OFF-PISTE ADVENTURES

Keen to attract more winter visitors, Alpine ski resorts are offering many more sports in addition to traditional skiing and snowboarding. Dominic Bliss heads to Les Arcs and La Plagne, in the French region of Savoie, to try zip lining, moon biking, bob rafting and most hair-raising of all - speed riding -

-  Dominic Bliss

When skiing and snowboarding aren’t enough, many Alpine resorts are now offering plenty of other activities to get your adrenaline flowing. Some, like moon biking, will keep you busy after all the ski lifts have closed down for the day, while the crazier ones, like speed riding (skiing with a canvas wing), will scare you witless. The Paradiski ski area – which contains the resorts of Les Arcs and La Plagne – has plenty of unorthodox winter sports to keep you busy.

Moon biking

If you’ve ever driven a snowmobile, you’ll know how quick and powerful these machines are across snowy terrain. But snowmobiles run on fossil fuel and spew exhaust fumes. One environmentally friendly alternative is a device called a moon bike. Like a snowmobile, it features caterpillar tracks at the back and a broad ski at the front. Crucially, it’s driven by a battery-powered electric motor.

At the ski resort of La Plagne, after all the ski lifts have closed for the afternoon, and just as the sun is starting to set, I join a group of five other first-time moon bikers for an off-piste adventure through the undulating terrain and forests in-between the skiing pistes.

At first, these heavy bikes aren’t easy to operate. In order to steer and change directions, rather than turning the handlebars, you lean your body hard over to the left or right. The throttle is a tiny thumb shift on the right-hand handlebar; the acceleration surprisingly powerful, thanks to a 45-watt motor beneath the seat.

Handle with care