It’s spring break, time to go skiing. Well actually, the fact that spring break is occurring had nothing to do with the trip, save for the fact that lift tickets were (I assume) more expensive and there were a lot of people around (it wasn’t too crowded today but I suspect tomorrow will be considering the line of people renting when I returned my stuff). I don’t know what prompted the trip to Breckenridge, but I certainly appreciate Ryan for inviting me along (so I didn’t have to drive or go alone, the primary reasons I haven’t done more snowboarding).
Today was the best day of snowboarding that I’ve had (not that there have been many, I think this makes 6), largely thanks to Ryan and Scott (one of Ryan’s friends) waiting up for me occasionally and challenging me (by leaving me behind), but also because I finally feel confident enough in general to make turns and such without slowing down first. The fact that my stomach was somewhat unsettled for most of the day was annoying but I wasn’t going to let that prevent me from having a good time.
It was a somewhat warm day to start with, but the wind on the lifts was cold enough that a jacket was still required. Or in my case: the risk of falling and sliding meant that I wasn’t about to take off my jacket, though unzipping it part way was comfortable at times. After we left the peak 8 base it did feel chillier, though that was probably thanks to being less in the sun or later in the day, depending on where we were.
Breckenridge was where we skied in January, so I knew my way around peaks 7 and 8 reasonably well. That said, I wasn’t quick enough to realize which lift we were going up on the first run and ended up stuck on a catwalk because I was unstable on the slope before it flattened out and slowed down. That’s still an improvement over how I did that run in January when I never managed to get to the catwalk without falling and having to unstrap one foot to push myself along.
It only took me a couple runs to get back in the groove to the point that I could s-curve my way down the mountain smoothly, and if Scott and Ryan weren’t just pointing downhill and going (basically whenever they were trying jump or to cut through the trees) I could sometimes keep them in sight. The main problem I still have is runs sloped severely off to the right for a long ways, where I’m on my toe edge and generally don’t feel comfortable enough to do s-curves, so I end up just drifting down slowly. Well, that and I don’t do great at high speeds or well at all on really steep spots, so I don’t try anything harder than blues. I also refuse to try moguls, but I don’t view that as a problem.
I didn’t manage to fall spectacularly this time, or rather I managed not to, though that’s not to say I didn’t fall. There were plenty of spots where it was a bit icy or otherwise unfavorable where I fell flat and slid, the worst spot being on a blue at the top of peak 9 where I went to avoid a skier that had fallen and discovered why he’d fallen. I didn’t hit him, but I felt like I came closer than I wanted to. My worst fall was from trying to turn on a blue on peak 7 where it was a steep slope and I slipped and pretty much slid to the bottom of the steep part before I could get up.
Besides getting my own equipment (boots, snowboard, and helmet), which isn’t likely to happen, what would have been most helpful would have been a camelbak or something like it so I don’t have to dig my water bottle out so often. That would also free up a convenient pocket on the inside of my jacket for something, though I don’t know what I’d put there except my goggles or gloves while I’m off the slope. I also need to remember to get sunscreen. Ryan shared his today (though I think I still managed to get my chin sunburnt), but as far as I can tell there isn’t a bottle anywhere in my apartment.
There’s probably more to tell, but I was up before 6 and spent the day being far more active than usual so I’m exhausted. Perhaps I’ll add to this post tomorrow.