Magic

Nov 29, 2006  ·  11:16 AM  ·  permalink

This morning we woke up to eight inches of fresh powder on the ground and as I took the dog for her morning walk, surrounded by nothing but the snow-muffled sounds and the blue light, I started to wonder: what is it about fresh snow that still makes my heart pound?

For me, a big part of skiing is simply enjoying the snow. There is no more magical experience than resting in a snowy glade with nothing but the hush of falling snow.

Last season, I was skiing the trees below Steep and Deep at Vail when I caught an edge and went tumbling into a tree well. I was alone and had an instant of panic as I realized where I was and how close I was to being stuck. But I had landed on my back with my feet toward the trunk and still had one of my poles, so I knew I could get out. I lay there catching my breath and letting the adrenalin ebb and as I focused my eyes, I could see big, fat, perfectly-formed snow flakes floating down and landing all around me. It was a surreal experience to watch the individual flakes falling toward me through the canopy of conifers and I probably spent 10 minutes laying there before I struggled out of the well.

This morning, with the dog bounding in the snow like a puppy and my own excitement rising, I saw clearly that skiing is about being childish. I love to catch air just as much as I did when I was ten; I still think it’s hilarious to shake snow down from branches onto the people following behind me; and when I go ass-over-teakettle into a tree well, I dig myself out, laugh it off, and I still let out a ridiculous cry as I attack the slope.

It’s been snowing in Colorado since Monday night. Aspen (pictured at top) has received 24 inches in the past 48 hours, Vail has had 17, and Steamboat has had 21. I’m one of the lucky people who gets to make his own schedule and tomorrow is a powder day. Yeeee-Haw!

Photo courtesy of Aspen-Snowmass