Fifty-one boys together with Mr McGregor, Mr Guest, Mrs Russell, Mrs Travis, Mr Brett and Mr Silk set off on Saturday 14 December for an incredible, action-packed skiing adventure to Sestriere, Italy.
After an extremely early start (3.00 am!!) and fun beginning – boys from the Upper School ski trip mistakenly tried to get on the Prep ski bus – they were off. What followed was a week brimming with excellent skiing (even if the weather for the week was somewhat of a ‘pea-souper’), fun, laughter and camaraderie.
The fun did not stop in the evenings, with football, volleyball, basketball and outdoor swimming (brr!). However, the highlight had to be tobogganing by night – screams of delight from the boys and howls from huskies, who seemed to want to join in the fun, reverberated all around the valley.
When in Italy there is always excellent food on offer, and boys certainly enjoyed tucking into many traditional dishes, including pizza and gelato, both at lunchtimes by the pistes and at dinner back at the hotel.
Throughout the week, boys also vied for the coveted Eagle award – a very eye-catching eagle ski helmet cover. Each day two boys, who were deemed ‘superstars’ for either their kindness or great initiative, were the recipients of the award and could be seen swooping down the mountain.
Our ever-enthusiastic and fun ski instructors were also delighted with their headwear when the boys awarded them Bedford Prep beanies at the end of the week.
All too soon, the week came to an end, and it was time to fly home. However, there was one last surprise for the boys and their teachers on the plane when the pilot (Jo G’s Dad) gave the teachers a special thank-you over the intercom and then volunteered his son and a friend to help with the cabin clear-up!
Throughout the week, we were highly impressed with the boys’ behaviour and resilience, and it was great to see their confidence on the slopes growing in leaps and bounds. Mr McGregor was also delighted that even more boys are now keen to join the ski team and try their hand at racing. We hope that everyone had a great time and look forward to repeating it all again in 2020!
