Why A Broke College Kid Thinks You Should Go On A Ski Trip
Tongue out, on top of a peak in Telluride, Colorado.
As my wallet gently weeps on the desk beside me after recently purchasing a plane ticket to Jackson, Wyoming from Cleveland, Ohio I write this to justify the purchase. What am I going to Jackson, Wyoming on January 2nd for you ask? Well, why else would you go to Jackson, Wyoming during the coldest part of the year?... Skiing of course. Actually, I will be snowboarding but either way, I will be sliding down a massive slope on the side of a mountain trying not to hit any trees, rocks, fences, or any people doing the same. This may seem like a terrifying and expensive hobby, and in many cases it is, but it is one I feel an importance in making myself practice. For three of the last four years, I have gone on my university ski club’s annual trip out west. These trips have provided some of the best memories I have made during my college years. The only year I did not participate was when I had meniscus surgery which ironically was caused by a snowboarding accident on an Ohio ski hill a fraction of the size of the mountains I ride on in the Rockies. Anyways, I digress. What I do want to discuss is how important I feel these ski trips have been. They have brought me happiness, taught me lessons, and made me new friends. Now that you cannot put a price tag on!
The first western trip I experienced I embarked on as a freshman at 18 years old. Two of my friends and I had recently learned of “the coolest club on campus” here at Kent State, the ski club. A ragtag group of youngsters who love to shred and party is what the ski club is best described as. Along with their big trip out west in the winter, they plan an annual whitewater rafting trip, a trip to Holiday Valley in Ellicottville, New York, a summer trip to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, local ski trips, football game tailgates, parties, and other social events often including alcohol. Just a bunch of kids having fun, I guess. An outsider may frown at the naked runs and loud music they display, but let me tell you, the ski club is the nicest group of people you will find on the slopes. So, naturally, it was a great club for a freshman trying to find his way in 2019 to join. That trip to Breckenridge, Colorado probably changed my life. Since then I have done a great deal of solo traveling but up to that point I had not done much.
Experiencing life across the country with people you had met only a few months ago is a wonderful thing for a newly-moved-away-from-home kid to do. The best place and time to do this might just be Breckenridge, Colorado two weeks before Christmas. The magic of the town, the amazing people, the realization that I could travel (and survive) on my own, and the beauty of the Rocky mountains really opened my eyes to what was out there and what was possible. The trip ignited a spark that lit a huge bonfire which is my yearning for travel. Since that trip, I have gone on a number of other trips without my parents that include Telluride, Colorado; Ellicottville, New York (twice); Punta Gorda, Florida; Buena Vista, Colorado; studying abroad in Brazil, and more. Yes, this trip cost me a large sum of money but the worldview and happiness it brought me far outweigh the Benjamins I lost.
The Kent State Ski Club in Breckenridge, Colorado. I am the guy on the top right with my snowboard thrown over my shoulder.
Last year, as a junior in college and recovered from meniscus surgery the previous year, I headed to Telluride, Colorado with the same ski club and new and old friends. Telluride was a great experience for me. I was almost twenty-one at the time (with a fake ID that said I was twenty-one), I was a more experienced snowboarder, and I was a better traveler than I had been on my first western adventure. Becoming a superior traveler is something these trips have helped with exceedingly. It is hard to precisely explain what a great traveler is but if I travel with one, I know. Some people just know how to travel. They adapt to the environment, appreciate and adjust to the culture, know when to spend and when to save, take up new opportunities, and do not freak out when something (or a lot of things) goes wrong. The more you travel the more you will notice what makes a good traveler and the more you will develop into one yourself.
One thing that sticks in my mind about Telluride is how dramatic the mountains looked against the sky. Seeing this alone is reason enough to take the flight. I specifically remember stepping off of the plane onto the tarmac at the tiny Montrose Airport, about an hour and a half north of the ski town, seeing the mountains and thinking “OK, my trip is already worth it.” I really believe that. There is so much importance in seeing landscapes and sights you are unfamiliar with. If you grew up in a mountain village you may be blind to how beautiful the mountains are. Maybe you should take a trip to see the great plains or a beautiful beach to gain perspective. However, for us eastern folk there is nothing more moving than the dramatic sharp lines of huge peaks against endless skies. I truly trust that being close to striking landscapes, such as mountains, changes the way one thinks. It inspires us to do big things and take risks. There is some subconscious connection the mind makes with nature that theorizes “I too need to be like the mountains, I too need to make my place in the world!!” Mountains help us think big.
An epic view of the San Juan Mountains on the slopes of “Telly.”
While in Telluride, I also had interesting experiences that were aside from the landscape. The finest art shop I ever ventured into is in Telluride. After checking out a few ski shops, for touristy shirts and stickers to take home, I spotted the shop up the street. Nervously, my friends and I stepped in. I first thought the man working the counter might sluff us off or even ask us to leave (although unlikely) because everything was so expensive and delicate. To my surprise, the man was extremely kind and welcoming. He told us about a few of the pieces, explained how he came to run the shop, and even tried to sell my buddy a very expensive Damascus knife. The encounter reinforced that one can have money and still be pleasant and further striked-up an interest in art that I have been gaining as of recent.
As I previously stated, this year I am headed to Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. I will be there right after the holidays and it will surely be a merry time. I do not know much about Jackson Hole but what I hear is extremely positive. I had the choice to go back to Breckenridge but chose this trip instead for the opportunity to see a place that is completely new to me. I am finishing up my senior year of college so this will be my last ski trip as an undergraduate student. Coming into college, I had only gone snowboarding a handful of times and never outside of Ohio. Growing up, none of my family members skied (my parents had many moons ago) and I had no idea I would end up seeing Breckenridge, Telluride, and Jackson Hole over the next four years. I guess each man can carve out any path he chooses. I have played pool at the New Sheridan Historic Bar in Telluride and I have seen downtown Breckenridge wrapped in beautiful lights as the special feeling of Christmas enveloped the town. I wonder what great memories await in Wyoming?
Lately, I have been thinking more about life and death and all that in between. Life is so long but also so short. We live for eighty-odd years but at least half of those are spent wishing we could be younger and most of the first twenty are spent wishing we could be older. As a species, we would be better off forgetting age is a factor in any part of our daily existence. We will die one day and that is the only certainty so why not do the things we most want to do while we are out of the grave? Sure, we can not do everything, but if you enjoy skiing why not spend the money and go do it in the best places America has to offer? The mountains of the American west are a huge arena God has built for those who play the sport of slipping through the snow to compete on. If you feel so inclined, I urge you to buy a ticket and experience what it feels like to step off a ski lift at eleven or twelve thousand feet. You can thank me as you sip a Rainier Beer in the hot tub of an Aspen ski resort after a day of shredding. Happy sending!
A photo I snapped of a fellow ski club member in Breckenridge, Colorado.
My friends and I against an ominous sky in Telluride, Colorado.
A clearer day from the peaks of “Telly.”
