About a month ago I decided to try snowboarding for the first time. Actually, I decided to become really good at it.
It had been more than 15 years since I had dared to get on a chair lift. Trauma from my youth had kept me well afraid of every snow sport.
More than anything, I wanted to show my father that I could succeed without his help and without him pushing me to do what he wanted me to do.
A month ago my father and I rode together for the first time in 15+ years. It was my first day on a snowboard and he was on skis. I pretty much fell the whole time and he had to wait for me.
Yesterday, however, the story was different. We went with my father and my sister, and this time I was the one waiting for him as he struggled with uncomfortable boots, glasses, googles, bad conditions and intense altitude. It was a bitter-sweet experience for me. On one hand I was happy to ride with him, but I also felt sad thinking that my skill had surpassed his so quickly. It seemed we would never be able to ride together.
Luckily I was wrong. We went again to the mountain yesterday and this time we had a blast. I think we did at least a dozen runs together. He was definitely a bit slower than me and more careful on his riding, which makes sense considering his is on his late 60s.
He wasn’t able to do all the challenging routes I was taking between the trees but we still did a bunch of runs together and had an excellent experience. I thought he was going to be burnt out after a few hours but he went on for a while, even asking me to keep going when I was finally getting tired.
It was an interesting experience, riding with him, after hating him for so many years for taking me to the hardest, most frozen and windy point in our home town resort without me feeling ready for it. It was also nice to take care of him, making sure we were only taking easy routes that he could handle. It was a bit of a role reversal, where I took on the care taking character.
The best part of it is that we still have 3 more full-day passes for him to come enjoy Eldora ski resort with me. I look forward to doing more runs with my dad and getting to enjoy this sport with him. I know he loves skiing very much and I know he loves seeing me progress on the snowboard. We are both getting a lot from it.
In terms of my skill, it is great to see that I keep improving quickly. This time I was able to go on several black runs without much discomfort. I even ventured into the trees several times and did 100 yards on what would be considered a double diamond route.
I did fall a dozen times and got scared on more than one occasion. The slopes still look fairly steep in some areas and my brain gets blocked, withholding me from getting my toe turns and flowing down the slopes.
No worries though, I keep getting better every time I go up and I know I will be doing double diamonds with comfort in no time. =D
