J.Spin
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A link to pictures and video is available at the bottom of the report
Our big annual ski trip kicked off on January 26th with James? arrival at the Missoula airport. With the rather lame ski conditions that Vermont had experienced for much of January, James hadn?t been out on the slopes since our December 23rd trip to Sugarbush for their $5.50 day. James was worried that his ski skills would be a bit rusty (which I doubt is actually possible) for our Utah trip, so I offered up the idea of heading to Lost Trail on Friday morning so he could get his ski legs fired up. Since Ty had been sick the previous Sunday, I also wanted to get him out on the slopes on Friday, and even Saturday if possible to make up for some lost slope time.
It was actually a lot of fun getting ready with Ty and James, and since James has a toddler of his own (Jackson) at home, he handily took care of working with both Ty and Dylan in the morning when I was getting ski stuff together. The day was progressing pretty well until we were driving up Lost Trail Pass and I realized that I had forgotten Ty?s leash. Ty had been skiing more and more without the leash, but he still wasn?t controlling his speed through the entirety of a typical run. It looked like fate was telling us we?d really have to cut the cord (so to speak), at least for today if Ty was going to get any skiing in.
Ty was certainly concerned that he was without the leash, but I told him we?d forgotten it, and he?d just really have to work on his turning and speed control today. James joined us for the first run down Meadow Run/Meadow Trail, so we could all spend some time together. Ty did fairly well on the top section of Meadow Run, but had one pretty good crash when he failed to control his speed. He had an even bigger crash when he got going too fast on the flats of Meadow Trail and slammed into the wall of snow that forms the uphill side of the run. He was definitely shaken up after that second crash, and insisted that I help him ski the rest of the run. He skied between my legs all the way down to the Bunny Hill, and would NOT let me take my hands off him. I was a little worried that his hard falls had shaken his confidence too much, and he would regress in his skiing, but fortunately I would find out that wasn?t the case.
As soon as Ty got to the Bunny Hill, he surprised me by wanting to ski by himself. Ty doesn?t typically vocalize his thoughts about skiing to me very much, but he seems to know a lot more about what?s happening than he lets on. He knew that we didn?t have the leash, and that he?d had trouble on his usual run off the chairlift, so it seemed as if he set his mind on working on his skills on the Bunny Hill. He ticked off run after run on the Bunny Hill, with the only need for me being to help him on the rope tow. Being totally free of Ty on the slope meant that I had lots of time for getting pictures and video of him, which I did (see link below). Eventually, I convinced him that it would be a good idea to get some food, at which point he already had nine Bunny Hill runs under his belt.
I called to James on the radio, and he met up with us in the lodge for a little lunch. James said he was having a great time out on the hill, and it didn?t sound like he was feeling any ill effects from his month off the sticks. Crowds were pretty light since it was a Friday, so we eventually grabbed a table near the warmth of the fire. I wanted to make sure Ty was warm when we headed back out onto the slopes. It wasn?t all that cold, but the day?s weather was interesting. We?d had snowfall, sunshine, and sometimes both at once.
After eating, I returned with Ty to the Bunny Hill, and James went back out on his own for some mountain exploration. Ty did 13 more runs on the Bunny Hill for a total of 22. It was by far the most he?d ever done in a single day. Each time Ty would get to the top of the rope tow, he?d just turn around and rip off another run. I kept expecting him to call it a day each time I?d release him at the top of the tow, but he was definitely in a zone. James came around for Ty?s last few runs, and helped me convince Ty that we should get going. James? morning half day ticket was complete, and I wanted to get to work for a few hours in the afternoon and wrap things up before we headed down to Utah. Later, as James was recounting his runs on the mountain, he told me about one run where he was really ripping up North Face and had many people on the lift hooting and hollering about his turns. Of course, no sooner was the entire populace of the lift watching him, than he promptly exploded into a huge yard sale of equipment scattered up and down the slope. I?m sure it must have been quite a sight to see, and I smile every time I think of how it was timed perfectly while everyone was watching. And, it happened right under the lift. Hilarious!
I?ve got several pictures from the day, as well as some raw QuickTime video of Ty that I took with our digital camera. The pictures and video are available at:
http://www.JandEproductions.com/2006/27JAN06.html
J.Spin
Our big annual ski trip kicked off on January 26th with James? arrival at the Missoula airport. With the rather lame ski conditions that Vermont had experienced for much of January, James hadn?t been out on the slopes since our December 23rd trip to Sugarbush for their $5.50 day. James was worried that his ski skills would be a bit rusty (which I doubt is actually possible) for our Utah trip, so I offered up the idea of heading to Lost Trail on Friday morning so he could get his ski legs fired up. Since Ty had been sick the previous Sunday, I also wanted to get him out on the slopes on Friday, and even Saturday if possible to make up for some lost slope time.
It was actually a lot of fun getting ready with Ty and James, and since James has a toddler of his own (Jackson) at home, he handily took care of working with both Ty and Dylan in the morning when I was getting ski stuff together. The day was progressing pretty well until we were driving up Lost Trail Pass and I realized that I had forgotten Ty?s leash. Ty had been skiing more and more without the leash, but he still wasn?t controlling his speed through the entirety of a typical run. It looked like fate was telling us we?d really have to cut the cord (so to speak), at least for today if Ty was going to get any skiing in.
Ty was certainly concerned that he was without the leash, but I told him we?d forgotten it, and he?d just really have to work on his turning and speed control today. James joined us for the first run down Meadow Run/Meadow Trail, so we could all spend some time together. Ty did fairly well on the top section of Meadow Run, but had one pretty good crash when he failed to control his speed. He had an even bigger crash when he got going too fast on the flats of Meadow Trail and slammed into the wall of snow that forms the uphill side of the run. He was definitely shaken up after that second crash, and insisted that I help him ski the rest of the run. He skied between my legs all the way down to the Bunny Hill, and would NOT let me take my hands off him. I was a little worried that his hard falls had shaken his confidence too much, and he would regress in his skiing, but fortunately I would find out that wasn?t the case.
As soon as Ty got to the Bunny Hill, he surprised me by wanting to ski by himself. Ty doesn?t typically vocalize his thoughts about skiing to me very much, but he seems to know a lot more about what?s happening than he lets on. He knew that we didn?t have the leash, and that he?d had trouble on his usual run off the chairlift, so it seemed as if he set his mind on working on his skills on the Bunny Hill. He ticked off run after run on the Bunny Hill, with the only need for me being to help him on the rope tow. Being totally free of Ty on the slope meant that I had lots of time for getting pictures and video of him, which I did (see link below). Eventually, I convinced him that it would be a good idea to get some food, at which point he already had nine Bunny Hill runs under his belt.
I called to James on the radio, and he met up with us in the lodge for a little lunch. James said he was having a great time out on the hill, and it didn?t sound like he was feeling any ill effects from his month off the sticks. Crowds were pretty light since it was a Friday, so we eventually grabbed a table near the warmth of the fire. I wanted to make sure Ty was warm when we headed back out onto the slopes. It wasn?t all that cold, but the day?s weather was interesting. We?d had snowfall, sunshine, and sometimes both at once.
After eating, I returned with Ty to the Bunny Hill, and James went back out on his own for some mountain exploration. Ty did 13 more runs on the Bunny Hill for a total of 22. It was by far the most he?d ever done in a single day. Each time Ty would get to the top of the rope tow, he?d just turn around and rip off another run. I kept expecting him to call it a day each time I?d release him at the top of the tow, but he was definitely in a zone. James came around for Ty?s last few runs, and helped me convince Ty that we should get going. James? morning half day ticket was complete, and I wanted to get to work for a few hours in the afternoon and wrap things up before we headed down to Utah. Later, as James was recounting his runs on the mountain, he told me about one run where he was really ripping up North Face and had many people on the lift hooting and hollering about his turns. Of course, no sooner was the entire populace of the lift watching him, than he promptly exploded into a huge yard sale of equipment scattered up and down the slope. I?m sure it must have been quite a sight to see, and I smile every time I think of how it was timed perfectly while everyone was watching. And, it happened right under the lift. Hilarious!
I?ve got several pictures from the day, as well as some raw QuickTime video of Ty that I took with our digital camera. The pictures and video are available at:
http://www.JandEproductions.com/2006/27JAN06.html
J.Spin
