Page 162 - Rifles 2017 Issue No 3

OUR LEGS WERE TIRED AND THE OFF PISTE SNOW WAS WET AND CLINGY DUE TO THE WEATHER WHICH LED TO A LOT OF PEOPLE FALLING OVER, MYSELF INCLUDED!
The transport left from Aldershot for an overnight coach journey to Oberstdorf in Bavaria. Slightly sleep deprived we arrived at the Joint Service Mountain Training Centre late the following morning and after a few security briefs we were allocated rooms and issued all the kit required for the course. There seemed like a lot, but I was soon taught how to use it all. That afternoon we had a little time to relax before dinner so I went and explored the local town.
The following day we had an inspiring brief from the OC on the importance of AT and what we would be gaining from the course and then we split off into our separate groups. My group consisted of 7 people from both the Regular and Reserves, and the instructor was from the Navy. This wide variety of people would become close over the next couple of weeks. First we learnt what and how to pack for the day and how to t our own bindings to the skis. Fresh snow was falling as we approached the piste and it looked fantastic. Skiing on touring skis felt very different to using alpine skis and this took some time to get used to, but by the end of the rst day people were already showing improvement. We also had an introduction to using transceivers as the instructor buried a daysack in the snow and we had to nd and “rescue” it.
Day two on the slopes was great fun. We did more downhill skiing and faced a few tricky and icy red and black runs. The wind was high and snow was being blown around reducing visibility at times. This day was spent doing a lot of off piste skiing, developing our skills in deep snow. This was hard work, but I feel like I got a lot out of it. At the start of the day I managed to have a good fall and face planted in the snow, but by the end I felt con dent and relaxed traversing between the trees. As a short rest from skiing off piste we tried on the skins for touring and did a small taster session. Skins are hair like and they attach to the bottom of your skis to stop you from sliding backwards as you walk up the slope. This was a tiring day skiing and we were also given a little bit of homework to do some research on various skiing disciplines.
The next morning was spent ski touring. This was hard work but great fun. On the way up the mountain we practiced our kick turns, a speci c way to change direction when traversing up a steep slope, and did some avalanche awareness training
by digging holes to look at the layers in the snow. At one point the wind was so strong coming over the ridge the snow was painful hitting the side of our faces and I felt like I was going to be blown over. Yet the achievement felt when reaching the summit was huge and made the climb worth it! The ski back down was interesting to say the least. Our legs were tired and the off piste snow was wet and clingy due to the weather which led to a lot of people falling over, myself included!
The second day of touring in a row was tough. Many times on the way up I questioned why I was doing this as it was physically and mentally exhausting, and it was de nitely pushing me out of my normal limits. The snow was hard work underfoot as it was crumbling away but after nearly four hours of constant climb the summit was in sight. From the top there was a beautiful view around the valley and we stopped to have lunch before taking the skins off our skis and heading back down the mountain. There was an especially tricky section where we had to ski through a wooded area with limited room for errors. We all made it back in one piece and despite all feeling shattered, the group felt such a sense of satisfaction.
The next couple of days we were going down the hill rather than up. We did some on piste devel- opment which included drills to improve our form and concentrate on making us look and feel more in control. There was a huge amount of snowfall overnight which meant we had an amazing day of off piste skiing. This was probably the best snow I’ve ever been on and was so deep in places if you came off your skis it was waist deep, like you were swimming through it. We skied down the side of black runs and through trees which was challenging, but everyone made it.
Next came the anticipated overnight stay in a lodge on the mountain. We toured to it on day one and this took a few hours. We were lucky as the snow was really good and this made moving around manageable. We navigated over two summits to get there and when we arrived we did some avalanche training. The accommodation was simple but the food was lovely, and it was great to be so far up the mountain while having dinner. The next day we went out to do a multiple burial scenario with another group. We also learnt how to effectively dig and care for a casualty. After this we toured up to the nearest summit but by this time the weather had turned and it was raining rather than snowing. The damp weather meant the avalanche warning had gone up and the snow was dif cult to get through. Our instructor at this point decided that we should get to the bottom of the mountain to get picked up. This was quite dif cult due to the snow, but after a while, with some downhill skiing and a little bit of touring, we made it to the bottom of a piste, wet through!
This adventure training was a great opportunity for me to not only improve my skiing, but to integrate with other members of the Armed Forces, to get me completely out of my physical and mental comfort zones and to develop myself as a person. I look forward to hopefully being able to do more training like this and maybe qualifying as an instructor.
LCpl E Barquilla
Bavaria Ski Foundation Level 3
The small team of skiers enjoying a day off in the Troodos Mountains. From left: Musn Purchon, Musn Milum, Musn Watts, LCpl Barquilla, LCpl May, Musn Adcock and Cpl Scott
160 THE BAND AND BUGLES OF THE RIFLES
THE RIFLES