snow sledding

Today on Hearing Voices there was a presentation on sledding. As people shared their sledding experiences I was reminded of my own. (I especially like the one of the girl whose sister decided to stand in the way of her sister to prevent her from going down the hill, and instead got two broken legs. The other story I liked was of the boy whose disc got away from his mother and ended up flying through the air. Funny.)

I hope you don't mind if I share.

1. When I was young, we used to travel to Elko Nevada for Thanksgiving each year. (Every year after Thanksgiving we would travel to a ranch in Mountain City, slice up a freshly killed cow and bring the steaks home.) One year I remember going to Sage Street and Dotta Dr in Elko. This was quite the gathering. It was my father, my Uncle Tim, Uncle Lynn (I think), and 4 or 5 cousins. Some women folk were there but I don't remember if my mother or grandmother were in attendance. My brother and I were there with our grandfather that day. Dotta Dr climbs a hill above Sage and between the two is a hill in a park (during the summer people use the hill for ice blocking). I don't know how long we were out for, but I remember the fun we had as we sled down that slick hill side. The mode of transportation was sleds and inner tubes. My brother and my dad held me tight as we traveled quickly down. (at the bottom was a tennis court with a snow bank of sorts helping you stop or flip out.) I was too afraid to travel on my own, but my fearless brother was going by himself all the time. I know there are pictures of the event but I don't know who has them.

2. During the fall of 2005, I had a good friend that lived in the Barnes Dorms at BYUI. There are two sides to the dorm and between them is a short hill/lawn. I used to run a blog called "The Rexburg Sledding Report" and felt it was my duty to sled on every hill in Rexburg, no matter how big or how little. One night, I met up with my friend Andria and we attempted the hill. At some point we invited her roommates to join us. Andria had two roommates - Lauri and Amanda. Lauri refused, but Amanda joined us. Amanda is beautiful. I'm not a blond haired kind of guy (I make that exception for one person at this point in my life), but Amanda looked great that night. I had so much fun sledding and getting to know that girl. Andria, Amanda, and I used tools from Andria (Rec Leader major) and me (Jack of all trades) to create banks where you went one way and then the other. I don't think I've been as inventive in my sledding path before or since. It was a great night with great company.

3. Also in he fall of 2005, another hill we attempted was Taylor Hill. It's not accessible anymore (because the Bednar Castle construction put up a big fence) but you used to be able to start at the top of the hill and slide down, over the sidewalk and into the Manwarring Round-About. If you were a large kid or if the ice was especially thick, you could slide all the way down to the ice rink. One night we are sliding and I saw a new friend. I was running the disabled skiing program and had just met Brian. Brian has Cerebral Palsy and had a bit of a difficulty walking so we had been inviting him to come skiing with us in our unique ski equipment. He declined. Any way, as I saw him I beckoned him to come over. He had just got out of a meeting and was in a very nice suit. I paid no attention to that and suggested he sled with us. He did and managed to get farther than any of us. We've remained friends ever since. (He's actually from a town near where I live now.)

4. Lastly at BYUI, there is an area called the upper fields (which now has more fields even more "upper" than them...). Around the base of the upper fields is a sidewalk. During the winter it gets iced over. The hill starts right at the sidewalk and goes up steeply for about 100 feet. Atop is a little ledge of 6 inches. On the other side of the sidewalk is a field that also lowers but not as steep as the hill. I bought a sled from Wal-mart (that I still own even though I don't live any where near an ounce of snow). On many occasions I took my little plastic sled up there and slid down. Sometimes by my self. Sometimes with a friend. I loved the work out, the peace and quiet in solitude and the comradely in others. It was just a really good time. I loved being out sledding. Sadly, those winters in Idaho were some of the driest Idaho had seen. It wasn't until the fall after I had graduated that they got the snow I wished they had to go out in.

5. As a boy scout we used to go snow camping. The one time we went camping and someone didn't end up with hypothermia or a broken bone was a time we went to PineCrest. We didn't have any sledding stuff with us (though we did have home made snow shoes which were cool), but we ran across a group of kids who had a disc and a sled. We worked as a troop to make jumps, curves, and snow stopping hills. I don't remember the number of times I slid down the hill, but I remember the fun we had as we worked together, were creative and as we enjoyed the experience. It was great.

I really miss my snow and the fun it brings.