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Starglass
Rivendell
Jan 26 2015, 1:58am
Post #1 of 28
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Skiing or snowboarding?
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With potentially a bunch of snow about to be dumped on the east coast (US), I'm immediately thinking of getting a chance to go to my nearest mountain for a day of fun in the snow. This led me to wonder what everybody here does in terms of winter sports. Are you a skier or a snowboarder? Do you enjoy both? Neither? Or do you find other ways to have fun on the mountain?
I'm a snowboarder and have been doing it on and off for about four years. I have my own gear and it's tons of fun! I would be a skier too, if I could, and tried last year but only succeeded in tearing my knee up. No more skiing for me!
Use this thread to share some stories from the mountain, if you want, and if you are in the path of snow tomorrow or Tuesday stay safe! 
(This post was edited by Starglass on Jan 26 2015, 1:58am)
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zarabia
Tol Eressea
Jan 26 2015, 8:16am
Post #2 of 28
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I don't do either anymore, but...
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I used to enjoy skiing, though I only had the opportunity a few times. Snowboarding looked fun, but I was chicken.  If I could have found a nice isolated area where I could have made a fool of myself in private, I might have given it a try. 
Not that I didn't make a fool of myself skiing, but by the time snowboarding was a thing, I was in my late twenties or early thirties while most all the snowboarders were teenagers. I mostly feared looking like an "old fogey" in front of the young whippersnappers. 
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BlackFox
Half-elven
Jan 26 2015, 10:04am
Post #3 of 28
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As gravity seems to pull me harder than most. 
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arithmancer
Grey Havens
Jan 26 2015, 12:43pm
Post #4 of 28
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...but have not done so in over a decade. My children never learned (and have stated they do not want to, even though we live in a town with a ski area).
Also, I have two bad knees (for which martial arts and tennis, not skiing, are to blame) which might be another good reason not to ski!
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Aunt Dora Baggins
Immortal
Jan 26 2015, 5:07pm
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I've done cross-country skiing, but I never seemed to get very good at it. I like snowshoeing, because your feet stay where you put them. And actually, the trails around here get packed down enough that you can walk on the snow like an elf without snowshoes, even when it's four or more feet deep. We do put chains on our boots to keep from sliding.
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Annael
Immortal
Jan 26 2015, 5:19pm
Post #6 of 28
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I tell people I'm "bi" because I'm both a downhill and a cross-country skier. And I do both skate-skiing and classic Nordic style when I cross-country ski. Which I mostly do these days as the cost of downhill equipment and tickets is prohibitive, while I can still ski on my 20-year-old cross-country skis.
I was a downhill racer when I was a teen. Not a particularly good one, so I switched over and did "trick skiing" - the precursor to today's freestyle events - for a while. Not the high-in-the-sky multiple flip stuff, but I could ski backwards and jump over stuff. Ah, youth.
I break out the snowshoes when the snow's too bad to ski on.
(This post was edited by Annael on Jan 26 2015, 5:20pm)
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RosieLass
Valinor
Jan 26 2015, 6:12pm
Post #7 of 28
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Never been on a ski slope in my life.
And have no desire to, either. Throwing myself over a cliff with slippery, flat objects strapped to my feet is not my idea of fun.
If I have to be outdoors in the winter, I'd prefer to snowshoe, but that can be pretty cold and uncomfortable, too.
I'm just a homebody, I guess.
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Donry
Tol Eressea
Jan 26 2015, 10:25pm
Post #8 of 28
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I never learned to do either.....spent my winters playing hockey every day and night....oh how Canadian of me!
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Aunt Dora Baggins
Immortal
Jan 27 2015, 12:25am
Post #9 of 28
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I've never done downhill myself.
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And cross country I'm not comfortable with more than about a 4% grade. We skied down a couple of miles of Trail Ridge Road once, and that was absolutely lovely: a wide road, gentle curves, and a gentle slope.
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Elizabeth
Half-elven
Jan 27 2015, 4:59am
Post #10 of 28
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Cross-country skiing for me, back in the day.
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Even though we lived in So. Cal, we could get to good cross-country ski areas in a few hours, and went every winter for a few years. I've tried downhill a few times, but it's too terrifying. Cross-country is like hiking but with snow, which is even better.
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Annael
Immortal
Jan 27 2015, 4:08pm
Post #11 of 28
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I learned to downhill ski at age 4
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falling holds no terrors for a child that age!
Truth be told, I have rarely fallen when downhill skiing; I'm much more likely to fall cross-country skiing because 1. the skis are so narrow and 2. you really have very little control with them. Even on the steepest slope, downhill equipment allows you total control over where you go and how fast. And while I did sprain an ankle once on a black-diamond run, my worst skiing injury came from falling over on a nearly flat surface cross-country skiing (dislocated shoulder).
But I don't think I would have chosen to learn how to downhill ski as an adult, just because most of the injuries I know about do seem to happen to beginners. And those who don't ski safely, of course, and it IS a lot easier to ski unsafely while downhill skiing, especially if you go off-piste.
(This post was edited by Annael on Jan 27 2015, 4:09pm)
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Magpie
Immortal
Jan 27 2015, 6:28pm
Post #12 of 28
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if you're wondering what people do in terms of winter sports you'll have to offer more choices!
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I think you're talking about downhill skiing which works only in hilly, mountainous areas or near artificial ski slopes.
Around here, ice hockey is king with lots of outdoor rinks where pickup games can take place. Sometimes people play broomball. (they have the coolest shoes!)
The rinks are usually surrounded by free skate areas and some of the local lakes are groomed for skating. We just had a two big pond hockey events that draw people from all over the country.
Cross country skiing is fairly popular and trails are groomed. Some do snow shoeing.
Sledding it common. We have hills big enough for that.
I'm not sure it's a 'sport' but big tire bicycling in the snow is fairly popular. Some are commuting but lots are just biking for fun.
What do I do? None of those. If it's decent (above 30?) I try to get out for walks but even that can be difficult because as soon as it's above freezing, the sidewalks can be flooded with melting snow. When it's below 10, I go out only as necessary.
So my winter sports are watching birds through the window, reading, and watching streaming Netflix.
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Starling
Half-elven
Jan 28 2015, 6:31pm
Post #13 of 28
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I like your winter sports, Magpie. :-) //
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Annael
Immortal
Jan 29 2015, 1:55am
Post #14 of 28
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we rented ski trikes; low bikes that have short skis instead of wheels and you can maneuver the front ski to turn. Hysterical fun. I don't see them on the slopes but I'd love to do that again.
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Starglass
Rivendell
Jan 29 2015, 3:28pm
Post #15 of 28
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I guess with the poll I was just focusing on "mountain" sports" or the classic debate between skiing and snowboarding. I like your list though and can't say I've seen bicycles out in the snow before! There really are a lot of sports to do in the winter.
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swordwhale
Tol Eressea
Feb 2 2015, 4:17am
Post #16 of 28
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...or two
My cousin took me snowboarding once. Bunny slope, he gave me his good snowboard (and used the crummy 2x4 rental himself)... knee braces on both knees. Learned how to fall down first, then how to brake. It was really cool, I see why people like it.
tried crosscountry skiing once... stood on my friend's skiis and my arthritic feet screamed at me: NO WE TOES DON'T BENDY THAT WAY!!!!!!
Traded $30 worth of stuff for a friend's dogsled, then when it broke (the plastic bits disintegrated over time) I got a real one. it is not only a gorgeous piece of technology and art, but light enough for one or two enthusiastic dogs. Three is better. Four requires some gung-ho insantiy. The people who run the Iditarod with 16 are nutz.
You can ski behind one or two dogs (pointers like German Shorthairs are popular for racing), or use a kicksled.
kicksleds are a great way for us ski-impaired types to enjoy a winter trail. you can use a dog or just kick/pedal the sled. It's very light, sometimes no more than a pair of runners and a handle.
Of course there's always the downhill snow saucer or Flexible Flyer (I have an old Lightning Guider). But at my house, there were never enough hills for that... my dad built a sleigh for the pony, and I shanghaied our Toggenburg goat (a massive 9.5 hand wether) into pulling a kiddie sled. Also a random Shetland pony. For some excitement, get a friend on a horse to pull you...
Somewhere in Finland...
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Lindarielwen
Bree
Feb 3 2015, 12:45am
Post #17 of 28
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What does this really have to do with Tolkien???? But ha ha ha, that's funny! I definitely prefer skiing, I don't find it HALF as dangerous as snowboarding.
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Me85
Rivendell
Feb 3 2015, 2:22pm
Post #18 of 28
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So it's not supposed to be Tolkien related (but can be).
Skiing!
(This post was edited by Me85 on Feb 3 2015, 2:23pm)
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swordwhale
Tol Eressea
Feb 3 2015, 6:59pm
Post #20 of 28
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how Legolas learned to shield surf...
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(whole thing here: http://swordwhale.tumblr.com/post/109993759660)
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Ithilisa
Rivendell
Feb 8 2015, 5:57am
Post #21 of 28
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Back when I lived I Alaska, I did dog mushing for several winters. For one thing, I loved the dogs. But the great thing I found about running smaller teams (I did 6-8 dogs) was, unlike snowboarding and definitely unlike skiing, I loved that I had fixed runners, a handlebar, and a brake.
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swordwhale
Tol Eressea
Feb 8 2015, 5:14pm
Post #22 of 28
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What a great experience that was!
I've mostly run two or three dogs. I ran one of my friend's dogs with my three last year on the rig (very stable) and that was fun....
...then the local paper wanted some pics of us on the heels of a snowstorm ..."are you going...uh... moooshing?" and we obliged with two two-dog teams.
Then the photog wanted us to hook up all four...
which I had never done
on a sled
which flies compared to the rig
suuuuuuuuuuuuure I can do that! 
I had noticed that adding one enthusiastic dog to a two dog team created an exponential leap in power... ading oe to a three dog team was, to me, like WE'RE GONNA DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!
(you, of the eight dogs, may now laugh)...
There are shortcuts you take when running a couple of pets vs a large team. I had enough friends who'd run bigger teams that I had some idea, and the snow was deepish and not fast, so it was actually just the right number of dogs for the trail. The tricky part was getting off to grab the leaders and get them off a distraction and back on track (easy with two dogs, more complex with four).
I think I learned a bit. I think I will likely stick to two or three dogs. I think I have more admiration for those who run larger teams.
And yeah, brakes.
I highly appreciatde the drag brake that someone made for me out of a bit of snowmobile track. Yep!Brakes!!
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Ithilisa
Rivendell
Feb 10 2015, 7:17am
Post #23 of 28
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Swordwhale, your messages just make my day.
Yes, oh boy did I laugh.
But I'm not laughing AT you; I'm laughing because I can relate. First team: two dogs, quiet neighborhood. Still managed to tip over and teat my rotator cuff.
Hmm, maybe it can be just as risky as skiing...
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swordwhale
Tol Eressea
Feb 10 2015, 7:03pm
Post #24 of 28
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I distinctly remember heaving the entire sled over on its side and throwing myself on it to stop the two dogs who were maniacally trying to get to the Golden Retriever...
And running between the runners over rocks and mud, then hopping on for the twenty feet of icy remnant of snow, then running...
(back when I could run)
Now just hoping for a nice rig run on bare trail...
So glad we did these adventures when we could!
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Ithilisa
Rivendell
Feb 11 2015, 3:13am
Post #25 of 28
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Of course, for those young, daring lovers of skiing and dogs, there is a sport known as skijoring.
I'll stick to my memories of handlebars, brakes, and fixed runners. If you can ski or snowboard, you have my respect.
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this is the Off Topic forum
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