So today in the spirit of trying new things, we got up early this morning and drove to a small town in the Alps* called Langrisse which has areas for cross country skiing and some impressive downhill skiing areas including a slalom course which was once used for the World Cup championships.
On arrival, the scenery was just breathtaking. Blinding white snow as far as you could see, glistening in the sun. Completely clear blue skies. Dozens of people racing down the mountains on skis and snowboards. Even a few dogs that people had brought with them to the snow running around and looking adorable, if not a tad confused.
Soooo... hands up who reckons I would be pretty crap at my very first attempt at cross country skiing??? Wellll, shame on you with your hands up. I was (very surprisingly) quite coordinated for someone who has literally never strapped on a pair of skis in her life!!
Okay, we did just sign up for a two hour beginner lesson, so we were not quite conquering the mountain. And I did fall over flat on my back (just the once) from a static standing position - I'm still not sure how I managed that. But all in all, we spent a couple of solid hours skiing around a fairly icy field, expertly not colliding with other, much better skiers and not looking too much like a couple of clueless Australians in the process!
I'll be honest with you, I was nervous. I'm usually a bit intimidated to try something new that is in any way physically demanding, or is in any way adrenaline fuelled. (And yes, that does include the waterslides at the Bali Waterbom park, just in case you were wondering).
It occurred to me this morning that the last time I was really nervous about an athletic challenge**, I fell off my bike and broke my elbow... I was actually thinking on the way to the mountain that I would be less nervous about writing an impromptu haiku and reading it in front of a thousand people than I was about our beginner lesson!
I tried to psych myself up by thinking about all the hours I've spent on cross trainers at the gym over the last 10 years - SURELY I must have picked up something?!?
Turns out there was nothing to worry about. Our ski instructor, Andreas immediately won over my trust when he told us to follow him to the practice field in his silver Ford Fiesta***. And he lived up to expectations by showing us the basics but still giving us plenty of time to try it out ourselves.
And cross country skiing (beginner level at least) is pretty much just walking with skis on for the most part and if you go a bit faster, it feels a bit like ice skating - maybe rollerblading - which I haven't done in forever, but really enjoy.
After a couple of hours of learning the technique and then gliding along some tracks laid out in the snow, I was feeling fairly triumphant and exhausted and ready for a reward...
Mmmm... Strudel.
So, I absolutely loved it, although I can already tell that I am going to be VERY sore tomorrow!!
*I've always wanted to say that I went skiing in the Alps!! Does a beginner lesson count - actually I'm not really asking... yes, yes, it does.
**in the Murray to Moyne 48 hour cycling challenge back in 09
***ok, so mine was a silver Ford Festiva (cf Fiesta), AND I no longer have it, but I felt a strong kinship nonetheless.
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