Conquered

Heel side- conquered.

Falling leaf- conquered.

Toe side- pretty much conquered.

Linking turns- on the way to being conquered.

All in all i'd say snowboarding....conquered!

It was 6am Friday morning and the word 'cold' had a whole new meaning! Walking became a whole new adventure as most of the ground was covered in ice. With 40 cm of fresh powder and an ongoing snowfall- we were pretty keen to hit the slopes. The time finally came, walking past the hot donut shop, up the stairs which the previous year was a painful obstacle in ski boots, in my snow boots I almost frollicked my way to the top. There in front of us- sheer beauty! The slopes and everything before it engulfed in white! You can't help but connect with God in a whole new way...

After our group lesson and other boarders dropping out like flies, it was time to bite my lip and hit the chairlift. With very brief advice to getting on and off I took to the challenge and depending on your perspective failed and succeeded each time for the rest of that day. I always made it to the top, generally pain free but always with a goofy stack accompanying the trip.

The one thing I love about chair lifts though is the people you meet. Being stuck on an elevated chair for at least 5-10mins with absolute strangers provides the breeding ground for great conversations with great people! To professional business men, fathers, irish backpackers to people from Strathfield, to others who wakeboard.....you can meet some amazing people!

All in all- I got it! I could get down the hill without stacking it. I could go down heel side (facing forward) and toe side (facing uphill) which led me to link my turns...semi successfully. The after effects resulted in pain in every core muscle in an intense way. And I thought I was fit..whoa!

I have never hurt soo much in my life! I've also never fallen over soo many times either! On my butt, knees, head, shoulder, elbows...you name it I fell on it! Motto- Go Hard THEN Go Home!

Was it worth it? Oh my heck yes! I have just entered into my eternal love affair with snow boarding. . . . .