Throw a group of strangers together and they will bond according to age, background and economic standing. Throw a group of strangers together on a ski slope and you have a level playing field, especially if they're all first-timers on the piste. There's nothing like sliding down the baby slopes on your butt to bring people together.
However, even skiers like to stick with their own and resorts in Australia and New Zealand have taken note, offering special events and activities where like can ski with like. No more mixing with the wrong crowd. With categories including female, gay, lawyer, over 30 and men in uniform, the resort activity sheets start to read like personals columns.
Not sure which category you fall into? Read on and book your Antipodean ski trip accordingly.
Ski like a girl No hunky beefcakes on skis here. No ma'am, just a friendly all-female environment where women learn from women. Apparently, women ski differently from men - something to do with the centre of gravity, or the hips.
Thredbo resort, in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, offers a three- and five-day Women's High Intensity Programme (WHIP for short) that emphasises technique rather than strength, with five hours of skiing and tuition daily. Groups are small - no more than seven skiers in each - and everyone receives a free WHIP T-shirt and a video analysis of their performance. There's a party at the end of the course. Three days cost HK$3,870, with courses starting on July 29, August 5 and September 2. Five-day courses, costing $5,450, are scheduled for August 8, 15 and 22.
Nearby, Perisher Blue ski resort has a similar three-day schedule, creatively titled The Women's Programme, for intermediate and advanced skiers, running from August 9-11 and August 23-25. Coaching and mountain pass cost $3,507.