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Kidz Eye View of Snowboarding
“Snowboarding in Three Days?”
by John Wood
The Learn To Ride Media Trip sponsored by Vail Resorts and based in Beaver Creek, Colorado, offered a three-day crash snowboarding course to journalists. I guess they figured if they could teach us, they could teach anybody! The Adult Beginner Snowboard Series debuted two years ago and was so popular that the number of beginner adults on the mountain doubled from the previous year. Where the board meets the snow is apparently in the design. Top manufacturers like Burton and Rossignol have created special snowboards that are conducive to lesser falls, which, in beginner's terms, translates into more fun and less pain.
 Beaver Creek gingerbread-style house |
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Our host town, Beaver Creek, has a Brigadoon-feel in the winter night, and one feels transported to a fairyland of gingerbread houses surrounded by a myriad trees lit with thousands of white twinkling lights. The air is crisp with crystal clarity — a nice treat for city dwellers. The Base elevation of Beaver Creek is 7,400 feet rising to 11,440 feet. There are
The Charter at Beaver Creek (800-525-6660 or thecharter.com/intro.asp), a homey, rustic hotel with a mountain cabin motif, was our home away from home. The view from the window, as the snowflakes gently drifted down, was magical. Our "Last Supper" was at Allie's Cabin, a Victorian influenced, mountain-style dining spot, named after Allie Townsend one of the first settlers to Beaver Creek in the late 1800's. The trek to Allie's requires a brisk sleigh ride up the mountain (dress warmly, blankets are supplied but there is a stiff wind). The sleigh, by the way holds about
 Winter exterior of The Charter at Beaver Creek |
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 A typical room at The Charter at Beaver Creek |
Our instructor, Chris "Zusch" Zuschlag — think Zoosh — the sound skis make — made sure that we were outfitted properly at the Snowell Rental Shop (www.rentskis.com). It's a cool system — after feeding one's personal stats into a computer, you are custom fitted with the correct board and boots by energetic young people that say "dude" a lot. Extremely important to get the right size boots — speaking in total anonymity, your toes will try to grip the mountain whether you have the right size boots or not and will not be happy little piggies if they are cramped. Now Zusch is a dapper sort of chap and from the get-go taught us that looks aren't everything but sure helped to sell the complete package of a snowboarder to the gapers (intimidated skiers or boarders that like to watch). Holding the board a certain way while carrying and wearing the goggles backwards would be impressive to the Bettys (female boarders) he preached. I had never seen so many colorful outfits outside of Mardi Gras, so I figured style-points were in order.
DAY ONE: Our first day was spent on a generally flat surface, getting used to the board, balance, and turns with just one foot strapped in. It's a strange dichotomy, but this is one of those sports that the slower you go, the harder it is. Kids and parents can learn together but experientially kids learn and recover much faster than the adults. They seem to enjoy being with their peers and there are plenty of classes to accommodate everyone. We didn't embarrass ourselves on the first day but there sure were a lot of kids whipping by us (must be that advanced class). Zusch's mantra, "No worries" meant that we were on our way. We lunched at the Rendezvous Bar & Grill, good music, good food and good gracious, everyone's outfits looked like a rainbow coalition! Back to the snow for more practice. Each time Zusch introduced a little more vocabulary i.e.: a yard sale is when someone totally wipes out and litters the slope with their accoutrements — think Charlie Brown taking a direct hit from a fastball — think us thinking of Charlie Brown taking a direct hit.
The moment of truth with snowboarding is when you strap in both feet — Understand, you are standing sideways and whichever way your lead shoulder points, baby that's where you're heading. A little more practice under Zusch's tutelage and we began to feel more comfortable. We were rewarded that night for our valiant efforts with a fab dinner at the Grouse Mountain Grill — later that night I dreamed of laying out some fatties (carved turns) on the fresh roy (freshly groomed runs).
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 Ski staging area |
DAY TWO: The buffet at the Hyatt Regency Beaver Creek's Patina Restaurant is fabulous. There are plenty of family-friendly tantalizing choices for snowboarding ballast as day two loomed. Was it just a coincidence that one of the visiting journalists opted for cross-country snow-shoeing instead? Zusch gave us tips on riding the lift with one foot strapped in the board and carefully instructed us how to safely disembark and steer ourselves clear of trouble. This journalist promptly had his own personal yard sale much to the amusement of some passing preschoolers. Zusch held our hands, while boarding backwards — amazing — and smoothly guided us down the hill. "No worries, just point the direction you want to go," the mantra grows — which way was L.A.? One of the best things we learned was how to stand up after falling on a hill. Once you dig in your board and push up, you're off and running again. We learned a lot about commitment! We lunched at the Spruce Saddle Lodge, a huge place serving cafeteria-style vittles with an awesome view.
End of day, we were ready for a jello-inducing massage at SpaStruck (970-845-2225 or www.spastruck.com) back at The Charter. What a treat for tired muscles. Gumby had nothing on us! A cool feature in the resorts communities is the Dial-A-Ride program (970-949-1938) — free rides to anywhere in town on the shuttle buses that run every few minutes. Lots of choices for evening grub: the Dusty Boot Saloon, the Beaver Creek Chophouse, or The Coyote Café will get you started in the right direction. But this night in dreamland we snowboarders, we proud few, were Zusch — working on our spinnin' (360's), half-cabs (180's), AND (drum roll) our stale fish and mutes (jumps while grabbing the board in different areas).
DAY THREE: This was the day when it all comes together. Sure we fell a few times but Zusch picked us up, brushed us off, and sent us on our way. Up the lift and down the hill! Yes, you can learn to snowboard in three days even if you are 50-something. The Adult Beginner Series is a definite winner and the
Check out the Beaver Creek website for any information that you may need regarding prices, restaurants, family programs, and the surrounding communities of Vail, Breckenridge and Keystone. Enjoy! For more information, call 800-427-8308 or see www.beavercreek.com or web.vail.net.
 Graduating class of 2: John Wood, Zusch, & staff writer Julie Day from Christian Science Monitor |
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— John Wood |