My Fears Came True...Pt. 2

I'm sure you all have been waiting with baited breath to learn the "rest of the story" in regards to our ski trip. LOL! Well, buckle your seat belts and get ready for the ride of your life!

On Monday morning, we all got up fairly early to eat a quick breakfast before hitting the slopes. I must admit that I didn't sleep too well the night before...I think I was having an anxiety attack being that I had NEVER been snow skiing before. I replayed all sorts of scenarios over in my mind...they weren't pretty! Of course, Chris made me feel at ease with my "newbie" skills after giving me one of his pep talks. He just made everything sound, oh, so easy.

We made our way to the ski shop downstairs where we'd stored our ski boots, skis, and poles. Getting the boots on my feet was no easy task...then, to walk in them!. Oh, they killed my shins! I sucked it up like a champ, though, and went about my merry way. I mentioned to Chris that it would probably be advisable for him to take us to a flat area by the ski lift so that we could try and maneuver around for a few minutes. We did just that and didn't have any problem. I was feeling really confident about the whole deal!

Well, the moment arrived that I'd been dreading...getting on the ski lift! Chris and Brittany hopped on the chair two seats ahead of Abby and me. It was a close call, but I made it on without any major catastrophe. That chair did swing around every bit as fast as Chris had told me it would. You had to be ready, with your bottom pushed out, to sit down and go!

Once we got scooped up, we were off to what looked to be like the top of Mt. Everest! I kid you not, it was a straight shot UP! It took my breath away, but the scenery was so gorgeous that I didn't really pay much attention to exactly where we were headed. Here I am with Abby on the ski lift...don't we look happy? "Yippee", we're saying...this is going to be FUN!
And here's a picture Chris took of Brittany as they were riding up the lift...
Now, Chris had given us precise instructions about how to off-load the ski lift smoothly. He explained that when we got ready to get off of it, we needed to scoot to the edge of our seats and just step off with our skis. No problemo! So, I watched closely as Brittany and Chris off-loaded and skied away. Well, when it came time for Abby and me to make our move, we, apparently, didn't scoot far enough and ended up jumping off the moving ski lift about three feet above the ground! We went KERPLUCK right underneath the lift and they had to shut it down! My legs were somehow folded up underneath me. I attempted to crawl away, but had absolutely no traction, whatsoever. So, the operator of the ski lift had to come over and drag me up off the ground! I was completely mortified! Thankfully, Chris had already gotten Abby back up on her feet. All I could do was laugh hysterically...it was about the funniest thing ever, all embarrassment aside!

See? Abby and I both look pretty composed after suffering our ski lift mishap...Chris took the girls and me to a green (beginner's) slope, which was fairly tame. Yes, both Abby and I fell down time and time, again! It got so bad, in fact, that Chris worked up a fierce sweat because he was having to pick us up every 5 seconds or so. Neither one of us could find our sense of balance. Brittany, on the other hand, looked like she'd been skiing her entire life! I've never seen anything like it!

We, somehow, made it down the slope after A LOT of falls, which was nothing short of a miracle! Chris told us that in order to get to a different green slope, we had to ski down a hill to get to another ski lift. Now, that hill may not have looked like much to him, but it was huge in my eyes. Abby and I, basically, snowplowed the whole way down...neither one of us fell, however. Woo hoo! Maybe we were finally getting the hang of it! Well, we had to cross another section that was a bit steeper. Chris and Brittany went first and did great. I followed next and fell down about 4 times...the last time I came down hard on my knee and, yes, I shed some crocodile tears! It hurt like crazy! However, I managed to get up and make my way back up on my skis. About that time, Abby went by me and fell down. She started crying hysterically saying that it hurt behind her knee! Just a second or two later, the ski patrol came by to find out what had happened and summoned a medic. Long story short, Abby rode down to the bottom of the mountain in a sled pulled by the ski patrol; Chris skied alongside her. Brittany and I got transported to a gondola by a snowmobile. There was no way I was going to attempt to ski down to the bottom of the mountain...that could have taken days!

Abby went to the hospital in Vail. Here's a picture of the patient herself!
They ended up not running any x-rays because Abby determined that her knee felt a lot better. That, of course, came after they showed her a pair of big bloomers she was going to have to wear during the x-rays! LOL!

Chris and Brittany ended up going back on the slopes that afternoon. Abby and I rested for awhile, then we took a shuttle to Vail Village for a little shopping. We both felt the soreness in our knees, hips, shoulders...just about every part of our bodies! Thankfully, we had survived (barely!) our first day of skiing...but, what would the next day hold for us?

Be sure to come back tomorrow...it gets BETTER!

"If you aren't crashing, you aren't skiing."~Author Unknown