The Apocalypse in the Kitchen

[Harvey]

Working on this one myself with her first lesson a few weeks back. Haven't been able to get her back out there, not due to desire but rather being sick and bad conditions (even I didn't ski last weekend, wouldn't expect her to!). Anyways, it will take a while, but I am a few years away from the good times really rolling. Until then, it is sometimes going to be harder than when she didn't ski :? and also she will never truly be able to roll with what I ski due to lack of general athleticism and coordination. Still, good times will come on that front for me which is a good thing.

My wife had had one bad experience skiing when I met her. Her ironman brother put her on rented skis and sent her down Contusion (Kmart), on a bulletproof day. When we met she said she was afraid to ski.

I started her on, what we in North River, call backcountry skis. Fischer E99s. While everyone was recommending super short skis with "NNN" bindings...I went with leather, three-pins and E99s. We skied in the woods for 3 years without doing any lift service, and we winter camped. I've taken her out in temps well below zero and she's had fun. She says she misses it...with our cabin built, and our baby - lift service makes more sense.

So... then I bought her "shaped" K2s, and Voile CRB releasable bindings, and Crispi boots. We ski at Gore together about half the day, and split up the other half.

She's got an interesting thing going...she's not up to an intermediates turning ability yet...but can ski the single blacks almost as well as the blues or greens. In a way she's better on the blacks...somehow scraping down a black just looks better than scraping down a green. She's really a trooper. And except for that one day at Kmart, has never skied fixed heel.

Truth is SHE'D probably move almost anywhere...After I shared Tony's input with her...she likes the idea of Burlington, Seattle, Portland....

Like I said this thread has really helped me appreciate her more.

 

[jamesdeluxe]

this thread has really helped me appreciate her more.

Ditto for my wife.

$106 roundtrip to Quebec City this weekend... maybe she'll let me go if I ask nicely.
:lol:

 

[rfarren]

My fiancee' started last season, we skied one day, and it was miserable. It was icy and frankly scary. This year I changed my strategy. I realized that I wanted to share my love for this sport, not so much as to get her to move to the mountains, but because I wanted to share something I love with the person I love. She is fairly athletic, and after 6 days this season, she is skiing blues with parallel turns. I put her in ski school, always a level below what I thought her capable of. My strategy this year around was to emphasize the fun part of skiing. I didn't care if she skied blacks, or for that matter blues. I only cared that she had fun. Now, she wants to go up for weekends. She also loves that it has a high caloric burn.

 

[jamesdeluxe]

When I brought my wife down the Moran Faces at JH in thigh-deep untracked with her skinny 68-waist skis, she screamed bloody murder... even though that's an easy black there. But still, she's usually game for anything within reason, and it was really great when she rented some 99-waist skis at Grand Targhee and she finally "got" powder (I'm trolling e-bay to get her a pair). GT is a great place to learn because the pitch is mostly blue and there's lots of open space.

The next step is to get her up to speed on powder in tight NE trees.
:twisted:
I can't count the number of NE powder days she's stayed on-piste while the real goods were in the woods.

 

[rfarren]

When I brought my wife down the Moran Faces at JH in thigh-deep untracked with her skinny 68-waist skis, she screamed bloody murder... even though that's an easy black there. But still, she's usually game for anything within reason, and it was really great when she rented some 99-waist skis at Grand Targhee and she finally "got" powder (I'm trolling e-bay to get her a pair). GT is a great place to learn because the pitch is mostly blue and there's lots of open space.

The next step is to get her up to speed on powder in tight NE trees.
:twisted:
I can't count the number of NE powder days she's stayed on-piste while the real goods were in the woods.

For me the next step is to make sure she has fun no matter what. Would be nice if she like powder skiing, but I'm not holding my breath for this season nor the next. I'm thinking about taking her on a trip out west, or even europe. I'll have to stop putting her in ski school because she has become too advanced for group lessons. I wonder if there is a mountain where you can hire a teacher for multiple days that doesn't break the bank.

 

[Sharon]

There is more to life than skiing.

hmmm, not sure about this :roll:

but acutally, that is true, and there is a lot here in the east that many of us value. Making a big move is not for everyone.

I did it once. I moved to Colorado (23 years ago). What I found besides great skiing, was sprawling development, higher costs for just about everything, transient people, people with attitudes, smog and water shortages. What was lacking was a certain soul that cannot be explained. This is the kind of soul that I find in those that participate in the skivt-l and still live in the east. Those that ski in any conditions, no matter the weather. And beyond skiing, I find that in the east, I have community, and not just an "online community". I mean that I have a community of friends and family that I rely upon for friendship, companionship, recreation and celebration with all of life's ups and downs. I never did quite find that in Colorado. I learned that "My People" were in the east, and I chose to move back and deal with the wet winters in the comfort of my own.

The pouring rain in mid-winter makes those powder days all the more sweet. I think that these kind of conditions breed a certain type of skier, and that is something to behold.

Also, eastern winters make those trips out west even more exciting. Even if there is no fresh snow, the skiing is always great.

I say, make the most of what you have, and go out and explore whenever you can. You don't have to live near a big mountain to enjoy a lot of good skiing. Having a happy home is probably most important.

 

[Patrick]

You're off-topic Sharon. We're talking about marital issues more-or-less related to non-skiing spouses. Tony might have to split this threat again. :lol:


This being said, I prefer when the both apocalypse thread where together...so...

Those that ski in any conditions, no matter the weather.

Amen!!!

Also, eastern winters make those trips out west even more exciting. Even if there is no fresh snow, the skiing is always great.

Is skiing not great??? All skiing is great.

However I disagree with the comment that Western skiing is always greater than the East.

 

[Patrick]

For me the next step is to make sure she has fun no matter what. Would be nice if she like powder skiing, but I'm not holding my breath for this season nor the next. I'm thinking about taking her on a trip out west, or even europe. I'll have to stop putting her in ski school because she has become too advanced for group lessons. I wonder if there is a mountain where you can hire a teacher for multiple days that doesn't break the bank.

Not that I'm a specialist on lessons and stuff. Did you think of getting her on a Women type clinic, not necessarily a ski lessons. You wouldn't want a ski instructor hitting on your wife. :wink:

Seriously, a ski clinic (steep or powder) might just be the answer.

 

[jamesdeluxe]

Very nice, Sharon.

We can't compete on statistical probability charts, snowfall totals, skiable acreage, or the other yardsticks, but there's something here that isn't out west -- which is why I'm constantly getting on Tony's case -- and Sharon covers it pretty well.

Either you like it and stay, or you move.

 

[kingslug]

The Twilight Zone part of my little story:
She forced me to learn how to ski. I wanted no part of it but in her words "You better learn to ski or you will be spending weekends alone"
And learn I did. And then discovered this guy named Miller who made ski movies...where people skied on real snow...and now look at the mess I'm in!!!!!

 

[Harvey]

I moved to Colorado (23 years ago). What I found besides great skiing, was sprawling development, higher costs for just about everything, transient people, people with attitudes, smog and water shortages. What was lacking was a certain soul that cannot be explained. This is the kind of soul that I find in those that participate in the skivt-l and still live in the east. Those that ski in any conditions, no matter the weather. And beyond skiing, I find that in the east, I have community, and not just an "online community". I mean that I have a community of friends and family that I rely upon for friendship, companionship, recreation and celebration with all of life's ups and downs. I never did quite find that in Colorado. I learned that "My People" were in the east, and I chose to move back and deal with the wet winters in the comfort of my own.

The pouring rain in mid-winter makes those powder days all the more sweet. I think that these kind of conditions breed a certain type of skier, and that is something to behold.

Also, eastern winters make those trips out west even more exciting. Even if there is no fresh snow, the skiing is always great.

I say, make the most of what you have, and go out and explore whenever you can. You don't have to live near a big mountain to enjoy a lot of good skiing. Having a happy home is probably most important.

Awesome post. Bravo Sharon.

 

[Tony Crocker]

After one of these "where to live" discussions a year or so ago, Sharon PM'ed me with the gist of the comments above. Everyone's situation is a bit different. She has a high quality of life that would decline if she left either her job (seniority with a lot of vacation time, like me) or location, made sense to me both then and now.

I can relate to kingslug's situation. My ex and I met on a ski trip to Mammoth in 1982 and were off to New Zealand 5 months later. Her interest in skiing declined as she got out of shape and she eventually quit skiing in 1997. That was the same year (age 44, sound familiar to some people?) I decided to start the annual powder trips to B.C. So no surprise we eventually split in 2004.

So admin was very surprised when Becky showed up for the past 2 President's weekend trips to Utah. As the medical warnings became more severe, she finally had a gastric bypass in July 2006, lost 100+ pounds and lo and behold she wanted to start skiing again six months later.

Adam and I scratched our heads a bit when admin and Bob Dangerous decided to take Becky on as a project at Alta on Feb. 17, getting her to ski Backside and West Rustler. We steered clear and the project had some success. Part of it is the new skis, and women's specific skis in particular. After 2 days demo she bought the 167cm K2 Lotta Luvs from Canyon Sports. There are other issues and we will not be getting back together, but it's nice to see her turn things around so dramatically to improve her quality of life.

With regard to rfarren's fiancee, if someone enjoys skiing, they only need lessons occasionally. Better just to get lots of mileage on runs where she's comfortable. Hopefully she's independent enough to enjoy skiing alone while you're off in the woods. Or go with a group of mixed abilities where people can sort themselves out. This is the way it works with our Iron Blosam group, and some people will occasionally decide to take it easy and ski with more low key group than usual for a day.

The women's skis are good. And when you think she's ready for powder, that's a good time for a lesson, and make sure she has powder skis for that.

 

[kingslug]

I have to give my wife credit though. She is very out of shape but can ski very well. She gets pretty winded if the going gets rough though but is willing to dive into some very steep and moguled up stuff. She has been skiing for 30 years. Our ability levels have gotten pretty far apart but she knows when to back off.

 

[jasoncapecod]

after reading all of the above posts.. the western boys get plenty of great skiing and no sack time and eastern boys so so skiing a bit more sack time.. everyone has to make their own choice..
if you want to stay married you just got eat some crap...
i am writting this from a slope side hotel in okemo, while my wife and youngest daughter suffer from the stomach flu..yes i played nurse today

 

[kingslug]

But how much crap can one guy eat? And should one person have to sacrifice their happiness and well being just to keep another person happy. I mean if my wife REALLY was unhappy here and yet I was , I would seriously consider moving. And it's not like she doesn't suffer when conditions are crap here, as they seem to be most of the time. Hell, if I could find a decent job further north and be able to ski at Stowe, jay Peak etc, then i would consider that. But I run skyscrapers, not too many of thos once you leave the city. Utah is a booming state, lots of new construction. Vermont???????....upstate NY???????????????

 

[Harvey]

Make your fortune now and "retire" while you can still rip it?

 

[Sharon]

When I first met my husband 12 years ago he did not ski. He learned to ski our first winter together at the age of 47. He does pretty well for someone who started so late in life. But, 12 years later, he's finding that he doesn't really enjoy it that much. It is too expensive for the amount of enjoyment he gets out of it. It is also a little stressful for him to ski with me because I usually ski in places that are above his comfort level. I do ski with him where he likes to ski, and we often, meet up at the lift at other times, but in general, he just doesn't enjoy it enough to make the efforts that I do to ski. This year he didn't even buy a Greek Peak seasons pass and only skied for at total of 2 hours at Gore. He injured his knee, so that really took him out of action this season. He doesn't miss it very much. I built him a 30x40 pole barn last summer, in which he has many projects that he enjoys doing while I'm away. He prefers to do workshop projects than skiing.

So, that leaves me skiing on my own, or with other people.

Yesterday, while skiing at GP, I met a guy of the same age as my husband who likes to ski as much as I do and skis the same types of terrain and is up for the same kinds of adventure as I do. He is single and looking for a like-minded girlfriend. He has not found what he's looking for in maybe 10 or so years. He asked me how I make it work with a non-skiing husband.

I explained to him that he did ski and we used to do a lot of activities together (kayaking, hiking, camping and mtn biking), but those days are over. We do our own thing. We have the foundation of love and commitment and enjoy each other's company when we are together. Neither of us need each other to go out and have a good time. We both encourage each other do to what we want, with whomever we want. He's always home for me when I get back from skiing.

Maybe this is an unusual situation. I have seen so many marriages fall apart as people's interests change in mid-life. Not having kids also has helped us keep stress levels very low in our home and may have something to do with our solid relationship.

While out on my own skiing with mostly other men, my commitment to my relationship has certainly been "tested". I will say that a guy who skis well is pretty darn sexy. But skiing isn't everything. I have a man at home who is a solid guy with total commitment to me. This kind of love is priceless and makes my non-skiing times all the more sweet.

Conflict will arise when we retire. We both have different ideas of where to retire. He wants to retire in tropical climates and I want to retire in mountainous and snowy climates. I think SLC is a good compromise. But I think he'll be taking more trips south in the winter while I'm up in the snowy mountains. We may have to plan vacations to be together, but we'll just cross that bridge when we come to it in 10 years.

In the meantime, we are renovating our kitchen this spring and look forward to lots of time on Cayuga lake this summer.

As I said, there's more to life than skiing.

 

[Patrick]

I have seen so many marriages fall apart as people's interests change in mid-life. Not having kids also has helped us keep stress levels very low in our home and may have something to do with our solid relationship.

I totally agree with half of this, however I've seen couple stay together just because of the kids.

He wants to retire in tropical climates and I want to retire in mountainous and snowy climates. I think SLC is a good compromise.

Good luck. I think it's been tried? :?

 

[Marc_C]

What I found ..., was sprawling development, higher costs for just about everything, transient people, people with attitudes, smog and water shortages. What was lacking was a certain soul that cannot be explained.

Hmmm. Remove the bit about water shortages and add in a strong dose of provincialism, and a know-it-all attitude, and you pretty much describe where I lived for over 20 years before moving to Utah - Wallingford, CT. Here (SLC) lots of people are fanatically passionate about the outdoors. In the east I rarely found that. We even have local TV news reporters/readers that get excited about a coming snowstorm rather than whine and complain about it. Last year a server from one of my regular restaurants was climbing the route next to us in the High Uintas. There's no more sprawling development here than I encountered in lots of places in New England. Visit North Conway NH sometime.

Just 'cause your location in CNY is in the east doesn't mean all of the northeast is like that.

 

[Tony Crocker]

I see little point in arguing where to live with those like Sharon and Riverc0il who live in more rural and unspoiled environments. The people who live in the big eastern metro areas and claim to be passionate about skiing or other outdoor activities, that's where I see the disconnect.

As MarcC observed, it's not part of the culture with very many people in those places compared to western metro areas. So in addition to the outdoor recreation being lower in quality and less convenient, the odds of meeting a like-minded life partner are also much lower. I see some of this in L.A. Lots of outdoor active people, but many of them are here to avoid cold weather.