Snowball With Skis

My father still owns a pair of mustard yellow skis from back when skiing was invented. The skis have no brakes; just thin, leather straps that wrap around each ski boot. The idea was, when a ski came off, it would stay with you. Brilliant. Unfortunately, the strap was not very long and so the skis would stay very close to you until you stopped tumbling.
When I was 18 I couldn’t afford a new pair of skis, and my older brother’s ski boots were too small, so I used my dad’s ancient skis. Once. Never again. Allow me to tell you the tale of when I almost died while skiing. I had borrowed my father’s skis to go skiing with some friends at Snowbird. I hadn’t been skiing in a couple years, but it’s like riding a bicycle, right?
My friends were all technologically advanced with their ski brakes and bindings and they were ready within minutes upon arrival at Snowbird. I was stuck wrapping leather straps around my boots for 20 minutes before I was ready. The first run down the mountain was great and I felt confident that I could ski well despite my lack of modernity. As everyone probably knows, teenage confidence doesn’t always equate to control and logical thinking in the long run.
The second run was where my confidence became my downfall. The blue trail I was on was smooth and easy-going, and I decided to test how well the old relics would respond under duress. I went really fast down a steep part of the trail. Like most of my teenage years, I don’t remember much of what happened next, but there is a distinct memory of sharp ski slaps to my face as I somersaulted down the mountainside.
I woke to sounds of laughter and my friends’ gleeful voices: “…looked like one of those cartoons, man! Ha ha ha!” “…must have hurt! Your face was priceless, though!” I slowly lifted my frozen face from the snow and attempted to grin, as if I had planned the whole thing for my friends’ amusement. Even though I almost lost my life to a couple old skis, there they were, right by me through the whole thing. It would have really sucked if after getting smacked in the face by them they broke free and shot down the mountain on their own.
Chances are most people have never even skied with a pair of leather strap skis. If you are one of the few who refuses to grow with technology and you do own a pair, I salute you. I will stick with the skis with brakes, though.
If you are not a hardcore skier but enjoy the sport from time to time, leather straps are the least of your worries. A ski instructor at Deer Valley Resort, Pierre Bourdages, gave me a few tips to pass on. He sees many people during the ski season who ski once or twice a year. When Pierre instructs such a skier, he insists on starting on green trails, and slowly works the skier up to skiing blue and black diamond trails with confidence, but not 18-year-old confidence.
Pierre says, “Skiers should focus on three things: staying safe, having fun, and learning. Equipment has changed a lot (someone should tell my father), but technique hasn’t changed as much.” He also encourages anyone who has been out of touch with a mountain for a prolonged period of time to take a lesson or two. “Lessons will boost your confidence. Most people are scared at the top of the trail. Don’t start on blue trails,” Pierre adds. He claims that most mistakes made by skiers are tactical, not technical. Simply choosing the trail that matches your skill level will make a huge difference in your enjoyment of skiing. It may also save you from becoming a giant snowball with skis sticking out.