I love winter sports, especially alpine skiing. Starting at the age of 7, I learned to ice skate and then luckily my family made a Tahoe trip to go skiing when I was 9. After that trip, in spite of the hardship of being a novice, I was hooked for life, eventually learning to jump off cliffs and then race on the World Cup tour.
For me, the most wonderful pleasure derived from skiing is the feeling of the wind in my face. That simple pleasure is what makes skiing so much fun for me and with it comes the uninhibited freedom of travel and that is accompanied by the exhilaration of flying down the side of a mountain. This same freedom has given people confined to wheelchairs a new and wonderful outlook on life.
Skiing in the trees, whether on downhill or cross-country skis, brings peace to the mind and has helped many a soul move to the mountains to make that pleasure a way of life. Other sensations of fun in skiing come in the enjoyment from utilizing techniques that blend the rhythmic movements of the body together to propel oneself forward almost effortlessly across the snow or the satisfaction of something as simple and necessary as a cup of hot cocoa or piece of chocolate. You will need nutrients and water after the massive energy expended getting from your car to the lifts or careening down an endless black diamond chute.
Skiing is a social sport and the shared experience bonds us together and gives great stories to tell around the nightly fire.
After all that exhilaration, the lines of people you will inevitably encounter on a holiday week, whether it’s on the highway, at the rental shop, cafeteria or chairlift, is all tempered by the people you are with. Skiing is a social sport and the shared experience bonds us together and gives great stories to tell around the nightly fire.
Learn the code
In spite of the social nature of skiing, the Skier’s Responsibility Code doesn’t mandate that you ski with a buddy, but it is a good idea so you have help in an emergency. Even though you’re skiing with a buddy, it’s ultimately you against nature and the mountain and you have to be ready for that solitude of thought, experience and self-reliance.
Be prepared
Before you arrive, save time and money by finding the best deals on tickets and equipment; get to the resort early to avoid a long walk from the parking lot to the base area or shuttle stops. Besides warm layers of clothing, bring tinted eye protection, sunscreen, lip balm, food, water, neck tube, hat and gloves.
Take a lesson from a pro
If you’ve never skied before or haven’t had success in the past, get a lesson from a pro. And by pro, I don’t mean your friend who is an expert skier and knows everything about skiing. Believe me, that person will not help you at all. Educate yourself on the Skier’s Responsibility Code to make your life safer and easier for everyone else. Even though we are surrounded by world-class ski resorts, one of my favorite simple ski indulgences is booting up at work and skiing on my snowblades (Google that) down the plow hills that accumulate in parking lots by the lake.
It’s the simple things that make ski life so fun. See you on the slopes.
