Former BBC Dragon Launches Wiltshire’s First ‘infinite’ Ski Slope

Nick Jenkins, Moonpig founder, former BBC Dragon and Wiltshire local has unveiled the first infinity ski slope in Wiltshire. This groundbreaking innovation brings the thrill of the mountains to the South West of England, offering ski enthusiasts of all ages and skill-levels the chance to master their skiing technique - any time of year, right in their backyard.

When asked why he created South Wilts Ski Club Jenkins said: “I’m a very keen skier and I wanted to find somewhere for my daughter to practice between skiing holidays. I tried the Skieasy infinity slope in London myself and loved it, but it was always too busy to book and it was a 90 minute drive. I wondered if I could bring the concept to Wiltshire so in June last year, I started looking for a suitable building to base it in and now we are opening!”

Situated in a farmyard in the hamlet of Bapton, very near the junction of the A36 and the A303, between Warminster and Salisbury, the facility offers ski enthusiasts an unparalleled opportunity to learn, refine their technique, or build slope fitness before the ski season. The Infinity Slope’s continuous, rolling surface claims unique advantages:

• Personalised one-on-one coaching with recorded video feedback for precision improvement.
• No time wasted getting back up the slope. In contrast, a run on a dry ski slope is 10-20 seconds and takes five times longer to get back up again. Even in a ski resort the ratio of skiing to lift time is 1:5.
• One hour non-stop at full speed on the slope is the equivalent of skiing from the top of Everest to sea level!
• The surface is always the same, the weather is the same and there is no one to crash into you. You can focus on your technique.
• Great for introducing children to skiing before their first ski holiday so you can quickly skip the nursery slopes.

The concept of an Infinity Slope isn’t new. 1937 German skier Heinz Ermel patentented a ski slope conveyor type machine, though there is no evidence it was ever built. Peter Florjančič made the first known working example in 1947 whilst living in Davos. He went on to invent the spray atomiser and plastic zipper.

In 1961 Ray Hall, a ski instructor developed a perpetual, mechanical hill (called Ski-Dek) which was built on the floor of the Klockner Steel Products Co. in Rockaway, N.J. and tested there. There are suggestions of earlier iterations. Here we see Hall demonstrating the Ski-Dek on the US TV show 'I've Got  A Secret' on December 4th 1961.

The Maaxtracks slope can be adjusted from 13° to 22° with speeds ranging from 0 to 30 kph (18.6 mph) making it usable for absolute beginners as well as advanced skiers. Visitors will receive personalised one-on-one coaching from resident ski instructor Craig Philpott, who can also provide video playback of each session, allowing the student to observe and correct any unique habits in their technique.

South Wilts Ski Club will officially open on October 17, 2024, offering sessions starting from 30-minutes. Sessions run from Wednesday – Sunday (Wed 12:00 - 20:00; Thu & Fri 11:00 - 18:00; Sat & Sun 10:00 until 17:00) and cost from £30 per person for 30 minutes in peak time and £18 per 30 minutes off-peak (when booking a block of six sessions). Book your session here: https://southwiltsski.com/ Ski boots, helmets, and skis are provided free of charge.