Ice meet knee...

Sometimes you eat the bear, sometimes the bear eats you. ~ The Stranger

This past week was relatively active with work and play-packed days. I ran 6.5 miles in an hour on the treadmill on Thursday then headed to Crested Butte early Friday to ski with my dad and cousin, in visiting from Oklahoma. We spun a bunch of laps on the North Face lift and good times were had by all. Funnel was in good shape as well, always a good way to end the day.

I started trying to step it up with both the speed and aggressiveness and managed to work up the steam to drop a few rocks in tighter terrain. Definitely wasn't flowing things quite yet but being able to toss air in the trees was a definite move forward for me. I was also charging several areas which usually cause me troubles so all in all, I was slaying it.

David, Dad and I grabbed a drink at the base post skiing and were treated to a really tasty Marg. Here's the recipe: 3 parts Tequilla, 2 parts Rose's Lime, 1 part Triple Sec, splash of Sprite. I highly recommend it. Dad and I then hit Donita's for dinner. Still one of my favorite restaurants. Great food and awesome service. Plus the owners, Kay and Heli are always willing to sit and talk with us for a bit... which is pretty cool.

Saturday, I headed back up and immediately headed out to one of my favorite circuits: Teocalli Bowl to Third Bowl. Lots of hiking = a sweaty Stu but it is usually worth it. The conditions on Saturday didn't disappoint and I dropped a couple of big rocks in Teo then rallied Third to the bottom of Big Hourglass where the Extreme Championships were being held. This is some serious terrain and is an area never open to the public. I watched the final Juniors go then stayed for most of the ladie's event before I decided to go spin more laps.

I worked my way back around the mountain for a Headwall lap then up the NFL again and into Fredo's which is a cliff section at the top of the North Face. I kinda blew my drop in but then skied the rest of Phoenix really well and hucked a couple of other big drops. Well, big for me. By the time I got back down, the men's event was in full swing and those guys are just sick. Rallying down Home Depot and tossing BIG air in the trees, over huge gaps, all in terrain with VERY serious consequences if one were to fall... really amazing skiing. I watched the event for awhile then decided to go back up and redeem myself on Fredo's. I dropped in and was skiing really well. Stuck my landing off a decent sized diving board then headed back over to Phoenix.

My second time off a pretty good drop proved to be it for me for the day. I am not really sure what happened but I landed on some rocks which rotated me forward a bit and my knee immediately started hurting. I was able to ski out, making alpine turns and having some pain on initiating right hand turns. My right knee immediately started to swell up and by the time I finally made it all the way back down to the base, it was really unhappy with me. Lots of swelling and pain. Bummer. That's the cost of going for it sometimes though.

So I iced it all the way home and am continuing treatment today. No skiing for awhile, I'm sure and running is probably out too. I'll try to get in to see Mark on Monday to see if he can help get me back up and rockin' ASAP. Given the amount of pain, I am thinking it is probably a strain vs. a tear but we'll see what the experts say.

Even with the injury, days 40 and 41 were a blast. Crested Butte has some killer terrain and is still one of my favorite areas. Get over there if you have a chance.

~stubert.

Give me a three! Give me a nine...

Never try to tell everything you know. It may take too short a time. ~ Norman Ford

Day 39 was pretty damned good if I do say so my damned self. Gale-force winds made the hike out exciting but created Etch-a-Sketch conditions in the Lost Lake chutes. Really, really amazing skiing. Ben and I did a couple fairly quick laps then met up with Luke for another. Skied the circuit (Right, Left, Members) then I had to bolt to get some work done and keep the right side of my face from freezing again. The air temps weren't that low but the wind was howling. Bare faced Stu made for a bad combo and I got a little frost nip. No biggie.

Our first run was in Right which was super consolidated and filled with at least a foot of untracked blow-in. Overhead, blinding face shots all the way down to the Nose and Bowl which were also untouched. We then scampered back out to nail Left, which was even better. A little less consolidated (sluffy) but way deep and just a killer run. Members was also just killer skiing. A great day all around.

I came home to get some work done on proposals, some marketing stuff and whatnot. Sometimes I wish I was more irresponsible. Oh well. I have bunnies to feed. Speaking of bunnies, Rach brought Aaron home to be pals with Skipper and Nigel. He is a cutie. So is Rach.

I may have to go back out tomorrow for a short jaunt. Feels so good to get out in the wilderness.

~stubert.

Buttery...

Rinse, repeat. ~ Back of my shampoo bottle

Etch-a-Sketch day in the Lost Lake Chutes. Fresh turns in Right, then more fresh in Left. With the wind the way it was, I am sure that Right would have been fresh again by the time we got back around.

Good times with Pete and Caleb.

~stubert

Another day older, not deeper in debt though...

Still life with coffee cup and Calgary.

There was no time for scholarly details, and, besides, I have always believed that a man can fairly be judged by the standards and taste of his choices in matters of high-level plagiarism. ~ Hunter S. Thompson

Yesterday was windy like it was someone's first day on the job as wind-meister - friggin' rookies... always trying to prove themselves - so I headed to the gym to hit the weights, then the dreadmill and then swim for awhile. Felt okay. I definitely wasn't fast but was on a "cross country" program so I pretty much ran uphill the whole time. My guts weren't bugging me too much, so that was nice. Today is another story, however.

I am still working on a post-Canada report and will try to have that out shortly.

Rach and I saw Slumdog Millionaire on Sunday for my birthday. Great movie. I had heard a lot about it prior to seeing it (which I normally avoid) but was still very surprised by the structure. Great use of flashbacks and the actors did a fantastic job. The film was definitely disturbing on a whole host of levels but worked really well overall. Well worth checking out.

I have actually been watching a lot of movies of late for whatever reason. Here are a few highlights:

New York Doll: Documentary about Arthur "Killer" Kane, the bassist for the New York Dolls. One of those movies that leaves you with some seriously mixed emotions.

The Man Who Souled the World: Another documentary... about World Industries founder, Steve Rocco and his punk rock, DIY asthetic that brought street skating to the forefront in the early 90s.

The Visitor: This sweet film features one of my favorite actors, Richard Jenkins in a story of a widower who befriends two immigrants he finds living in his New York apartment. Really quite a nice, quiet movie from the director of The Station Agent.

Taxi to the Dark Side: Really a grim documentary about the U.S. detainee policies.

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson: Pretty great documentary about the life of Hunter S., one of my favorite authors.

Lars and the Real Girl: This one was really unexpectedly great. Excellent performances and a great story.

More to come.

~stubert.

The big Four-Oh (years, not ski days)...

Calgary coffee shop with amusing restroom sign. Check out that third leg!

You say it's your birthday, well it's my birthday too, yeah. ~ The Beatles

Heading up to the Rock for a few birthday turns. Day 35. No new snow but it appears to be threatening. Yesterday, I hit the Basin with Pete and Edy but ended up skiing with the Jody posse (Jody, Eric/Pete, Paula and Robin) most of the day since Pete was showing Edy how to get her Pali on. And no tears! You go, Edy. In any event, the conditions were pretty crappy up there but it was still fun. The Spine was all buffed out but really firm and I was on my back-up skis, which have not been tuned for a VERY long time. So I rocked big Enduro-style flip-em-and-slip-em style turns and grinned. Dropped a couple of small rocks here and there too, which was fun.

Rach surprised me with a bag full of goodies this morning. Kids in the Hall, lots of books and no evil Thor bunnies to jump out and scare the crap out of me! How awesome is that? We are planning to either go to the movies later or just kick it at home depending upon how everyone is feeling. Will be a great day either way.

Remember, kids... you are only as old as you act. Which makes me really about 14.

~stubert.

I need a vacation from my vacation...

Ride in the boot. The boot's full. ~ Wacky drunken Aussies on Australia Day

So I have been remiss about updating the blog. My apologies. The last couple of weeks have been hectic, to say the least. So here is a quick update with more details to come:

Canada was a blast. The first several days were REALLY cold and the conditions on the east side of the pass were marginal, at best. We skied Lake Louise, Kicking Horse and did one fairly short Backcountry day just west of Lake Louise above Sherbrooke Lake. Then the good times commenced when we went up to Roger's Pass for a couple of days. The avy conditions were a bit sketchy but we did manage to find several safe spots with good turns. All in all, a great trip.

Seth Hughes was with us and got some really great shots. Check out his site and the galleries:

Lake Louise
Kicking Horse
Sherbrooke Lake
Roger's Pass

So I think I am up to day 33 now for the season. Not too shabby.

My guts are still giving me grief (psoas and/or lower abs) so I am off to see Dr. Dave and Shirley to see if we can make more progress. They are definitely a lot better than in October but have still not gotten to the point where they are completely comfy so I haven't been running at all. Need to get this sorted out then get back on the program if I am going to stick to my plans for this year.

And in case you wanted to see an ad that didn't pass the "ready for Prime Time" test during this year's Super Bowl, here you go.

Ok. More details to come.

~stubert.