Carpe Diem, The Series: Winter Sports for the Adventurous

Author: Paul Stevens

Winter in the Great White North (a.k.a. Canada) can be a long and dreary time if you sit back and wait for spring to arrive.  Aside from chilling temperatures, this part of the country (Southern Ontario) can go  days or even weeks where the sun can be very shy to show its inviting face.  The locals often wonder if it too headed south.  With the alternatives of holding your breath and play the waiting game for spring or getting out there and enjoying what winter has to offer,  I’ll take the latter every time as there are any number of winter-only activities to keep you going.

For those that are fortunate enough to escape winter’s grip by heading south, this is almost a non-issue   but with U.S./Canadian exchange rates moving further apart, staying domestic has some significant advantages.  Such was the thinking when some of our high school friends decided to get together for a few days of downhill skiing at Mont Tremblant which is about a 90 minute drive north of Montreal.

I really enjoy skiing although it is a sport that I don’t get to do as much as I would like.  Living in this part of the world does not readily lend itself to strapping on the boards as frequently as I would prefer so I make the effort to try and get out for an annual ski trip to a decent resort that offers as much of a ski run as you can handle.  I’m not going to be confused with a World Cup skier any time soon (or even later for that matter) but I’m competent enough that I can get myself down just about any run, except those with the buried VW Beetles that disguise themselves as moguls.  I’ll let those with younger knees handle those bad boys. 

Mont Tremblant is an exceptionally sweet place to ski as it offers great terrain, modern facilities and a base village with enough shops and restaurants to make your head spin.  All of this is within walking distance of hotel accommodations so you can park the car and not touch it again until it’s time to head home. 

On the downside, Tremblant has a reputation of being cold to stupid cold in the dead of winter which would be just in time for our arrival.  However, the winter of 2015/2016 is shaping up as one that doesn’t want to arrive so on our mini-week vacation we never had to deal with anything approaching uncomfortably cold temperatures. In fact, on our first morning, it was raining and that just doesn’t happen in late January/early February at Tremblant.  Fortunately, the rain stopped by about 9 am and then the sun came out.  Along with some gale force winds at the top of the mountain, the clouds quickly decided that they were not welcome that day.  No more than one quarter or one third of the way down the slopes, the wind pretty much fizzled out leaving the skiers to enjoy decent snow conditions, despite the earlier rain.

Downhill skiing is very much and anaerobic activity and it doesn’t take long for you to figure out that those leg muscles you thought were in acceptable shape are going to be barking rather loudly as you motor down the hill.  This is particularly evident when you are at the bigger resorts as the runs can be l-o-n-g.  Since I don’t ski as much as I would like, I would have to say that I am not as relaxed as I should be so the leg muscles tense up faster than for those who frequent the slopes.   At the end of the day however, resort operators are prudent enough to offer exercise rooms with adjoining hot tubs that afford the opportunity to push out the lactic acid and get yourself ready for the next day.  OK, so a beer or two along with dinner is also a time honoured piece of the healing and recovery process.

I mentioned above that this trip was done with a group of our friends from high school. As is said, “There are no friends like old friends”, and I consider myself very fortunate that we have been able to stay together for so many years.  “We can’t make new friends so we have to keep our old ones” has become almost an anthem for me.  Skiing is a great way to spend time with friends; there is lots of time to chat on the lifts on the way back up the mountain, meals and drinks together and loafing in the hot tub.  After a full day of decently intense physical activity, a satisfying dinner and maybe a friendly board or card game or two, getting horizontal looks very inviting at about 10 pm.  No one ever argues with what might be considered an early bedtime since you will be up early the next day only to repeat the process.

I find ski vacations very relaxing since while you are out on the slopes, you just don’t have the opportunity to let your mind wonder to what might be causing pressure in the other aspects of your life. I don’t think the same can be said for a beach-type vacation where only those with the most disciplined minds can block out their daily grind when lounging at the pool or beach.  When the skiing is done,  you are ready for some low key activity.  Let’s be honest here, those crazy apres ski activities you may have heard or read about are best left to those who are likely not the target audience of the FTG website. 

And so it was for a few brief days – with the promise to do something similar again next year.  I am going to investigate an enhanced exercise regime to better prep myself for the leg burning runs and compliment that with a few daytrips to nearby ski bumps.  I can’t really call anything around here a mountain because there are none.  Some hills and a valley or two but not much more than that. Upon return to the homestead, the very soft and dry weather we have had this winter allowed me to hop on the bike and work out the last vestiges of lactic acid in a comfortable manner.  Now it’s back to reality.

Does anyone know how to get squirrels out of the attic?

Your friend, Paul.

And remember – Carpe Diem (but in relaxed sort of way)!