Hello Everyone –
If I hear one more person say (already) they will be happy when this winter is over, I am just going to, well I really don’t know what I am going to do, but I am fed up with those non-winter-liking types. For everyone out there who isn’t enjoying this winter, I give you a grand slam of beautiful things of winter from yours truly.
Beautiful thing number one: sometimes it takes a kick in the pants to realize that fun is to be had right around the corner. Traveling to work this past Friday at “Oh-Dark-Thirty,” a car with Ohio license plates and skis mounted on top passed me headed to some mountain close-by as fresh snow was in the air. Hence the kick in pants, as it helped me make the decision of to go or not to go for some January on-slope fun and make the call to my real boss (my wife, Angie) that if it was okay with her we were headed to the mountains later that day.
Beautiful thing number two: going to sleep at 2800 feet and only minutes away from some of the best terrain in the region and waking up to the sound of a snowplow pushing snow at 3:30 am only 152 feet from where I was sleeping. Then rolling out of the sack at 7:00 am to find two inches of new fallen snow and it still snowing in your back yard, of course knowing that 13 miles away more snow had probably already fallen and powder was waiting to be plowed through. Of course having a good friend pick you up and handle the drive to the slope wasn’t a bad thing either.
Beautiful thing number three: strapping on the board and looking over slopes with plenty of fresh snow everywhere and Mother Nature still adding to the total. Then heading for the first lift ride and stopping at the maze to try and figure out where everyone was and being very happy that not everyone realized what they were missing. It never ceases to amaze me that people wait to see if the snow will stop or the temperature will rise before hitting the slopes for a perfect day of riding or skiing. What the heck are you waiting for, but again for those who wait, more rides for yours truly as the lines are short. By the way, the riding was out of this world, which was probably the case at any resort in the southeast this past weekend.
Beautiful thing number four: having a five (soon to be six) year old that just loves snow and enjoys making numerous snowballs to hit Daddy with while playing outside. If there is snow anywhere in the vicinity, he is headed for it just to walk through it or to make that afore mentioned snowball. He doesn’t care if he is cold as long as there is snow to play in and again to make those snowballs. It was one degree this morning and he looked at his mother and said “It really doesn’t feel cold for it being one degree.” God bless you Christian, you make your winter loving dad proud.
That’s it for this week, just remember whether it be cold or whether it be hot, we’ll weather the weather, whatever the weather will be. Think about it! See you on the slopes.
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Joe Stevens, a member of the southeast ski industry since 1990 is a regular columnist for skisoutheast.com and serves as the Communications Director for the West Virginia Ski Areas
Association.