Humans of Méribel - Loic The Lumberjack

This week the 'Humans of Méribel' continues, and features people I encountered through last winter. The last couple of posts included Ski Sunday presenters, and an Olympic gold winning athelete, all very glamourous. This week, it's the turn of Loic, who is a fellow ski instructor in Méribel. At the end of most winters I need to re-stock my log pile on the balcony of my apartment. With Loic being a colleague, and a lumberjack in the summer months, it makes sense for me to ask him for a delivery. So here goes with Loic .......

"My family left Bretagne (Brittany) and came to Méribel when I was six months old. My father at the time worked for the French Army as a nurse. He continued with this same line of work after he left the armed forces. He was known in the valley as the man that played his bag pipes, he used to play all the time! In fact he was given some pipes by the Duchess of Bedford one year. The Duchess used to come and visit Méribel and stay in the Hotel Grand Coeur. I'm guessing he treated her one day, maybe more I don't know, and ended up being given these bag pipes."

"Even though I have lived in the valley since the age of six months old, I'm still not treated by the locals as one of them. It's because I wasn't born here! During the summer I work in the forest, which is such a great life. And in the winter I am a ski instructor with the ESF, the French ski school. But I am starting to teach a little less now, firstly because I am aiming to ski more for myself. Secondly, I am trying to build up my log business."

"Loving your beard."

"Thanks, it used to be much longer. But last summer I was often having sawdust and other debris getting stuck in it. When I started to feel grease from my tools, it was time to shorten it."

"Last year my dog was diagnosed with a blood disorder, in fact unfortunately he had lyme disease. It was horrible, and the saddest thing ever when he died. But moving on, I have now got this gorgeous puppy of two months. In France when you register a pedigree, every year the first letter of the dog's name changes. This year the letter is 'M'. Because I love everything about Alaska, I have named him McKinley after Mount McKinley which is the highest mountain in North America. McKinley is going to have such an amazing first summer in the forest this year."

I hope you enjoyed this latest 'Humans' post, it's a fascinating project to run, and I can't wait to get going with it again this coming winter. If you would like to read a more skiing specific post, then click here for a link. The post is titled 'Are There Shortcuts To Good Skiing?', and was written a couple of winters ago. Next week I'll publish a final 'Humans of Méribel' from last winter, and by then I'll be back in Méribel after leaving the UK this weekend. Do come back soon, I wonder who will next feature on this blog page? Martin.