A survey by insurance company MORE THAN has found that 568,000 British skiers will take to the piste or go snowboarding worse for wear from alcohol this year.

The survey questioned 1,072 skiers and found that 74 per cent believed that drinking heavily the night before going skiing did not affect their ability to ski – and thought that the cool air helped clear their heads. A total of 45 per cent admitted they planned to drink every night of their skiing holiday.

A spokesperson for MORE THAN said that 2.5 million British skiers would ‘descend’ on Alpine ski resorts this season. Almost one-quarter – 23 per cent – expected to have consumed 18 units of alcohol on at least one night of heavy drinking during their holiday. This would result in twice the legal limit of alcohol for drivers in the UK being in their system as they took to their skis the following morning. Their intake would not resume to being under the drink-drive limit until 11am, said the researchers.

The insurance company and Dr Harvinder Gill together estimated that Brits enjoying a heavy drinking session at the après ski would probably finish drinking at 1am – and then be up the same morning at 8am to begin skiing at 9am.

Dr Gill said this would leave the average skier or snowboarder with seven units of alcohol still inside their bodies the next morning when they set off for the first runs of the day, making them to prone to impairments of balance, perception, critical judgement, visual perceptiveness and glare recovery.

MORE THAN said that the average intermediate skier might also reach speeds of up to 20mph on clear runs, making the risk of an accident ‘very real indeed’.

Skiers looking for fun in the snow are advised to delay hitting the slopes until after lunchtime if they have enjoyed a night’s heavy drinking. They should also make sure they eat well and check alcohol intake with a pocket breathalyser. And perhaps drink less, suggested the researchers – rather than ‘fool’ themselves into believing that the cool air would clear their heads and restore normal judgement and perception.

‘The results of the research will make bleak reading for sensible, sober skiers, as they also show how a large majority of the 2.5 million Brits heading for the slopes this winter are just as excited about the cocktails on offer in the local bars, as they are the fresh virgin snow,’ said MORE THAN.

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