It?s eight in the morning on a bitterly cold winter day at Solang Nullah, above Manali. But one of India?s most famous skiing slopes is already overrun by a motley crowd of local skiers ? all experts, aged from four years to the mid-30s ? and trainees from all over the country. A conspicuous bunch of schoolchildren is being given a taste of skiing by the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports (DMAS), Manali. They have very short, toy-like plastic skis and they cruise down the gentlest section of the slope, shrieking ecstatically.

A little farther up, a couple is struggling in the first stage of learning to ski seriously. They?ve got beyond the tumbling stage, which means they have learnt to find the balance points on their skis. As they ski uncertainly past me, I can hear the woman say, ?It?s so difficult to stop? to the man in a Kannada accent. I try to be helpful. I make a vee with the tips of my skis close together and the tails far apart and the inside edges of both skis biting the snow and call out to her, ?Make a snowplow like this and there is no way you will not stop. If you are not being able to stop, it means you are not pressing into the snow hard enough. Use more strength.? She smiles her thanks.

?Ha! I?m a fine one to be dispensing advice,? I think. I have just donned skis after more years than I care to remember and a friend who is a DMAS instructor has carefully set the DIN (Deutsch Industrial Norm) number of the bindings at zero. He has also aimed a hefty kick at my boot and nodded with satisfaction as it instantly released. (The DIN setting is deliberately kept low so that the boot will come free of the ski in case of a fall as otherwise a fall with the ski still attached can result in a broken leg. As skiing ability increases, and chances of falls recede, the setting number is upgraded.)

Many of the local skiers are veterans of national and international championships. One of them is Narayan Thakur, a model-handsome young man with long ringlets, who was a trainee at the same ski course as me aeons ago. He calls out to me and I learn that he is teaching the Bangalorean couple to ski. They are now practising the snowplow turn and he has made them keep aside their ski sticks to master it quicker. I start to do a stem turn and Narayan tells me there?s now a new technique for it. ?Wha-at?? I say, with a rush of regret for all the years I?ve been away. But he?s off, for the Bangalorean man has landed on his bottom in a jumble of skis, arms and legs.

I go in search of Jagat Thakur, a DMAS instructor who?s recently been in Japan to brush up on new technique. ?I hear there?s a new technique for stem turn,? I say. ?Yes, earlier, if you had to go left, you would shift the right ski to make an A and put weight on it. Now, you can shift either ski but the weight will still be on the right one,? he explains.

I resolve to return as a trainee once again to learn the new technique.

Need to know

Learn the ropes:

You can enrol for the regular 14-day course at the Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports, Manali 175131; Ph (01902) 253789; Fax: (01902) 252137; E-mail: info@ whmi.net. Course fee is Rs 3,100, all-inclusive. The next courses start on January 11 and 26.

For private skiing lessons, contact Narayan Thakur (98161 54276), Alam Chand (98161 71091) or Meher Chand (98163 29829). Rates are usually Rs 300 per day (inclusive of equipment) for one person and Rs 500 for a couple.

Travel:

A bus from the Inter-State Bus Terminus, Delhi takes you to Manali in 14 hours. Solang is 14 km from Manali. Taxis are available.

Accommodation:

You can stay in hotels in Manali or in Solang.