Skiers and snowboarders are being offered GPS gadgets by some ski holiday specialist that record speeds and distances, as well as mapping out the day’s route. The gadget is called sportsDo and it runs on your mobile phone to give you accurate real-time performance stats. There’s also a comprehensive web portal that lets you share your stored activity information and connect with other enthusiasts around the world. Check with your ski holiday specialist to see if they hire out this geeky gadget. The GPS information, which includes graphs and charts of your performance, is can be accessed on your phone’s display or listened to through earphones. Another similar gadget is Sumit which is a Garmin product and although originally designed for hikers can be easily adapted for skiers and is currently in use at six French ski resorts. At the end of the day skiers and boarders will get a certificate with a mountain map of the day’s route plus speeds and distance info. This is a great memory of your first and many skiing holidays

The Satski from Satsports is another gadget that is fast gaining in popularity with skiers. For those who are familiar with the soggy pistes map that ends up torn and unreadable when you are trying to the decipher where you are on the maze of runs will soon be no more. In a few years’ time we will all use satellites to tell us where you are on a downloadable map, much like in-car devices do now, Satski is here and the answer.

Forward looking ski holiday companies are offering these and other gadgets so when you return a hired GPS system at the end of the day, you are given a map showing the runs you skied, how fast you went and so on. All good fun and maybe a bit of one up-manship in the chalet over that delightful dinner you are enjoying. Check with your holiday operator when you book your ski holiday.

Satski