First day high

It was a beautiful day and, as far as I’m concerned, perfect for skiing.

While La Nina’s promise left many a skier tingling with excitement, few anticipated the significant drop in temperatures. Let’s just say I was glad I didn’t ski when it was -20 C.
But this day was just right—it was -5 C, the sun was out and I had clear visibility for miles. Still, I had mixed feelings. Would I remember what to do, how to turn? Will I now pay for not exercising last spring?

My ski instructor must’ve noticed my slight trepidation. She said after months of not skiing, everyone goes through an initial phase of getting back into the groove.

“More people are falling on the slopes. You look down at your skis and wonder ‘What are these long things on my feet?,’” she said.

Indeed, even as my muscles tried to remember the manoeuvres, I saw at least one overenthusiastic snowboarder crash and fall. As quickly as the snowboarder brushed himself off and continued down the slope, my confidence returned as the instructor gave me pointers to improve my balance and regulate my speed.

One great thing about Sun Peaks is that there’s a wide variety of terrain even for beginners like me to practise on. We went down 5 Mile, Rambler and Homesteader as I worked on my turn shape, balance and stopping.

Two hours went by in a flash. After a quick lunch of a breakfast wrap and chai tea latte at Vertical Juice, I was back on the chairlift. I did one more run for good measure and snapped some photos to commemorate my first day back on the slopes. It was a good day, and I know there’ll be more of it.

Sign up for ski lessons at the Sports School: 250-578-5505. To follow Lailani’s progress as she blogs her regular ski lessons, visit: www.sunpeaksnews.com.