We woke early on Monday to drive from Nate's parents' home in Denver to Copper Mountain with the promise of fresh snow on the slopes. Unfortunately the snow also made driving through the mountain pass a little more treacherous. Treacherous, but so beautiful. I always forget how giant and stunning the mountains are. We didn't make it to Copper for first lift, but arriving without disaster and ascending the mountain only 30 minutes later was just fine.
Going up on the lift |
Beautiful mountains |
So majestic |
With the first run down the mountain I was happy to realize that all the new skills I had attained during last year's snowboard season had been retained. What a relief! In fact, after a few times up and down I was improving from last year. Brandon coached me on some new drills to work on and switching between toe and heel edge began to become much more natural than before. I still lack speed though, and most of the time I just took my time down the mountain while Brandon and Nate sped past me. Nate was impressively fast on his skis as usual and Brandon spent some time weaving his way through the trees and working on jumps and rails. So fancy.
Making my way down the mountain |
Nate getting ready to speed off |
Brandon crushing the jump |
We stayed in a cheap hotel in Silverthorne to hit the slopes on Tuesday as well and avoid the drive back and forth from Denver. My quads were killing me, and Brandon and Nate admitted to some aches by the end of the day as well. Of course, I knew the stretches to take care of my legs (physical therapy = good career choice!) and most importantly actually did them. Those stretches paid off on the mountain the next day. It was another day of frigid fun.
Showing off my classy helmet hair during a break to eat lunch and stretch |
On the way back to Denver on Tuesday night we stopped at our favorite Colorado pizza place, Beau Jo's. The two distinguishing characteristics of Beau Jo's are that you order your pizza by the pound and that you're served honey with your pizza to put on the crusts as you eat them. It's a delicious combination! We easily consumed two pounds of pizza between the three of us. We probably could have dug into three pounds, but not without some discomfort.
Beau Jo's Colorado Style Pizza |
Mmmm. So good. |
After a rest day in Denver on Wednesday, we headed out to Copper Mountain again early Thursday morning. Quite opposite of the bitter cold on Tuesday the temperature reached the mid-forties by Thursday afternoon. We all had a good day on the mountain except for Brandon receiving a sizeable bruise from a rail. Don't worry. He's fine. Of course, we couldn't resist returning to Beau Jo's again in the evening.
Good times |
We were hoping to use the fourth and final day on our pass before leaving Colorado, but it was not to be. We were too tired to return to the mountains on Friday. Weekends are super busy on the slopes, but we were willing to go on Saturday if Nate's friend Chris could come. Some bad weather was on the forecast for the weekend, so we were going to need to leave earlier than expected to continue out to California, Saturday afternoon at the latest. The hope was to leave from Copper on Saturday after snowboarding. Alas, Chris was not able to make it, so Nate wouldn't have a ride back to Denver.
Even though we didn't get in the fourth day, we still got our money's worth from using three days. Plus, we could still use that fourth day when we return to Colorado in March. Most of all, I'm happy to report that we all had a great time together at Copper Mountain with no broken bone or torn tissue (just some bruises and sore muscles) over those three days. Success!
No comments :
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.