Jungfrau Ski Region – having fun with an Olympic Gold Medalist

Hi Everyone!

Hope you are all bearing up with this cold front we seem to be having right now. Having promised you (see previous post here) a couple of weeks ago to try out the Jungfrau Ski Region, I decided this cold front is the perfect excuse for a trip to Grindelwald – right in the heart of the Jungfrau Ski Region.

These cold, stone mountain fronts are definitely a specialty of the region with the mountains Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau looming up large wherever you look.

Read on to find out what happened…

Jungfraujoch Ski Region – having fun with an Olympic Gold Medalist

It is not every day you get to meet an Olympic Gold Medalist so when I was told I could interview Gian Simmen (Olympic gold winner and twice world champion in half pipe discipline)  I literally jumped at the chance.

We agreed to meet up at the Kleine Scheidegg for lunch and then do a few runs together. Lucky for us as there was no real snow yet and the best man made ski pistes of the region were right there. Not to mention it was super easy to get to. Simply a 2 minute walk from our hotel to the train station and then jump into train!

Sometimes it’s the little things that leave the biggest impressions – I nearly fainted when the ticket conductor came through – literally jumping from carriage to carriage of the moving train – that’s got to be a life threatening job!

A couple of runs and then it was already time to meet Gian. It was lucky we had moved first as look at our lunch – a lovely traditional rösti with egg and bacon!

 

5 Questions with Gian Simmen – Olympic gold winner!

1. What made you start snowboarding and when did you realise you were good at it?

I was born in Davos – it was expected we all ski but I was dreadful at it. Even my parents made fun of me. Then we moved somewhere with a skateboarding park right outside our home so I started skateboarding and snowboarding was the natural progression.

Others kept on telling me I was good. Always the youngest I simply copied what they were doing and along with my inner drive and persistence kept on practising new moves every spare minute until I could do them perfectly.

2. What was at the forefront of your mind as you went to the Olympics?

All I wanted was not to become last. I had never won a competition before so not in my wildest dreams did I think I might win. Even once I had won it took some time before I realised just what a big thing this was. However arriving at Zurich airport to a huge crowd and being dragged away for a press meeting given strict instructions to take chewing gum out of my mouth quickly brought it all home.

3. What was your toughest moment in your career as a snowboarder?

The year following the olympics. Media attention was huge and I wasn’t doing so well on the competition front. It didn’t take long for rumours to start that he was a “one day flyer” – that was hard.

After the first year things got better again but I am still eternally grateful for my sponsors who kept on supporting me despite the bad press.

4. Why do your children have to ski when you hated it?

When you are little you don’t have the strength to turn a snowboard. If a child simply points their skis down the mountains and takes off they still have the possibility to control themselves to a certain degree but on a snowboard all hope of control is lost. It’s also easier to teach them the mountain feeling on skis with ropes to make sure they don’t fly down the mountain.

Once they can ski and are old enough I let them choose what they want.

5. What is the one thing you think everyone needs to experience here in the Jungfrau Ski Region?

That’s easy – the beautiful sunsets and sunrises. It has always been a dream of mine to sleep at the top of the Junfraujoch.

 

Tip for anyone visiting the Jungfrau Ski Region – Gian is the boss of the Freestyle Park in Grindelwald.

 

What happened up the mountain:

Of course after lunch we went back onto the Lauberhorn run for skiing/snowboarding and photos.

Photo 1:

I looked at the photo and said – this won’t fly with my readers – I need to do something funky. So…

Gian is watching I can certainly get that ski up higher – this looks pathetic!!!

Mission accomplished!

A few more runs and jumps…

…and then Gian has the brilliant idea of covering me with snow and I am to film him in the process…perhaps I need to rethink this funky theme?

I even had to stand twice as the first time my finger managed to take up half the screen – all this whilst at the same time my hubby had already taken the better video…hmmmm

Click on image to see the video… or hubby’s video here!

Where to stay!

We stayed in the lovely Schweizerhof Grindelwald, only a 2 minute walk away from the train station. The perfect place for a romantic getaway with it’s choice of quaint restaurants…

Stylish comfortable rooms with the most awesome view of the Jungfraujoch.

The most adorably helpful staff.  and a fabulous wellness area. Do your pool laps whilst basking in the mountain views – what more could anyone ask for!

The perfect way to start your day!

Small picture gallery:

So admit it – this now really makes you want to visit the Jungfrau Ski Region doesn’t it – smile!

This winter you can ski for free in the Jungfrau Ski Region with the special promotion “Skipass geschenkt” (ski pass for free when staying for two nights in a hotel of the Jungfrau Ski Region between Monday and Friday throughout the whole skiing season) – more details here.

A huge thank you to the Jungfrau Ski Region for having us. This is a sponsored post but the views are totally my own and I honestly can’t wait to go back!

 

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Wishing you all a fabulous day!

nb: all photos taken by and property of funkyforty.com

 

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