I grew up in Washington state, and as a result, I had frequent opportunity to try my skills on the snow. Naturally, I spent a lot of time on sleds as a kid and come age 11 or 12 I started snowboarding, mostly on scout trips - and I was terrible. Mostly, I think, it was sheer terror of losing control - so I'd make myself fall before anything bad happened.... which meant for very little progress and basically an aversion to going down snowy slopes at any sort of speed for years.
Fast forward to 2011, my last winter in Utah - home to the "greatest snow on earth" - and I finally try the slopes again, but this time on skis.
On the 28th, I spent the day skiing with Heidi's family - her dad, Jeff, brothers Dan and Scott, Uncle Jerry, Aunt Jenny, and their daughters, Abby and Emily. The trip was Jeff and Laurie's Christmas present to me. I figured I ought to try skis as I am much better at water skiing than wake boarding and wanted to see if there was any sort of analogous predisposition on the snow. ... And there was!
I began the day barely able to wedge my way down the mountain, and by the end I was carving the whole way down, maintaining pretty good speed. I also happened to fall about every other run, but that was OK by me.
Some shots from that day!
The sibs after getting all geared up - Scott, me, Dan, Rachel
Sibs + Dad - Scott, me, Dan, Rachel, Jeff
Rachel, Emily, Abby, Scott, Dan
Scott and I on the chair lift
View up the mountain
And down the mountain
the mountain
Jeff in the yellow!
shots on the ski lift
Dan "wedging" his way down the mountain
Me looking mean!
PS - those pants used to belong to my dad, when he was my age. Old wool snow pants - sadly, however, this trip marked their last use. They aren't so water proof any more and they're kinda falling apart.
No idea what we were doing. Dan, Scott, me
Dan and Scott
It was a great trip - thanks Laurie and Jeff for the great Christmas present!!!
