A good end to 2012

I had high hopes for most of 2012, but most of those hopes really weren’t realized. I had a really hard 2011 and a really hard early 2012, and then a broken heel, which made for a summer of disappointments. My heel finally was declared healed in September and things started to look up. I suppose that the time leading up to September made me evaluate things and appreciate the little things. Like walking without pain. And taking time to enjoy things. Oh and beer, drinking lots (and probably too much) beer. Also, I’ve been spending quite a bit more time with Will, which I think has been a good thing. Since my free time wasn’t dedicated to training, we ended up doing new things, drinking new beer, and generally having a good time. Finally. A good time.


This past holiday season has been a ridiculous amount of fun. I am healthy and not limited in what I can do. We have time and (fortunately) some money and opportunities for some fun stuff. I am specifically taking time to enjoy things now because pretty soon I will be sucked into the Ironman CDA training monster. Sure, I’m working with a coach right now and getting workouts in. But I have free time and some flexibility. Best to enjoy that because in late February, I won’t have free time until June 24.


Merry Christmas from the Timberline Lift
at Copper



Our holiday was a bit on the selfish side. We just focused on us and having a good time. I got a ridiculously good deal for a place in Breck over Christmas, so we were up there from Dec 21-25. We were originally supposed to head home on Dec 24th, but we got an extra night’s lodging (for free!) and decided to stay and have fun. As a bonus, it snowed big poofy flakes on Christmas Eve, which made for a powder day on Christamas. Ooooh, twist my arm. Life was truly rough. We skied (ok, I skied, Will boarded) 3 times in 4 days. The first day was very frustrating, mainly because Will is still learning and he is s.l.o.w. Wow, so slow. And standing on a hill in my ski gear is about the least comfortable thing and I get cranky. I kept telling myself that patience would be rewarded and I would have a husband who could keep up with me in a short while. The second day on the hill was a bit better – we found some runs that had some fluffy snow and Will discovered that he liked small bumps. Ok, these things are progress, and so much more fun than groomer greens. I actually had to twist his arm for the Christmas Day powder, mainly because he was tired and he had no idea how fun powder really is. I told him “two runs and if you’re not feeling it, we’ll go home. Besides, this gives the plows time to clear the highway.” I’m so glad I pushed, because it was the first day he had fun. Really, this day was pretty magical. On the drive to Copper there was a HUGE Christmas morning sun dog (where the clouds are frozen and create fragmented rainbows around the sun). The mountain was fogged in and the air sparkled with frozen ice crystals. Add some holiday music at the Timberline lift, powder, and zero lines and we were both incredibly happy. It was magical, and I’m not one to ever use that word.

Beautiful at the 'Boat

New Years weekend was spent in Steamboat. We had been there in the fall, a few years back and loved it. Technically, I have skied Steamboat before (I think I was 8?) but my main recollections were watching the winter Olympics, swimming outside with steam rising from the pool, and my dad being an a-ss and abandoning me on the slope. So, for all practical intents and purposes, this was my first time skiing at the ‘Boat. Same with Will. We went with his cousin and my friend, rented a cheap (but clean) hotel room and crossed our crossables for powder. We were lucky, as Steamboat had something like ~6 feet of snow in 3 weeks, and 1 foot of freshies two days before we got out there. Everything was spectacular. The gondola was a bit confusing (and fast!) at first but really fun. On our first run, we immediately noticed the snow at Steamboat is indeed special, even on groomers. We did a few runs as a foursome then split up as our friends wanted to do a bowl and I knew that Will was not yet up to bowls. We found a nice long blue groomer which had plenty of trees that opened into meadows of bumps. Will did trees and bumps and had a great time. We re-grouped at lunch and closed down the lifts. Amazing. The second day was equally amazing. Will was tired by lunch and hung out at the lodge. Chase and I found ourselves some tree runs.

Trying to document the sparkly snowflakes

Skiing in aspen groves with powder and bumps, as the air sparkled with perfect shiny snowflakes was again, magical. NYE was fun (but mellow). Happy hour and snacks at a brewery. Watching the torchlight parade and fireworks. Eating Chinese food in a place that was heated by one space heater. And watching Star Wars. Early to bed for more skiing New Years Day. Too bad the temperature was ~5 degrees, making the snow sticky and not a whole lot of fun. Not to mention freezing toes. Still, it was a fun start to 2013

Happy Erin with powder tree bumps. 
Unofficial "1:30" run at Steamboat