Thoughts on Snowsports

Iain Martin, The Ski Podcast

The sad demise of the catered chalet ski holiday

The sad demise of the catered chalet ski holiday

Looking through a recent survey from Le Ski, I was struck by one stat in particular. While it was encouraging to read that the number of UK skiers and snowboarders is predicted to grow by 14% in winter 2023/24, the fact that only 13% stay in catered chalets highlighted how...
Will ChatGPT make ‘ski experts’ redundant?  

Will ChatGPT make ‘ski experts’ redundant?  

AI (Artificial Intelligence) is changing fast. A few years ago, it was just the name of one of Steven Spielberg’s less good movies, but in 2023 AI has moved from the world of ‘futurologists’ into the mainstream. The chances are that even if you haven’t tried ChatGPT (or Google’s ‘Bard’),...
'Parrots in the Snow: the rise and fall of Bladon Lines' - article in 'Ski+Board' magazine

‘Parrots in the Snow: the rise and fall of Bladon Lines’ – article in ‘Ski+Board’ magazine

Iain’s article ‘Parrots in the Snow: the rise and fall of Bladon Lines‘ has now been published in ‘Ski+Board’ magazine. It’s also now available as a special episode of The Ski Podcast My first experience of working in the ski industry came 35 years ago when I went to Chatel...
Ski Touring in Morocco: A Photo Essay

Ski Touring in Morocco: A Photo Essay

Iain from Skipedia recently went ski touring in Morocco. Flying into Marrakech, and then travelling to Imlil (1740m), Iain then spent three nights at the Refuge des Mouflons (3207m), ski touring to different 4000m peaks. Ski hire was from Braemar Mountain Sports, guiding and logistics were organised by Toubkal Guide. You...
'I'm a modern-day Batman' says anti-ESF campaigner

‘I’m a modern-day Batman’ says anti-ESF campaigner

These are difficult days for the ESF in the UK. The current legal cases against Simon Butler and Le Ski have stirred up plenty of negative sentiment within the British market against the ESF. Both cases – which deal with different aspects of the law – are currently at different...
Why do chalet girls bake a cake every day?

Why do chalet girls bake a cake every day?

Okay, not strictly anything to do with marketing, but just for fun… So why do chalet girls bake a cake every day? As far as I know chalets have always left out a cake for their guests to tuck into for ‘afternoon tea’. After a long day on the slopes,...
Latest entries
Tom Evans Interview: 2025 UTMB Winner “I'm doing this for my family”

Tom Evans Interview: 2025 UTMB Winner “I’m doing this for my family”

In August 2025, Asics athlete Tom Evans became the first Briton to win the UTMB trail running race since Lizzy Hawker in 2012 (and the first male winner since Jez Bragg in 2010). Evans finished in 19:18:58, more than 30 minutes ahead of Ben Dhiman from the USA in second place. Iain Martin from The...
Will AI make ski photographers redundant? [2025 Update]

Will AI make ski photographers redundant? [2025 Update]

AI has come a long way in the last two years. Back in May 2023, I took a light-hearted look at AI’s ability to create images. But how much has AI improved since then? The answer is shockingly far. Let’s have a look at the vastly different results that the same prompts generated… The terrifying...
Flight Free article for The Green Runners

Flight Free article for The Green Runners

I am really pleased to be able to share my story of travelling flight free to Spain earlier this year on The Green Runners website. ‘The Green Runners’ is a fantastic organisation, lobbying to improve sustainability in the world of running. I have been a member for several years, since I read co-founder Damien Hall’s...
6 Takeaways from the June 2025 MTN Snowsports Industry Report

6 Takeaways from the June 2025 MTN Snowsports Industry Report

We always find the regular industry reports led by the Mountain Trade Network interesting. The latest report was released earlier this month, including data that suggests some consistent and some new trends in the industry.  The data in this report was based on skiers’ activity from last winter season (2024/25). Skiers are booking earlier The...
The ‘25 in 25 Snow Camp Challenge’: 12 hours driving + 2 hours skiing = lives changed...

The ‘25 in 25 Snow Camp Challenge’: 12 hours driving + 2 hours skiing = lives changed…

Last Friday Iain Martin – host of The Ski Podcast – successfully completed his ’25 in 25 Snow Camp Challenge’. The task was to ski 10 runs at each of the five indoor snow domes in the UK in a single day, and by doing so raise funds for the snowsports charity Snow Camp to...
How tariffs will affect the US ski industry…

How tariffs will affect the US ski industry…

Since ‘Liberation Day’, when Donald Trump announced a range a tariffs that the USA would apply to various countries around the world, life within the domestic snowsports industry has become more complicated. Notwithstanding the fact that the actual level of tariffs varies from week to week, depending which country the USA is dealing with, the...