Ski Clinic

When we started spending winters in Utah, I suddenly got to ski a lot more than one week a year. My skiing skills improved quite a bit and I was able to do more difficult terrain and even look a bit more competent doing it. Recently I found myself in a rut. Apparently, just going out and doing something a lot doesn't make you much better at it.

I signed up for a three day ski camp over at Deer Valley. It was created and run by the twins Phil and Steve Mahre. Both are Olympians, with Phil winning gold over his brother's silver in one Olympics.



This bundled up group was mine. They took the 46 attendees and split us up into 11 groups. Each group was supposed to have people of similar skills, although some adjusting was required to make this real.



Our third morning was the only bright and sunny one. This picture gives you some idea of why to live on the mountain instead of in the valley. The white fluffy area in front of the skiers is the socked in Heber Valley. The spent all day thinking it was a dark cloudy day. Up above it was gorgeous blue skies.



Just another view looking back towards Sundance and Mount Timpanogas. It really is gorgeous scenery on a nice day.

The ski clinic was a good one. I discovered a number of problem areas to work on and got some good drills to practice. I am hoping that over the next month, things improve. The downside was skiing one afternoon with Phil Mahre. He is a very nice person and a wonderful teacher. Unfortunately, after seeing him ski, I was left wondering what to call the thing that I do. Clearly what he does and what I do can not have the same name. He was truly a treat to watch.