It's right under your nose!
Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2017 12:30 pm
..at least sometimes. I've been trying to get my wife into BC skiing for a couple years. When we met she was a committed alpine skier, as was I, and that got us together actually. After 10 years of marriage we had a kid and I switched to tele (said kid is now 21) and head out for parts unknown. Long story short we both tired of resorts and would head out, her on xc and me on xcd making frequent side jaunts into the woods. Last year I got her some Garmont boots on an auction site, no model but they were purple 2 buckle and looked a good height for touring. This year I found her some Outtabounds in almost unused condition. Life has thrown a few curves this winter so I couldn't get her to try it out. Then this weekend we finally found a decent day and headed up to our camp in the hills in western Maine. Instead of heading for known terrain we decided to just hit the snowmobile trails across the street. I haven't been on these trails ever on skis, and I think the last time I took my mountain bike on them I dislocated my shoulder, so I forgot that they weren't flat. Less than 5 minutes in she said "I don't really like these skis." I got it, the snowmobile tracks in the trees were pretty crunchy, the first hill so steep and narrow we had to sideslip it (it would have been terrible to blast down it and leave her there) and Outtas aren't really that great on hard snow, but I cajoled her into sticking with it. Then we got into the sun and the softening snow. I should note we both still like skiing downhill we just don't like the resort scene that much any more. The first soft hill, maybe 30 minutes in, she got it. "These are really good going downhill!". Got her a little off the snowmobile track into some untracked corn and the conversion process began. After a while we headed back, climbing some of the hills was not great with the Outtas - I usually wax above and below the scales and neglected to do so. We we got to our turn off she kept going straight, but when I called to her she said she just wanted to go back up that hill and ski down it again. To make things even better I realized that after having this camp for 18 years I'd neglected miles of really nice touring for turns terrain - tons of tree lines, some steep others not so much. As the last kid heads off for college I have new terrain and even better a new partner to explore it with and time to do it. Won't be long before I get her jonesing to upgrade the equipment, then my plan will be complete 