Big Air - Big Crash - Big Bummer

I was up just a little after 7a and quickly downstairs making coffee and preparing to exercise. It was partly cloudy and still below freezing. This I could tell by the firmly frozen snow still blanketing our deck. I completed my exercise regimen over the next 20 minutes or so. While enjoying coffee at the PC, I checked the local weather. It was 28 degrees, but with a forecasted high of 34 degrees under mostly sunny skies. After today, however, the weather takes a turn towards spring with highs reaching well into the 50s and lows near and above freezing. On the other hand, the weather in Bend is expected to turn more like winter during the coming week. It's as if the ski gods are smiling down on me. At some point, I took Frankie outside. She took care of business after plenty of sniffing around. Kenny called around 845a to let me know that we could borrow his extra pair of wrist guards if Jacob wanted to snow board. Also said he seriously doubted that their Jake would be going. The house quiet, I played around on the PC until just after 900a when I finally decided it was time to run. Mindy was still asleep in bed when I headed out the door. I ran just three miles just like I do most other Saturday and Sunday’s anymore. It was an uneventful run, and for the most part all done on dry streets and walks. Mindy & the kids were up a little after my return. Save for Bella, Mindy made everybody egg sandwiches. The plan still called for skiing. To that end, Mindy prepared sandwiches for later. We agreed that I would be in charge of snacks and the cooler. I headed up for a shower while she finished in the kitchen. I was out of the shower and in my base ski layers by 1030a. While Mindy headed up to ready, I loaded the Honda then prepared snacks and the cooler. I also mixed some lemon nip and buttery nipple for our pocket flasks. Lindsey called Mindy’s phone around 11a to ask if she and the boys could come over. According to her, Kelly had no idea that she was on the phone. I could hear her giving Lindsey the dickens about something. Lindsey later shared that it was over her broken down oven. I reminded Lindsey to try and remain calm. I also asked what plans she's made to move on with her life. Not much progress. I wasn’t surprised. Still waiting on Mindy and with an abundance of sunshine, I headed out to see how much of the ice I could scrape up from the drive and walk. Turns out, I was able to free most of what remained. I sprinkled some salt for good measure. No matter what we do, we rarely leave for skiing before 11am, and this Saturday was no exception. We didn’t get out of the house until 1130a. It was 36 degrees as we pulled away from the house. Mindy guessed that it would be 32 at MRM. We arrived 40 minutes later in what now seems like a short drive. Mindy nailed it. It was only 32 degrees under mostly sunny skies. The lot was packed to near capacity, but we were fortunate enough to get a spot up close to the lodge that was almost certainly only recently vacated. It was 1230p by the time we had our ski passes and were heading up the lift. It felt terrific in the relatively warm sunshine, and the snow pack was in great shape too. We might’ve skied for about 40 minutes before we found Scott & Zach. We knew they were there. Mindy sent him a text earlier. Scott shared that Bob was on his way, too. Bob showed up around 2p. I’m guessing that we skied for another hour before heading in for a break. I went to the Honda for the cooler while Mindy sought out a table. I stopped in the gift shop on my way to the cooler and bought Mindy one of the multi-colored MRM shirts she’s been admiring all winter. I stashed it in my mesh pack in the Honda planning to gift it on Monday, V.D. Mindy and the rest of the group got us a big long table. The only catch was that we were sharing it with Fallon, a 28 female who we ended up befriending. She was cute, smart, and quite articulate. She seemed to enjoy our company as we did hers. She & Mindy hit it off right away. Turns out, she graduated from Briggs HS and a got a full ride scholarship from OSU where she got her degree/s. Sounds like she may be heading to South Korea to teach English this spring. How interesting and fun that will be. Kenny & Chrissy arrived during our break. Whirling on all the lodge TVs was the OSU/Wisconsin basketball game. The place was rocking, too, especially after the Buckeyes went up by 15 points with about 11 minutes to go. Seemed to me that we had the game in the bag. I got us a second pitcher of beer to share. Mindy exchanged contact info with Fallon before we headed back out. Oh, and the Buckeyes managed to squander that 15 point lead and lost for the first time all year. Crap! It was about 430p when we all headed back out. As usual, we had a ball zipping around the mountain. Bob pealed off for home I’m thinking around 6p. Wanted to meet Mary Ann at home after she got off work. Kenny, meanwhile, pealed off too, but not for home. He went to the Acadia to sleep. His cold meds were kicking his butt. The rest of us kept after the hill. Some of us were bombing down the rollers, and they were lightning fast affording anyone with any speed at all to get plenty of air. On maybe the third run in a row, I went last and absolutely balls to the wall. On the third roller I caught more air than ever before. It seemed like forever. Kept waiting for impact. When my skis finally touched down I went head over heels taking one of my hardest falls ever. I landed on my ribs slightly right. I found myself gasping for air for several seconds. Some kids skied up with my gear and apologizing. The kid was at the top of the roller as I launched. Once I could speak, I assured him that it wasn’t his fault. I was immediately concerned that all my parts worked. My right leg and shoulder were smarting something fierce. I was light headed too. I quickly snapped into my skis and headed the rest of the way down. I remember seeing Mindy. She tried coaxing me inside the lodge with her and the others but I wouldn’t go. I headed back up the lift looking for Scott & Zach. I did one more run down the middle by myself. I was getting stiffer by the minute. I headed into the lodge to find Mindy. Mindy had a bowl of chili waiting for me. That sounded terrific. I drank an ice water too. We probably took another 15 minutes before declaring it time to get in a couple more runs before heading home. I was feeling a lot better but still quite sore, especially my right shoulder. I rode up the lift with Chrissy and her two girls. Chrissy fell getting off the lift. I skied back to help her up. Some bozo getting off the lift told us that we needed to exit to the right in a hurry. In reality, it’s the lift operators job to watch for fallen passengers and stop the lift as needed to prevent a pile up. The bozo and I got into a heated exchange after I shared that she fell and that I was only there to help her up. I dropped a few expletives I’m now not too proud of. Mindy ripped me for it, but also understood my aggravation. I realized my error in judgment and quickly turned away from any further unproductive dialogue. We skied down the middle then up again. This time we had trouble getting all the girls on the lift, and it doing so, I lost one of my skis while getting on. The base lift operator stopped the lift and brought it to me. I planned on putting it back on once at the top. With everything going a little haywire, we collectively declared this our last run of the evening. At the run’s base, Mindy took my skis while I went inside to fetch the two coolers, ours and Chrissy’s. My shoulder was hurting more and more with each passing minute. I met Mindy and the kids at the Honda. It was just after 7p. We systematically changed out of our outer layers and started for home. I drove. Aside from an achy leg and a very sore shoulder, I was in good shape. All four of us agreed that a Minelli’s pizza was in order. We called the neighbors to see if they were game. They were. We agreed to pick-up two pies and meet them at their place a few minutes after arriving home. Mindy ordered the pies as we neared the I-270 interchange. They quoted us 20 minutes. I went in to complete the purchase once we got to Minelli’s. Had to wait long enough for him to slice ‘em up. We’ve done the family ski day so many times now the kids know the drill well. To that end, we had the Honda unloaded in less than five minutes. We headed to the neighbors after another five minutes, long enough for Mindy to change out of her ski attire. I remained in mine. I took two cans of Coke One. I found myself craving soda pop. Kenny was lounging on the sofa. Didn’t really look excited for the company, but he was a gracious host just the same. We made quick work of the pizzas, finishing off all but about ¼ of the mushroom laden pie. Everybody was tired. Jacob was about to fall asleep on his stool. We headed home before 10p, and everybody got immediately ready for bed. I took three more Advil to help ward off any more swelling in my shoulder. Mindy also rubbed it on and off through the late evening. That helped considerably. It was lights out in a hurry.