Advantages: Extreme Performance!
Disadvantages: Demands to be worked hard, not for lazy cruising, pricey

...The Atomic Beta Rides fall into a new category (yes, another one!!) of skis for this year: "Free Ride". Free Rides are a cross between specialty powder skis and free carve skis. The shovel/tip end of the ski is very wide whilst the the waist is narrower than that of powder skis, giving them better performance on groomed runs. These skis will let you go and have fun all over the mountain. The Atomics are one of the very best of this bunch of skis. It lets you attack the off piste powder as well as go very fast down the groomers too. For specs, well it's bright orange, but that doesn't really affect much expect the looks you'll get in the line at the lifts!! It has Atomic's Power Channel technology which pre flexes the ski to give a quicker rsponse in short turns. It has a 17mm carving plate and titanium is used to reduce... Read review

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Advantages: Go anywhere do almost anything - on snow, of course!
Disadvantages: Snow melts :o(

...There I was wandering round the Ski Show at the NEC looking for my dream ski - Salomon's X-Scream Series - at a decent price. I found it several times over, but as usual, overpriced for what they were. Salomon's never seem to be bargains, in my experience. Then the boss of my favourite holiday company suggested looking at Rossignol's Bandit B2. According to him, the French ski shops loved them. Intrigued, I wandered around again looking for them. No luck. They didn't seem to be there. Disappointed, I went home and decided to look on the net for this mysterious ski. I didn't find much there, either. I began to wonder if they really existed. A week or two later, I bought a skiing magazine that had a review of all the upcoming 2004 skis. And in there, was a review of the mythical beast that was the Rossi B2, along with it's siblings... Read review

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Advantages: Exhilarating pastime, scenery
Disadvantages: Travel times, expence

...As we sit wishing for an Indian summer I doubt the thought of skiing has passed the minds of all but the addicted but many will already have their skiing trips planned or be thinking of booking for the coming season. Here are my top tips for those new to skiing and maybe some reminders for the old hands. With such an array of resorts and skiing styles the choice can be overwhelming so I hope these tips I've picked up on the way help. RESORT First of all you need to decide where to go and for how long and you need to ask yourself some basic questions. Much of your choice will revolve around your budget, and remember that there are many extra costs on the majority of holidays so budget on the side of tight to make sure. How long to go for. If it's your first trip I would tend to stay away from a fortnights trip as if you... Read review

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Advantages: Thrills spills parties and fun
Disadvantages: Expensive if you're not careful

...Skiing is one of those sports... you love it straight away, or you'll hate it. If you hate it, you may grow to like it, but you'll never love it. But if the bug bites you, you'll be a skier (or boarder!) till the day you die! For me, the bug definitely bit... several times!! My first time skiing was with a group of 27 of us and the whole ambience of the holiday meant that the time on the slopes kept the same party mood. But that was a group holiday organised by someone else. What about organising it yourself? And what about the expensive reputation winter sports has? Well, your big nosed guide... that's me!... will show you the light that leads to heaven halfway up a mountain!!! Before You Start Decide what you want from the holiday. Are you a beginner looking to learn and have a good time? Are you a more experienced skier... Read review

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Advantages: Pure pop songs, catchy lyrics & beats!
Disadvantages: Monotonous - all songs very similar

...Atomic Kitten… famous for their pop tunes, not as outspoken or renowned as the Spice Girls but nevertheless possibly one of the UK’s most famous girl bands! Unfortunately they announced their split in February 2004 after much speculation over their suggested idea of “taking a break.” A brief history of this band… it was formed in 1999 by Andy McCluskey with three initial members, Liverpool born Elizabeth McClarnon (Liz), Natasha Hamilton (Tash) and Warrington born Kerry Katona. However Kerry’s engagement to Westlife’s Bryan McFadden and her pregnancy prompted her swift exit from the band in early 2001. Jenny Frost (previously a member of Precious… relatively unknown) quickly replaced Kerry in spring 2001 and concluded the now completely Liverpudlian trio! However as the name Atomic suggests – these girls were by no means miniscule... Read review

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Advantages: Pioneers at the time for girl groups, the kittens have a great girlie album here
Disadvantages: Poppy to the max

...Atomic Kitten's lineup may have altered after this album but this collection of records contains all the first songs that launched them onto the open market. I admire Jenny Frost as she fitted in and sings Kerry Katona's lines with ease. It is a shame the group has had to quit but we will see solo work and it will be quite good to compare. Here is my track by track breakdown: 1. Right Now: A very saucy song, 'do it to me slowly' they belt out, and Atomic's release is dancy and catchy. It sticks in your head and reminds me of an old version of las ketchup - repetetive and with a set routine. 7/10 2. Follow Me: A caring, lovely lyrical song that acts like a glorious reminder of the Kitten's dedicated attempts to being musically out for the youth. 7/10 3. Whole Again: What a record, this song made atomic kitten be rescued from... Read review

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Advantages: you'll always be on time
Disadvantages: tick tock

...What time is it? Ah hah! - Bet you don't know EXACTLY, do you smartypants? Huh? Huh? No you don't because the clock in your PC ain't that smart at keeping time and will drift significantly over a few months. When the clocks changed I set all of the clocks in our house to my PC, which had automatically changed the hour itself overnight. Trouble is, it was a good six or seven minutes out because I hadn't reset it since I originally fired up the system. Well now you can have it spot on all the time (well, almost). There are a couple of cool little utilities which you can get free and for gratis off of the old web which will automatically synchronise the time on your PC with no less than an Atomic clock. Ooooo er missus, - will it go bang? Will I glow in the dark? All this and more will be answered below. Press on, gentle... Read review

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Advantages: British, good personalities, great songs
Disadvantages: Kerry just left

...I wasn't really sure what I thought to Atomic Kitten at first. There was a part of me that disliked them, without due cause. I think it's a woman's thing, I can't stand Jo from S Club 7 and Ulrike Jonsson either. Anyway, Atomic Kitten annoyed me, but I had to admit their songs were catchy. I really liked See Ya!, it is the sort of song that goes round and round your head for weeks. Then when the single I Want Your Love came out, it was so good that I even bought it. Both these singles were happy, uptempo, pop songs that were memorable but not particularly deep. When I took my daughters to see Steps in concert in May 2000, the support acts were Daphne & Celeste, Buffalo G, Northern Line and Atomic Kitten. They were all pretty good (Yes, even Daphne & Celeste!), but Atomic Kitten were easily the best. They proved they could all sing... Read review

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Advantages: The accommodation, the skiing, the nightlife... everything.
Disadvantages: More costly than europe... but worth it!

...INTRODUCTION Whistler – Blackcombe is a ski resort situated about two hours bus journey north of Vancouver in Canada and is quite simply the most incredible ski resort I’ve ever had the fortune of skiing in. Before I begin to wax lyrically about its virtues a little background on myself as regards skiing. I’ve been skiing now for about 15 years having started at the tender age of 7 and until travelling to Whistler I’ve only ever-skied in Europe. In this time I’ve been all over Europe in all the major skiing countries as well as the less well known Andorra, Bulgaria, Finland and Sweden. I say all this not in an attempt to show off but to show that I think I have the credentials to comment on ski resorts. I actually went to Whistler for two weeks in Easter ‘99 to visit my brother who... Read review

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Advantages: brilliantly creative
Disadvantages: short track listing

...What other band could you expect to create such a fantastically creative and musically blinding album...none, because it would seem in this world the task is only in the capabilities of Pink Floyd: Atom Heart Mother provides a stunning colabiration between soft rock and the honest style of classical and progressive music. Despite being blaitantly contrasting to earlier efforts from Pink Floyd (i.e. Relics, the acid induced trip through seemingly random, but clearly well structured music in the form of a debut album), this change in "genre" has allowed Pink Floyd to develop their style to an extent whereby they have successfully introduced a powerful array of vocal and instrumental ideas into pretty much every track on the album...It results in some stunning originality and a great sound. Further to the actual musical content... Read review

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