An Unforgotten Privilege

I’m not sure what’s going on with me at the moment, because the mountain views here are just constantly stopping me in my tracks. Just look at that view above, taken whilst skiing with John and Gilly last week, mind-blowing. Loads of people ask me if I get used to the views in my office, I’m sure there is an element of that, but boy oh boy not all the time. Earlier this week I returned to England for an amazing short visit, a much needed rest out of ski boots, but also a great excuse to meet up with my wife and her family. I had a great time, but you see the thing is, as my flight got closer to Geneva airport I got more and more excited by seeing the mighty Alps again.It’s such a privilege to be able to work in this environment every winter, and I’ll never ever take it for granted. Most visitors notice the views and soak up the clean Alpine air. But for every visitor to Méribel, there will be millions of people who never get to experience the Alps for a multitude of reasons. “Where am I going with this post without photos?” I hear you ask. Tomorrow is a Saturday, right? Which means for most people it’s the start of the weekend. But there are a whole load of us, from 7.30am, who will start the epic Coeur Blanc Charity Challenge, see www.coeurblanc.eu . Last month I reported all about the event. Basically the challenge is to use each and every single lift in the Méribel valley in a single day. If all goes according to plan, the team that I’m leading will finish the challenge just before lifts close at the end of the afternoon. No coffee stops, no lunch at tasty restaurants, nothing. If we are lucky we might be able to squeeze in a ‘pee’ stop, time really is that tight. The charity that we are supporting is called SkillForce, if you are able to, and want to, support this charity then please click on this link to contribute, www.virginmoneygiving.com/team/CoeurBlancChocolat , every little helps. The target for our team is a massive £50,000.I think that this challenge is only achievable in decent weather; if it’s poor visibility I personally think it’s a challenge too far. Here’s hoping for great weather, where we will all be burnt to a crisp in the March sun, dehydrated due to lack of drink stops, and our legs will definitely turn to jelly. Tell you what though, it will still be an amazing privilege to be in the mountains. I promise to point this out to every team member during the day as well.MartinP.S. Thanks for your understanding for this slightly different post, back to normal next week. I’ve got so much to report on.UPDATE: Sunday March 18th 17.50 pm.Here is a Coeur Blanc Challenge update from Hemsley Blog headquarters. Yesterday ‘Team ‘Chocolat’ started their challenge on cue down in Brides Les Bains at 8.30am. On the whole the weather was very kind to us, and we were fighting fit through until mid afternoon when fatigue started to take over. Did we manage to use all of the lifts? Yep, but only JUST. We limply jumped on our final lift, the new Saulire Express, six minutes before it was due to close. It was a very close call, and say it was a long day would be an understatement. No rest for the wicked, I started a ten day booking with a Russian family over in Courchevel this morning, with very very tired legs. Thanks for everyone’s good wishes and contributions.