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I came to skiing late. I had hit 40 and was trying to find a family holiday that everyone was keen to go on. The mountains, it transpired, were the answer. There was snow galore, adrenaline-fuelled fun and a mind-boggling quantity of hot chocolate (plus vin chaud for the adults). Perfect. Ever since that first trip, I had thought about how much fun a ski season would have been in a gap year, or just after university. You know the kind of thing: living in the Alps from December to April and working in chalet, skiing or snowboarding in your time off, hitting the bars until the small hours and existing on ludicrously little sleep. Of course, Brexit means that even if I still had the energy to ski and do a full-time job cleaning loos and changing beds, the chances of getting a work permit would be vanishingly small. The specific rules around it vary between countries, but in France you need a job offer and for the employer to have advertised it to EU-qualified people first. Read more: The best ski resorts in Italy The reality for UK citizens is that there are plenty of young people from mainland Europe, Ireland (as well as Aussies, who have a reciprocal working holiday agreement) to fill up the seasonal ski jobs without employers needing to deal with the bureaucracy of hiring someone from the Britain. The chances of my dream being realised seemed doomed. Until, that is, I discovered the Ski Club of Great Britain’s rep scheme – a different, more concentrated way of doing a season for people who are in it mainly for the skiing rather than the partying. They have reps in Europe and North America, and reintroduced them recently into a selection of French resorts after being absent for almost a decade. Could this be my way into a ski season, a chance to hit the slopes for a month or more instead of a week on school holidays? I headed to Tignes in the French Alps to try my hand at being a rep in the company of Mark Brailey, who has been repping for years in Austria, Switzerland and now France. Mark, 63, lives in Bristol and owns a web marketing company. A laptop and a good broadband connection are all he needs to stay on top of things when he is in the mountains. He became a rep after being warned by his doctor about his unhealthy lifestyle. He decided to get fitter and to do more of the things he loved. Read more: I found the most beautiful walking route in England Last year, he managed a month on the slopes, cramming in as much time skiing as a gap-year student might in five months. Our mornings started at 9.30am at the foot of the slopes in Tignes Val Claret. It was snowing heavily on the first day and only two Ski Club members joined us, keen to explore the powder. An important part of the role is to – diplomatically – become the sensible one in the group, so Mark and I suggested a few runs down blues and reds to gauge the quality of the snow and everyone’s skill level. The people in your group vary from day to day, and different abilities can require some management. As a rep, the emphasis is on safety, so it’s crucial stick with the less advanced skiers and make sure everyone gets home safely, rather than ploughing on ahead with the more capable bunch. You’re not a guide, though – more of a facilitator with good knowledge of the slopes – who can suggest, but not lead. Read more: How to have an extraordinary ski holiday in Italy on an ordinary budget That being said, reps must be able to ski both on-and off-piste to an advanced level, taking bumpy black runs in their stride and zooming down all but the toughest slopes. My resort, Tignes, is known for being a party town with a young crowd but, with a maximum altitude of 3,456m, the on-and off-piste skiing is popular with Ski Club members of all ages. While you don’t necessarily need to be an extrovert, you do need to enjoy meeting new people. Reps work six days a week – and host the social hour in a local bar each evening. Read more: Koblenz is the cosy German city that welcomes visitors like locals The social gathering is a casual affair. It’s more about being there to chat rather than make welcome speeches. This is just as well as it can be an effort to be bright and breezy when you’re middle-aged and tired after a full day’s skiing. We settled down in Le Couloir, a dark-wood pub that offers a relaxed, rather than boozy, apres-ski experience. Gap-year me would have found it a little dull, no doubt, but then he would have been even more aghast at my 10.30pm bedtime. C’est la vie. Before you can become a rep for the Ski Club of Great Britain, you must take a compulsory 11-day mountain safety and leadership course, which costs £3,499 and qualifies you for five years. The course takes place this year in Tignes from 1–13 December. For more information, visit the Ski Club website.
