Busman's holiday for the US ski team (minus Bode Miller of course!)

After the fun and adrenaline of the Kandahar World Cup weekend in Les Houches, Compagnie du Mont Blanc invited the American ski team to stay in the valley a little longer to enjoy the Vallee Blanche.

Monday morning saw a relaxed posse of skiers set off with local guide Marco Obert to discover the glacial off piste empire of the Vallee Blanche – a far cry from the usual hours of ski training.

Of course, there's always one exception and the weekend's super-combined winner Bode Miller (he'll be the only one without skis in the picture, then!) decided to head up to the Aiguille purely as a tourist…maybe wanted to take some time out to write a postcard to his Mum, or wanted to buy a whistling marmotte...

Photo credit: Dauphine Libere