Well we've all had a big learning curve at different rates over the last two days - but I think I could say we're all pretty confident on the beginner slopes now. Mase is going to give one of the medium slopes a try by himself but the rest of us will just stick on the beginners runs. Day 2 (Wed, 2 Dec) we had Andrei the ski instructor for another three hours. However it was really only me that needed his instruction as the others were all keen and able to ski down the beginner's slope...so I was glad to have his undivided attention and he was no doubt frustrated at my slow progress. After a while Andrei decided it was time for me to try the beginner's slope (as in photo). Starting down it I can only say I was petrified and stacked it heaps of times - luckily Andrei was there to retrieve me from massive piles of soft snow. I did have one nasty stack when I caught the ski stick under my skiis and instead of sliding nicely along the slope I crunched my neck and shoulder - but I can still ski despite the stiff neck. 
As for Mase and the kids they had piles of fun while I was facing my fears and trying to 'climb every mountain' and so here's Mase's recount of their day... he took each of the kids down the beginner's slope individually first to see how they coped and they all had a stack or two. Then they all went down together - Sam is the most accomplished of the kids and is pretty good when it comes to speed and confidence. He is also pretty good at traversing and taking corners to keep his speed under control but because he's so light he can generally get away with going straight down. As for Jo - she can snow plough down the slopes really well because she's so light and low to the ground but she needs to work on her turns and traversing across the slope. She's quite happy to go as fast as possible because she's able to stop really well. Now to Matt - he's so light he can get away with going straight down the steepest slopes in the snow plough position without traversing across the slope. Many times throughout the day the kids have said how much they love skiing - Matt was even prepared to stop eating to get back to skiing which says volumes!!
In the afternoon we took the cable car and then the chair lifts up to the highest point in the Zermatt Alps - the Matterhorn Glacier. Riding in the glass lifts gives a great view of the area below and around and the height we climbed from Zermatt (at 1620 m above sea level) to the top was more than 2000 metres. So when we reached the top we were at 3883 m above sea level. The ride was freezing - my toes and fingers were numb - and the temperature at the top was around -14. The views were spectacular - a world of white mountains with streaks of black now and then, the sky was blue and we were as high as we'll ever get in this life! 
(Here's a couple of photos to prove we got there.)
(Here's a couple of photos to prove we got there.)When we were talking at the end of Thursday and saying we only had one more day's skiing left they all said they wished it was longer! As for Thursday (3rd day skiing) - we all started out together for Gohnergrat where they had a beginner's slope. Mase and the kids took the chair lift to the top of the slope, while I waited at the bottom to see if it was wide enough and easy enough for me to attempt. While they were gone I tried skiing on a small slope to the cable car to see if I could still remember yesterday's lessons - I made the slope but by the time I got to the bottom (about 3 mins later) I was shaking all over. I then had to climb back up the slope and just as I was about to retry the slope Mase appeared and I was saved. Only to face a worse option - apparently the slope was wide and would be fine for me to try.... 
The kids were not too keen on my going up with them because I'd slow them down so they went on ahead and Mase kept me company going down. It was very daunting but we made it with me stacking it only twice - the kids took 10-15 mins whereas I took about 35 minutes. This slope had some fairly steep slopes and all the kids had some pretty unglamorous stacks when they couldn't control their speed but they loved it and did the same slope about 3 or 4 times. From my point of view it was worth the challenge as I was able to practice my traversing and turning and build my confidence. The photo is of us at Gohnergrat taking a break from the mornings work! The weather was much better than forecasted (light snow) and we had good visibility, almost clear skies and temperatures around 0 to 5 degrees depending on where we were.
Here's a photo of Mase and Matt sitting in a comfy snow seat while we waited for the bus to take us to Sunnega for the afternoon. Once there we all went down the beginner's slope at varying speeds. The kids are now pretty accomplished on this one but it was my second time down and this time I was all alone...I did it 4 times and on two of the runs I didn't fall - soooo exciting - I was getting better and faster and my times were improving from about 30 minutes down to 15 minutes - still slower than the kids but definitely gaining in confidence - yay! I think the kids were even slightly impressed that I went down some slopes without slowing my speed. One thing I should say is how magical it was to be sitting on the chair lift, all alone, looking out over the valley and mountains and the quiet/peace was amazing - a very special moment. Unfortunately Mase hasn't been on the chair lift alone but he's planning to try one of the medium slopes tomorrow by himself and hopefully he'll have a similar experience. Oh and one other thing - Libby wondered if we had sore muscles after Day 1 - we didn't - but by Day 3 - absolutely - my inner thighs are sooo sore!! Mase says he's fine apart from a few blisters on his feet from walking in ski boots too much and the children seem to have taken everything in their stride.
The kids were not too keen on my going up with them because I'd slow them down so they went on ahead and Mase kept me company going down. It was very daunting but we made it with me stacking it only twice - the kids took 10-15 mins whereas I took about 35 minutes. This slope had some fairly steep slopes and all the kids had some pretty unglamorous stacks when they couldn't control their speed but they loved it and did the same slope about 3 or 4 times. From my point of view it was worth the challenge as I was able to practice my traversing and turning and build my confidence. The photo is of us at Gohnergrat taking a break from the mornings work! The weather was much better than forecasted (light snow) and we had good visibility, almost clear skies and temperatures around 0 to 5 degrees depending on where we were.
Here's a photo of Mase and Matt sitting in a comfy snow seat while we waited for the bus to take us to Sunnega for the afternoon. Once there we all went down the beginner's slope at varying speeds. The kids are now pretty accomplished on this one but it was my second time down and this time I was all alone...I did it 4 times and on two of the runs I didn't fall - soooo exciting - I was getting better and faster and my times were improving from about 30 minutes down to 15 minutes - still slower than the kids but definitely gaining in confidence - yay! I think the kids were even slightly impressed that I went down some slopes without slowing my speed. One thing I should say is how magical it was to be sitting on the chair lift, all alone, looking out over the valley and mountains and the quiet/peace was amazing - a very special moment. Unfortunately Mase hasn't been on the chair lift alone but he's planning to try one of the medium slopes tomorrow by himself and hopefully he'll have a similar experience. Oh and one other thing - Libby wondered if we had sore muscles after Day 1 - we didn't - but by Day 3 - absolutely - my inner thighs are sooo sore!! Mase says he's fine apart from a few blisters on his feet from walking in ski boots too much and the children seem to have taken everything in their stride. 
Here's a photo of Mase and the boys beside the river (which doesn't have much water at the moment as the water source is frozen). Then Mase and Matt sitting in a comfy snow seat as we waited for the bus to take us to Sunnega. So as you can see Day 3 ended well and everyone was pretty happy with their achievements...
No comments:
Post a Comment