Do not leave an inexperienced skier and a beginner snowboarder alone in Breckenridge. Lesson learned last week during our trip to Colorado.
Carrie and I kept up with the boys on our first day in the Rockies. We had beautiful blue skies and warm sunshine. We stayed close to green circles (easy) and tried a few blue squares (intermediate). By the end of the day my legs were so tired I could barely make turns. (I’m glad I have a patient fiance.) After skiing back to our condo, we enjoyed a quick dip in the hot tub before heading to the Breckenridge Brewery for dinner and drinks.
On Sunday I ventured to another peak with Carrie and Brian. We decided it would be a good idea to practice on the small slopes. That night I enjoyed my first of three crepes from the fabulous Crepes a la Cart and witnessed how competitive the boys can be when Trivial Pursuit comes off the shelf.
We got a late start on Monday, but I felt strong. We rode the Snowflake Lift with the boys and left them at the top where they continued on to the terrain parks (to dare each other to do jumps, I’m sure). Our plan was to do a few runs on Four O’Clock (a blue that turns into a green), but we decided to ski over to a blue run we had done on the first day — or so we thought. Before I knew it, I was on the ground with both skis in the air. Fortunately Carrie saw me fall before she got too far ahead and came back to help.
We laughed and sweated our way through the struggle to reattach my skis to my boots. The fresh powder didn’t help the situation. Finally, after what seemed like 30 minutes, I was back on my feet … and staring down a steep, narrow, ungroomed slope. And I swear there were moguls. Carrie was still close enough to hear me shout, “I don’t think this is where we want to be!” Of course, by that point, we had no option but to go down.
Carrie inched along on the edge of her board, and I stopped after every two or three turns. We obviously looked like we did not belong. We took it one (very) small step at a time as more experienced skiers and boarders swished by us. When we finally got to the bottom we asked a gentleman what run we had just gone down. “That was Spruce,” he said, “a blue/black.”
Later that night, after informing our significant others that they are not to leave us alone on the slopes, we relaxed in the hot tub with Miller Lites. And prepared for yet another intense evening of Trivial Pursuit.
Despite the encounter with the black diamond, we had a fantastic trip. Perhaps sometime in the future I’ll effortlessly ski through moguls, trees, narrow passes, and other obstacles. But I’m also perfectly comfortable sticking to the greens and blues.
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