Last day was a cracker!

We made the most of our last day of skiing. Managed to do all our favourite runs and a few new ones. Worked our elaborate routes where Tim could do his green runs and we could do our blues and then we would meet up. Over the past two days we have been using an app that measures our skiing. My top speed was 63km / hr this morning and Jack hit 65! Our average speed was more like 17. Apparently Jack clocked 70 this afternoon but it didn't save?? Took the camera out today so no snow photos here. All our blog pics have been taken on my phone. After the skiing we headed into town to buy packing tape and a ski bag to get Grant's new toys home. We then found  Smokin' Moes for dinner, Jack was in meat heaven! Was probably the most 'all American' looking place we have eaten in. Unfortunately Liz was too unwell to come visit, a two hour trip, so we had a good chat on the phone tonight. Next trip, mmmmmm, we plan to spend time with her in Steamboat Springs. We are nearly packed, shuttle picks us up at 11am and then we have about 16 hours travel to get home. Looking forward to some warm weather and snuggles with Yoda. 

Grant's all sorted!

Last night on the way back from our spa, Jack sprinted up the staircase, apparently being chased by his brother, and got his big toe jammed in a door, ouch. The injured toe was feeling pretty tender today, so it spent the day on the couch. Tim helped to look after the toe in the morning, while Grant and I spent the morning with Pat getting Grant's new monoski customised. After lunch, while the toe continued to recoperate, three of us headed out to test the new mono. Lift loading was even easier and the skiing was pretty impressive, so it got a double thumbs up. Our food supplies are running low, so we headed out for tea tonight. Tomorrow we may be catching up with Liz, who we stayed with 22 years ago when we were here. One more day to go. We are all looking forward to coming home to summer.

More adventures

We had another adventure this morning. When we got to the bottom of the hill and looked up to find Grant, we saw a blob and a line that wasn't moving. We saw someone stop to give assistance, the line moved, but the blob remained. Jack was sent up to investigate, he had the phone. Once he arrived at the scene I got a call to say that Grant's ski binding had released and they were having trouble putting it back together with his mono. So I headed up to help. But by the time I arrived Jack had applied those great problem solving skills and saved the day; Grant was back in one piece. After lunch the boys headed over to investigate the tubing, which they loved, while Grant and I had a lovely afternoon together exploring some new territory. At the end of the afternoon we all met at the disabled skiers base, Grant's mono had arrived from Denver. It will be attached to the seat and have adjustments made first thing tomorrow. We also did a wee spot of shopping, got Tim some new ski pants for a bargain price and found a stand with ski helmet coverings, Tim fell in love with the racon. On the way back to our ski locker we stopped to toast some mashmellows. A busy day all round. Just two days to go and sunny skies are forecast. Back continues to improve, still tweaking a bit.

Grant makes a big purchase

The money has been paid and tomorrow afternoon Grant's Nissin monoski gets assembled. We got to choose a ski and a spare this afternoon - thankfully the skis are free, donated by Heàd. Big Christmas pressie for Grant! The weather today was very cold with a few snow showers, but we did some great skiing. Jack thinks it was his best afternoon ever. While Tim zoomed down his favourite route, including a number of jaunts through the trees, the rest of us hit some more challenging blue / black slopes, so much fun - everyone was beaming. I'm getting by on deep heat back rubs and drugs, Grant had 4 voltarin tablets and some other pain killers. Love that hot tub at the end of the day! Best of luck with the big move Chris, will be thinking of you. 

Snow showers and sun

My back was a bit better today so we were back on the slopes. The weekend crowds had gone and the slopes were lovely and empty. The snow that feel yesterday left soft powder for us to experience today. Most powder experiences were positive, except for when Tim decided to go straight and fast, resulting in a painful snow-angel pose! We had snow showers on and off, at times we had sunshine and snow at the same time, I managed to capture this in one of today's photos. Have included a photo of part of the disabled snow sports facility, where they work on equipment and store the bi-skis. Grant has been offered a very good deal on a mono like the one he is using. We wil meet with Pat, the wizard who puts these skis together, early tomorrow morning and it looks like we may be bringing a new mono home with us! More snow is forecast tomorrow and then three days of sunny weather, hopefully the back pain will be gone tomorrow, so I can enjoy this amazing place in a pain-free state. 

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

Quite a quiet day today. We had a sleep in and hit the slopes just before 11. The snow started early in the morning and fell on and off throughout the day. Some nice fresh powder to ski on. After three runs we stopped for lunch, by that that time my back was giving me grief and seized up a bit when we stopped. So rather than heading back to the slopes after lunch, we headed to the hot tub - just what I needed, and the boys enjoyed a snow ball fight in the tub. Spent the afternoon on the couch with my book and one of my foot heating pads on my back. Feeling a bit better this evening. Luckily Grant not longer needs to be lifted onto the chairlift, just pushed off, will get Jack doing this tomorrow. Looking forward to some nice powder skiing in the morning. Tim is showing signs of Pa, he likes to ride up the chairlift with other people and where possible engage them in conversation ... sound familiar?

More great skiing

Boys were pretty sluggish today, so just skied the morning, then they spent the afternoon watching movies. Grant and I were keen to make the most of the day so we went off together this afternoon and explored a new territory, this time on the far right of the ski area, Vasquez Ridge. Had some lovely blue runs, the lift was easy to load and we had a great afternoon. Jack and I usually head off first in the morning, to check out new areas, we are usually away by 9:30 depending how on the ball Jack is, then Grant and Tim join us an hour or so later. It gets pretty cold after 3pm, but we usually ski till 3:30, Grant and I kept going till 4 today. I've included a photo of the ski racks when we stopped for lunch, four mono skis were lined up as well as another guy in a chair. We met the guy who owns the ski Grant is using, he has been in NZ during our winters training our disabled ski team. He mentioned that there is a ski like the one Grant is using for sale in Denver, mmmmmmm, very tempting. Having a quiet night in tonight, all a bit weary. The forecast is for snow tomorrow afternoon, looking forward to some powder. 

Best day yet

What a doozie of a day we had today! The sun was shining, the snow was great, we found some cool new runs and all had a ball. Grant got player of the day today for his growing independence with lift loading. There are a number of amazing mono-skiers here and on observing them load, we have picked up tips for Grant to apply. On a couple of occasions he rectified what would have been a bad load, all loads were successful today :-)  Grant is loving the monoski he is using, it is lighter and easier to turn, just need to save 8 grand to buy one! Tim learnt that you don't take side tracks that you think link up with the track we are following. He had an exciting little adventure in the trees. Jack continues to be our trail blazer, but Tim is catching up fast. To give you an idea of the size of this place, Winter Park has 7 territories, most of them are the size of the Remarkables. We stayed in one territory today and each run  would have taken us at least 20 mins skiing down, some a lot more. We are seriously talking about the next time we come here, with Pa in tow. I cooked yummy ribs tonight, the meat and the fruit and veges here are really impressive, everything else has a high sugar content, even the bread tastes sweeter.

Adventures on second day

We had a brilliant morning on the slopes, tim loves skiing through the trees, actually goes much faster, so we kept together well. Back to our condo for lunch and planned to challenge ourselves some more in the afternoon. Started out well, Tim even did a blue/black with only one 'moment' on the way down. Unfortunately we had a couple of bad lifts, the second resulted in a broken ski for Grant! Boys were already on the chair in front, on their way to the top of the mountain, so they skadooed grant and his injured mono down while I headed up top and skied down with the boys. Tim a bit freaked at the top of mountain, but we found a tree lined section he loved, so cheered up. Grant caught up with us on the way down. Don't think we have to pay for the ski, fingers are crossed!

First day on skis

Grant coughed and sneezed through the night, but nothing was going to stop him hitting the  slopes this morning. He and Jack headed out at 9 with Art, a helper. They had a fabulous morning, sorted the lifts and loved the skiing. Tim and I hung out together and then we swapped shifts in the afternoon. Again, Jack and I skied with Art, a lovely guy who would be in his 60s, we explored the mountain together. The skiing was soooo good. It's been warmer the last couple of days, hitting 5 degrees, so a bit of melting down the base area but snow is in good condition, the odd hard patch but no ice and mostly gorgeous to ski on. Not may people here so we had lovely wide open slopes to ourselves, and no queues. Jack thinks it's great, better than Disneyland; his favourite part is skiing through the trees. There are so many lifts here, this afternoon we got to the very top of the mountain, the same altitude as Mt Cook! It took over half an hour to ski to the very bottom, and that's without many stops. Jack and I were saying that we would love it if Pa could be with us, he would just love it ... might need to go on the bucket list. Tim's temperature has gone and he is feeling better, got his pass sorted today and will head out after tea to get his hire gear sorted. So hopefully we will all be able to make the most of another glorious day tomorrow. 

Winter Park, we have arrived!

Met the worst and best of taxi drivers this morning, went with the best! Train delayed again, but a lovely station to wait in and grant had a chance to go to chemist to get supplies for those with colds. Tim is still poorly, we think it could be altitude sickness, so have just got pills for that. Beautiful trip through the mountains, 27 tunnels in 30 mins, including a 10 min tunnel, 3rd largest in States. The mountain looks awesome, and our apartment is right there next to the lift! Even have hot tubs outside. Spent the afternoon sorting a mono for grant, pretty flash, and getting our seasons passes sorted, was cheapest approach to tickets for the days we are here... All part of the package we paid for a couple of months ago. Jack and I have done a shop as we have a kitchen, just waiting to be picked up by shuttle. Tim will probably rest tomorrow and grant and I each ski half a day, jack full day. Grant will hopefully do a morning lesson, so won't need me.

Denver day

Sorry about the lack of post yesterday. We spent to morning doing some more wandering around the art district of Santa Fe and getting an early lunch before getting on the train bound for Denver. The train was running slow due to some signal problems, luckily our connecting bus waited, we bused the last 3.5 hours, arriving at 11pm. It must have snowed that morning as there was lots of snow on the road; we were relieved to get to our hotel which is downtown in Denver. Today we walked into town, caught a free bus and made our way to REI, a big outdoors store. Jack now has pants to ski in and we also got Tim a new ski jacket and me some boots to keep my feet cosy over the last two weeks of our holiday. When we got out of the store it was much warmer, 12 degrees, which feels pretty tropical compared with the sub 0 temps we have had for the last week. While travelling on the bus some guys who were pretty loud and obviously high got on. Tim's hand clamped onto mine, he doesn't like the big cities because of some of the 'interesting' people we see, I can sympathise with him. Tim is a bit off colour and Grant has a cold, so we are chilling out this afternoon. Jack and I may try out the hotel pool, it's indoor! Tomorrow we are up early to catch our train to Winter Park, our final destination. Should just take a couple of hours. Looking toward to staying in the same place for the next 11 days.