3RWELSH is always keen to offer opportunity to its soldiers as a reward for their service to the unit and the wider Army Reserve in general. To that end, the annual battalion skiing trip is a key event in the unit’s Forecast of Events and extremely popular with our serving soldiers. For several years now the venue of choice has been the Trois Vallees in the French Alps, offering almost unlimited scope for the courses that form the JSAT Alpine Skiing Scheme.
So it was that 32 members of the unit deployed to Meribel-Motterat in the heart of the Trois Vallees between the 17th and 25th of March 2023. All fingers (and toes) were crossed as the unit’s coach pulled out of Cardiff on the evening of the 17th, hoping the vehicle would make it further than the previous year when it had broken down a mere hour along the M4. This time the Gods smiled though potential trouble awaited in France as national protests against proposed pension age increases saw roads blocked by demonstrators. Fortunately for those deploying, the protestors had grown bored by the time the coach rumbled past Albertville, a mere hour from their destination.
Generating ski instructors takes time, patience, and many years of running foundation and continuation training courses. To keep the flow of aspirants moving upwards towards a Ski Leader 1 qualification, Ski Foundation 1, Ski Foundation 2 and Ski Foundation 2 Continuation Training were all on offer this year. Some of the soldiers do not ski in between unit expeditions so for many it was a case of refreshing on the first day’s skiing. Once they had regained their feet, it was on with the new syllabus. Conditions as ever were perfect, and groups were out for the entire day to make the most of this vast ski area; most were literally done in on their return but glowing and happy.
Ski expeditions make for good media and to make the most of this opportunity, unit reps back in Wales were brought into the expedition Signal group so they could harvest and exploit real time photos, video, and detail for social media. The CO’s main effort is recruiting so this strategy played perfectly into our recruiting campaign. Once they had been primed, the soldiers literally flooded the group with great content.
The make up of our expedition was very much junior rank dominated which was satisfying as they are the target retention audience. Individuals seem to understand that it is a privilege to ski and be paid to ski and many were asking about the plans for 2024 before this expedition was complete; the hooks that retain quality personnel were very evident.
“Fantastic experience and I have definitely got the bug; hoping to book with the family around February next year. Thanks everyone for the company and the laughs this week, it’s been awesome.”
Fusilier Mark Morgan-Green, B Company 3RWELSH
“Absolutely pooped but had a fantastic experience and learnt new things. Great opportunity to work, play and be paid to do it. Roll on next year’s trip.”
Fusilier Christian Jeyes, B Company 3RWELSH
“What an experience! This is what I joined for….the chance to travel, push myself, learn new skills and….to have fun doing it.”
LCpl Will Williams, D Company 3RWELSH
“The expedition was a fantastic opportunity that I wouldn’t have been able to have if I wasn’t part of the Army Reserve. I was able to work with some incredible instructors, who were able to push me to my limits in an exciting and rewarding environment, while also being able to spend time with like minded individuals. I enjoyed being able to progress my skills in a sport that I love as well as develop my mental and physical resilience both on and off the slopes.”
Fusilier Will Williams
