I took a stab at snowboarding yesterday. I figured after some experience with video games, it would be a piece of cake.

We went to 7 Springs, because Erin had some sort of ski club thing that could get me lift tickets and rental for less than they would normally be. It was a little cold and windy, but I was more or less dressed alright to not be cold, although I could have used some sturdier pants than just the nylon shell over long underwear that I went with.

Erin and I skipped the free lesson and went with some personal instruction from my friend who’s been boarding for 9 years. I won’t bore you with all the details, but by the end of the day I think I had turning and stopping pretty well down. The only reason I didn’t try and hit a “real” trail and not just the bunny slope, was that it started to get icy at higher elevations, and there was a truly frightening number of people out there… I had visions of falling and then immediately becoming a pile of snowy meat with ski and snowboard tracks all over my frozen carcass.

I’ll be taking a trip out to Colorado before long, and at places like Vail or Breckenridge I should see wider trails, better conditions, and waaaay less people. Can’t wait.