Big White: Postscript

Look at the grooming! - on my way to Gem Lake early in the morning

The last day at Big White was the best skiing of the week. Maybe the best skiing of my life. The snow was groomed from the day before, when the accumulated snow of the previous week had been scattered randomly into chunky piles by the hordes of skiers.  On that day, the uneven terrain was manageable, but bumpy and unsettling for this aging skier. You never knew what to expect, when the next surprise would jolt you into a minor panic or force you to stumble or fall. The intermittent feeling of being out of control forced me to slow down in order to prepare for such moments. Unfortunately, my balance in skiing matches my balance in dancing. Sometimes it is good and sometimes it isn't. To be prepared for any imposed rift in the terrain, you had to be centered and balanced at all times in order to absorb these unexpected and unwelcomed interruptions - without falling forward or more likely backward. Anything else exposes the limitations of your skiing ability, the crucial element that separates the weekend warriors from those true skiers.  

But Friday, March 23 was not one of these days. The plentiful snow of the past week was manicured to perfection on the many runs that were groomed, which we stuck to like Elmer's glue. The sky was clear blue, the temperature warm, and there was little wind to blow whatever cold there was through your skin.  It was indeed a perfect day for Gem Lake, and we were there early enough before the locals in Kelowna could clutter the lift. This gave us a head start and one that would allow us to forgo the long lines of waiting as the morning progressed and the locals appeared and filled the parking lot and lift lines.

My usual position after dinner and a few goblets of wine.

The skiing was perfect gliding fluidity. There was almost no effort in navigating the terrain and the to and fro weaving motion of the skies was even, predicable and intoxicating. I could have taken a nap while skiing; it was that comfortable and flush. Ski runs that were horrible the day before were transformed magically into a smooth corduroy carpet leading us to the heavens. No speed was unmanageable; the snow was soft and giving but not too powdery or deep.  It was then I realized how I had improved as a skier over the years. It was like this one day, so comfortable and kind, that also made me realize that when you reach a certain level in skiing, it not only looks easier but it IS easier. It was then I also realized that although there are many similarities between dancing and skiing, there are fundamental differences!

With skiing, the easier it looks to the observer, the easier it is. But with ballroom dancing, the easier and more graceful it looks, the harder it is to accomplish. It is the klutzy want to be's that look so strained and make every step look like an improbable feat.  But the professionals look as comfortable with their movement as I felt on the ski slopes on Friday, March 23, 2012. Only if I could dance, even for a moment, with the same grace and fluidity of that glorious day......

A man of many talents!