The Gooney Bird Annual Migration

The self titled Gooney Birds, from Dublin, descended on Méribel last week. They sound like characters that wouldn’t be out of place in a Monty Python sketch, or even a Spike Milligan script. Come to think of it, the Gooneys are actually much funnier than the above. Either way they are a loud hilarious bunch, sometimes close to the knuckle and, how shall I put it, require special attention.

Mary, Margot, Jane and Rohiyah had booked me for six full days. In fact I’ve skied with them for at least three if not four winters now. When I first met them they were a very wobbly gaggle of Gooney Birds (feel free to YouTube 'Gooney Birds' and you’ll get the general idea) where I introduced them to the infamous Méribel green piste known as the Altiport. This was years ago, and where were we again last week? Yep, the gentle side of the Altiport.

Now, don’t get me wrong, their goals and aspirations of their week's holiday are probably different to most people's. So, the Altiport piste it was, day after day, after day, after day…… You get the idea. Mid-week I lost the will to live, but soon thought up a cunning plan. We agreed to a day trip over to Courchevel, to see if they could leave their dog basket of the Altiport, and experience different green pistes. We used the lifts to go up, and then back down again to the other valley of Courchevel.

After a few wobbles and flapping of wings, mainly because they felt lost away from the Altiport, we had great success in selecting the flattest of green pistes that Courchevel 1850 could offer. They saw and skied on different pistes, and I had a psychological change as well, what a result.

I could visually see their ruffling of feathers in excitement of experiencing a different area. I hoped that this would motivate them further to ski beyond the Altiport. But no…… The very next day we were all back on familiar territory. I boiled my head again, but you know, it’s not about me. The Gooneys trust me to not take them anywhere where they would lose confidence. They also trust me to help give them confidence at the appropriate time, deliver valuable feedback and instruction, and help them enjoy themselves. They are all looking forward to returning again next winter, if not sooner, when they promise to email me yet again to organise another week of head-boiling sessions, for me that is. Joking apart, they are very different to my usual winter clients, but boy oh boy it is a laugh and as long as I throw away the ski instruction manual of expectations for a week, I’m more than happy to help them enjoy their precious skiing holiday.

Martin

P.S. We’ve had yet more snow since the Gooneys migration, and it’s now absolutely freezing. Stay tuned.