What were your ski goals this season, and have you met them?

[B.E.G.]

Spinning off of this thread , in which many have you posted - so let's hear it - success? Getting there? I know the season's not over yet but there have been quite a few great stories lately - let's hear the happiness

For me, the goals I posted on Dec. 28, two days after my very first ski lesson, were:

1) Be able to ski parallel and turn parallel - check
2) Be able to hockey stop - check
3) Stop wedging/snow plowing! - check
4) Be able to ski most blue runs by the end of the season - getting there and very close!

On that 1-9 ski level chart, I think I'm at level 3/4 right now. I want to be up to 6 by the time the season ends - almost there!

ETA: I forgot one! I want to ski as many of Montana's hills as possible. Been to Great Divide, going to Teton Pass and Discovery in the next month, and I also want to check out Showdown (it's so close to where I am), and of course Big Sky, Bridger, and Snowbowl. I would love to check out Big Mountain but it is really far! - sadly, no check - I've only been to my three local hills so far

 

[gardenmary]

Here's mine:

*Keep pushing it, whether it's pitch, speed, whatever. - check. I keep making breakthroughs, which is so exciting.
*Work on getting rock-solid on blues. - check. Now on blacks, yippee!!
*Have fun, and be thankful that we can ski together as a family. DH will likely be on a chemo "vacation" when we go skiing this year, and he is training very carefully now to get ready. - check. I actually whooped & hollered going down a run in Utah this year. And DH skied very well!
*Save some money so I can go to the Diva Days in 2012! - ummmm........working on it. Good reminder!! Can't wait to hear where they'll be.

 

[marymack]

So my main goal this year was to be able to go to Tremblant with my friends and be able to make it worth the trip (aka not spend the whole day on the greens while everyone else was off exploring the rest of the mountain). I would say I far surpassed that goal! I was able to ski both days on blues (and even a couple of blacks) and I was able to stick with the group and didn't feel like I was holding them back. Quite a progression from only greens at the start of the fall.

 

[smartjingle]

I had two goals;
1) Get over fear of really high hills - trying to... I think it'll come with number 2
and
2) Learn proper technique = will give me confidence = get over fear!

Let's see how this will turn out by the end of the season

 

[segacs]

Mine were:
1) Get out there at least 5 times this season
2) Get my confidence back on the tougher terrain

Thanks to a week-long ski trip over Christmas, I've absolutely blown goal #1 out of the water, and there's still a good month of the season to go. The second goal is also definitely accomplished - it's amazing what a week of lessons can do. I've un-learned some bad habits I've had for years, re-learned some good ones, and I'm skiing much more confidently these days.

I'd like to get better on the kind of terrain we don't see much of here in the east, such as powder or bumps. But most of my ski days so far have just been thin, fast and icy. Confidence-building for me, since I'm great at skiing the ice and can pretty much rock it on any slope on the hill. But not great for practicing the other stuff. Put me in powder or off-piste and I still freeze up. Might have to plan a ski vacation out west to work on that.

 

[callmijane]

Learn to ski powder
Keep up with DBF
Go big!

I'm still working on powder, haven't had too many really good days and it's still a lot of work (so I know I'm not doing it right) but I'm getting better!

I keep up with DBF pretty well, unless his brother is with us, because then DBF is trying to keep up with his brother!

and I'm still working on going big- that fear thing, y'know...

 

[Tvan]

My goal this year was to ski blue. So far, I've skied blue consistently at Stratton, and at our home mountain (Mohawk, in CT).

And, today, I skied my first black run ever.

I'm having a pretty good season.

 

[bounceswoosh]

The season is definitely not over!

Stolen from Robyn - progress in bumps, powder and steep powder: yes. Much progress.

Fitness: Not so much. I stopped jogging due to knee problems, and my krav maga school closed down. But I *am* finding that I can ski two full days in a row pretty handily, and I can still ski the third day - I just need to dial it back a notch (and I have the scab on my leg to prove it). So maybe my ski-specific fitness is pretty good.

Lake Chutes - I did hike up and ski Easy Street. It's technically a Lake Chute, although I had an instructor tell me it doesn't really count. bah. By my count, I've done this, but there's more to do.

Snow White - not yet, but the same instructor told me it's easier than the Lake Chutes and that I should definitely get up there. So, just gotta do it.

Windows - I skied one of the windows last weekend! There are many tighter lines in there, but I'm still going to consider that I achieved my goal =) And really, it didn't seem that bad.

 

[volklgirl]

1) Ski LOTS Not so much as buying a house and remodeling prior to moving in has occupied all my free time
2) Stay healthy Check, so far
3) Be in better shape See #1
4) Up my performance in bumps and powder Check....I've been having my best bump runs ever this year and I learned how to put my skis back on in hip-deep powder
5) Ski bunches of places out west Not yet, but we're heading that direction in less than a month
6) Have FUN! Check, check and CHECK!!

 

[valli]

1) Get more comfortable skiing bumps, and some of the expert runs off KT-22: Definitely getting there.

2) Get fit enough to ski a full day: Done.

3) Figure out how to ski in powder: Started learning how to do it in mid-fat ski, then bought powder skis. Goal attained!

4) Avoid annoying injuries: Last season I tore a calf muscle and broke a rib skiing. So far I've had a minor knee tweak (according to the orthopod), but not enough for him to recommend I need time off.

5) Get boots that don't hurt: This has been the most difficult, but I think I've finally made it.

 

[snow addict]

1) Learn how to ski bumps so that to stop avoiding them and be able to go off-piste a lot - check (bumps are work in progress, but they are not my enemies anymore).

2) Improve in powder - we didn't get much powder this season, but I hit a great powder day on Sunday and I skied powder better than last time (in December) and was able to hold my own in some dense trees. So work in progress here, but kind of "check".

3) Take an avalanche training course - booked for next Saturday, so check.

4) Ski a LOT - 32 days so far, so check.

The best part is that it's only March (actually, not even) so I expect more improvement at 1) and 2) before the season ends on April 30.

Fitness remains somewhat of a problem. My muscles are in fine shape. I can ski two days in a row, even more days than that: over Christmas I skied 9 days (with breaks on Christmas and New Year's days for obvious reasons) and planning to ski 9 days in a row between the 5th and 13th, but yesterday I found out that skiing powder at fairly high-tempo (friends I went with are very high-level skiers so I didn't want to hold them back too much) leaves me out of breath. I have yet to figure out how to fit in some running during the week as being away for two days every week really makes things rather difficult.

 

[B.E.G.]

Love seeing everyone's progress - keep it coming!

 

[litterbug]

1) Ski twice a week whenever possible - Check! (two half days is fine!)
2) Learn a parallel turn - Check!
3) Replace some bad habits with skills - Check (on the low hanging fruit, at least!)
3) Ski all blues in control - Check!
F) Fitness - No so checky (soo lazy!) I can ski half a day, but I've got some physical limitations so I'm trying to be patient (tapping the foot impatiently!)
5) Invest in some gear - Too many checks!!
6) Have fun fun fun - Wheeee!

Wow, thanks for the thread--I didn't realize I'd accomplished so much!