2008 Woodie Awards
The peacefulness of night skiing
Sarah Kalkwarf
Issue date: 3/5/08 Section: Outdoor
There is nothing like the feeling of swishing down a snow-covered mountainside in the mysteriousness that the night brings.
My first experience with skiing was at night with various sixth graders from my school. We got the opportunity to partake in a weekly ski session at Kelly Canyon, lessons included.
At first I was scared, especially after I mistakenly slid downhill the first time I snapped my boots into my skis. After a few other learning experiences, skiing became more natural. By the third week I was courageous enough to go out on my own. The cute guy I was chasing may have been a motivator, but either way I was doing well.
After the four weeks of night skiing came to an end, I went out a couple of times with my best friend's family. We went during the day though and it just wasn't the same. I was not filled with the same courage that the night had brought me, and I got a sun burn. I was not impressed with skiing anymore.
During the next few years of my life I still remembered the excitement that I had experienced on the hill those first few weeks of night skiing. I even dreamed of moving down the mountain in the peacefulness of the night, but I never went skiing again.
After graduating high school I picked up snow boarding, which proved to be a thrill that I had never experienced before. I often returned to Kelly Canyon for night skiing and rarely appeared on the mountain in the daylight.
Learning to carve by the moonlight was magical and once I had mastered the skill I lived on the mountain. Maneuvering my snowboard across the trail and down the mountain, I was able to clear my head and become one with my surroundings.
If I could replay a part of my life, I would choose that first moment when I learned to carve and freeze the feelings of assuredness I held. There is nothing more thrilling than the confidence I felt in that small moment of time.
Snowboarding at night holds a sense of peace and mystery that every person interested in snowboarding or skiing should experience at least once in their life, just to know the feeling.
My first experience with skiing was at night with various sixth graders from my school. We got the opportunity to partake in a weekly ski session at Kelly Canyon, lessons included.
At first I was scared, especially after I mistakenly slid downhill the first time I snapped my boots into my skis. After a few other learning experiences, skiing became more natural. By the third week I was courageous enough to go out on my own. The cute guy I was chasing may have been a motivator, but either way I was doing well.
After the four weeks of night skiing came to an end, I went out a couple of times with my best friend's family. We went during the day though and it just wasn't the same. I was not filled with the same courage that the night had brought me, and I got a sun burn. I was not impressed with skiing anymore.
During the next few years of my life I still remembered the excitement that I had experienced on the hill those first few weeks of night skiing. I even dreamed of moving down the mountain in the peacefulness of the night, but I never went skiing again.
After graduating high school I picked up snow boarding, which proved to be a thrill that I had never experienced before. I often returned to Kelly Canyon for night skiing and rarely appeared on the mountain in the daylight.
Learning to carve by the moonlight was magical and once I had mastered the skill I lived on the mountain. Maneuvering my snowboard across the trail and down the mountain, I was able to clear my head and become one with my surroundings.
If I could replay a part of my life, I would choose that first moment when I learned to carve and freeze the feelings of assuredness I held. There is nothing more thrilling than the confidence I felt in that small moment of time.
Snowboarding at night holds a sense of peace and mystery that every person interested in snowboarding or skiing should experience at least once in their life, just to know the feeling.
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