I’ve never been good at winter sports. I grew up in Los
Angeles, the land of sun. Ergo snow was not exactly in plentiful supply unless
you got in your car and drove to Big Bear or somewhere like that. The one time
I tried a winter sport was when I was about 10 or 11. My parents, my aunt, and
my uncle took my brother and I skiing on slopes close to my grandparents’ house
in the Berkshires. I went a few times down the bunny slopes, and then decided
to try a slightly bigger hill. I was being pulled up the hill on a rope like
pulley with polls every few feet, and I wasn’t really paying attention. I ran
smack into a poll and nearly knocked myself out, so needless to say I spent the
rest of the afternoon in the lodge nursing a goose egg on my head.
Fast-forward 15 years. Over this past MLK
weekend I went to visit my grandfather, my uncle, and my cousin in Keene, New
Hampshire. They live close to a bunch of different slopes, so for a few hours
on what turned out to be the coldest day of the weekend, we decided to try them
out. I’ve wanted to try snowboarding for a while, despite my not so great
experience as a child, but I’ve never really taken to the time to learn. Lucky
for me, my 16-year-old cousin Annika was willing to be my teacher for the day!
So after being equipped with a rental board, Annika very patiently spent the
next two hours teaching me the basics of snowboarding:
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| I'm on the left, Annika is on the right. She has no idea what she's getting herself into... |
I fell. A lot. My behind felt like a very sore ice cube (if
there is such a thing). BUT, by the end of the day I was able to stand up by
myself and I had a couple of good runs (down one of the easier hills but I’m
not about to be picky):
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| Getting ready to stand myself up |
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| One of my good runs! Made it more than two feet without falling! |
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The one thing I never did master was stopping, hence more
falling. But I did have a great time trying. It would definitely be something
I’d want to try again. Next time though, I think butt pads would definitely be
a good investment.
