CranKitUp Gear Hire Bookings & Repairs

Due to family illness, for the next 3 months can folk please book ahead for bike hire or repairs Monday to Friday, or call my mobile so I can be there for you.  Walk ins off the street I can't do unless I just happen to be home. You can hire bikes and get repairs and servicing, but in order for me to be there please book in advance especially for morning hires.  Afternoon hires will go out at 12.00am to 12.45am.  Repairs and spares email or call me so I can open up or arrange for a drop off or pickup of a bike for you.  Easter weeks I will be there full time and same during the summer so please bear with me for the short term and if in doubt give me a call and I will try accommodate you.  Email crankitupgear@aol.co.uk or phone 07746860023 and I will make sure you get what you need.  We are open for business - just juggling time a bit!

Snow Study Part 2

Snow Study Tools Part 1

BCA do quite a nice snow study kit although quite pricey.  You can easily make one up yourself cheaper and if anyone wants the bits to do so I can supply them at a very good price.  Why would someone want a snow study kit?  Good question, especially as in Scotland we have such a good avalanche forecast service. Most folk know that knowledge empowers and snow study is one way of getting a handle on what the forecast really means and the implications for under your feet.  When on the mountain skiing the mere fact you need to dig a test pit tells you something about your concerns - ie, it's maybe not safe!  It's nice to try and confirm this, but even if you can't confirm your gut feeling in a test pit - trust your gut instinct.  Somewhere inside that head of yours the cognitive process is trying to stop you making a choice based on what will make you happy and feed that rat inside wanting the ski's to run, not what might bury you.  The catch phrase is "Heuristic Traps" but to us folks its just thinking traps.  This winter has seen an unprecedented number of experienced skiers killed in North America.  Stay safe.

Micro Search Strips

For experts only an analog take on multiple burials.  It's the one thing analog excelled at, the ability to hear multiple pulses. Anyone teaching this stuff should at least know the basics of the micro search strip method so that "marking" and the associated problems of overlap are better understood.

Thanks to BCA for bringing this too us.

Icy and Hard but Great Day at Glencoe

Not too eventful a day and did a bit of photography. SAIS course on the mountain and as always at Glencoe Mountain, even if the skiing isn't great the craic is good.

Brocken Spectre

Ptarmigan

Ski Patroller Ailsa Clark brings across a snow boarder stuck on an icy Fly Paper

Mark Diggins and students at the Anatom/BCA Beacon park control box

George Reid and the course in the man made avlx tip

Great day up at Glencoe today but not so much of the off piste or side of the hill fun and games as it had set up hard overnight. Yesterday I had a good ski with Mark Diggins and George Reid of the SAIS showing them around the mountain and giving them a flavour of the people and what makes the mountain tick. Nice that all three of us are ambassadors for UK BCA/Dynafit importer Anatom and we all had our BCA packs and Dynafit kit on and loads of folks had questions about the kit.  Today the off piste course for boarders and skiers ran well, and Paul Moores was also on hand to help out. We had quite a few beers at Clachaig last night with these guys and caught up with many old climbing buddies including Pete Long who is recovering from serious head injury. Great night and Fiona really enjoyed the craic as did Esther my daughter.

Paul Moores with a student on the course