Toes Stepped on?

I had a couple of agitated phone calls from my last blog. I did not intend to imply any wrong doing, but wanted to simply ask for an open mind from some of our educators. One took offense that I was indicating someone was selfish in regards to keeping kids form the joy of skiing/boarding. Selfish in what way???? Was I saying that your coaching record took precidence over letting kids have freedom to choose activities that interest them........ activities by the way that are healthy recreation activities that can be enjoyed for a lifetime? If some feathers were ruffled..... so be it and maybe the need ruffled.
Anyway, too many people still associate skiing and broken legs as partners. That is thinking that goes way back to the 70's. Modern technology has taking skiing out of the dark ages. New bindings are incredible steps forward in the safety arena. Shaped skis now make it easier to ski safely. And speaking of skiing safely..... those who have taken a couple lessons quickly fall inot the statistical category where injuries are rare. More accidents per thousand happen in your own home.
Enjoy the weeknd.........ed

Coaches care .........for whom??????

Interesting thing was brought to my attention. Some of the local school athletic coaches(Jr high as well as Sr high) require that their student athletes sign an agreement stating that they agree not to ski or snowboard. Our education process supposedly is focused on providing a well rounded education that allows the kids to experience as much as life has to offer. The athletic programs in our schools are geared for competition in an activity that most will never again engage in after graduating. Skiing and snowboarding is a healthy activity that can be shared for a lifetime with family and friends and some of our schools want them to avoid it. The same cannot be said for all of the high school(Jr High also) athletic competitions. Sure we can go watch our kids compete as a spectator, but we do not really share the activity with them?
Fear of injury?????? Statistically skiing is less dangerous that a weekend volley ball game or a bike ride........ and certainly statictics prove that there are more chances of injury in high school competitions. So who is really the coach concerned about........his coaching record or the kids getting the most out of life?????
Do not get me wrong, most coaches out there do agreat job with our youth and they are greatly under-appreciated.
Later........ed

TIME.....SLOW DOWN

Where has the time gone? It seems like just yesterday that I was complaining that I could not believe summer had passed and now all of a sudden November is zooming in at us. We pledged to ourselves that we would have all projects completed by Nov 1 so we could comfortably cruise into the snowmaking season with nothing to attend to but polishing details.
We are not too far from our target as we just completed a remodel of the upper lodge to give it a warmer feel. In retrospect, we really need to question how well we manage our time. Sometime it feels as if time is managing us. In today's world, it seems like we plan more, but accomplish less. We have all learned to rush, but not to wait. We have more computers to hold more information, but we seem to communicate less. Perhaps we need to spend more time with our loved ones and enjoy what we have. I heard a comment once from George Carlin that seems so relevant........Life is not measured by how many breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.......
Later......ed