(Jargon Rating= 4) Areas of snow not marked as official pistes and where there is no grooming. Good skiers and boarders aspire to ride off-piste but, in Europe, do so at their own risk - off-piste slopes are not marked, protected from avalanches or patrolled. Going out of bounds, away from the prepared runs (and the ski patrols) can mean great fresh unexplored runs.