2006 Olympics Inspire Self-Proclaimed Klutz to Tackle Tahoe

pre-Tahoe photo

Yep, that's right. I'm going skiing. I went last year (the first time in more than a decade) and it was a disaster. I'm proud to report that nothing was injured except for my pride. That took a severe beating when, after mistakenly taking a double-black diamond lift, I slid down part of the mountain on my bum. That was taking too long, so ski patrol ended up towing me down. With a stern reprimand to pay attention to the lifts.

At least they didn't chastise me for literally getting on the ONLY lift that didn't have an intermediate run. That would have been over the top. Plus, I had other kids to remind me of that one.

See, I never really learned to ski. I grew up on the east coast, where skiing wasn't much more than bombing down tiny little hills. Now, I went to college in the mountains, and the skiing was a bit more perilous there. In fact, the last time I skied in college I was night skiing on ice and took a pretty hard fall whilst doing the center splits. The jagged ice practically pantsed me...

Last year in Colorado, I worked on my snow plowing technique. By the end of the weekend, I think I had pretty much mastered crossing my skis and falling splayed on my back. At least there was some powder to cushion the blow.

Of course, while watching the Olympics this year, I decided that I simply HAD to learn to snowboard. It's my responsibility to a younger generation to pave the way for girls everywhere to power down hills at breakneck speeds breaking their necks--just like the boys.

Anyway, I'm going to Tahoe Saturday. Snowboarding TBD. Wish me luck. We'll see if I'm still smiling when I get back.