Yooning is the trendy sport for 2013

One thing is for sure about a yooner - it's way faster than public transport. But before I explain further, perhaps I should first enlighten you as to what a yooner actually is. If you grew up in a cold climate, the chances are you had a sledge or toboggan as a kid. Well, a yooner is simply a hi-tech French version of the same.

Based on a form of wooden sledge called a "paret", which was used by children in the mountain valleys of France's Savoy region at the turn of the 19th century, a yooner consists of a single ski-like runner that's about a quarter of the length of a ski, with a bucket seat on top. There's a coiled-spring suspension, a control stick that thrusts up between your legs like a joystick, and a brake positioned at the rear of the runner.

There's also a strap similar to a surfboard leash, so that when the inevitable happens and you and your yooner part company, it doesn't hurtle off down the mountainside of its own accord. The design is remarkably similar to that of the old paret, except that it utilises hi-tech materials instead of wood, the steel runner improves handling, and the sprung seat improves comfort.

So, here I am, about to try yooning for the first time on the slopes of Meribel, one of France's premier winter sports resorts. Alongside me is expert yooner Guillaume Crousaz, a native of Meribel who will be giving me a few riding tips.

We start off on a gentle beginner's ski slope, as we've had to wait until evening when the ski lifts are closed and the skiers are off the mountain - yooner riders are not allowed on the pistes during the daytime.

I plonk my behind nervously on the seat as snow falls increasingly heavily out of a bruised grey sky, and with my legs out in front of me, dig my heels into the snow and pull forward as if doing a horizontal squat, until I start to slide of my own and gravity's accord. "Use your feet and hands to steer," shouts Guillaume, who is riding beside me. As I pick up speed, I'm surprised at how effective and easy this is.