Peep peeps

H in front of an avalanche from the day before

Barn

EBW in front of avalanche training center contemplating the joys of tennis

The perfect ready position

My ready position 

Here is what we learned yesterday: if your Japanese ski guide suggests, quietly, that you take the bus home from the next town instead of skiing home; take the bus. We brushed off her suggestion and found ourselves in a national geographic penguin movie.  We got to the top of a miserable lift (that is so cold, they used to provide blankets), waited for Harumi to get off and then watched her basically take the hell off. Thomas thinks he heard her say Sayonara.
It was horrible: howling wind and tiny pellets of icy snow in the face. I could not see H or Thomas (at that point it is each man for himself...but only for a brief while). Then a bit of a reprieve as we got lower. Harumi was mumbling, as she always does, about the brutal effects of this on her skin (she is a Japanese girl after all).
With the sub optimal conditions around here, we are spending a lot of time at the avalanche training center (see above photo) where one can practice looking for avalanche peeps. That way when one's friend or ski guide is buried in an avalanche, one can calmly and efficiently search for him. I cannot tell you the anxiety this exercise provokes in me. You are timed at how long it takes to find the peeps...with the gentle reminder from the very polite Japanese ski guide, that after about 15 minutes the person under the snow has "problems". After she saw my performance the first day, she looked kind of alarmed and we have been there every day since. Today was a bit faster, but really this is just not my strength.
Adding to my anxiety is this terrible story of a ski guide who witnessed two fatalities last year: both were excellent skiers, one hit his head, one broke neck. We ran into him today, and he looks exactly like the actor you would hire if you happened to want to make a nazi ski propaganda movie. Master race-ish and stoic. He is fairly difficult to look at without saying something stupid. And now that I know he had this terrible year last year, I can really make a fool of myself (am constantly thinking do not mention head injuries!!)

Above is Harumi San with some much deserved cake.

Merry Christmas!

Greetings from balmy Austria! it is like spring here, which is bad for people who like to ski in the wilderness. Thomas had a hell of a time. They went with "skins" (device on the bottom of their skis which enable them to walk up hill) and then when it was time to go down, had to contend with horrible icy, crusty snow through the trees. He said his skis were faster than the guides and he kept almost over taking him on this narrow way down with a genuine fear that this time, he would not be able to stop and end up in Innsbruck.
Harumi and I spent two hours dissecting my ready position. Seems to have helped-she is happy.

Best part of the day was when I was sitting with the S family at lunch. They joke that I am in charge of the ski race this year and I said that I thought it would be more fun if we challenged the rival five star hotel-the Gasthof Post. So we are laughing..batting around an America's cup type thing: where the two hotels compete for glory and the winner gets to make the rules (as in the sailing race)...and the hotel with the top 20 race times wins. All guests and staff welcome. Well Mrs. S listens to this, and in a move that made me love her even more than I loved her before...an act of such decisive action, of supreme Austrian bad ass backbone, she says, simply: Gerold, pass me the (goddamn- my words not hers, but they were in the air) phone. And with one arm on her seat cushion, and an exasperated look on her face asks for the Post's owner. Sigh. Yes I will wait. Yes tell her I called.
I turned to her son and said: Now that is what a hotel owner looks like!
Also when someone suggested another five star hotel (that shall remain nameless) She snorted and said "I don't think those (pansies- again my word but it was in the air...) even ski. " I mean she is so beyond....
So it looks like game on people. The owner called back and said she thinks she could get a group together. Who knows where this will go? uniforms? pranks over the years stealing the cup from its place in the window? steroids? One  well-born Arab friend heard the proposal and said he was all in, but immediately accused them of cheating. I mean it-we told him the idea and he said: TRUST BUT VERIFY! We said verify what? doping? checking bode miller in as a guest? That is the point..there are no rules. (One understand why there is so little hope for harmony in the Middle East).
As usual Christmas eve (they call it holy evening) was a romantic night. We assemble in our room for champagne and presents, then go downstairs for Christmas singing and dinner.

It is very pretty and kind of sentimental and always the same. Plus everyone looks good in the semi darkness.
I told G to make an announcement that for the next few days no alcohol would be served to any potential racer. He did not. Mrs. S (exactly as I thought) is now scouting for the very best talent in the kitchen. She seems to think we have some real ski bums hiding under those chefs hats.....and who knows? maybe my ready position will enable me to somehow, someway help the cause.

thomas lighting the candles on the tree. In an entirely wooden hotel. 

S singing for us

E listening to Gangnam style on new ipod. Pronounced it very catchy

dinner...me in the long white number from the 70s. 

Cousins

First Days

Tree in our room

F and L 

Harumi-san 

view from hotel

A few photos of the first days. All is well. Snow was great one day but now it rained and there is very little to do but go on the groomed runs or practice finding avalanche beepers. H looked mildly alarmed when she saw how inept I was at finding her backpack in the snow and suggested we practice again tomorrow. If an avalanche falls on her with me as her only rescuer, she is a goner-san.
F had his first day of ski school today, but he and L came with me and Harumi yesterday when the snow was deep and fluffy and the sun came out. Lovely. The picture above is when she gave us chocolate mid way. Luis showed up with tiny little narrow skis his things dropping all over the place poles everywhere helmet half way on..glasses askew, and then proceeded to shred the powder like he was on proper skis. He reminds me so much of Charlie.....looks disorganized but get down to business. F can keep up, but it requires every ounce of mental concentration, and he is far from relaxed. Kept mumbling that he would like to go to the race course...a place he enjoys greatly with all that hard snow and order. In fact he beat thomas for the first time! Unfortunately Thomas proceeded to wake up and the next time really skimmed those gates...got his boot caught on one of them, spun around and banged his head quite hard. The rest of us were watching in total confusion- we could not understand who this person was who was in a crumple on the slope. It seems he will not go down without a fight...it might kill him but he will not hand over the reigns.
I have Harumi until the 28th and then she has someone else for me named, alarmingly, Lukas. meaning male and Austrian which are two characteristics I avoid when picking a ski partner....the only thing scarier is if his name were Schneider.

The Winter Blog rides again!

Hello to all, meaning: my mother, aunt, cousin, Amy R, and some guy in Latvia. (We may be a small group, but we are hearty and loyal and that is something).
There was a special request that I start the Blog earlier, i.e. upon travel day, and I say what the hell.
I have nothing to report other than I almost killed myself just now reaching from a stool way above my head to try to find a bag, and fell so hard, the boys came rushing in like this was finally the end. I did not even swear. That is how bad it was.
Anyway I appear to be in one piece...all I could think of was this would really really suck to be on a ski vacation with a neck brace.
All bags are packed, many fine dresses, little dancing shoes, ski clothes, avalanche peeps, presents for the family, christmas cds we cannot live without
Here is a word from Frederick: Sugar does not make kids hyper. Also waking a sleep walker is fine for the sleeper; but maybe not for you.
(He is reading an article called "The whole truth" which is filled with facts like these. Obviously this blog is the place to come for the truth.)
Driver is here...next blog from the warm embrace of the Almhof Schneider.