Villars of the community: Grant Management fund raisers on the piste again
January 17, 2008 | Posted by grant management
It is hot toddies all round for the intrepid Grant Management team which returned this week from the mighty 24 hour ski marathon in Villars.
The idea is to ski as a team from midday Saturday to midday Sunday non-stop, completing as many sponsored laps as possible to raise money for charity.
This is the third year Grant Management has pulled on the salopettes, raising funds for DSUK, Teenage Cancer Trust, Patouch, and World Food Programme. And on that subject, you can still add your own contribution to these good causes by emailing laura.francis (at) grantmanagement.co.uk
It seems the all-night leg was particularly grim but, come the final hooter, everyone had survived.
Here are some photos:
And here are some video highlights (with more available here):
The only female skier on the team, Laura gives us a run-down of the main players, their strengths and, cough, weaknesses:
The G team!
1. Graham Goulden – aka The Running Scotsman
Graham kicked off the race running up the hill in his boots, kilt and wife’s underwear. The fit policeman managed to put us in a strong tactical position for the rest of the race. In fact, his admirable endurance and constant goodwill earned him the G prize at the end. We are still waiting for Steph to send us a picture of the udder cup sitting proudly on his desk!
2. Iain Gourlay – aka our Star Captain
Iain – who, like Peter, was on his third mission to Villars – wasn’t always the textbook idea of a captain but he was there to hold your hand through the hairiest moments of the night and kept the team in good nick throughout. For the practice day he organised us all to meet for breakfast in the early hours but failed to turn up, apparently due to a late ‘planning’ session. That set us in good stead to take the ‘virtual’ 8.00am train and once finally on the mountain, Iain led a high speed ski ability assessment blast around the slopes of Villars to help with decisions as to the ski order of the big event – oddly enough Iain’s slots avoided the worst of the night shifts. I guess that’s one of the benefits of being captain
2. Peter Grant – aka Head of the Pack
Peter’s speedy skiing put us in a great position and achieved our best ranking yet! We have been told that he was the only person not to experience any falls. Next year we suggest a web cam should be fitted to his suit for proof. Later Mr Margarita Man ordered two exciting pitchers for the group. We were rather taken aback when we realised that what looked like table decorations were in fact our drinks.
3. Laura Francis – aka The Kitty Manager
Laura, the female of the pack, was kept busy, following the boys around the slopes while looking after their precious drinks kitty. There were a few hiccups on the way, including stolen skis, dropped gloves and her famous red hood being thrown into the crowds. However, she always remained optimistic and was just pleased she didn’t lose a different garment on every run!
4. Malcolm Hansen – aka Skippy
Malcolm, possibly the best behaved of the group, was brave enough to return for a second year. His calming personality gave us a false sense of security of what was about to lie ahead. However Malcolm had a smile on his face throughout the ordeal and we hope his daughter doesn’t work him so hard on his next skiing trip!
5. Eric Hawthorne – aka The Aviator
Eric seemed to be the wild child of the band and had many compromising stories to tell of Iain and Peter’s younger years. When he wasn’t keeping us amused with his reminiscences, he entertained us with his shiny new flying helmet which he wore through sun, snow or gales. It didn’t matter if he couldn’t see as long as he looked the part.
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