Our second day of snowboarding started out much cooler & cloudier- with more snow in the forecast.  There was a tiny 2-person lift (the Snowflake) just outside our condo & we decided to set off on our own adventure for the day.

 It was seriously so stinking gorgeous!  The light layer of snow just coated all the trees & muffled all the sounds making it magical.

 Up & up the hill we went- nervous to start the “falling down all day” again event.  These green slopes appeared so daunting and steep to us.

 We rode the green slope Twister down to the Base of Peak 8 where there were more lift options.  This is the top of the one run, Powerline, that we probably made at least 20 runs down the next few days.

 Our only real option was the 5-chair since the other lifts serviced blue or more difficult slopes, plus we were too nervous to ride a chair lift with anybody else since we were still learning not to fall when we got off at the top.

 The neat thing about this lift is that it was adjacent to the terrain park & they were having a big competition on Saturday, when the snow was really coming down hard.

 The actual act of snowboarding isn’t all that demanding, but getting up, getting gear on, falling down, picking yourself back up again was exhausting!  Especially when we weren’t accustomed to the altitude & had to

 At the top of the lift, we’d always skate over to the side & strap our back foot into the board.  Hubby rode “regular” and I felt like I naturally went towards “goofy” (with my right foot first).

 We went up & down the green slope all day, stopping for lunch & really enjoying all the competitors making fancy jumps as we rode the lift back to the top.

 We had very different techniques to heading down the mountain- I’d try to practice my “silverleaf” pattern criss-crossing the slope, then move onto my C-turns and then finally up to

 It started snowing really hard & we pretty much had this whole run to ourselves most of the time- except for ski school class of 6 year olds that would keep passing us

 Not going to lie- learning to snowboard is brutal!  The first day was the worst as far as falling the most, but by the second day we were picking up speed & attempting some slightly steeper slopes, so the falls were fewer, but harder!

 Often, one of us would fall & the other would ride over & stop just to take a break.  It was nice that the slopes were fairly quiet & we had the whole width to ourselves to enjoy the serenity & beauty.

 We took lots of breaks- mostly by falling down & occasionally we’d actually come to a controlled stop together without wiping out.

 I was loving it on Saturday- the snow was coming down, it wasn’t too cold or windy, and we were  out having a blast.

 I carried my small  little camera on a lanyard around my neck, but we still didn’t take too many photos.  We ended up quitting fairly early on our 3rd day since Hubby hit his head fairly hard.   We decided not to ski the last day, but to let our poor bodies recover & explore Breckenridge a little.

 I wish we’d taken a few more photos of us actually riding, but this next sequence is pretty darn hilarious…

 I’m pretty good once I get going, but starting & stopping, I’d wipe out about 80% of the time….

 I’m good, I’m good…I promise!  I laughed at myself a lot this weekend & ate a lot of snow….

All in all, we had a blast being up in the mountains, learning something new together, and exploring the beautiful slopes of Breckenridge.   Although H pretty much hates cold weather, he survived the trip & I’m hoping we can make snowboarding an annual tradition.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Ken & Stephanie are coming to town for the weekend & we’re starting off the weekend with a bang at the Rodeo tonight!

 A few weeks back, we headed to Breckenridge to celebrate our 6th anniversary & learn how to snowboard together.  I’d grown up going snow skiing, but H had never been & had never been into the mountains during winter- or seen real snow!  Admittedly, H is much more of a beach boy & we’ve taken tons of trip to tropical destinations & I’d learned to SCUBA dive.

After lots of preparations & tons of shopping for the trip, we were properly bundled up & ready for our first day of lessons.  We were lucky enough rent our gear from a shop at the bottom of our condo & they offered a free shuttle to the bottom of base of Peak 9 for lessons.

 We were lucky enough to get a semi-private lesson that turned into a private one with just the two of us.  We walked out on the this practically flat terrain & started our day of falls, tumbles, and face-plants.

We were lucky enough to arrive on a beautiful Thursday with hardly any crowds and crystal clear blue skies.

  We started out with all the other beginners- mostly just learning how to stand up on our board.  Initially, it was a very strange feeling having both feet strapped in & I’m generally not the best with coordination & balance skills anyway.

We spent the first hours on teeny tiny little hills & going up this treadmill lift a few dozen yards up the hill.

After lunch, we headed up the real chair lift & made a few runs down the beginner green slope silverthorne down to ballet hill.  We were both mentally prepared that learning to snowboard would be tough & the first day would involve lots and LOTS of falling- totally true!

 This is me in my 8 layers of clothes & smiling (clearly before I hit the slopes & they hit back).  Just like snorkeling, I threw me little P&S camera on a lanyard around my neck to capture a few photos from the day. 

We didn’t get any other photos of us together on the slopes this weekend, so this will have to be my favorite- we survived our first day (barely) and were eager to hit the slopes on our own & practice all the things we’d learned.

GOOD NEW OF THE DAY: Just looking at these photos again makes me want to go back!