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| Sun Dog at Sun Peaks Resort - photo by Dawn Boddington |
So I’ve been skiing since 1973, had instruction over the decades in Italy, Austria, Switzerland, France, USA and Canada, can tackle most runs at most resorts albeit it with my own particular hybrid habits and varying measures of confidence, and I’m now skiing daily at Sun Peaks Resort for the season. Why would I take a lesson at this point and – I’ll say it before you do - at this advanced age?
Because you can always learn something new with skiing! It is an ever-changing domain of different snow conditions, whimsical weather, evolving equipment, and shifting tuition trends - not to mention the flagging fitness and diminishing muscle of older age. With a Sun Peaks season’s pass comes a free lesson among many other benefits. Just three skiers get paired with an instructor of your chosen level, a wonderful boost to your everyday skiing enjoyment and progression.
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Choosing ‘All Mountain Performance’, my husband Simon Hudson and I were joined by Ryan Mussio, a part-time resident who has been coming to Sun Peaks for nine years all the way from Brisbane, Australia. Our Level 3 instructor was Jordan Henry, a former hockey player who started skiing at Tod Mountain in 1992. “I took my Level 1 within a month of starting to ski and I have worked for Sun Peaks ever since,” says Jordan. “I also spent some years as a coach with the Nancy Greene Ski Program.” And he is a Level 2 Snowboard Instructor and a Level 1 Race Coach, to boot. He also told us that, in 1995, he and his wife had a romantic winter wedding on Valentine’s Day in Reno, NV, after skiing Sugar Bowl that day.
Having asked us what we wanted to gain from the two-hour lesson, he put together our requests and first took us to Sting, a beautifully groomed single black diamond run, for our ‘warm up’. “During the class we discussed the CSIA skills and introduced how they work together on different terrain, conditions and type of turns a person would like to make,” says Jordan. Over the course of the first hour or so, we did a variety of drills designed to change our attitude to turning. I particularly liked the Falling Leaf or Chicken Drill. “We did drills that were intended to have the class members experience another approach to skiing – i.e. what and where a sliding turn works versus a steered turn and a carved turn - as well as tactics that will increase your chances of success,” Jordan explains. This led to a skiing style that was much slower and more controlled than our usual efforts, with plenty of time to get ready and steady for the next turn. We also did shoulder/torso angulation drills and, particularly important for me for the tough stuff to come, honed our gliding skills.
Next run was the equally immaculately groomed single black diamond Exhibition where we followed exactly – or near enough - in Jordan’s tracks trying to emulate his smooth, serene and apparently effortless swirls. I always find drills a bit awkward – I can see what I am supposed to do but have no idea if I’m actually doing it and it all feels very unnatural. When asked by Jordan how I felt about the exercises, my comment was “I understand it all but I think I need more practice!” He graciously agreed.
Finally, our goal: Intimidator, another single black diamond but with a steep pitch at the top more worthy of double diamond status and ungroomed – think bumps. I hate this run! At the top, between big and irregular bumps, it has icy segments which always upset my equilibrium and, once I get nervous, my legs never seem quite as reliable as I would like. However, following an instructor always gives me confidence and I was very happy to turn exactly where Jordan turned, using his purposefully-picked line.
Immediately, my new gliding prowess came in handy – a new survival skill! I had learnt on a Bumps for Boomers course in Aspen a few years ago how to use mogul topography to slow down every turn: banking up the softer slower snow of the bump itself rather than building up speed in the slippery trough. Adding Jordan’s new glide and his reminders about slope-craft, I found I could choose my line exactly rather than having to endure bumps of the wrong shape. I could impose my rhythm on the mountain rather than be a victim of the terrain. Bliss!
Now I’m not saying it was pretty – but a lot of what I did on that run was preventative and proactive rather than reactive and I felt so much more in control than usual. I know that some people love to fly down the bumps, knees bouncing around, but my desire is to tame them and make the descent look – and feel – slow, easy and effortless.
Simon was very motivated to learn something new despite many years of skiing prowess in powder, bumps and anything you could throw at him. He was a Ski Club of Great Britain guide for about a decade, leading club members around the off-piste skiing of a variety of different European resorts. I used to ‘sweep up’ for him (tail guide). “I am always keen to work on my skiing technique - and so much has changed since I learned to ski 40 years ago - particularly the style and equipment,” Simon acknowledges. “I was taught in Italy, where the fashion was to lock your knees together and somehow steer your two-metre plus skis around the mountain. Today's skis are much shorter and, probably, more forgiving - but you still need to know how to manoeuvre them for the best results - and today Jordan gave me a few extra tips on how to do just that, especially on steeper slopes.”
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| Vertical Café at Sun Peaks Resort, currently featuring local art by Edit Pal |
At the end of the lesson – which sped by far too quickly – I felt I had several new tactics for my tough terrain toolbox. And, after a refueling latte at Vertical Café, I went back voluntarily and tackled Intimidator twice more. Still much to learn but I’ll never be quite so intimidated by this run. “The best thing about the time we spent together was that I got to ski with a group with the interest in trying new ways to ski down the hill,” Jordan concluded.
If you are a Sun Peaks season passholder, you still have time – the free lessons can be taken up to March 31 2022 with some blackout dates for peak periods. This applies to skiing, snowboarding and Nordic, and you can also save 20 percent on various other programs throughout the season.
By the way, many people fail to use their season pass perks. I was standing in line at the bar at Sunburst the other day and talking to a friend about using my season pass for coffee discount. As if hearing this information for the first time, at least three people behind me went back to their tables to retrieve their own passes.
Check out the following perks:
-Nordic season pass included in your alpine season pass as well as Fat Bike Trail access. -Save 10% on equipment rentals at Sun Peaks Rentals and Elevation Bike, Ski & Board.
-Five Buddy Passes:25 percent discount each time for a friend.
-Retail: 10 percent off regular priced goods (excluding Arc'teryx) at Southside Board Shop, Three Peaks, John Tod Trading Company, Sun Peaks Sports, The North Face Mountain Outfitters, and Elevation Bike, Ski & Board.
-Food and Beverage: Save 10 percent on select food and beverage at the Sunburst Bar + Eatery, The Annex Food + Drink, and Café Soleil*. Includes regular menu items (from food stations), fountain drinks, and non-alcoholic beverages from the Starbucks® coffee kiosk. -Equipment Repairs and Maintenance: 10 percent off all repairs and tuning at Fall Line, located in the Sun Peaks Grand Hotel. -
Reciprocal discounts with a wide variety of resorts: https://www.sunpeaksresort.com/ski-ride/tickets-passes/season-passes/sun-peaks-resort-alpine-reciprocal-program#StandardReciprocal
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| Snow Ghosts off the Crystal Chair at Sun Peaks Resort - by Dawn Boddington |
