Saturday, Oct 22, 2005
Outside it's 80Degrees C. Inside you get 23,000 sq metres of snow Arnie Wilson previews the Ski Dubai snowdome, which is bringing the white stuff to a ski-starved desert nation
It does happen in places like Arizona and Morocco. But the Persian Gulf - can they be serious? It could only happen in a dome.
Yes, snow could be the new sand for skiers and skiing wannabes in this United Arab Emirates sheikhdom. It's coming this winter - man-made and not the bizarre result of some freak reversal of climate change. And it could spell the wane of sand-skiing in Dubai, where temperatures average about 80?F.
In one of the more bizarre developments in the winter sports industry, the Persian Gulf's first snowdome, Ski Dubai, will be an indoor ski-slope where state-of-the-art snowmaking systems will carpet an area the size of three football fields (22,500 sq metres). It is due to open by the end of the year.
The remarkable building will be 85 metres high, and clad with curved sheeting "to represent an aircraft wing shape virtually floating in mid air".
The temperature inside the dome will be "maintained at a comfortable -1?C to -2?C" (the cooling available is equivalent to 10,000 to 15,000 domestic refrigerators). Ski Dubai will have five slopes, ranging from Diamond, with slopes as steep as 45? in places, to Purple for those just starting out. A permanent ski patrol will be on hand on-piste to help beginners.
The longest run will be 400 metres, with a vertical drop of more than 60 metres. One novelty will be that the runs will have a major 60? curve on the way down to make them more interesting. For snowboarders there will be a 90-metre quarterpipe and what is claimed to be "the largest indoor snow park in the world".
The slopes will be served by a four-person chair and a tow-lift. As Dubai does not have much of a skiing tradition everything, including warm ski clothing, will be rentable. When skiers want to take a break, they can get a warm drink or snack at the "St Moritz Cafe" or, rather alarmingly, the "Avalanche Cafe".
Snowdomes are springing up all over the world, particularly in countries with little or no natural snowfall or mountains of their own. The UK currently has three, and there are plans for many more. China's fourth opened recently in Beijing.
There are now more than 50 snowdomes operational in 20 countries worldwide. The company involved in Dubai, Acer Snowmec have already provided the technology for nine "snow facilities" worldwide including sites in Indonesia, Taiwan and Malaysia. Snow dome operators in tropical countries have found that many people have little interest in skiing or boarding - they just want to see, touch and taste snow for the first time in their lives.
The Dubai snowdome was designed with the help of Konrad Bartelski, Britain's most successful World Cup skier.
"This is a wonderful and rather surreal story about the British," he says. "The British, who virtually invented downhill skiing, are now leading the way in providing the perfect environment to learn to ski - in the middle of the desert.
"The new dome will provide the complete progression for beginners in an entirely unthreatening and controlled environment. No wind, no whiteouts, and no one is going to die of cold."
The dome may well also become "home" to an Austrian ski racer who has been involved in its conceptualisation. After the Austrian Ski Federation informed the 32-year slalom specialist Kilian Albrecht that he would not be in the World Cup squad for the coming season, he announced that he was thinking of abandoning the Austrian Alps and heading for the desert to adopt Dubai as his new home. However, the federation has now had a change of heart, so Albrecht is reconsidering.
Ski Dubai's future may not be cast in stone either. Some snowdomes have failed to last the course. One of the world's first, in Adelaide, Australia, which opened in 1988 as "the world's first indoor ski, skate and toboggan centre" is up for sale. The world's largest, built in earthquake-proof towers in Tokyo in 1992 never broke even and was demolished two years ago.
By ARNIE WILSON
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