Artificial ski slopes

After being at school for what seemed like forever, I put on my boots and headed to the ski lift as I looked at the snow glow in the cold February sun. As I waited in line, John was grabbing ice balls the size of my hand, then throwing them at my back. Without anything to throw back him, I felt as helpless as an amputee in a war-zone. Even though Jack was next to me checking my ticket, he did not seem to care that someone was throwing ice balls at me. He didn’t even care to look at my lift…

Ski patrols work in some of the most dangerous conditions faced by first responders. Not only do they face precarious snow conditions en route to emergencies; but they also must carry all their equipment on their backs and perform rescues in below freezing temperatures. Some patrollers are also trained to rescue individual’s off chairlifts if necessary. On top of the already difficult job of rescuing injured skiers, patrollers also monitor trail conditions, and provide skiers with opportunities…

the top of the ski lift, I hesitated. The “bunny hill” seemed more intimidating than its name. The ground and the ski lodge seemed miles away, tucked behind the pine trees, and the slope descended in twists and turns. Concerned, I turned to my mom. “So...do I just jump?” I knew how difficult it was to walk in the ski boots, and I could not imagine how to get off the moving chair. She shook her head, glancing at the couple in front of us. “No, it looks like you just put your skis on the…

running at top speed. I felt fast, careless, and free. I also felt very frigid. As I reached the bottom of the slope, I waited for myself to slow down. I didn’t know how to do that cool thing with my skis where I twist sideways so I stop and kick up snow. I had just finished going down my favorite ski trail, Skycoaster. I go to Hunt Hollow, a ski mountain my dad “works” at. He is part of the ski patrol, so he helps out injured skiers. Also, cheap admission. It was getting late, and I only had…

I could hardly believe my eyes that day when I received the invitation from my very good friend and skier, John. He had invited me to go backcountry skiing with him on a mountain in Salt Lake City a month from now, something I had never done before. Though I lived in Salt Lake City, where there were plenty of unexplored places to go backcountry skiing, I had always stuck to resort skiing because I had the idea that backcountry skiing was something very difficult and dangerous. However, I had…

life. It's a very expensive sport. But thanks to my parents, they have created this opportunity for me to find what I live for. Every waking chance I get, I go skiing. Even when I can't make it up to the mountain, I ski…

around the world are heading to their favorite ski resorts. While everyone has their favorite resort for this purpose, there are actually quite a few to choose from. But, one of the favorite in the United States is Telluride, which is located in Colorado. If you are looking for a ski adventure, Telluride offers plenty of it. At this resort, there are 2000 acres of skiable land, which is much above average for a typical ski resort. Getting to this ski resort is also simple because there are…

our focus can limit our awareness. We fail to see all the information in front of us. If we do not see or experience factors regularly, we stop looking out for them. Avalanches are a regular occurrence in Tunnel Creek, and because it is outside the ski area, it is not patrolled or risk assessed for safety. But as the location wasn’t new terrain for the lead skiers in the group, they weren’t focusing their awareness on the danger around but on the activity in front of them. Our second point…

the whole time? Heading off to the hotel room after the fourth round of sledging 2. First, Schreckfeld, Bort – three ski stations. First has one of the most enviable views of the Swiss Alps and is also the best starting point for sledging if you want to get down to Bort. The hotel there offers the most sinfully good meals in the whole resort. The view from Bort ski slope 2. Pets (even though we only saw dogs) are welcome everywhere - literally, and they get served water and biscuits. There…

Lake Placid hosted the first Olympic Winter Games in 1924. Since then, the venue has been a popular sports venue. Till date, Lake Placid has hosted two Olympic Winter Games, Speed Skating, Ski Jumping and Bobsledding World tournaments. Spend some time at the museum and explore the America’s first Olympic hometown. The site has Lake Placid Hall of Fame, where you can see the achievements and contributions of individual and group athletes.…