It's Snow Time

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Lucky for snow, it's awesome! The amount of prep and clothing required to enjoy the slopes is exhausting. You've got your thermals, your ski pants, your ski jacket, your ski socks, your ski boots, your neck warmer, your snowboard, your helmet, your ski goggles, your fleece and your turtleneck. Everything takes so long! It's slow time when it's snow time. And you need to wind down your expectations on what can be done and by when. We got up early to ensure we caught the first shuttle up to Coronet Peak. The alarm went off on queue and we had a snappy breakfast but then you have to put on all your gear, catch the shuttle to the snow field and then put on more gear and store the other gear you're no longer wearing in a locker. Lucky it's worth it!

The forecast was for rain but we woke to blue skies over Queenstown. A short stroll down our street and we're at The Station building and the bus awaits. It's a scenic 25 min bus ride up to Coronet Peak. It's funny how excited the kids get about the first sighting of snow on the side of the road. Deaks is beside himself on seeing a softball sized patch of snow in the ditch by the road. He starts to imagine the snowball he'd make with it if we'd only stop the bus and let him. In 15 minutes he's going to surrounded by the white stuff.

Amongst all the dressing and undressing Jules lost her iphone and found it again. We retraced our steps searching for the phone and found it at the reception desk before making it to our lessons just in time. Overestimating my abilities I wasn't planning on a lesson. But I'm glad I did. It's been many years since we snowboarded and I didn't realise how much I'd forgotten. Our instructor Eve from Twin Waters was great and the kids had Scottish Marc. He had a great accent and an even better manner with kids. Despite their differing ages and abilities, Milla and Deaks shared the morning session. Milla was by far the youngest in the group and monopolised most of Marc's time. He and the other kids were great about it. He called her his princess and spent most of the morning carrying her down the slopes.

After lunch the kids seperated and Milla joined a younger group with Angela. Whenever we'd spot her on the slopes she'd be laying on the snow or making a snowball. But she was always smiling. Despite giving herself an egg shaped bruise on her bicep that surely hurt when it happened. Deaks apparently topped his group and was appointed Group Leader or Marc's Right-hand Man. He nailed all the skills and Marc called him a natural boarder with great posture. He also told Deaks to stay Rad! They exchanged the snowboarders handshake (slap it and cap it?) and will probably be following each other on instagram before we fly home. I thanked Marc for a great day for the kids and attempted the same handshake - it was as awkward as it sounds.

Jules and I both had pretty decent stacks attempting S-turns or something similar. Falling backwards onto our butts and banging our heads to finish. Jules did hers early and admits to almost giving in and skipping the afternoon session. Mine happened late when I was trying to do a turn I was unqualified to attempt. I definitely heard a crack when I landed on my back. Jules to her credit, stuck it out and by the end of the day she was riding on her heels and her toes, floating like a leaf and garlanding? She did spend a bit of time sitting on the snow (we both did), but she never gave up. Damn we are sore tonight! And only 2 more days of snowboarding to go. I think the Mulled Ginger Beer was her highlight.

We shuttle back to town and seem to have acquired more gear than we left the apartment with this morning. The sun has set and the rain has set in. We need a plan to get all this gear home. It's a decent 60 degree incline up to our apartment and carrying all the gear and boards up that hill in the 2* celsius drizzle ain't going to happen.

Deaks and I set out on foot via the 4 square supermarket, leaving the girls waiting at The Station. 500 gms of minced beef, some mushrooms, garlic, tomatoes, cheese and pasta and we're ready for spag bol and Netflix. Just have to get in the car and drive down to the town centre to collect the girls and all of that bloody gear! We might have eaten out in Tekapo but we are eating in in Queenstown. The only thing that hurt more than slamming backwards onto the packed snow was paying for four 3 day lift passes, ski gear, helmet hire and shuttles. Ouch!

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