Usually, i pride myself on my ability to cope with cold weather. Today, i couldn't get warm for the life of me. A cold front has recently blown over the frontrange, bringing with it some exceptionally light-particle snow. However, the trade-off for this fresh cover has been single digit temps and wind chills around -20. Regardless of the possible tundra like conditions we might face, a friend and i committed to the idea of playing hooky yesterday to catch some of this snow before our spring semester starts.
The previous night had given us around 11 inches of snow in Boulder, so we were anxious to see what conditions were like past the divide. Unfortunately, we didn't quite get the totals that we were looking for in A-Basin but we decided to give it a shot anyway. Snow had stopped falling at around 3AM, but strong wind and cold conditions were enough to create some pillowy drifts and clear tracks from previous days. We had an awesome day testing out some new camera equipment and building a small feature off of Baldy's Traverse, but my feet were numb, wet, and cold from about noon onward. We had the mountain to ourselves all day and consequently had a phenomenal time skiing some pow, but i never realized how cold my feet actually were. After taking our boots off in the parking lot and trying to warm up in the car, my feet were BURNING. I remembered how badly it would hurt to thaw my feet after a long day of subzero racing in Minnesota, and quickly detected some early signs of frostbite. As warmth and feeling slowly returned to my feet, i could tell that my right big toe was really sore and considerably swollen. My hasty diagnosis of frostbite was confirmed when i took my sock off at home, and with it pulled away a layer of skin. Yikes. In reality, it's a mild case of frostbite. But nonetheless...it sucks.
Today, i arrived at work for instructor lineup at 8:30. Air temperature was around 8 degrees, and wind gusts were consistently hitting 30 MPH. NOT where i want to be with a blistering big toe. Fortunately for us, no one was crazy enough to bring their child to Eldora on this hellish morning and we were sent home due to lack of work. Thank the lord. On my way out i had ski patrol look at my toe and once again confirmed the validity of frostbite. This particular patroller felt obliged to share with me, the imminent dangers of frostbite. Which is why i chose to share it with you today, as our safety awareness lesson.
This isn't my first bout with frostbite, and usually i'm much better prepared in conditions like this. But i think i can attribute this particular instance to being slightly hypothermic while we were skiing. After hiking to get above the tree line, gale force winds were quickly freezing any moisture on my body, including in my boots. This is something i clearly need to be better prepared for if i'm touring any backcountry terrain in harsh conditions. Anyways...it seems to be healing well but i hope it won't get in the way of things i have been planning recently.
In the next two weeks i plan to:
- Begin my PSIA Cert. 1 Instructor Training Course
- Teach my first series private lessons
- Spend a few days in Berthoud testing out new touring gear
- Spend a few more days in Vail with my girlfriend and her family
- Gather some more footage from said days of skiing
- Develop a gnarly goggle-tan
- Fill out my beard
Accompanying this to-do list is my new spring class schedule. I'm going to be very busy and exhausted these coming weeks...but i've never been more excited to start spring semester.
There is LOTS more snow forecasted next week as well...so i'll be sure to update the blog with some more photos and, possibly, some HD video courtesy of my very gracious girlfriend. But for now, here are some photos from more current happenings.
Alex after a traverse into Montezuma's Bowl
Our so called 'feature' on Baldy's. This drop didn't have a solid approach so we spent about a half hour boot-packing a lane to reach it. A little more snow and we'll head back to film it!
Our last run of the day. As you can see...the weather was showing up.
Beard-cicles: A true testament to how cold it was this day....and also a personal first haha
I recently 're-purposed' our garage while my roommates were gone. These next two photos are from before the renovation. I would like to point out how someone has positioned MY extension cord conveniently atop the bike pile. Thank you to them...
These are the post-renovation photos. I'm very proud of my hand-built ski tuning table. After cleaning the mess up in the garage, i found enough scrap to anchor an old sink cabinet to the wall and mount a hardwood surface on top. Needless to say i felt very crafty.
The view i was greeted with after landing in Denver Dec. 26th.
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