Skiing at Night

My last kid finally independent.

Growing up, our father was the athletic director at Maret. While we were students he created an amazing opportunity for us by starting a Snow Club. Once a week we would earn our bruises on the worst the East coast had to offer. Each Wednesday after school we would drive up to the mountain, forced to wear the brightest knit hats (so we were easy to locate), and scrape ourselves down sheets of ice after the sun went down…. it was AWESOME! My brother-in-law works full time at Alta, and he always says that some of the best skiers that make their way out West hail from the East Coast! I don’t think he meant the DMV area, but there is truth to putting in your time on crude and corn to build some confidence.

Almost a decade ago, long time staff member (who also happened to ski with us during those Maret days) brought the Snow Club to Calleva. Dang it’s cold. Trails are icy, fingers go numb, sometimes you have to dodge grass and rocks…. but dang it is STILL AWESOME! For the past 8 years I have been on the bunny slopes. When one kid gets good enough to go out on their own with friends, my wife makes me take the next one. Finally my last kid can ski independently, I don’t know how to fill my time out on the mountain without teaching some kids how to ski.

A couple things I do love. I know where my kids are on Friday nights, and they are not on the phone or playing games, but out skiing hard and earning their own bruises. I love knowing that now in life if they ever get invited to go skiing, they will have the confidence and skill to do it right. And I love that pretty soon they will be better than me…. but not yet!

The Snow Club has been so much more to our Calleva community than another activity. We see some campers, we have old and current staff join us, we have had teachers and friends from schools and organizations come up with us, and some of our staff that now have “real jobs” also catch a ride.

I hope to see you all on the slopes. We are easy to spot, we wear the awful yellow vests ~not too much unlike the ugly orange knit hats we had as students!