Southern Oregon Adventures VIII: Skiing Mt. Shasta

I think I found a new favorite hobby. Skiing.

On Saturday, I hit the slopes on Mount Shasta with a few friends from work. It was sunny, lift tickets were (relatively) cheap, and the company was good, fun. It was excellent.

There's a ski park on Mt. Ashland less than an hour from my apartment, but we made the trek to California for good reason. The runs are much flatter, meaning much less chance for falls and bone-breaking injuries.

It was a clear, rainless, snowless day without much more than a breeze at the top of the runs. So, you could see out over the entire Shasta valley. And if you're not skiing/sliding/falling down the hill, it's pretty quiet up there. The tall trees were a sight to see, too. Deep green towers high above the crisp, white snow. Very serene, very beautiful.

Was it busy? Not especially. The other skiers and snowboarders made the experience better, too. Surprisingly enough.

It seemed like just about everyone was in a good mood. We were all just enjoying the day, enjoying the hill, and happy to be able to do something cool.

The phrases, "bro," "dude," "chill," were thrown around a lot. But it almost felt right. Like every stereotypical California surfer added four layers of clothes and traded in their beach towel for snow boots.

Elementary-aged kids flew down hills with reckless abandon, much quicker than my 22 year old frame could handle. It was the opposite of Disneyland. No crying kids and angry parents. In their place, hip-high adrenaline junkies dreaming of the X-Games.

Cool environment. Pun intended.

The best part of the ski trip was, what else, the skiing. Picking up speed…finding the right way down…not necessarily seeing, but knowing, feeling, where the other riders are and avoiding each other…feeling thighs burn…hearing the cracking of ice under the skis…feeling the cold sting…its all part of the experience. Being in that zone.

I shot this video of Nick and Kristin heading down Cedar Run and Panther Creek:

Did I fall? Yeah, got a small bruise below my knee. But if you're not falling, you're not trying hard enough.

Can't wait to be back in that zone again.