When the British took to skiing in the early 1900s, we did so with competitive verve, organising clubs and amateur races that still draw big crowds today. The Inferno, held in the elegantly understated Swiss town of Murren, celebrates its 80th event in 2024, and constitutes the biggest public ski race in the world. It’s utter madness, involving 1,850 entrants racing over the nine-mile run, which drops from Schilthorn, at almost 2,970 metres, down to 790 metres, taking an average skier 20 minutes (the winner considerably less).