It’s been several weeks since I’ve sat down and tried to write a new column. For anyone who may have been checking back for something new, I apologize.

     Like most skiers I have a regular job, but skiing is my hobby, my escape, and my passion. And while my 8-5 job can be as stressful as the next guy’s, I still feel bad about not getting something out to post.

     It’s also burn out time. Hot summer, working overtime 5 days a week, skiing three days a week, house, yard, family, you all know the routine. When everything piles up to where you have to take a vacation or you’ll explode.

     Problem is; to take a vacation sometimes means not skiing for a week or so. How’s that going to alleviate my stress?

     As summer progresses and we ski 2, 3 even 4 sets per weeks, we continue to want more. Even after a personal best and absolute exhaustion, I can’t bear to leave the site with the water like glass and any daylight left. So it is with utmost pain and sacrifice that I pack up the family, leave the boat and skis at home and take off on a week long vacation. Even extended business trips can leave you with a bad case of skier’s remorse.

     However; there are ways to compensate. Years ago while traveling for work I would pack my gear just in case I could hook up a pull. My first attempt at this was in Sequin Texas, Lake Mcqueeney to be exact. I hung out at the ramp looking like a lost sheep. A couple of guys with a Mastercraft pulled up to launch. A conversation started and before you could say hit-it, I’m in the boat with new found friends. They understood completely. I skied many times with them while on that job during the summer.

     Over the years I’ve hooked up and made new friends in several states and just last year we were going to South Florida for 8 days. I couldn’t bear it. 8 days without skiing. I got on the internet and found a ski club in the area, made friends and presto, a ski invitation was extended.

     Several of us skier addicts recently talked about our ski travel adventures and there is one thing that runs constant. Skiers are the nicest and most accommodating people out there. Willing to offer a pull to complete strangers because they know what it’s like to be away from your site and not be able to get your fix. A golfer can find a course, but a skier needs a little help.

     With the internet, skier communication is now at an all time high. Chat rooms and forums have dialog going in all different directions. We can now communicate and travel without fear of missing our ski fix. It’s See America and Ski America.

     I’ve made skier friends via the web that I could never have made before. We’ve swapped souvenirs from the Pro Tour stops at Trophy Lakes, the Masters, Malibu Open, the US Open and Nationals. We now have open invitations to ski at each others sites whenever the opportunity arrives.

     I wonder sometimes what it would be like to take a 2, 3 or even 4 week trip and Ski America. Meeting the average skier’s from all over. Different clubs, different ski sites, and the vast personalities from all across the country.

     Come to think of it, now I know what kind of vacation to be planning for next year.

     "Ski America." It has a nice sound to it.

 
Gordon Slingerland

Gordon is a regular contributor and can be found carving buoys in his spare time.

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