Challenge extended...

Early in the game: the four people crazy enough to attempt the challange: Abby, Sarah, Kat and Clare

As many of you will know, in January, some of the Finlays staff completed the Three Valleys Escapade (see entry from 27th Jan). Well, yesterday we upped the challenge. A hard core group of four of us (as above) decided to raise the bar. We completed the challenge, PLUS we went up and down Mont Vallon. We did this all by 4:30pm, so decided to fit in an extra couple of runs and end up in La Tania for a cocktail to celebrate.

For those of you who know the runs involved, to give you an idea of the pace we kept up, we did Mont Vallon top to bottom without stopping once. In fact as soon as we left Orelle, not a single person over took us in the next 3 hours and we did not stop once on a piste. Our only pauses were lift queues. This is my fourth time doing the challenge this season and I can really feel the extra distance, my thighs are screaming today!!

Views from the top of Cime Caron - Val Thorens

We picked a beautiful day for it with blue skies all around. There were some strange low lying clouds, but most of the time we were above them. Even when we went down into them, although long range distance was impaired, visibility remained good.

We had Mountain Trak GPS on again, but have not got the maps back. The main aim of the day was to create the best Mountain Trak map possible, in order to do this, we decided to try and go over every possible peak in the Three Valleys. Challenge completed! When we get the maps back I will upload the stats and a link, these should be worth seeing...

We were all so happy to get back. It was getting the stage where I needed to give myself a pep talk just to persude myself to get off each chair lift... We all collapsed into the Taiga in La Tania for happy hour cocktails...

Leaving VT, spirits still high...

Red faced but happy to be home!

THE ROUTE:

3 Valleys Challenge, route as planned by Abbs

Courchevel

· TOVETS CHAIRS (1 bottom)
· Green to PLANTREY CHAIR
· Bouc Blanc red to Moretta blanche red to La Tania
· LA TANIA BUBBLE (2 bottom)
· Arolles blue to DOU DES LANCHES CHAIR

Meribel

· Boulevard De La Loze blue until intersection
· Renard red
· DENT DE BURGIN CHAIR (3 top)
· Renard red
· Blanchot green
· Lapin blue
· GOLF CHAIR (4 bottom)
· Foret green
· Doron blue to Meribel 1450m
· PLAN DE L'HOMME CHAIR
· Escargot blue
· OLYMPIC EXPRESS CHAIR (5 top)
· Verdet blue
· Grand duc blue
· CHERFERIE DRAG

Les Menuires

· Cretes blue
· Jerusalem red
· Verdet blue to St Martin de Belleville
· ST MARTIN BUBBLE (6 bottom)
· ST MARTIN 2 CHAIR

Meribel

· Combe tougnette red then right onto dahu red then onto martre blue
· ROC DE TOUGNE DRAG (7 bottom)

Les Menuires

· Teppes red (8 bottom of GRANGES CHAIR; bleep in then leave queue)
· Gros tougne blue then la violette green to Les Menuires 1850
· Follow signs through Les Menuires towards La Masse
· Green run to MASSE 1 BUBBLE
· MASSE 2 BUBBLE (9 top)
· Drop off the back of the Masse into off piste. Follow tracks towards the bottom, then signs onto plan de l’eau red
· PLAN DE L’EAU CHAIR (10 bottom)
· Boismint red, cut right towards the CARON BUBBLE
· CIME CARON TELECABINE
· Combe rosael black
· Mauriennaise red
· PEYRON CHAIR
· BOUCHET CHAIR (11 top)
· Corais red to bouchet red to peyron blue
· ROSAEL CHAIR
· Chamois red past top of plateau drag
· Right down blue to portette chair (do not get on)
· Green to MORAINE CHAIR
· COL CHAIR (12 top)
· Col red
· Moraine blue
· Onto green past snowparc down to PLEIN SUD CHAIR
· Left down blue to FUNITEL BOUQUETIN

Meribel

· Lac de la chamber red to bottom of Mont Vallon
· MONT VALLON BUBBLE
· Campagnol red onto lac de la chambre red
· PLAN DES MAINS CHAIR
· Rossignol blue
· Martres blue into Mottaret
· PAS DU LAC BUBBLE 1 & 2

Courchevel

· Creux red
· CHANROSSA CHAIR
· Roc merlet red
· Pyramide blue
· Bel air red
· CHAPELETS CHAIR (13 bottom)
· Grandes bosses blue
· Roc mugnier red
· AIGUILLE DE FRUIT
· Park city red
· Altiport blue
· PRALONG CHAIR
· Biollay blue
· COQS CHAIR
· Lanches red
· Bouc blanc red
· Folyeres blue to La Tania