Cold facts, hot topic

Want to practise your skiing before you hit those snowy slopes? The Ski Club of Ireland is a non-profit making organisation for the promotion and development of skiing in Ireland. For information on tuition and events, racing news, pictures of the dry slopes in Co Dublin and an online newsletter, see www.skiclub.ie

Looking for the latest snow? The most snow? The coldest snow? A magazine-style website for skiers provides feature articles and news updates on topics such as the Austrian train disaster and rescue effort, with a chalet/apartment finder, fitness training, health guide and a ski-letter. At www.ifyouski.com

The Irish Snowboarding Association is a community for snowboarders: its website is weak on content, but has three huge lists of links for keen snowboarders. At www.net1plus.com/users/utah/isa/index.html

Check out reviews and maps of the slopes and resorts before you go, or submit your own reviews, at Skimaps.com. With videos, maps and snow reports of ski resorts from the Middle East to Australia. At www.skimaps.com

There's more to mountains than skiing and snowboarding. For articles on and news about all mountain sports, from climbing and biking to extreme kayaking and the new sport of outback mountainboarding, go to www.mountainzone.com