For many skiers, driving a piste basher is the ultimate dream job. Spending every day in one of these impressive machines worth more than €300 000, with more than 450 horsepower, and with plenty of time left over for skiing - this just might be the best ski resort job there is! A while ago, our colleague Miranda was lucky enough to spend some time interviewing a piste basher driver. Find out more about this dream job below!
"The clock is just striking 4pm as I walk into the garage where the piste bashers are kept at Lermoos. The drivers are busy with the maintenance of their piste bashers; they usually do this before they start preparing the slopes. Every driver has his own vehicle. The youngest driver drives the oldest piste basher - probably not a coincidence! To do this job, you must not only be a good driver but also quite technical, since the drivers do most of the maintenance themselves."
Driving a piste basher seems to run in the family. Many drivers came into contact with the profession at a young age, having had a neighbour or family member who worked in the ski area. There is no specific training you must have in order to drive a piste basher (apart from having the appropriate driver's license), although you must be technically minded. The ski resort will train you, usually pairing you with an experienced driver who will show you how to drive in different snow conditions and different terrain, as well as how to secure the piste basher with a cable for very steep slopes.
The Grubigstein ski area in Lermoos deploys 6 piste bashers daily for its 25km of ski slopes. Work starts immediately after the lifts close, around 4pm, and each driver is assigned to his own pistes. As skiers and snowboarders move a lot of snow when braking, the lower-down slopes often require shunting the snow around before packing it down into the corduroy lines. Other factors that can pose a challenge include fresh snowfall, high temperatures (which make for mushy snow) and ski tourers. The latter often venture out into the mountains after the ski area closes, which can be life-threatening, especially on steeper slopes where the piste basher is only secured by a cable. Although this is an amazing job, it's also a lonely one, working for hours with only music for company.
A new piste basher generally costs between €250 000 and €350 000 and boasts at least 400 horsepower. Modern piste bashers also come with a GPS that can measure the thickness of the snow. Considering that a small ski area like Lermoos has just 6 of these, and then extrapolating to larger ski areas, it becomes easier to understand why lift passes are so expensive! On average, each piste basher grooms around 30km of slopes during a shift. Shifts theoretically start in the late afternoon and end around midnight, but on nights with fresh snowfall, it may only be possible to start grooming later in the night. As our reader Jim pointed out, most shifts end up being at night or very early in the morning, and drivers often have to sleep during the day. Piste basher drivers must be flexible. They usually work at least 6 days a week.
"In answer to my question, 'Um, where are all the women? Don't you have any female colleagues?' I get only chuckles. That would be a no. Apparently there have been women in the past, but it was never a great success. The men refused to comment any further on the reason, so unfortunately we can only guess. And although it is indeed rare to see females in this line of work, one exception is Sarah Summers, the first-ever female piste basher mechanic in the Savoie."
There are quite a few ski areas that offer the chance to take a trip in a piste basher and see for yourself what it's like to sit atop one of these mammoth machines. Some of these tours will even let you drive the piste basher for yourself! And at La Plagne, you can spend the night in a piste basher - a romantic choice for a ski holiday with your significant other!
Born and raised in the ski paradise of Vancouver, Canada, I learned to ski before I can remember, balancing precariously on my parents’ skis as they sailed down the hill. I started snowboarding in my teens and am now delighted to be exploring everything Europe’s ski scene has to offer!
