Chill Factor^e News

The Westbeach Freezer Jam promises to be a unique event bringing together the top freestyle snowboarding and skiing talent in the UK with top quality prizes up for grabs. There’s a weeks stay for 2 at CHILL CHALET, France, and a 4 day stay and ride at RED MOUNTAIN RESORT in Canada topping the prize pool. Dom Harington is also confirmed to play into the early hours at the after party in Chilli’s Bar.

For more information and to book your spot please visit www.chillfactore.com or call 0161 749 2222.

The set up is already pretty sick but we may change it around for the better so don’t be mad if we do.

Here is the park for this week, starting today!

The park will stay out for tomorrow’s special Subvert/Burton DVD premier after session. The latest Burton film It's Always Snowing Somewhere will be shown upstairs in the St Anton & Aspen suites from 7pm. There will be giveaways on the night, including the chance to win a copy of the new Shaun White Xbox 360 game. The freestyle park will be set up from 8pm for anyone wanting to have a shred after watching the DVD. For more information and tickets please see the awesome staff in Subvert.

On Friday we may close down certain features in order to get them shaped ready for Saturday’s CORe freestyle night. As always with the CORe nights, our resident coaches will be on hand to give out any trick tips you may need. For more information or to book your freestyle pass call 0161 749 2222 or visit www.chillfactore.com and check out the new freestyle pages.

Please note: The park plan is a guide, these features are on the slope now, Wed 5th, but they may change throughout the week.

With the Westbeach freezer jam at chill factore less than 3 weeks away, get some last minute trick tips from tips from UK Legend Danny Wheeler. Danny will be joined by the rest of the Westbeach UK team to offer their services from 7pm to 11pm this Saturday, 1st Nov, to get you dialing your tricks ahead of the freezer jam. The Freezer Jam promises to be a unique event bringing together the top riding and skiing talent of the UK with top quality prizes up for grabs. For more information on the Freezer Jam visit www.westbeach.com/freezerjam

Also check out our new park set-up below, we are still tweaking this but from next week it will be available to view from the freestyle pages at www.chillfactore.com. This week’s park set up includes two new features supplied by Subvert, a super buttery flat box and an awesome up box for some extra spins out, pretzel or danish anyone? We will also have our resident freestyle coach Dougal, who just won the LG Airbag comp at the London Freeze, on hand alongside our resident freestyle ski coaches, Pat and JP. For more information or to book your freestyle pass call 0161 749 2222 or visit www.chillfactore.com. See you there.

Please note: The park plan is a guide, we aim to put these features out but it may change from time to time.

Due to the European alpine championships on the 11th & 12th October at the chill factore there will be no freestyle this saturday. We are sorry for the inconvenience. Freestyle will continue from next saturday (18th) as usual.

Skiers and snowboarders at Chill Factore are to get an exclusive chance to try out next season’s top-flight demonstration kit before it hits the shops.

Top ski and snowboard brands will bring their 2008/09 collections to Chill Factore on Friday 29 August. Freestyle features will be set up and all skiers and boarders on the main slope will be able to test the equipment free of charge.

The new event will be held on the last Friday of every month. Chill Factore will be the only place in the UK where skiers and boarders can try out the latest range of brands before they decide to buy.

Skiers will be able to test out gear from Movement, High Society Freeride, Amplid, Icelantic and VIST. Option, Wild Duck, Endeavour, Amplid and High Society will be available for snowboarders to demo throughout the evening.

The equipment will be set up from 3pm until the slope closes at 11pm. A subscription to Fall Line magazine is up for grabs for the person who tests the most equipment.

For more information on Chill Factore visit www.chillfactore.com

Here's the Chill Factore park layout for this Saturday.

This Saturday's City Jam "Heroes and Villians" is at the new price of £35 for four hours. Check out the event poster and slope layout.

Due to the British Alpine Championships on the 5th & 6th July, the Chill Factor^e freestyle park will be closed on the Saturday 5th. There will be permanent features out from Monday to Thursday each week. Sorry for the inconvenience and we look forward to seeing you at our next Core freestyle night on the 12th July.

Here's the Chill Factore slope for this Saturday night.

The permanent freestyle features are going to be out Monday to Thursday. The freestyle night is on Saturday and runs from 7pm - 11pm.

Conquering Everest - Chill Factor^e's Charity Virtual Ascent. A Tribute to Sir Edmund Hilary.

Chill Factore’s instructors have been “climbing Everest”, in a 24-hour uphill ski marathon tribute to Sir Edmund Hillary.

The huge test of endurance at the UK’s first indoor real snow Alpine Village raised funds for the national ski and snowboard charity, Disability Snowsport UK (DSUK), which operates its north of England HQ from the venue.

A team of 10 ski instructors spent 24 hours took on the virtual ascent of Everest –completing the gruelling task at the same time that Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing reached the summit, 11.30am on 29th May 1953.

The team took it in turns to walk up the main slope with touring skis until they reached the equivalent of a vertical ascent of 8847m and a distance of 26 miles. They established a "base camp" at the bottom of the slope to help maintain energy levels.

Chill Factore chief instructor Mark Elliott said: “We have been talking about doing something to raise funds for DSUK ever since we opened, so when we heard the sad news of the death of Sir Edmund Hillary earlier this year, this seemed the ideal way both to pay tribute to his achievement and to raise money for the charity.

“Our instructors are all very fit, but of course this was about endurance so we had to train hard beforehand. It was effectively a marathon in which you ski uphill – not for the fainthearted!”

Chill Factore chairman Peter Moore said: “There is a bond between those who love the high mountains, whether they are climbers, skiers or snowboarders, and I know that the team put their heart and soul into this attempt.

“They are full of admiration for the work of Disability Snowsport UK and the achievements of adaptive skiers.”

Chill Factor^e will be hosting permanent freestyle features from Monday to Saturday. Sunday will be the only day that there are no freestyle features, as there is race training on.

Here's the proposed Chill Factore slope layout for their City Jam on Saturday 10th May. The City Jam will be supported by Dare 2 Be, who will be giving out spot prizes through out the night. There will also be a after party in the Chillies Bar run by Corona where there will be drink & food deals.

Snowboard coaches will be out on the slope to give you tips if needed, all included in the price.

FEATURES:
1 X RAINBOW
1 X BIG FLAT BOX
1 X STREET RAIL
1 X ADVANCED KICKER
1 X ROOKIE KICKER
1 X LOW FLAT BOX
1 X C RAIL
1 X BIN JIB

Due to the success of February’s trial for early morning lessons on the nursery slope, Chill Factor^e is happy to announce that lessons on the nursery slope will be available from 8am everyday and will close at 10pm up until April 21st 2008.

So, come along and be one of the first to check out the pristine, freshly groomed snow and enjoy the breathtaking alpine scene on the slopes! And what better place to learn? For Chill Factor^e is home to the best qualified instructing and coaching team in the country, led by Andrew Lockerbie, one of Europe’s top ski instructors and Chairman of the British Association of Ski Instructors (BASI). The teaching and coaching programme is designed to appeal to all!

So, if you have some spare time before work or want to catch the slopes when they're quieter, then call 0161 749 2222 and book your lesson now!

And for those heading for the main slope, here’s a reminder of the opening times:
• 10am on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday
• 7.30am on Wednesday
• 9am on Saturday and Sunday.

Please note that the main slope is open till 11pm.

Remember SCUK Members can get £30 off the cost of the annual Chill Factor^e membership, which in turn gives you 30% off slope time and lessons.

Chill Factor^e's online booking system is now available for use. Please visit booking.chillfactore.com, to make your next booking. No more time wasting in queues or on the phone.

Chill Factore’s nursery slopes are to be opened for an extra two hours in the morning for the rest of February to meet the huge demand for its lessons and taster sessions.

Tuition and taster sessions will now be available from 8am each day for the rest of the month. Early morning lessons will then be on offer on Wednesdays and Sundays throughout March. If the new times prove popular, the extended opening hours will become permanent.

Chief Executive David Burns said: “A huge number of novice skiers and boarders have already had their first feel for the snow at Chill Factore and are coming back for more.

“One of the company’s great ambitions has been to introduce newcomers to the thrills of snowsports. The popularity of our lessons is testament to the quality of our instructors – our taster sessions are almost fully booked now right through into March. We hope that our extended opening hours will help satisfy demand for slots on the nursery slope.

“And of course once the early morning novices and beginners have mastered their snowploughs, they can head off to the Mont Blanc restaurant for breakfast!”

Come celebrate the launch of CORE Chill Factore’s Freestyle Night on February 9th. Freestyle from 7pm till 10pm then head over to Chilli’s Bar for a bite to eat and drink! Special Launch Party Price – includes 3 hours of slope time, food and drink at Chilli’s Bar - Adults £44 and Juniors £32.

Christmas events and the January sales had serious competition in the North West this year as people from all over the region flocked to the UK’s first real snow Alpine village and snowsports centre, Chill Factore.

The enthusiasm of local people for Chill Factore‘s mix of snowsports, slope-side restaurants and active lifestyle shopping has been matched by that of developers in other parts of the country to such an extent that the company is expanding its executive team and bringing forward its plans to launch a new development division.

Former Airtours (now MyTravel) and Football League chief executive David Burns comes on board as Chief Executive at Chill Factore in Manchester while current Managing Director David Sterland becomes MD of the new development division which will concentrate on rolling out the Alpine village concept initially in the UK.

David Sterland said: “The first six weeks of Chill Factore were phenomenally busy. We were confident that we would have large numbers of experienced skiers and snowboarders coming along to test the slope, but we were delighted at the number of first time skiers who booked our taster sessions to get their first feel of the snow.

“As regards expansion, we have several sites in mind but we are keeping an open mind about all opportunities at the moment, looking at both the potential for new centres like Chill Factore in Manchester or for developing an existing facility. But the enthusiasm for the concept of Chill Factore is huge, so we are extremely excited about the future.”

David Burns was most recently director of leisure with the Trevor Hemmings group (which includes hotels, theme parks and Blackpool Tower) and chief executive of cruise and escorted travel specialists Page and Moy, ahead of the company’s recent successful sale as part of the Travelsphere Group.

He said he was delighted to be involved with what he described as “one of the most exciting innovations in the leisure industry in the last 10 years.”

He went on: “Chill Factore is a fabulous visitor destination offering a snow experience second to none, allied with quality restaurants and leading brand retailers.

“There is a great atmosphere in the bars and restaurants – friendly, welcoming and a real flavour of the Alpine ski villages I have experienced.”

The £31million Chill Factore is off J10 of the M60 and is right next door to the renowned Trafford Centre. At 180 metres long, it is the UK’s longest real snow indoor slope.

Chill Factore owns and operates a range of food and beverage outlets within the Alpine village, with balconies and views over the slopes. These including the Eiger, its fine dining restaurant, the Mont Blanc crêperie, ski/sports bar Chilli’s and the Café Extreme slope-side coffee shop.

Shops in the Alpine street are leased to big brand names. Anchored by the UK’s leading wintersports and outdoor specialist retailer, Snow+Rock, the outlets include Adrenaline Junkie, Subvert, Evans Cycles, Wetherspoons (Castle in the Air), Nandos, Chiquito’s, Gloria Jean’s Coffee, Boost Juice bar and North-West favourite Frederick’s Ice Cream. Dare2B, the Manchester-based active sports brand, selected Chill Factore as the venue for its first dedicated store.

Chill Factore has the country’s best qualified instructing and coaching team and has been acknowledged as the UK’s indoor snowsports centre of excellence. Snowsport GB – the body that represents all competition racing and snowboarding at international level – has established its UK national training centre at Chill Factore, while the British Disabled Ski Team will use the venue for training ahead of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.

And Salomon, one of the world’s top action and outdoor sports companies, has established its only UK on-site test centre at Chill Factore, where customers can try out the latest technology and equipment.

We received this from Pat Sharples, the guy in charge of the freestyle at Chill Factore.

I just wanted to give you a update on the Chill Factore freestyle sessions. We have not been sending layouts of the parks as they are still having a little trouble with getting the snow we need to build the jumps and features we want so I don't want send a layout and everyone gets excited only to be disappointed if we can't deliver the goods.

All in all, we have had some wicked sessions going on every Saturday and we do have plans to add plenty more features when things calm down there as it it so busy every day. We do have plans to start running promo nights with DJs, drink deals, food etc. which will run once a month. There will still be the normal freestyle sessions each Saturday and I will keep trying to get the park better and better and I'm hoping we should have more snow in there to build some big kickers.

There will be a freestyle session this Saturday at the Chill Factore for 7pm to 9.30pm. They would strongly recommend that anyone wishing to attend should pre-book a lift pass to avoid disappointment as it is still incredibly busy.

There is a selection of rails and a kicker that will suit all levels of riders.

They also hope to be able to provide shiny layouts for us within the next few weeks.

Here's the word from park-meister Pat Sharples...

The freestyle park has been set up on Saturday nights every week apart from the time they had problems with the snow on the first week.

The issue has been that they have been fully booked on the slope and that has made it hard for people to get passes for the Saturday evening. There are only 160 people allowed on the slope at any one time at the moment.

If people want to attend, then I strongly recommend they book a lift ticket in advance. There will be a freestyle session this Saturday and I'll be laying out the park.

As I hope you can understand, everything is all pretty new and people are still getting used to their new jobs. The info that has been sent out to some people who have called has been wrong, as there was supposed to be no freestyle sessions until after Christmas. However, there will still be a park every Saturday I promise.

It seems like the UK's newest slope is having a few teething problems. At the current time the main slope is closed due to a lack of snow, although they expect it to be open again tomorrow.

However, Saturday's freestyle session is canceled.

Chill Factore feels like a great place to come and snowboard. The Street feels intimate – almost cosy, whilst the slope feels vast – just like a real resort. Read the full review and check out the gallery.

The Chill Factor^e indoor snow centre opens at the Trafford Centre in Manchester within the next few weeks. A grand opening will take place on November 16th with a "soft opening" prior to that.

Planning permission for what is the UK’s fifth concurrently operational indoor snow centre was granted in April 2005 with work starting on site in August 2006. SCUK has been carrying news on the slope since March 2004 and we're heading up there this Thursday for a preview, to get a heap of shots, try the slope and ask the questions you want answering.

Chill Factore will boast a 180m long slope which at the bottom forms the world’s widest (100m) single real snow indoor ski slope. Chill Factor^e consists of three separate but inter-connected snow areas – the main slope (180m long x 40m wide), the nursery slope (40m long x 40m wide), a multi-activity slope for use by parties (40m long x 20m wide). There will also be a luge (approx 60m long) and a play area for children where they can enjoy real snow all year round.

Careful design is a key aspect of Chill Factor^e. The two ski lifts on the main slope will be suspended from the ceiling, rather than from towers, so that there is less obstruction on the slope. There will also be two ‘travellators’ or moving walkways leading to the top of the nursery slope for ease of use by beginners.

Ski-mounting - the setting up of ski and snowboard equipment - has taken place at Chill Factore as preparations for the imminent opening of the North West’s real snow indoor Alpine Village continue.

More than 400 sets of skis and 200 snowboards were delivered to the site and racked up by teams from Chill Factore and top action and leading outdoor sports company Salomon, which is supplying all hire equipment.