Pierroz’s Culinary Legacy

In the off-season at Les Moulins (a place aptly named, as Gérard Perraudin once found a millstone in the stream as a child), you typically encounter avid golfers swinging their clubs. But in 2013, some of them were in for a surprise when they faced a formidable opponent: a fox, as clever as it was cunning. A master of mischief, the sly creature waited for the perfect moment to emerge, snatch a ball, and make off with it. Initially stunned, then amused by the fox’s skill, one golfer filmed the antics of this ball-stealing bandit, naming it "Foxy," and shared the footage widely. Even the BBC couldn't resist joining in on the “Foxymania” sweeping through Verbier.

The dévaloir—a Swiss term referring to a chute for disposing of household waste—was a common feature in luxury chalets during the 1960s and 70s. These shafts, accessible on every floor, funneled trash to metal containers in the basement. From there, it fell to concierges or service staff to empty these bins—a grim task. Before incineration, they had to sort through the nauseating jumble, transfer the contents into bags, and haul them to small garbage collection huts. Yet, there was a silver lining to this unpleasant chore. Returning empty bottles, then worth a deposit of 50 cents each, provided a lucrative side hustle. Some industrious staff managed to supplement their income significantly, with one concierge admitting that the bottle trade—roughly 3,000 per year—funded his vacations! However, this era of dévaloirs came to an abrupt end when they were deemed fire hazards and sealed off, disappearing into obscurity.

Xtreme—that’s the name of the mindblowing event synonymous with the dizzying ballet of the world’s best freeriders. But here’s the twist: this thrilling competition has surprising aquatic roots. It all began with a passion for surfing, which in 1991 sparked a wild ideas in the minds of Nicolas Hale-Woods and Philippe Buttet: to found the Swiss Surfing Association in a land without waves or swell—a feat that no nation without access to sea had ever attempted. "We did it for fun, thinking that if the Jamaicans could form a bobsleigh team to qualify for the Olympics, why couldn’t we?" At the same time, with their new production company, they set out to make a film showcasing the parallels between surfing on water and on snow. Their decision to tackle the daunting north face of the Bec des Rosses with a camera on their shoulders would ignite the unfolding of an incredible story.