfectly groomed pistes and plenty of pow still to cut another 9 to 5 with no lift queues unfortunately high winds have kept the link lifts closed [26.9MB 35:32 96kbps]

Stingray - 143 Stingray PMN Page Stingray website Olympic Winter Games 2006 draws to a close at end of week 2 2 feet of snowfall in the 2nd week - Winter Wonderland Friday snowing on the way up and still snowing Saturday morning Sansi lifts still shut so Cesana - Claviere for a days knee deep powder fun visibility is excellent even during snowfall The woods above Cesana - endless backcountry - through the trees Sunny intervals in the afternoon Italian hope crashes out of Sestriere Slalom The Saturday night party is cancelled Kingsdown - Signs Kingsdown PMN Page Sunday morning - glorious sunshine - crisp and clear 08:50 outside the back door clipped in and nose pointing downhill first run from La Sellette into the woods dividing 72 and 78 down to soleil Boeuf up to the Roccie Rotonde - back all of the way down 72 head to Rio Nero but its closed - snowcats working Milky Way has done us proud - open a day early - and almost everything open pistes 18 19 and 20 and 21 even rio Baucet - down to the intermediate 2300 Gondola station then down the Fraiteve run top of WMN DH - cut right to powder wall 21 and into the woods at the Northern extreme - bottom Colombiere these woods are fantastic - and I was the first through them Monte Rotta woods in the afternoon - followed by 72 off-piste and then 21 o/p again this time from the very top of rio nero - the guards let us through ?? back up La Sellette then head for home via 3 trips round the Baby big air jumps off the path in the powder - til 5pm and Im exhausted but extatic Jims Big Ego - WTFMFWTFAYT? Jims Big Ego PMN Page bigego website [23.6MB 32:26 96kbps]

1st Week of Torino 2006 - An audio blog of living the Winter Olympics PMN Munk - Dirty Work Munk PMN Page Munk website 10/2/06 the opening ceremony went off well 11/2/06 Claviere by cable-car 11/2/06 Swedish IOC reps selling tickets for 10 EUROS - snowboard for 20 EUROS v list price of 35 EUROs 11/2/06 first SanSi event Biathlon German Gold and Norway 2nd and 3rd 12/2/06 Telegraph nonsense 7 hours return trip to Sestriere 12/2/06 get 4 tickets from USA squad for 2 man bob finals for 19/2/06 12/2/06 Shaun White wins the Gold in H/P USA 1st & 2nd 13/2/06 Tickets for sale - this time from British touts 13/2/06 Carabinieri intervene 13/2/06 looking for WMN DH Swedish rep offers 4*110 for 250 14/2/06 Tash and Lucy arrive from London to see the WMN DH 15/2 15/2/06 At the egg for 10am to find tickets for WMN DH 15/2/06 looking for 2 tickets at least for Tash and Lucy 15/2/06 Brit ticket tout sells me last 3 100 Euro tickets for 20 each 15/2/06 Prime seats sitting with Austrian brass band - party atmosphere 15/2/06 met Chemy Alcotts brother and she comes 11th 15/2/06 the girls go to Sestriere in the afternoon - A great day PMN Redefining the Moment - Oxygen for Two Redefining the Moment PMN Page Redefining the Moment website 16/2/06 heavy snow all morning and high winds - 2 inches settled 16/2/06 Swindon girl gets Skeleton Silver for team GB 16/2/06 the girls travel home almost 12 hours door-to-door 17/2/06 wake up to heavy snowfall - 6 inches settles 17/2/06 WMN Dh Combined delayed by 1 hour due to snowfall 17/2/06 get 2 100 Euro tickets for 20 each off Dutch team 17/2/06 race starts at 13:15 - abandoned after 1st skier falls 17/2/06 slalom goes ahead DH rescheduled for Monday 18/2/06 Mens SuperG Sestriere - long walk down to Borgata 18/2/06 snowing all morning - getting heavier after 11am 18/2/06 GBR 7th after 15 runs - race abandoned 12pm 18/2/06 rescheduled for 14:30 - 14:00 Sun comes out and race completed 18/2/06 Get 2 extra tickets for 50 Euro for the rescheduled WMN DHK 19/2/06 Snowfalling again in morning - SuperG WMN scheduled for 12pm 19/2/06 11am get a 110 for free, a 110 for 50 and 2 110s for 40 Euros 19/2/06 Snow and Fog postpones race - hopefully to be rerun Monday 19/2/06 Snowing stronger than ever all afternoon and all evening 19/2/06 2-man bob finals 6 inches of snowfall in 3 hours total 18 inches in 18 hrs 20/2/06 Wake up to sunny skies - first for 4 days - and half metre pow 20/2/06 WMN SuperG put back to 3pm - Chemmy's big chance - top 20 finish PMN Anonymous - Apology Anonymous PMN Page Anonymous website [26.8MB 36:45 96kbps]

DJ Come of Age - No Pressure by Jahaha DJCOA PMN Page TOTP was on Monday and Tuesday - Live acts incl Craig David turned cold again dress rehearsal was on Wednesday night 2006 Opening ceremony coming up on Friday www.torino2006.com Torino 2006 Winter Olympics 70 odd heads of state I'll be in the mountains Tash arrives on Tuesday for the Wednesday Wmn Downhill WMN DH 15th 17th and SG 19th Alpine skiing Snowboarding in Bardonechia H/P12th and 13th SBC 16th and 17th Forecast is cold, clear and sunny - no more snowfall for at least a week (16/2/06) www.weknowsnow.com backcountrymaps nice video blog and Illuminati snowboards and osprey packs Milky Way 3D Map promo 3D maps from www.mountmaps.com 5 EUROS or 5 GBP Planet of Women - Waking up the Neighbourhood Planet of Women PMN Page Planet of Women Website [12.9MB 16:54 96kbps]

Butterfly Catchers - Wake Up Butterfly Catchers PMN page Butterfly Catchers Website dedicated to Absent Friends 1.4m Limone Piemonte, 1m Prato Nevoso, 1m NE, 80cm Alagna, 50cm Milky way, 10cm extreme NW Toast DVD Torino 2006 - 1 week to go TOTP from Sauze Doulx 13/2/05 7pm Volunteers in the mountains Sansicario and Sestriere all lifts closed to public for squad training Off to Claviere for fun in the sun 1 hour of lifts Cable Car + 3 chairs + 1 drag Cost of the lift passes in Italy A few free tickets for season ticket holders Olympic flame arrives at Sestriere on its tour of Italy to Turin Amplifico - 10p Mix Amplifico PMN page Amplifico Website Sleepy cloudy Sunday show Back to Claviere More adventurous powder excursions Nearer you get to France less fresh snow fell last weekend I had fun practising switch 180s and what pow there is Learning a few new routes for future reference Less people than on saturday Still lots of Sunday drivers on the way down Bloody Olympic Games - the sooner theyre over the better Oh and I pranged the car the day after last weeks show Italian drivers, cars and insurance - but thats another story Early publication next weeek and a late one the week after - cos Im Olympicing Olympic daily updates ?? Swindon win at home yet again - 1 point from safety The Argyle Pimps - Geezers The Argyle Pimps PMN Page The Argyle Pimps Website [20.4MB 27:48 96kbps]

Podsafe Music Network (PMN) The Argyle Pimps - Argyle Pimpin The Argyle Pimps PMN page The argyle Pimps website Friday snow in the valleys - Saturday and Sunday 30cm - 40cm - 50cm Saturday morning 10 cm already Milan airports closed Turin-Bardonechia motorway closed out at 10 - snow getting ever heavier poor visibility above the tree line 1300 - 2700 SuperEgo PMN page SuperEgo website sunday morning - total fresh now up to 25-30 cm lower and 40-50 cm upper run 72/74 - off-piste in and out of the trees - this is like 2 years ago top 79 - much better visibility - powder all the way down Lower 79 75 79 - by mistake going for my favourite off-piste run 79 75 dropping in between 79 and 82 parallel to old rogies draglift 40 -50 cm pow this the best of pow in the trees meet the English couple from Milan - Johan 79 75 82 - round the back and down - the woods above Pariol !!! Monte rotta area run 21 - never been open this season and still isnt - but now through the trees back over to Ski Lodge - La Sellete - once more down 72/74 then up and over to 18 off-piste and carry on through the trees to end the day with my favourite off-piste that was a classic right leg burn back up on the last lift at 16:25 - across to Soleil boeuf and then down 18 couple of runs on 4-man baby sansicario - riding switch in pow - nailed it fall-line half-cab and back-side 180 - is it easier in pow ? Matthew Ebel - Drive away Matthew Ebel PMN page Matthew Ebel website [20MB 29:00 96kbps]

dos de picos - solo noi dos de picos PMN page DDP website snow snow snow Alte Navigation - Niederschleg - 9-panel - 6 hour slots for detail www.wetterzentrale.de www.weatheronline.co.uk www.sansicario.it frigin cold - too cold for lots of snow warming up on Saturday - should snow more then Natasha is coming over for the olympics peawees - No Reaction artistdetails.php peawees PMN page peawees website [9.1MB 12:38 96kbps]