Every year the Evionnaz ski club organises an amateur giant slalom ski race on the mountain above the Valais village in southwest Switzerland.
The tradition has been passed on from generation to generation and has turned into a real family affair.
On the Saturday, villagers – young and old – climb the mountain above Mex to the Planets chalet, which was bought by people from Evionnaz and rebuilt between 1972-1975.
While some make the evening dinner – a local game delicacy – others prepare the piste for the next day’s locals-only race, trampling flat the deep snow and marking out the course. A Mass is usually celebrated in the chalet in the evening, along with numerous glasses of local wine.
Sunday is race day, a moment of local pride and joy. The Planets giant slalom race is an opportunity each year for the villagers to show off their skills and compete against their neighbours but also the chance to share a drink, a laugh and to relive precious memories.
“It’s a bit of fun, it’s not really about the competition, it’s a nice day together,” says one of the co-organisers of the mythical race in the documentary by Swiss public television RTS.
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