Skiing

"What a buzz!" "Fantastic!" "Thrilling!" "The experience of a lifetime!" These are just some of the comments made by the 40 cadets and 7 adult instructors from Glasgow and Lanarkshire Battalion Army Cadet Force following their recent trip to the Austrian resort of Zell am See.

It all began on Friday 30th March 2007 when, all on a high and full of enthusiasm, we set off on a long bus journey from sunny Glasgow bound for the Austrian Alps and the resort of Hollenwerth..

The first day on the slopes was to be quite scary for a number of the group, especially since only a handful of us had ever skied before. But the Special Air Service came in handy at this point as we adopted the motto 'Who Dares Wins', or so we thought!

We were fitted for our kit and equipment and then met up with our group instructors who were Tim, Hannah and Patrick. Time had finally run out and with no introduction, no time to plan or prepare, we were thrown straight onto the slopes!

After the Gondola ride we were taken through our stretches and then onto the basic ski moves such as falling over and crash landing!

The best part of the day was down to Cadet Scott. The group were moving down a slight incline to the left when he decided to experiment a bit. The results meant the Cadet Scott now has a new best friend affectionately know as 'The Fir Tree'!

Every day on the slopes we started with a 'free ski' session until 9.30 am when we would meet up with our group instructors to be taken through some intensive training learning a range of new techniques enabling us to progress from beginner to intermediate skiers. Each group progressed very quickly through the basics like snowplough turns and stops and over the course of 6 days we went from blue (easy) runs to black/red (difficult) runs.

Once we were able to parallel turn we actually started to look like skiers and felt quite proficient. The intermediate group however were nowhere to be seen as they developed their already proficient techniques. They of course did have the benefit of previous experience on the slopes though!

All this skiing was doing wonders for our skills, but was equally good at developing our appetites. Each day the various groups all met up for lunch at the "Panorama" where we got the chance to compare and discuss our progress. We could also demonstrate our culinary nerve as we tried the different Austrian dishes and soft drinks on the menu. Although the conversation over lunch was varied it was good to hear how we were all having fun and couldn't wait to get back on the slopes.

As the week progressed, so did our confidence and we were ready to get in the cable car and head further up the slopes.

The evenings were organised to keep the cadets busy as well, with such events as disco nights, swimming trips and pizza nights.

Friday night brought a close to our ski trip where prizes were presented and everybody took the opportunity to reflect on a busy and tiring, yet rewarding and enjoyable week skiing. We thanked Capt Stirling for all his hard work by presenting him with a plaque. The planning that goes into a trip like this is phenomenal and we're very grateful for his efforts.

Overall this has been a very positive and enjoyable experience. We have all learned a lot about skiing and ourselves and we have some other people to thank for making it possible by helping with fund raising or by donating money to make this memorable trip possible. They are the management of Morrison's, Anniesland for kindly allowing us to fundraise in their store and everybody who participated in our discos. Generous donations were gratefully received from 51 (Scottish) Brigade HQ, Lowland Reserve Force and Cadet Association, Army Cadet Force Association, Capt RTW Mighall of the Ulysses Trust, P McClennan and Major Robertson the CEO of the Glasgow and Lanarkshire Battalion, ACF.

Until next year! Hopefully!