"It's Just Like Riding a Bicycle"

I am non-athletic. Completely. But, because of my sister's diligent efforts over a period of years, I used to be an okay skier.


The last time I went was eight years ago. It was a complete fiasco. I had convinced myself, since then, that I couldn't ski anymore. 


The boys' Scout troop was planning a trip to Ruidoso and Kregg asked a few weeks ago if I would like to come along and bring Elizabeth and Rebekah. My initial response was that I would come, but wouldn't ski. I was thinking I could watch them come down and snap a few pictures. At least the girls would get to go. But as it drew nearer, I got to thinking that I should at least give it a try. "It's just like riding a bicycle," he said. It was, after all, just for one day, and if it was dreadful I could sit at the lodge and stay warm, waiting for all of them.


So we made plans.


I would leave earlier than the troop with the four youngest. Kregg would wait for Caleb and his roommate, Warren, to drive in from college, and then they would travel up with the troop. 


We bought and downloaded a new audio book to listen to on the drive. (If you don't know about BlueBehemoth.com, you should check it out!) We got everything packed and loaded, and shut down the house. Then we took off. Kregg had printed me out a map with my route highlighted so I wouldn't get lost. Elizabeth, because she is very prone to motion sickness, was my navigator, sitting up front with me.


Several hours later, we pulled into our hotel, unloaded and then went to find dinner.

The wait for a table for five was 30 minutes so we opted for two adjacent booths. After eating, we went back to the hotel to await the arrival of the rest of the guys. It ended up being pretty late. Kregg pulled in and picked up Josh and Ben to deliver them to the house the Scouts were staying in, then came back to the hotel with the girls and me. 

Early the next morning, we headed up the mountain. Caleb always has a silly face ready when I point the camera at him. Warren is much more cooperative. He was so excited to go skiing for his very first time! He had no idea just how much fun he was in for, with Caleb teaching him to ski. :) He should know by now that anytime he comes with us on one of our trips, he's in for an adventure. 

I didn't tell her she had her ear band on backwards

Rebekah, in her permanent "snowplow"

It was a glorious day! Which really helped me be braver.

Kregg, Elizabeth, and Rebekah

Kregg, contemplating endless possibilities

Notice the name of this run? Inspiring for one who is "Wild At Heart!"

Elizabeth, Kregg, Warren, and Caleb, about to board the lift

Elizabeth and Kregg riding behind us

Rebekah is still very much a beginning skier, and she wanted me to stay with her. That was fine and it allowed Elizabeth, who is much more confident, to go and ski with Kregg on a little more difficult slopes. As the day progressed, Rebekah was doing better and better. We decided to join Kregg and the others for our last run of the day. 

Big mistake.

The slope we planned to attempt was not one Rebekah felt good about, once she saw it. But by that point, we were past the point of no return. The two of us decided to ski across a little path that bisected the run the others were taking, thinking it would lead us to the "easy way down." It didn't. She was really getting scared. And tired. Both of us were very tired, by that point. Scared and tired on a "black diamond" is a recipe for disaster. 

We took off our skis and carried them. It seemed like we walked forever. And still there was no way to the trail we needed. I was really very concerned that Rebekah was about at the end of her rope. And I just kept praying for the Lord to help us. It was getting later and later, and we were still on top of the mountain. We finally decided we would have to climb up one of the black slopes. That was a chore. Especially after we were already so tired. When we finally made it up, the trail we expected was no where to be found. I began to wonder what would happen if she was not able to keep going. 

We came out on the face of the mountain under the gondola. At least it was wide open. We put the skis back on, but she was so scared that I didn't know if she would be able to conquer her fear enough to do what she knew how to do. It was too far to walk down. She really needed to be able to ski. We just had to focus on tiny little goals. Once we made it part of the way down the face, we found the "easy way down," which made her feel better. She was skiing a little, and I kept reminding her that we were making progress and she would soon be on her favorite run. It probably took us over an hour to make it to that trail where she had gained so much confidence earlier in the day. By that point, it was completely in shadows and the surface had grown crusty and slick. But she did exactly what she needed to, staying in control of her speed and working her way back and forth down the slope. It's actually so much harder to ski that slowly than with moderate speed--I wanted to encourage her to speed up a little because I knew her legs were exhausted, but she needed to focus on what was working for her, so I just stayed close and kept cheering her on, telling her how proud I was of her attitude and perseverance. 

When we were about half way down that last run, and we had hope that we would survive it after all, a snow-boarder came whizzing down the slope. 

I could see it coming and I couldn't believe it. 

He took her out. 

She lay in a heap, whimpering, and I thought I was capable of murder for a moment. 

Not really. 

But I did just almost lose it. I'm ashamed to say that I threw my poles down. Thankfully, the Lord kept my mouth closed and I just focused on getting to her and helping her up. She was trying so hard not to cry. The poor man was horrified. He apologized profusely. He stayed to make sure she was able to get up, and then skied near us for a few minutes. Rebekah told him she was okay and then we made sure he wasn't hurt. I was so proud of her. I knew how hard it was for her to stay calm. I knew how frustrated she was. But she got up and made the very best of it. 

My little girl is growing up.

We made it down and found Kregg and the other kids. I cannot fully express the relief that flooded my heart. Rebekah had stepped away for a moment, and so I was trying to explain to Caleb what had happened. The floodgates opened. I started crying and couldn't finish. I just kept thanking the Lord for getting us through it.

And once it was over and my heart had settled a little, everything was wonderful again. I was so very thankful. It had been a beautiful day and, even though the last couple of hours were incredibly difficult, I am glad I didn't miss it by being too afraid to try to ski again. It really is like riding a bicycle. 

The girls and I started down the mountain in the suburban, thinking Kregg and the guys were right behind us. They weren't. The truck wouldn't start. :)


Kregg called me and I told him I would find a turn around and head back up to see if we could jump it off. He told me to wait. There "just happened" to be a scenic overlook a little farther down. If the truck had started, I wouldn't have taken time to stop. It was so beautiful! The clouds looked like an ocean among the mountain tops. A few minutes later, and the vista would have been completely obscured in shadow. His blessings are always perfectly timed, aren't they?

The truck started up after several more attempts. It's a diesel and we think it was just too cold. After a shower and a lovely dinner, Kregg and the two girls and I piled into bed, completely tired out. The plan for the next morning was to get up fairly early and head home, because Caleb and Warren would still have what would normally be a 2 1/2 hour drive on to Abilene from our house.

But guess what happened? The truck wouldn't start again. It took us almost an hour to finally get it running. We headed over to pick up the four boys, three of them having slept OUTSIDE!! Their nuts!

While we waited for them to come out, we got to watch several mule deer come up out of a gulch to graze in the yards. They were so beautiful.

I have another budding photographer on my hands. :)

He looks SO much older when he has fur on his face! He will turn twenty in a week and a half! Having spent most of the night outside in a sleeping bag, he took a nap to catch up. There was at least one lane open all the way back, but it was a little scary. Kregg and the rest of the Boy Scouts were about twenty minutes behind us, and between the time we past one spot and the time they did, a minivan had rolled several times.

Caleb and Warren left as soon as possible for Abilene, and it's a good thing because, instead of a 2 1/2 hour drive, it took them more than 4. They saw 20+ accidents in that 150 miles. We were so thankful for them to arrive safely. 


It was a wonderful weekend.