SOUND of Music star Julie Andrews may be more famous for climbing every mountain' than Pirates rider Adam Skornicki.

But the 31-year-old Pole can certainly vouch for the benefits you gain from indulging in fresh air at high altitude if the impressive start to his Poole career is anything to go by.

Skornicki's Castle Cover Pirates team-mate Davey Watt admitted he likes to have a bit of sun on his back when he underwent a spell of pre-season training riding moto-cross in Spain.

Ex-Pirate and six-times world champion Tony Rickardsson also preferred the warmth of Italy and Slovenia for his February training.

But for others, like Skornicki, there is nothing better than putting on skis and getting to grips with the snow and cold to get their bodies ready for the rigours of an exhausting eight-month speedway season.

Others who have followed the same path include ex-Pirates stars Antonio Lindback, who even spent time as a ski instructor in the Swedish resort of Are, and Lars Gunnestad, the Norwegian ace who keeps fit in the long winter months by cross-country skiing.

It is the Polish riders, however, who head for the mountains in their droves annually to get fit for the speedway campaign.

And Skornicki, who has plundered 23 paid 24 points from 10 rides in Pirates' opening two matches, believes British riders would do well to follow suit.

Skornicki, who rides for Poznan as well as Poole, said: "The Polish teams have gone to winter training camps for 20 to 30 years and it really works.

"We do some skiing, running and gym stuff, two or three training disciplines during each day. It's great because all the team can go for 10 days, two weeks, whatever, and it's good for team spirit.

"Teams don't always go to the same place either. Some clubs go to Italy, others to the Czech Republic and we also train in the Polish mountains.

"It's like the Swedish clubs. Some of them do the camps as well. Now lots of English riders have been asked by their Polish clubs to go on training camps with them.

"Perhaps more of the English lads will do it next year because I think Edward Kennett did it this year and in 2007 with Czestochowa, while Lewis Bridger also did it with Czestochowa last year.

"It helps to build team spirit but it's also a good thing to do for an individual purely because of the physical side.

"It's good to spend time together during the day because you don't always have time to speak to each other during the hectic periods in race meetings.

"I think it's a really good idea to hold these pre-season training camps because the team line ups change every year.

"Even if you stay in the same club every year there are always riders who are new. So it's a good thing to do."

Skornicki added: "I started skiing when I was 17, the first time I went to a speedway winter camp.

"It was a few hard days for me. I was not used to it but I just put a pair of skis on, gave it a go and it was very painful because of all the falls I had.

"I'm still not a very good skier which is unusual because most of the other speedway riders are very fast.

"We do downhill and cross-country, with cross-country a good form of preparation because all the muscles are working very hard.

"It isn't always good fun but it's really good training.

"I even went to Italy this year with my wife Anna, our five-and-a-half year-old daughter Victoria and 15-month-old son Karol.

"It was our first time as a family and it was great."