Mad River Mt. Revisited

I was up by 745am – a tad later than I had hoped. If we planned on skiing, my preference would’ve been to leave the house around 10am. However, having said that, I wasn’t in the mood to rush around either. So, I took my dear old time exercising, and then enjoying some quiet coffee time in front of my PC. Among other readings, I read an article abut the Olympic torch lighting ceremony that I missed, and how part of it malfunctioned. You’ll have that. Mindy & the kids remained sleeping until almost 9am. Mindy joined me downstairs for some coffee. She asked about about skiing, confirming our plans. She also called Mary Ann to see if they were heading up. They were. I left for a run around 9:40am. I ran just three miles since we’d be getting oodles of exercise on the mountain later. That model has worked out well so far this year. Like most other ski days, I loaded our skis into the Honda before even thinking of a shower. I blew off using the Thule too, since we can get the skis and gear in the back with the third row seating folded down. Mindy had a breakfast sandwich ready and waiting for me inside. It was delicious. She had our lunch all set to go too. I did an inventory of my ski gear before heading up for a shower. It was already there. We were all ready to leave the house around 1130am. After Wednesday’s trouble on the mountain, Mindy made it known that the day’s goal was to have a good time. Off to the side, she shared that she had a discussion with both kids about the behavior she expected. The roads were a lot clearer than they were Wednesday. Snow wasn’t an issue. We arrived around 1215pm. The lot was as crowded as I’ve ever seen it. We had to park in the last row in a really tight spot. Mindy picked up the lift tickets. It was 1240pm by the time we were geared up and at the lift. We still have to help the kids with their boots and gear to ensure optimum comfort. The lift lines were long but far more organized than Wednesday. Having a line coordinator helps a lot. After a run or two or three, we finally phoned Bob Imber, who we eventually met up with at the bottom of the Four Star Express lift. Mary Ann was there too, as were Scott & Zach. We skied together for the next hour or two mixing up the combination of lift companions. We must’ve taken a break around 3pm. Finding a table in the lodge was tough, but Mindy charmed a couple young guys into sharing theirs. I went to the Honda to fetch our packed lunch. Bob fetched a pitcher of Sam Adams. Mindy shared our snacks with everyone. We probably took a 45 minute break. I ran the cooler back to the Honda afterwards. After lunch we skied hard. It was a lot of fun. During the later afternoon session there was a homemade sled competition on the hill that was groomed specifically for the event and much like one of their tubing runs. Several of the homemade sleds were very creative. I liked the bed complete with a TV, then the Flintstones car, and the Tiger Woods. Almost all of them disintegrated on the third hump. While everyone watched the sledding intently, Mindy & I snuck off and skied a few runs together. On our initial run down through the terrain park I bit it for the first time all season after taking an ill advised detour over the side of a tall manmade terrain feature. Rather than a gradual descent, it was almost an eight foot vertical drop. It could have ended much worse. There was a steel pole with a snow making head just a couple feet to my immediate right. Yikes! It made me think twice about skiing so carelessly. We caught up with the rest of our group over that the sledding competition and skied together for another hour or as the park's lights came on. I love skiing at night. Scott & Zach, who always arrive earlier than anyone else, left for home around 730-8pm. The rest of us headed into the lodge for break #2. I bought a pitcher of beer after confirming that Mindy would drive us home. Bob & I made quick work of the beer. Meanwhile, the kids shared a pepperoni pizza. After our break, we all headed out and skied balls to the wall, the kids included. Bella demonstrated her newly acquired skill – quick cutting. Impressive! Jacob & I skied with Bob. We lost track of him for a few minutes only to learn later that he took an unexpected spill and ended up getting tangled in a snow fence. Cutting it too close I guess. I think that everybody bit it at least once accept for Mary Ann. We skied as late as we ever have. It was 920pm when we made our way to the Honda. Since Mindy was driving, I was able to relax. The kids fell asleep quickly. I fell asleep once we were east of Marysville and didn’t wake until we were a mile or so west of I-270. Everyone was tired after a long day of skiing. We all agreed to leave our gear in the car until morning. I carried in my coat and camera. The kids headed directly to bed, and Mindy went directly for her PJ’s. I nuked a leftover hamburger after eating comparatively little throughout the day. I watched about 20 minutes of the Olympics women’s mogul competition, but headed to bed before it got really good.