This is what it looks like to participate in turns all year for 8 years (96 months)…
My phone is tucked safely beneath the tulle of my tutu’s waistband. I’m climbing up the Muir Snowfield with skis and skins on my feet, enjoying the sunny skies and cooling kiss of the wind on my face. I passed one other person about ten minutes back but otherwise have only my ski partner in view ahead. It’s a lovely day.
I sense it more than I hear or feel it. The cell phone slips from my waist and falls to the snow, and in a flash it takes off down the hill. I have a split second to make a decision: do I go after the phone, risking life and limb, or do I let it slide, out of my life forever?
I GO!
With heels free from bindings and skins on the bottom of my skis, I point the sticks straight down and pray to Ullr that I can catch my phone. It holds my whole life. Email passwords. Bank logins. Emergency contact information. Plus, like, I totally need the photos I took today!
Down. And down. And down I go. My skis are sliding, but not fast enough. Never taking my eye off the phone – which is gaining speed by the way – I sense that I have passed the fellow who was behind me. Now it’s time to make a move before it’s too late. I feel an ever-so-slight lessening of of the slope, and I know it’s time to dive! With all my might I throw my skis to the left and fall on the my side. I land just below the phone, and as it careens toward my ski I reach out to catch the anticipated ricochet.
Friends: I have never been good at ball sports. Catching. Throwing. Kicking. Rolling. Basket/goal/over-the-net making: these things are not for me. There’s a reason I ski. So imagine my surprise and elation when I CATCH THE DAMN PHONE IN THE AIR. I am my own hero.
And as chance would have it, I’m also the hero of the fellow who was watching me hurl my meat down the hill after an overpriced piece of metal. “Holy shit! I can’t believe you caught that! Amazing!” Why thank you new friend. I’m not sure what is more relieving: knowing I rescued my errant iPhone or having the reassurance that someone else saw it?!?
This victory is what I’ll remember most from my 8th anniversary of turns all year. That, and skinning from the car for the first time ever in October.
Turns All Year – 8 Years (Month 96)
Wednesday, October 23, 2019 | Muir Snowfield
The Hubs accompanied me for a Wednesday jaunt up the Muir Snowfield. With freshly fallen snow, we enjoyed skinning from the car instead of the usual three mile approach just to get to snow. The hike in was beautiful, and we were able to skin almost the entire way.
But, aside from the cell phone incident – which J didn’t see because in addition to being bad at ball sports I’m also not the fastest hiker/skinner, so he was far ahead of me – the day was relatively uneventful. We turned around at 9,500′ due to worsening ice conditions, and enjoyed a beautiful ski to the car. Here are my favorite rescued memories from the day:
Want to see more photos of the ups and downs of skiing in October? Here are all of my anniversary celebration posts:
