Ski touring is the discipline in vogue this winter in the Alps.

-

Mathis Decroux

  • Every Thursday, in its “off-field” section,

    20 Minutes

     explores new spaces for expressing sport, unexpected, unusual, clever or booming.

  • There are more than 200,000 ski touring practitioners in France, a discipline that is both demanding and little-known, which this winter seduces many alpine skiers frustrated by the closure of ski lifts.

  • After generating real enthusiasm in the midst of the Covid-19 crisis, is its future doomed to a return to confidentiality in a year, in the event of a “normal season” in the resort?

Who are these dozens of skiers along a track, including Lucien (7 years old) and Titouan (9 years old), on a Sunday morning in January in Combloux (Haute-Savoie)?

The white season of alpine skiing in France, due to closed ski lifts, has prompted these two children, who live in Sallanches, to accompany their parents even more often on ski touring outings.

“The context of Covid-19 does not penalize us that much for skiing, recognizes their mother Erika.

For us, it's a punishment to go to the resort, we do it when the Parisian family arrives!

We like the effort to climb and ski in wilder places, where the snow is better.

»With an avalanche risk level 4 out of 5 that day, she opted for a family outing, which the Combloux resort offers by plotting and securing climbing routes every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.

From secure fitness skiing to the formidable steep slope skiing, the possibilities are vast in ski touring.

- Clement Hudry

"A growing interest in nature and exercise sports"

"There are several forms of ski touring," notes Jean-Marc Simon, general manager of the National Union of French Ski Instructors.

We must distinguish this fairly recent practice of ski fitness, where everything is signposted at the edge of the slopes, compared to the original ski touring, intended for informed people with a certain autonomy.

"He noted that in this very special season, the ESF instructors had to diversify their offer" to maintain overall activity around 10% ", in particular by supervising ski touring outings.

As for the Dynafit brand, European leader for ski touring equipment, the director of the French subsidiary Pierre-Jean Touchard notes sales multiplied by five in December and January.

"Throughout the winter, we will be on a very strong growth of + 20 or + 25%, against + 3% on average in previous years," he says.

This is obviously indicative of a trend since until the end of the 1990s, ski touring was practiced almost exclusively by mountain dwellers in their forties.

The evolution of society, which tends towards a growing interest in nature and exercise sports, has led to the feminization and rejuvenation of the practice.

"

The practice of ski touring has attracted more and more young people, and women, in recent years.

- Clement Hudry

Rental shops taken by storm

Perre-Jean Touchard estimates that there are between 200,000 and 250,000 ski tourers in France today, twice as many as 20 years ago.

Co-director of the Mabboux sport store in the Combloux resort, Aurélia Isoux also perceives the attraction for this discipline this winter, with a stock taken by storm, as is the case for so many other rental companies in the mountains: " As usual, we have 20 pairs of touring skis to rent, which is more than enough for a classic season.

But from the Christmas holidays, we had to put on the waiting list about 20 people every day.

Unfortunately, it was already too late to try to replenish our stock.

"

Precisely, will the optimistic prospect of a return to “a classic season”, with the reopening of the ski lifts, necessarily be accompanied by a halt for the discipline in vogue in 2020-2021?

“Now that we have developed a taste for ski touring, because of this unprecedented context, we do not see ourselves returning to the alpine, indicate François (42 years old) and Coralie (33 years old), two converted Haut-Savoyards. .

We have a series of beautiful and trying walks all winter long, and we have a great time downhill with this powder.

In the resort, you feel more restricted, and there is this colossal cost of ski passes.

"

Ski touring can guarantee sensations downhill.

- Fredrik Marmsater Photography LLC / Dynafit

Decathlon contributes to democratizing the discipline in 2018

One of the brakes in ski touring remains precisely the economic criterion.

Between the boots, the skis, the bindings, the essential sealskins, as well as the “basic” elements to secure his exit, we arrive at a price range for the purchase between 1,200 and 2,500 euros.

Suffice to say that at this price, we had better be sure to like trudging in the snow before investing.

In 2018, Decathlon softened this situation a little by entering this market for good, which remains "an ultra niche", says Pierre-Jean Touchard.

With its very competitive prices, the Wed'ze brand therefore also contributes to democratizing the discipline.

To the point of making it a credible rival of the alpine in the (very) long term?

“No, people are not going to abandon the resorts like that, but this season will accelerate the desire to mix practices, analyzes Niels Martin, deputy director of the French Federation of Alpine and Mountain Clubs (FFCAM), which launches every Tuesday and Thursday (7 p.m.) a webinar to introduce the general public to ski touring.

As there is almost a world between safe fitness skiing and steep slope skiing, the possibilities are endless.

"

Skiers previously considered "harmful" by the resorts

Jean-Marc Simon assures him: “There will be a before and an after coronavirus for ski touring.

Many people have fully realized that you can discover the mountain differently, far from the big crowds in the resort.

It will remain a marginal trend but I do not see the new practitioners of ski touring abandoning this discipline under the pretext of the return of the ski lifts ”.

For Pierre-Jean Touchard, this enthusiasm "will remain as high next winter".

“Ten years ago, ski touring was considered a nuisance by the resorts because they did not pay a lift pass,” he recalls.

The situation is completely reversed: the resorts have recently understood that they must diversify their offer, as when they integrated starred restaurants.

»The noblest comparison there is for ski touring, despite himself the big winner of a coveted season.

Sport

A couple's fight to promote physical activity against cancer

Sport

E-sport: "There are still a lot of things to structure", observe Matthieu Péché and Gauthier Klauss

  • Sport

  • Covid 19

  • Coronavirus

  • Ski

  • Hiking

  • Alps