You know your skiing has improved when . . . .

[Lola]

Two days ago, I spent a day skiing with a friend of mine who is relatively new to the sport - and she is skiing just great! As we were skiing, I started to point out signs that indicate her skiing was improving, such as . . .

You know your skiing has improved when . . .
1) you spend more time on the lift than on the slope.
2) your friends don't wait for you because they know, without a doubt, that you can ski the terrain that you're on.
3) you come in from skiing after your teenage son has.
4) your lift ticket has expired, but you feel like you still have a few runs left in you.

Anyone care to add some others to the list?

 

[tcarey]

your smiling!

 

[RachelV]

You start thinking that bumps are kind of fun.

 

[SnowHot]

When your husband is complaining about the snow spray from your twin tips because he's BEHIND YOU!

 

[skigirl]

When at the end of the day there is finally more snow on the hill than there is on YOU!! LOL!!

 

[Kimmyt]

When the lifties get to know you by sight and ask 'back so soon?'

 

[SnowHot]

When the lifties get to know you by sight and ask 'back so soon?'

On this regard, I skied a whole day without my pass/arm band and never missed a beat. Not one lifty looked for it but all greeted me.

 

[persee]

... when you look back up the slope and realize - hey! I just skiied that!

This actually happened (kinda) at Bolton Valley like 2 weeks ago... Made the mistake of assuming that a blue trail named "glade" was just called that because it was narrow/tree-lined - wrong. It was completely ungroomed with 40+ inches of powder/bumps/piles etc. Well I looked down and said "hrm this is gonna be ugly but I really don't wanna hike back over to another trail" and thusly set about heading down this trail. And I took my time - apparently everyone else was smart enough to stay away - and made it down on my skis. There were even exposed rocks (hard to believe with 40+ inches of powder, but they were there) and I made it down on my skis. I was very proud of myself because I can tell you that a year ago I wouldn't have made it down. Maybe it would be mentally - I'd just psych myself out - but either way.

 

[slipnslide]

The mountain gets smaller.

 

[dloveski]

When you wish you had a SNORKEL for the chest deep powder!!! Face shots reduce visibility. ARGGHHHHH.

 

[volklgirl]

You actually try to find the gnarliest terrain at your mountain and get excited about skiing it.

 

[SkiMonster]

:o you haven't had a full-scale panic session on the mountain this year.
NOT stopping at the top of the trail to stand there and look down for a minute is the best advice I've gotten so far.

 

[katievilla]

When you can do a fish flop down the hill and get up without crying and you are laughing hysterically.
That happened to me last weekend....when I was so tired, my legs were on fire but had kept going anyways and (had to go to the bathroom)-- then hit a pile of powder unexpectedly...

 

[Quiver Queen]

You find that your skis are doing exactly what they were designed to do.:D

 

[snowgirl]

I'm surprised no one stated the obvious- when you stop falling I went skiing for the first time this season, and it was wonderful when around 12/1pm of my first day skiing when I was able to ski completely down the mountain without falling! Needless to say I'm now addicted, unfortunately have to wait until next season to really learn how to ski better!

 

[volklgirl]

If you're not falling, you're just not challenging yourself to try something new!:p

 

[Native Vail Gal]

Remembering back...

When you stop asking the lifties to slow the lift for you to get off!!!
OR
They don't have to stop the whole lift because you have fallen off the lift yet one more time getting off and can't get the heck up!!!!

Of course....please tell me that you can all relate to this when you started skiing!!!!

 

[Lori_K]

---when you aren't the last one to the bottom of the trail.

---when you look at a steep black glade and go "oh, YEAH!" instead of "ohmigod!!" :D

 

[Native Vail Gal]

When you can take your gloves off on the chairlift and put chapstick on without dropping anything!:D

 

[SnowGlider]

When you look up at what you just did and cry

The first time I skied down from the top of the mountain where I learned, I got on the lift with my instructor at 9:30 a.m. We arrived back at the bottom at 11 a.m. When I looked back up at the top of the mountain, I burst into tears, realizing that I had just achieved a lifelong dream that I believed impossible only 6 weeks before. I had a suspicion that my life would never be the same, and I was right.

Why did it take me an hour and a half to get down? Well, first we encountered an old guy from the ski patrol who regaled us with tales of "gruesome accidents I have seen." I was horrified. I took off when he told about a man who was impaled through the liver on a tree branch.

Then I had to stop for about 10 minutes at the top of each and every section of the hill to survey it.

My friends, this is what it's like to ski with PTSD.

However, within a few weeks I had gotten that hour-and-a-half run down to 12 minutes and could do it without stopping and without my instructor.