TR Taos Ski Week Jan. 20-25, 2019 with intermediate Divas

[marzNC]

The Taos Ski Week is truly unique. Many of the Ski Week instructors have 30+ years of experience. The intermediate groups and the expert groups seem most likely to get the most experienced instructors. For MLK Week, there were less than 75 students. January is still early in the season and coverage is typically better in Feb-Mar for the black and double-black terrain. I think there were seven groups this week, ranging from intermediate to expert, with 3-7 students.

Most of the students last week were from the midwest. There were two ski clubs who joined forces to make the 1-week ski trip happen for 2019. Like many ski club groups, most were over 50, some still working and many already retired. They had a set of rooms at the Snakedance, which is right at the base of Lift 1. My Ski Week group of 7 included 4 from the midwest, all seniors.

TSV uses a 10-point scale and the advanced/expert levels seems to start at 7, which means working on blue bumps to start with black bumps by midweek. Level 8 groups may start on black bumps but are likely to ski double-blacks by midweek, conditions permitting. Level 9 groups warm up the first day or two and may spend the rest of the week on double-black terrain, if open. My ski buddy Bill was in the top Ski Week group with Dan R. the last couple years, just before Dan retired. In general, it's always fine for a student to ask to move up or down although the goal is to have groups set up by the Monday lesson. There is always a bit of a range for ability when there are 4+ students, but as long as the chemistry between the instructor and the students is good then it really doesn’t matter.

Starting on Tuesday morning, Ski Week groups met at 9:50 at the Whistlestop (small mid-mountain lodge with restrooms and a few food options]. Plenty of time for a run or two off Lift 1 or can ride up Lift 2 and cruise down Bambi. Now that Lift 1 is a high-speed detachable quad, possible to get in another run before 9:45. One morning our instructor checked in around 9:30, then did a Around-the-World lap in 11 minutes. That means riding up Lift 2, speeding down the backside, and returning on the long cat track to the main base, and riding up Lift 1 to get back to the Whistleshop. One advantage of doing that is finding out what gated terrain is open.

My group with Trey was Level 7/8 based on my chairlift question on Tuesday. Trey said the group was Level 7 since he had to base the rating on the weakest ability on bumps. Being able to carve down groomers at speed, which all the midwest skiers could do, is not that related to ability and experience in bumps and trees. He said Level 8 groups do double-blacks. Our group did assorted black terrain but were clearly not ready for double-black steeps. It was a good fit for me and Jason. The two of us did a double-back, Longhorn, with an instructor in Feb 2017 when there was deep snow coverage. That season a Ski Week didn't fit in our travel schedules, so we did 1-shot group lesson midweek. Our instructor was a 20-something former racer with no PSIA Certification (racing career derailed due to a very bad injury while back country skiing). An instructor with 20+ years of experience probably wouldn’t have taken us down that trail.

There seemed to be two Level 6/7 groups, each with a female instructor with 30+ years of experience. My group ended up with a midwest man who was originally assigned to Kyle after the Monday morning ski off. He was friends with the two midwest men in my group. A midwest woman could have moved up but when she saw which midwest men were in our group, she chose to stay with Kyle. I think Kyle ended up with five women. Karen's group included @Gidget415 and @alison wong and they were working on bumps after Sunday. One of the intermediate groups was taught by Marvin and included @diymom and @EuniceG, while the other was taught by Mary and seemed to be all midwest women by the flags on their poles.

Here are a couple of articles about long-time TSV instructors. Derrick Gordon was Eunice’s instructor in Jan 2017. He stopped by to say hello to Eunice and Alison in the locker room one morning on his way into the instructor's locker room. It was clear he remembered them from last year.

Learning from the best at Taos Ski Valley - Feb 2016
“ . . .
Burt Skall, the director of TSV’s Snowsports School, said their teaching philosophy can be summed up in three words.

“First, we want to share: to share our energy, our passion and our mountain experiences,” Skall said. “We also want to inspire: to inspire about the ski life and mountain living. And we want to create: to create experiences people will never forget and want to come back to.”

With some 240 instructors, that’s a lot of sharing, inspiring and creating every year. And while TSV introduces many first-time skiers and snowboarders to the sport, a defining characteristic here is the large number of advanced and expert skiers who take lessons.
“In my experience, and I’ve been around a long time, Taos is one of the top places to find great classes for advanced and expert skiers,” Skall said. This is due to “the amazing dedication and passion of the instructors, and being at a great mountain to teach on, with steeps, big moguls and deep snow for powder programs.”
. . .”


No signs of slowing down
Taos Ski Valley instructor Max Killinger begins 50th winter on the mountain - Nov 2018

 

[marzNC]

The Ski Week ski-off happens just below the Whistlestop these days. The idea is to be ready at 9:45 on Sunday when doing a full 6-lesson Ski Week. On Monday morning, there is another ski off at 9:45 for late comers or people who were changing groups for whatever reason. There are a few senior instructors helping to sort people into ability groups. Students are asked what type of terrain (green, blue, blue-black, black, double-black) they like to ski.

There are no reservations for Ski Week. Can register as late as the morning of a ski-off. There are more than enough instructors for the Ski Week line up so the total number of groups is flexible. The maximum number of students seems to be 7-8. A group may be split right after the Sunday ski-off or on Monday. It's clear that the goal is to create compatible groups so that everyone has a great time. In some ways, Sunday morning is an extended ski-off when the instructors can get to know their students better and decide if a move would be helpful. Also a chance for students to see how they feel about their group and instructor. Having good group chemistry as well as whether or not a student connects to a particular instructor is an important factor.

The cost of a 2017-18 Ski Week is about $300, including tax. There is no longer a different price for holiday periods. That's for six consecutive morning lessons, more or less two hours each (10:00-12:00) but it's common for a lesson to run a little long Mon-Thu. Assuming a student doesn't change groups, the same instructor teaches all the lessons. It's quite possible to ski a lesson if a student needs a day off the slopes mid-week.

The 2019 Women's Week starts on Feb. 10. There are also Teen & College Weeks during holiday periods.

It just happened that of the six Divas/Diva Dudes taking a Ski Week, we ended up 2, 2, and 2 in three different groups. It's definitely fun to have a friend in the same group.

Getting ready for ski off


A rope is placed across the trail used for ski off to keep others away 9:00-10:00. People can easily ski around the other side of the Whistlestop.

@diymom and @Gidget415 ready to go


Instructors in place at the right side of the trail. Two senior instructors stand in the middle of the trail and help direct students to the correct group. The supervisor at the top has a radio. Says things like "blue" or blue-black" or the name of an instructor as a skier starts down.


An instructor greats a new student. The groups are in order of ability, with the most advanced group highest on the slope.


View of of people ready for the Monday ski off


Jason on the way to join me in Trey's group

 

[marzNC]

Here are some logistical notes.

While slopeside lodging is always nice, for Taos my favorite place to stay is the Columbine Inn. They have a van shuttle for a day of skiing, but I like the flexibility of having a car and am willing to deal with carrying skis from the parking lot. Although with friends, it turns out that there is a place to stop for a few minutes that's pretty close to the locker room. Learned the drop off idea from @alison wong. My friends took my skis and boot bag, then I went to park the SUV. We were usually at the base before 8:30 and it's easy to get good parking midweek. During the holiday weekend, had to be there by 8:00 for the best parking. Saturdays can be busy too if conditions are really good because more locals show up early. We took the 8:30am Columbine shuttle on Sunday of MLK weekend. Signed up for the 3:30 return trip but I ended up on the last shuttle at 4:30 because I was having too much fun after lunch on the backside skiing and lost track of time. I was at the top of Lift 4 at 3:00.

The best parking section is Bear. The walk is relatively flat. If you take the open shuttle in the afternoon, Bear is the first section. To get to Bear, drive around until the Guest Parking sign and turn left to go around. To get the shuttle to stop near your car, you yell (yes, YELL), "Whoa." If the shuttle driver doesn't hear you, usually other folks will help out. Once off, then it's good to yell "Clear." Shuttle drivers have their windows open in all weather.

The season pass office is in the Taos Tent for 2018-19 and is open 8:00-4:00. There is also a pass office across from the season pass office that only handles MCP and Ikon, but only until 2:30pm. Ikon folks get a multiday lift ticket. For the MCP, can get a 2 (or 3) day pass for the included days. Then have to get a day ticket for additional days. Can get a ticket for the next day with the MCP at any ticket outlet, including the ski shop desk that stays open until 5:00pm.

The old season pass office that was next to the public locker room in the main TSV building (under cafeteria) was turned into seasonal locker room. @Susan L and her DH have lockers there.

The public locker room looks very different from 2017-18. It was completely remodeled. As were the restrooms. While there are still benches and people can leave boot bags, there are no cubbies and no more baskets. Having carpeted flooring instead of cement is nice but the space feels incomplete. The electronic storage lockers are $10/$15 and can be rented for multiple days for overnight storage. Overnight ski storage is $10 at the resort's rental shop.

The Snowsports School registration office moved over closer to the base of Lift 1. It's in the Snakedance building, near the fire pit.


A Bear parking sign


Views of the walk from Bear parking

 

[marzNC]

TSV has separate beginner terrain for adults and children. Both have chairlifts and magic carpets. The Children's Ski School building is connected to the main base by a pulse gondola, also known as a gondolita.

For the main base teaching area, TSV has put in two terrain features. There is a mini-halfpipe, which I've seen set up for beginner snowboarders at other places. Also a set of banked turns. The end of the banked turns is the entrance to the covered magic carpet. The first magic carpet helps to get beginners up away from the base without having to walk uphill much at all.

Jason thought I was a little crazy to want to ride the beginner lift as we were finishing up one day. But he came along when I explained that I've found that the view from a beginner lift can be interesting. What we learned is that if you go into the Pioneer area from Rubezahl (long cat track from backside), there is a narrow glade on skier's left. I also noticed that getting off the Pioneer chair, there is a short section steep enough to teach side slipping. I saw an instructor teaching a couple of adults there.

 

[marzNC]

For learning bumps, TSV has the most variety I've found at any destination resort so far. That includes Alta, Snowbird, Snowbasin, places around Tahoe, Jackson Hole, and Big Sky. The bumps at TSV range from tiny to huge with lots of bumps that are part of a groomer or are short sections.

For my group, we started on blue bumps. Once we were getting the hang of a different way of pole usage that works better in bumps, we moved to bigger and steeper bump sections. Towards the end of the week, the idea was to ski blue bumps faster and more aggressively. Then to ski black bumps.

Students take turns following directly behind the instructor. When I followed Trey, he would up the speed more than with most of the other students in our group. So being one of the better skiers in the group didn't hold me back at all. By the end of the week, I'd skied steeper bumps with more confidence than ever before. Also had skied faster in blue and black bumps than ever before. Part of the reason things were working so well was that I had a private lesson with the resident Examiner at my home hill (Massanutten in northern VA) in early Jan to work on my weak side turn (on short green/blue groomers). Managed to finally get the correct technique solid enough to replicate the proper feeling on the long Taos groomers. That meant that my turns on bumps were also mostly better than last season.

As I started saying last season, Taos Ski Weeks are addictive. So far I've done a Women's Ski Week in low snow conditions (no black terrain) and a regular Ski Week in good but not stellar conditions. Both were very worthwhile. I'm looking forward to doing another one in early Feb when I'm heading back to TSV to meet up with Bill and other friends. Bill will be doing his third Ski Week in three years. Pretty surprising considering that his first lesson in about 45 years was just a few years ago with me and Jason at JH with @snoWYmonkey.

Jason and @alison wong practicing on Porcupine bumps (off Lift 1)


Lorelei (black) with instructor (Level 7/8 group)

 

[marzNC]

They groom Zagava and Moe’s when the bumps are too large/too icy. It is quite an experience to ski them without bumps!

After skiing Moe's after it was groomed, I have a better sense of what you mean about Zagava. My group went down Zagava with it's current odd bumps but our instructor just wanted us to get down safely and not worry about form. That would certainly be a steep groomer.

The long steep groomer I've done that's comparable in pitch is Regulator Johnson at Snowbird. Solitude has a steep groomer that is groomed with a winch cat. But I've only been on that trail a couple times and it's been a while so I don't have a clear sense of the pitch.

Last February, Moe's opened after a 9 inch snowstorm midweek. That was fun. I think @Olesya Chornoguz and @santacruz skier are in this picture.

 

[Susan L]

@marzNC Zagava is steep and icy most of the time, so without the bumps, you might as well skid down! Best is when there is a dusting of fresh snow. The last time I skied it without bumps, I saw multiple sections of blue ice! Good thing is the run is short so before you regret your decision of dropping in, you should be on the bottom already!
Another black bump that they groom once in a while is Ruby Gully. I think it is between Moe’s and Zagava in terms of pitch.

 

[Susan L]

Another issue with skiing Zagava groomed is you cannot see the run from the top/entrance. The steep is below the entrance, so by the time you get there and see it, it is too late to turn back!

 

[marzNC]

Some notes from @alison wong's TR from last year about Ski Week that are particularly interesting to me. One thing she and I have in common is that we ask instructors questions that are not directly related to technique. Since Ski Week instructors have so much experience at TSV, there is plenty to learn for those interested.

Few interesting facts worth noting about ski week (I asked plenty questions to my instructor because I am nosy):

1) No ski off for level 1-4. They evaluate you verbally.

2) Level 5+ will have ski off.

3) On average, largest group of students are level 8.

4) Smallest group of students are level 10.

The top group that was above mine on Sunday and Monday looked big, meaning at least 8 and perhaps 9 skiers. But it's possible it was split into two groups after the initial sorting. Never saw them again so hard to know.

Linear growth - I consider myself in this bracket. I am an intermediate. I am still lacking some fundamental pieces, I don’t know these and I need to learn how to do them first. I can learn these missing pieces from the ski week.

Exponential growth - I consider someone who is advanced / expert will probably be gaining “exponential growth” at the end of the ski week. Because these folks already knew all the fundamental pieces. Someone just needs to help them to put all these pieces together to formulate complete picture. Ski week can certainly accomplish that. (But I am not an advanced skier, that's just my assumption)

As an older skier who's been taking lessons as an advanced skier for 5-6 years, definitely don't think that exponential growth is possible at this stage. The tweaks that are needed are subtle, and the habits are more ingrained. The shifts that I've made have usually taken at least a season, and often two seasons, for the new approach to become a habit. What has happened is that I'm more likely to understand the reasoning behind a drill or comment made by an instructor. One reason I like group or semi-private lessons over a solo lesson is that I learn a lot observing how someone else's skiing changes based on guidance from an experienced instructor (20+ years).

There are many older skiers who have been skiing advanced/expert terrain for decades who naturally use techniques they mastered on straight skis. Re-training their muscle memory to open their stance (wider between feet) takes a lot of practice on blue groomers, which not many are willing to do. A week is definitely not enough time. But someone who is committed to becoming more efficient can benefit a great deal from a Ski Week vs 1-2 private lessons during a 1-week ski vacation at a destination resort.

My NC groupmate had been doing Ski Weeks for 4 seasons (after age 65). His stance looked quite different than the midwest men (no lessons in decades) who clearly knew how to make perfect tight parallel turns on straight skis. Even when we were supposed to be doing the Horse/Cowboy drill (very wide stance, as if sitting on a horse) on easy groomers, their feet were going right together between turns. Since we did the drill for quite a ways, by the time the instructor stopped, their feet were mostly together. Must say that for that drill, I followed the group on purpose to observe what they would do. Bill went thru the same adjustment process when he started taking semi-private lessons with at Alta. As I remember, it took about two seasons before the new stance was natural for him. I was never a parallel skier on straight skis, so the adjustment I had to make was to get rid of a stem and narrow my stance a bit. Especially for skiing bumps.

 

[marzNC]

@marzNC Zagava is steep and icy most of the time, so without the bumps, you might as well skid down! Best is when there is a dusting of fresh snow. The last time I skied it without bumps, I saw multiple sections of blue ice! Good thing is the run is short so before you regret your decision of dropping in, you should be on the bottom already!
Another black bump that they groom once in a while is Ruby Gully. I think it is between Moe’s and Zagava in terms of pitch.

Another issue with skiing Zagava groomed is you cannot see the run from the top/entrance. The steep is below the entrance, so by the time you get there and see it, it is too late to turn back!

Well, that's one way to make northeast skiers feel right at home.

Certainly talked to plenty of people from New England and NYC. Have run across midwest ski clubs at Taos before. Although that makes sense because Ernie Blake built TSV partially on convincing people in Chicago to take the train for a ski vacation back in the 1950s and 1960s.

Came across an article from 1985 in the Chicago Tribune by a midwest woman who was taken to TSV as a never-ever by her ski patroller husband. Best to set aside time to read it. The oldest student in her beginner class was 70! Of the ten adults who started out the week, one she and one other woman made it to the final day. Remember this was on straight skis.

A LIFELONG AVERSION CONQUERED ON THE SLOPES OF TAOS VALLEY - Nov 1985

 

[marzNC]

It took a while to figure out the best way to get to the the entrance for loading Lift 1 when coming down White Feather (green cat track). The terrain above the St. Bernard is quite different than before. I'd noticed on the webcam that there were different bumps. But hadn't noticed the cut through under the lift if someone wanted to do a few bumps. My instructor showed his group how to get off White Feature earlier to avoid both the bumps and the crowd during the late afternoon by heading towards the Children's teaching area.

Locals and regulars are still getting used to the loading zone for Lift 1. It's a short distance and they have a slight incline that's supposed to make it easier since no shuffling is needed. But that means many people end up going too fast and can end up on top of the backs of the skis of the group in the progress of sitting down on a chair. It was more of an issue during the holiday weekend. Definitely noticed that it wasn't just beginners/intermediates who needed more practice.

 

[marzNC]

TSV has a computerized database system that makes it relatively easy to handle registration for the MCP, ski school, and/or rental gear from Taos Ski Shop. There are actually three different waivers for 2018-19: 1) MCP, 2) Ikon, 3) ski school and resort rental. I could find my record from last season so didn't have to type in my address again. Once a base record is in the database, only need to "sign" waivers and/or add stats for a potential rental (height, weight, age, Type).

However, the Ikon is clearly a work in progress. I had no problem getting a multi-day lift ticket good for 5 consecutive days. But for someone with a Full Ikon, have to go back after 5 days to get another ticket good for 2 days. The maximum number is 5. Of course, you don't have to use Ikon days consecutively. So if unsure whether skiing 5 days in a row is going to work, then may be better to only get 1-2 days at a time.

For the MCP, can get the 2 (or 3) included days on one lift ticket. For additional days @50% off, must get a day ticket every time. Can get a ticket for the next day after 3pm or so. The desk at Taos Sports stays open until 5:00.

 

[marzNC]

As I was unpacking, remembered something from the ABQ airport. There was a Bank of America ATM as I walked to Baggage Claim. That happens to be my bank. I got some cash to cover the tip for my Ski Week instructor.

The midwest ski club coordinators told their folks to consider a tip of $50 for a Ski Week. Some of them skipped Wednesday since there were a day off built into their itinerary. The range that I've heard is from $5 to $20 per day, meaning $30-120 for all 6 morning lessons. The price for 2018-19 is $270, which comes out essentially $300 with tax.

I've heard of Ski Week groups that have one person collect all the tips to be presented at once. For other groups, people tip individually.

Some Ski Week groups have lunch together. I chose to treat my instructor to lunch since he typically eats a hot lunch at the St. B. or the Hondo. Trey tries to keep his Friday afternoons free when he is teaching a Ski Week. Jason came to lunch too and split the instructor's bill with me. The other solo student planned to come but was too tired out. The four midwest folks had plans to meet up with their ski club friends since that was their last ski day.

Bill's instructor would get together with his group for aprés at the Hondo around 4pm on Friday afternoon. Bill missed out the first time because we were driving to Albuquerque on Friday afternoon. The next year the travel plan called for staying in TSV until Sat morning.

 

[Susan L]

@marzNC I prefer one person collecting the tips and then present it as a group tip. That way, no one is pressured into tipping more than they are comfortable with.
Last year when I took a private lesson, I gave the tip in an envelope before the instructor skied off. A few minutes later, about 50yds from where we were standing, I saw an envelope on the snow! It turned out to be MY envelope and the money was still inside!!!! So I now hand the tip to the instructor off the slopes.

 

[marzNC]

@marzNC I prefer one person collecting the tips and then present it as a group tip. That way, no one is pressured into tipping more than they are comfortable with.
Last year when I took a private lesson, I gave the tip in an envelope before the instructor skied off. A few minutes later, about 50yds from where we were standing, I saw an envelope on the snow! It turned out to be MY envelope and the money was still inside!!!! So I now hand the tip to the instructor off the slopes.

I agree that if the people in a group know each other or have become friendly outside of the lessons then combining tips make sense. I've done that for group tours in China for the guide/driver tips. But it doesn't always work for a Ski Week. So far, from my experience the advanced/expert groups are more likely to tip individually.

Whenever I give a tip to a ski instructor, I do it in such a way that they know it's cash. For a private or semi-private lesson, I often give the tip at the last stop before getting to the base. Especially if they are rushing to have lunch and/or get to the next lineup. I don't bother with an envelope, I just fold up the bills so that the total amount is not obvious but it is clear that I'm handing over money.

 

[marzNC]

Both the MCP and Ikon get 10% discounts for resort food. Probably a discount in Taos Sports for buying stuff too, but I didn't buy anything this trip.

There is a big discount on the Ski Week for TSV season passholders. Not sure, but may only be in January.

 

[Susan L]

Season passholders get BOGO free on regular ski week. Has to use both at the same time. No discounts on any other lessons. 50% off buddy passes. 10% off food. 10% off shop purchases (20% off with full/no blackout pass).

 

[tinymoose]

@Susan L Just curious how the rest of your experience was with the race clinic?

 

[Susan L]

@tinymoose I think I will start a new TR thread on the race week! Stay tuned!

 

[alison wong]

My write -up on the Taos ski week this year: This is my 2nd year doing the Taos ski week.

@EuniceG and I arrived to ABQ Friday night, planned to do some sightseeing in Santa Fe on Saturday before driving up to Taos. Turned out we only had time to visit Georgia O’Keefe museum because we wanted to arrive to Taos Ski Valley (TSV) before 4 pm to get our Mountain Collective Pass (MCP) and signed up for ski week.

This year, I found a place closer TSV, about 5 mins. drive, located across from Columbine Inn. Glad we arrived during the day because we had trouble finding our condo building.

This year’s ski week was a bit stressful. Had to bring my work computer because I had a work-related deadline and needed to finish this project before end of the week.

Day 1 - Sunday
Original goal was to leave our place at 8:15 am, do 2 warm up runs before heading to ski off at 9:45 am.
Things never go according to our original plan. I parked the 2WD rental in the back parking lot of the condo building, the car was not able to climb up the steeper slope of the drive way. We spent 45 mins trying to get the car out and finally gave up. I went across the Columbine Inn because they have shuttle service to TSV. Luckily, I caught their shuttle as it was about to leave. The driver was helpful and agreed to give us a ride.

My pants and socks were wet from shoveling the snow for getting the car out. I ended up not wearing socks, it was a strange feeling… wearing ski boots without socks.

By the time we booted up and got on Lift 1, it was past 9:30, ski off starts at 9:45. We headed straight to Whistle Stop (meeting point for ski off), we were the last 2 to arrive. I was so glad that we got the MCP pass, signed up for ski week the day before. Otherwise, we would miss the ski off and lesson.

Definitely, there was less people doing the ski week than last year. Jean Mayer was not at the ski off. He had hip surgery and still recovering.
I noticed this year’s ski off was a bit different than last year. Before the ski off, the supervisor asked students what kind of terrains they normally ski. He then radioed to instructors down the hill, calling out something like: “We have a blue, coming down.”

After I skied down the hill, an instructor approached me, asking if I am interested to be in her group to ski bumps. My reply: “Yes, I am and I started learning to ski bumps last season and would like to continue to learn more about it.” So I was placed in her group, all women, 5 students plus a woman instructor.

From the chair lift ride, I learned that this group of women made a request to have this particular instructor teaching them this ski week, they are all regulars at the ski week, do 1 or 2 ski week per season at Taos. One woman was on the board of Directors for TSV.

First run, she already took us down a bump run, with small trees / shrubs in between. I was the worst and slowest one. Everyone else went down those bumps with ease and control. Me, on the other hand, was struggling. My ski got stuck between this tiny pine tree and had to slide backwards to get my skis out. I already sensed trouble ahead…..

In between the bump runs, she looked at our stance to make sure our skis are parallel when we stand. She called me out and commented: “You are not in parallel, something wrong with your stance, how come your stance is “v” shaped? Can you straighten your skis?” In one of the chair lift rides, she asked if my gears are rentals. No, these are not rental gears, I have my boots fitted and canted by a bootfitter…. I don’t know why she was “fixated” on my stance and boots.

I fell on bump sections of the porcupine run and the group had to wait for me for quite a while. I felt bad.

In my head, I was contemplating how to survive the ski week with this group and this instructor. At the end of the class, as I was heading back to the base, she came and told me that I would be in a level lower starting tomorrow. I had mixed feelings about this: 1) felt disappointed for sure; 2) yet I felt relieved because it was a bit stressful to keep up with this group. Because they all seemed to be able to ski bumps coming in, what they need is “fine tuning” and “improvement”. Me? I need more intro before the fine tuning and improvement! 3) why did she ask me to be in her group in the first place and then asked me to leave?

Despite our mis-match (mis-fit?), one important tip I learned from this instructor, always stand on top of a bump before initiating a next turn. I’ve heard of this before but she really honed in on this and I used this tip the remaining of the week whenever I ski on bumps.

In the afternoon, @marzNC took the time to show me the backside of the mountain, which was not opened last year when I came. I got to ride all lifts and saw Kachina peak chair, avalanche area and debris. My afternoon on this day was better than the morning for sure.

This day was full of saga…. had a stuck vehicle in the driveway, not wearing socks in ski boots, got demoted from a ski group, deadline on this work project ought to finish….

On top of all these, I was in limbo on what group I’d get assigned the next day……

That night, I mapped out a mental note on how to deal with the situation:

What I want: in a group that I can work on things I came here for: learn how to ski bumps.
What I don’t want: let the ski school to assign what group I should be in (based on the 1st day’s class).
Based on my want and don’t want, I should therefore: Communicate to the ski school what I came here for, what I want to learn, importance of being in the right group to fulfill my “want”.
Worst comes to worst: cancel this ski week and ask for refund…

We invited MarzNC and her crew (@diymom and Jason) came over to our condo for dinner. They came early to help… more than help actually. MarzNC was a life saver because she helped to get the car out of the drive way that evening. So we did not have to call tow truck. I remembered she said to me afterwards: “Now that your car is out, you can focus on skiing.” I thought to myself: “Not quite because my biggest problem is not resolved: deadline for the work project I must finish.” So yes, my mind remained pre-occupied and I worked a bit more after they left.

Lesson learned:
1) Despite some people say 4WD in TSV is not necessary, it really depends on the area. Based on what I see, certain roads to condo buildings/ houses are only accessible by 4WD. I recommend checking with landlord/rental owners, never assume.
2) If you are going to host a dinner gathering, better to do it in the early part of your trip. You will have time to finish the left overs from the gathering.