Snowboarding proves to be uplifting life challenge

by Schuyler Clark, staff writer

There are a multitude of high-risk, intense sports and activities that really tickle me where I like it.

Some that I would like to try out some day such as racing, sky diving, snowboarding, hitman, kickboxing, water and snow-skiing, hang gliding, scuba diving, smuggling, juggling with chainsaws and various other dangerous actions.  But out of all of these, I have only recently crossed snowboarding off my personal to-do list. Not that it is the least or more insignificant, rather, it is one of the most awesome and uplifting experiences I have had in my lifetime. 

I started my three-day excursion in the mountains of New Mexico by renting a cheap snowboard and a two-and-a-half day lift ticket.  Foolishly thinking I have everything I need, I trek up the mountain to try this thing out.  After finally getting my boots strapped on and figuring out how my boots connected to my board, not getting too cocky, I jump on the next-to-easiest chairlift, and promptly make a moron of myself.  They had to stop the lift and allow me to untangle myself from the stubborn chair.  Shaking my head clear and free of snow, I resume the voyage up the slope.  The landing on top spilled me once again, and the overzealous chair turned to make its way back to the bottom.

Once I finally get through dodging descending skiers, I can stand up in peace, only to fall yet again. I was beginning to see a pattern. I had to work on my balance!  Inching my way down the descent, falling at amusingly, almost regular, intervals, I start to get frustrated. But nothing can make me give up, and I mean nothing! Then the ski patrol told me to get off the mountain,­­ as they were shutting down for the day because it gets dark up there around 5 p.m. So much for the first day and my dogged determination.

The next day, I rise bright and early, roughly around 10 a.m. and crack open my breakfast.  I’m so sore I can hardly move, but I’m sticking with the mantra of yesterday – nothing can stop me. Good and prepared for the day ahead of me, I retrace my steps.  Marginally better than the previous day, I cautiously make my way to the more advanced chair lift.  Having a bit of experience inflated my confidence, except when it came to the hair-raising, adrenaline-pumping drop-offs (they have ceased to qualify as slopes with the lack of positive degrees).  As I advanced past the slopes with little kids on leashes and old people raising their healthcare premiums, I move on to the smart-aleck intermediates.

I began to consider the mechanics once I got the feel of it, and it all started to make sense.  By this point, I have the ability to: a) get on and off the chair lift, b) go down the mountain without seriously injuring myself or others, and c) not fall down every 20 feet. 

The exhilaration I was feeling and the rush that I was getting by flying down the side of the mountain is truly indescribable. But as the rush hits, the potential for serious accidents also increases.  By the time I started to get the hang of it, I saw my good friends, the ski patrol, and had to cease my fun for another day.   A stop at the hot tub relieves all the stress and soreness accumulated during the day.  My pillow never has been that soft.

As the next day comes, I was even more prepared and ready for it.  I met the sunrise with a morning jog, because I couldn’t move after I got up.  Having remedied the stiffness and immobility, I race up the mountain to take advantage of my last day before I was forced to return to reality - dry, dirty West Texas. 

This was the best day thus far, and I only fell when I got too brave.  My first trip that I was able to go from the chair dumping ground on top to the base where leashed kids roam was a very significant accomplishment, and I felt that I could return to Land of Level with no sleights of personality or regressions of commitment. Another Dr. Clark prescribed session with the hot tub, and I am good as gravy.

Now the immediate connotation that comes to mind when I hear snowboarding is an overwhelming desire to drop everything and find a board and mountain to exercise some cool stuff on.  I have never experienced anything like it, and I cannot wait to go back.