HCO Event #5

Day two of skiing and I am much happier with the 140 skis. I don't like to go fast, and am still having to do the snowplow to stop. Today C and I are in the same level 4 class with Bill Cropper, who is the instructor extraordinaire. He is really good, working with us individually as needed, and continuously coming up with new analogies for techniques. To work on leaning downhill, we are supposed to lean down and pet the dog on the downhill side. To work on switching the weight from leg to leg, we're supposed to imagine riding a bicycle. I'm starting to make parallel turns and feel more comfortable on the greens. So he thinks we're ready to take the gondola up to the top of the mountain.

And everyone says gonDOla instead of the normal GONdola. We take that up, then another lift to the top, and then over to what becomes my favorite section- Tomahawk. These are nice, wide blues, with varied terrain and rolling hills. The wide sections give me enough space to slow down between turns without pushing my butt over to stop completely. And they're not very crowded (actually the whole mountain is not very crowded, but some areas are more popular than others). We spend the rest of the afternoon up here and aside from one steep and narrow section on a green run, it's all good and fun.

At the end of the day, Bill Cropper says he'll be teaching lessons the next day, so C and I decide to take our last lesson with him on Tuesday. I'm already hobbling and limping before we're off the mountain, and am looking forward to some Aleve and hot tub.

Our condo and K go out for dinner at Cugino's- the other HCOers are more budget conscious and/or antisocial and don't want to come. As I get to know some of the other people, the underlying tensions and old dramas come out. And I realize that these are all odd and flawed people, and I am right there along with them. I am the youngest woman by 4 years and younger than the youngest man by 10 years. And none of these men are attractive to me for dating, but some of them are still interesting, and it's good practice. I didn't pack well, and don't have the clothes that I want to wear, so that's a little discomfiting, but since there are no men for me, it actually takes a lot of the pressure off, which is nice.

At dinner, the food and conversation are excellent, but again, I'm exhausted and asleep by 9 pm.