Mammoth Adventures
I took last Friday off to join G. & our friends Toni & Brien for a weekend at Mammoth, my first snow trip ever.
Who better to do it with than with our friends, who happen to be Double Black Diamond Expert skiers that trek up to Mammoth regularly every season?
We started the drive early Friday morning to make it in time for an afternoon run. Though my “official” instructor stunk, G. patiently stayed with me at the bottom part of the bunny slopes while I practiced snowboarding. It was pretty repetitive & tiring - I stumbled down the hill & then carried my snowboard up to stumble down some more.
We spent Friday night at Roberto’s, a delicious Mexican restaurant. Two pitchers of margaritas later (yes, it was my unfortunate idea!), we decided to return home. G. was sick to his stomach from the margaritas, chips & huge burrito, so we called it a night at 8. Toni was right though - G. & I had trouble falling asleep because of the altitude.
The snow came down hard all day Saturday, with 70+ mph winds. Like most others, Toni & Brien decided to stay in, but G. & I braved the weather at the same bottom part of the bunny run. I continued to be unsuccessful in staying up on my board for very long, so we stopped after an hour. We ate more junk food at Lakanuki, a tiki bar, while the snow continued on.
We went shopping for gear at some of the local shops & even avoided a bad car accident - after turning right very slowly onto a street Brien’s SUV slid on the black ice & landed just inches away from the car in the left-turn lane. Pretty scary, but we were safe. We spent the rest of Saturday night relaxing at Snow Creek lodge & watching movies.
We woke up bright & early Sunday morning to a beautiful, sunny day. I was already tired & having a hard time breathing but we all took full advantage of the great powder. I stuck to the bunny slopes but finally made it on my very first lift! I admit, I was terrified initially, & my fear of heights didn’t make it easier. But G. held my hand the whole time, which helped. We did a few runs down the bunny slope, & I started to get it towards the end of the day.
I am glad we went, am no longer sore (thankfully!), & can’t wait to pick up right back where I left off next season.
Big thanks to Toni & Brien for showing us the Mammoth ropes!
April 3rd, 2006 at 5:38 pm
Jamie you’re off to an awesome start as a boarder. Saturday in a blizzard, Sunday a full 7 hours of riding until they closed the moutain! We had a great time with you guys and are ready to do it again.