Thursday, May 07, 2009

What do you mean it's May!!

Well it's done, Kate and myself have just completed our first winter season. We are both completely exhausted but unbelievably pleased with how it's all gone.

The last 6-8 months have been so far removed from anything else we've done and it's all gone in a complete blur despite the near vertical learning curve. Joe Public can be a funny old sausage but in general pretty much everyone we've met so far as guests have been really friendly and easy to look after.

It's not been easy meeting people as we've been so busy and spent the first 3 weeks running on pure fear with the odd shot of adrenaline whilst feeling like the squeaky clean new kids on the bloc every time we met someone who was in their 4billionth season and owns 8 chalets and the south side of Morzine.

It is getting easier as we settle in to the way of life and I think summer will help as it's easier to meet people living out there year round as we're not so busy and there are less seasonaires (who I swear were all about 16 years old and had unfathomable fashion sense, good god I'm getting old, yoof of today, wasn't like that in my time, isn't the music loud in here). Also don't quite feel like the new kids on the bloc and having done reasonably well feel like we aren't just talking the talk.

Snow-wise we couldn't have been luckier, every 10-days to 2 weeks it snowed heavily on demand and even with our limited time to get on the mountain we still got our fair share of powder so the guests must have been loving it!

DSC_0074
muchos white and powdery stuff

The worries of running your own business never quite disappear even when your on 'holiday' but on the other hand I can't remember the last time I was bored or was wondering what I was going to do with my life! Given the choice we'd be working on some property over the summer but we need to wait another year or so before anyone will consider lending to us as a business so it's all attention on the summer market for biking, walking etc.

Email summer Parapent
parapenting email shot

It's pretty tricky trying to include everyone in your marketing for fear of alienating a certain group i.e. too much of a downhill 'too cool for school' biking image would put familys off but at the same time we might end up not appealing to anyone.

Once some of the general marketing is out of the way I'd like to concentrate on the biking bit more, it seems daft not too as it's so much fun out here. I'm looking forward to riding just as much as I was looking forward to boarding. Really looking forward to exploring the unknown bits so we can hit them up as soon as people come out for a visit, as long as we put Finter in charge of leading the way lest I fall foul of the long arm of the Gendarme for 'le illegal guiding' punishable by beheading on the guillotine.

It's been good to catch up with everyone although way too quick and I don't think I realised how much I miss having everyone around as we we're so busy. It's been really good to have Rob down the road as we haven't even lived in the same country for about 3 years never mind within walking distance. His experiences also make me want to make sure we never turn into anything like some of the flaky clusterf*ck holiay and tourism companies out there that seem to survive and take peoples money depsite having their heads secured firmly where the snow doesn't fall.

Generic Leaflet summer
summer leaflet

Generic Leaflet summer II
alternative summer leaflet

Have just got a copy of photoshop on trial and have got a little bit carried away!! The first 'brown' leaflet is going on a textured rough card/heavy paper and just playing around with the second design. T-shirt desgins on the way although not to be worn whilst-
riding like a gimp
struggling uphill behind finter (that'd be me then, boarding not good for stamina apparently)
making a menance of oneself round pompey (ahem)
wearing any items of lycra
er.... list could be much much longer.

Peace

www.mountainspaces.com
catered and self catered holidays in the french alps

Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Beast of the East

Just had my first blast on the Beast of the East. Sweet little retro hybrid that I got given by Steffi's brother. Its great! I did an hour trip and then a 45 min run after with Ant... All part of the training.

Will give it a service and post some pics.