Day 3 was going to be a day where we pushed the skiing a little more. Confidence was high and as long as the stamina held we were going to up the difficulty and try and take on some runs we hadn’t done before.
The boys were left in charge of getting their own stuff together in the morning which of course meant Harrison forgot his phone and both of them forgot their radios. A lesson learned (although probably not when we try it again shortly).
It was really cold, starting at minus 21 which meant you could feel it biting into your face and fingers, particularly if anything was left uncovered. It also meant that the damp forming as part of your breath began to freeze so you needed to turn your neckers around as you went.
We firstly went to try another panoramic at the end of a run called Old Goat. On the previous day whilst at a craft shop (hmm, haven’t been to many of them) I found a corrugated metal letter G. As I showed my proud find to Amy I told her I’d found a ‘crinkly G’. Her affectionate response was that was what she was going to call me when I got old. I thought I took it well despite the boys having a good giggle. It did mean when Old Goat came into view I affectionately pointed out that could be her aging name. She tried to take it well…
Yesterday’s investment into new gloves and a head wrapping technique for Harrison meant the moaning was reduced to nothing. The miles began to rack up as we experimented on new runs interspersed with coffee and hot chocolate with marshmallows for the boys.
Amy had recorded our track with her app which showed through the day we covered most of the mountain.
Harrison was beginning to get more adventurous and decided that going through some small off piste bits was going to test his skills. He found one that was a little longer than usual and so persuaded Amy to go through with him. It turned out it was more of a trail than an off piste excursion.
Callan and I had gone a little further and stopped on the piste to wait for them. I knew it wasn’t going well when I could hear the combined shreeks of complaint both in my ear through the radio and as they echoed across the valley.
The track required persistent tree dodging which Harrison Didn’t quite perfect though passed through without a scratch. Harrison warned Amy only to find a branch growing across her path which she hooked onto and then struggled to her legs back beneath her. As they approached the end of the trail there was only one way to go which meant heading at speed over a series of sharp bumps before firing themselves out of the trees and back onto the piste.
As the screaming subsided and those on the piste returned to more sedate skiing Amy lent panting on her ski poles and Harrison looked white and concerned. I think I heard Harrison apologise maybe four times as Amy’s heart rate began to lower and constructive advice was passed on off piste skiing, in a slightly raised voice. Another lesson learned, maybe.
As we got back to the bottom we stopped to take a few photos on and play on an ice sculpture of a giant heart.
This section of the mountain had a ski park. This meant lots of jumps, rails and some massive rolling mini hills with an option of how high you’d like to be catapulted into the air.
After the earlier adventure Amy decided she’d take the wider run alongside whilst the boys and I headed for probable injury…
On the first go Callan made it over the first jump and then landed slightly backwards on the second one. He fell onto the back of his skis which meant he lost all control but not all momentum. He went sliding down on his bum about 200 yards. Once again Gibbs shrieks echoed across New Hampshire as he accelerated toboggan like in a straight line down the piste. Harrison was crying in laughter as I began to exclaim words that I won’t write in this blog.
Thankfully one of the huge rollers had a good degree of up slope which arrested his out of control progress and left him in a tangled but uninjured mess.
Undeterred we went for the next roller which after his last experience, Callan was understandably cautious on. This however meant he didn’t have enough speed to make it to the crest and slid back into another pile of skis and poles.
By roller number 3 sufficient practice had been had and all three of us crested and made it safely to the other side. This then led to multiple runs from top to bottom as we jumped and flew over the various bumps. Not quite as spectacularly as some other skiers and boarders who flew with significant air with spins and grabs.
In the meantime Amy was loving a run called ‘egg beater’ which she did over and over again. Her app showed that she’d reached speeds of 39mph, a record I’ve challenged her to beat today.
Today is the last day of skiing. The weather is set fair once more with the temperatures a little more pleasant at around -7 to -1 through the day.
All our limbs are a little stiff now but we’ll see how far we get before we have to call skiing a day for another year.
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