The wonderful girlfriend and I hit the slopes in Alpe d’Huez 2 weeks ago and just kept on hitting them. I expected her to improve, this being only her second time skiing. I did not expect her to start tackling red and black runs with total abandon. Gotta be those swiss genes.
I also did not expect myself to turn into a total off-piste hound. Untill now I’ve been your normal, polite, never-stray-outside-the-slopes snowboarder. Now it’s more like “Hey look: Powder! I’m going over there.”
The steepest slope in Alpe d’Huez is called Le Tunnel. You take the lift to the top of the mountain (at 3.330 meter), then ski down a 200 meter long tunnel they drilled straight through the mountain top. On the other side, this view greets you:
Yep, I did that. Didn’t even blink :o)
I had more trouble dealing with what has to be the world’s largest cappucino:
It’s been great and it’s just as great to be back.
A special, great big thank you to Traci Fenton for guest blogging while I was away. Traci, you rock!
Alex, found you through Michael Wagner and glad I did.
And, yikes! re the above. I was hyperventilating just looking at the photos! More power to you and the marvelous, fearless girlfriend. Me? I’ve perfected the art of “cross-hill” skiing. Guess it must be those southern white trash genes (“What the h*** is this white stuff? Whaddaya mean I’ve got to slide down the mountain on two little sticks of wood?” Huh? My mama didn’t tell me about this.) As my ski instructor said, as I – um – hit the mountain yet again. “Gee, it’s a good thing you’re so limber!” It was a big day when I could get off the lift without sliding down the side of the hill…oh well! It is a thrill when I do manage to make all the way down a run! (But, you’ll never, ever see me on a black run. I’m a wimp, and I don’t have disability insurance.)
And, love your title “Chief Happiness Officer” Would that we had more of those around!
Hi Mary. Cross-hill skliing – you’re cracking me up here :o)
Here’s my philosophy on skiing: You can try to be the best skier on the mountain, but that’s a sucker’s proposition. Only one person can be the best, and the odds are good that it won’t be you. It certainly will never be me :o)
Alternatively, you can try to be the person on the mountain who has the most fun. Again you probably won’t be number one (some kid probably will be) but you will have a lot of fun in the process.
The idea of the CHO title came to me a couple of years ago and it perfectly encompasses the core principle I use, namely an active focus on what makes people happy at work.