lessons they said, take lessons. i should have listened. i was easily swayed out of taking lessons and even more easily swayed to hop inside of a gondola to the top of a mountain before even learning how to strap by boots into a snowboard. ok, it’s not what was i thinking, it’s more like i wasn’t thinking.
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| i was all smiles before i knew what i was getting myself into |
as we started ascending up a snow covered mountain my eyes continued to widen with every inch closer we got. once the gondola doors opened, a part of me decided to protest and was not going to leave that gondola. the other part of me got up and got out while making a terrible attempt to play it cool. unfortunately the fear followed me out. this was only the beginning.
it was cold, there was more snow than i had ever seen before, i had layer after layer on and i had moon boots attached to my feet which were inconveniently attached to a board. i had no idea what i was doing. the group i was with all knew how to snowboard and had been many times, so they took off down the mountain. i was given a pointer or two and made attempt #1 to stand. it ended shortly after with a face plant in the snow, followed by many more falls, trips and crash landings.
i was bad. real bad. the worst part was i had no idea how to get better. no tricks, no skills and no knowledge. what could have been a 15 minute ride down the mountain took me over an hour. that’s over an hour of falling over and over again into snow, by myself. i don’t use this word lightly, but i was very near misery. when i was about half way down with a banged up and bruised body, i decided i was going to just slide down. my bum was covered in snow already so why not. and so i did. that’s how i got down my first mountain. i slid down it like a slide. i had no shame.
once down, i met up with the group to have a quick bite to eat. they all had been down multiple times already and were having a ball. then there was me. make up running all over my face from my numerous face plants and struggling to walk from the soreness of all my not-so-graceful falls. at this point i was determined. after a quick refuel, i had to try again.
my second attempt wasn’t any better. i road up the gondola with the group and they all decided to go down a blue. that wasn’t happening for me so there i was again, on my own, still not knowing what i was doing. it was dark already by this time and it was snowing. snow storm kind of snow. as everyone i was with disappeared down one side of the mountain i debated going down at all. i could not see a thing. nothing. knowing there was only one way to get down that mountain, i took a deep breath and went for it.
there wasn’t a soul in sight. the mountain was completely empty and i was more scared than i have ever been. then, out of nowhere i saw two people sitting on the mountain. words can’t describe my excitement with any justice. my heart over filled with joy. i was not alone after all. i approached the two skiers asking if the mountain was closed which seemed logical to me. but really i just wanted a buddy incase i fell off the mountain into a snowy abyss. if no one knew what happened, no one would know to come looking for me. i needed a witness. it was still snowing heavily and was incredibly dark, it easily could have happened. unfortunately, the encounter did not go how i had planned.
the two sitting in the snow just looked at me. no words, no emotions. just two pairs of wide-eyed stares. so i repeated myself, this time asking if everything was okay. again, no words. just blank stares. the only noise i heard was the roar of the wind blowing snow left and right. i was living in a real life horror story. i decided my fate stood a better chance going down the mountain than it did hanging around the top with the two mutes. i felt like i needed a witness around for my witnesses. so down i went. i was on an extreme adrenaline rush powered by none other than fear.
going down the mountain this time didn’t take near as long. not because i was on my feet more, but because i wanted to get off that mountain as fast as i could. none of my group was at the bottom of the mountain when i got there. they had all made it down already and gone for a second, perhaps even a third run. but i stayed put and waited. that horror film of a ride was a close to my first day snowboarding.
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| celebrating survival |
day #2 started with a lesson from my boyfriend on the bunny slopes. why didn’t i do this the first day? it was still blizzarding out, but i had some idea of what i was doing this go around and it made a world of a difference. my misery instantly turned into a thirst for more. it’s amazing how much more enjoyable snowboarding is when you’re on your feet and not your butt. by days end i was already planning my next snowboarding trip.
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| the snowboarding crew |
before my near death experience on the slopes, i got to explore the charming city of denver a bit. i cheered on the nuggets through two last minute wins and then enjoyed the scenic views of red rocks amphitheater. it was a sight to see sans any performances, i could only imagine how much the venue comes to life at night. well worth the trip to check it out! thanks for a memorable time, denver.
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| red rocks |
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| go nuggs! |
we keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.
walt disney