billski
Active member
So I skied Otis Ridge (Mass.) yesterday, adding another pin to my hat. It's a great place to learn and a great place for kids to hang. Although rather diminutive, it's a wonderful area nonetheless.
After about an hour or so, I began to look for interesting things to do. I spied a nice line, under the chair lift, could best be described as a very narrow chute, with rocks and lift supports interspersed, within inches of your skis. Nobody else was doing it. I took it down at mach schnell about four times, it was a fun, short but sweet run.
After about the second run, I started thinking about how every time I find a new line that's visible to the gawking public, it gets a lotta traffic shortly thereafter. I then move on. However, in this case, it did not occur to me that people who didn't belong would attempt it.
I watched three boys, probably ~12 years old attempt it. The first proceeded rather tentatively, stopping a lot, a turn here, a turn there. The second boy snowplowed the whole thing (ouch). The third kid clearly didn't belong, couldn't link two turns if he tried real hard. He went careening right into a rockpile, about 4' high, slamming into it, skiing slightly up a rock before somersaulting into a tumble across the other side, skis flying in mid air. I shouted from the lift at him asking if he was ok. He didn't answer, but stood up right away, scrambling to get his skis and making quick time to get out of there as fast as he could. He probably suffered from major humiliation from the teens who also got to watch the whole thing. Needless, I was hugely relieved. If he had been hurt, I would have felt major bad for having put the idea in his head. I am glad all the moms were in the lodge!
So I learned not to do stuff like that in small areas with a lot of rank beginners. Now clearly you need to step up your game sometime (which I certainly encourage), I guess occasionally I lose sight of the fact what's easy to you is treacherous to another.
After about an hour or so, I began to look for interesting things to do. I spied a nice line, under the chair lift, could best be described as a very narrow chute, with rocks and lift supports interspersed, within inches of your skis. Nobody else was doing it. I took it down at mach schnell about four times, it was a fun, short but sweet run.
After about the second run, I started thinking about how every time I find a new line that's visible to the gawking public, it gets a lotta traffic shortly thereafter. I then move on. However, in this case, it did not occur to me that people who didn't belong would attempt it.
I watched three boys, probably ~12 years old attempt it. The first proceeded rather tentatively, stopping a lot, a turn here, a turn there. The second boy snowplowed the whole thing (ouch). The third kid clearly didn't belong, couldn't link two turns if he tried real hard. He went careening right into a rockpile, about 4' high, slamming into it, skiing slightly up a rock before somersaulting into a tumble across the other side, skis flying in mid air. I shouted from the lift at him asking if he was ok. He didn't answer, but stood up right away, scrambling to get his skis and making quick time to get out of there as fast as he could. He probably suffered from major humiliation from the teens who also got to watch the whole thing. Needless, I was hugely relieved. If he had been hurt, I would have felt major bad for having put the idea in his head. I am glad all the moms were in the lodge!
So I learned not to do stuff like that in small areas with a lot of rank beginners. Now clearly you need to step up your game sometime (which I certainly encourage), I guess occasionally I lose sight of the fact what's easy to you is treacherous to another.
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