Sorry its been a few days since we spoke. We have been very busy having lots of fun and also are a little sore from skiing so it was too hard to get to the computer.
Since we spoke we have had a foggy but smooth transfer back from Victoria to Vancouver and headed up to Whistler.
Once we were settled in to our hotel we headed around to the Ski School area and picked up our lift pass and got fitted out for skis, boots, helmets and poles. We stowed our skis and poles in the free storage and then walked our boots and helmets back to the hotel.
After our first brush with ski equipment we had dinner with Jnr at a place called Furnies (El Furniture Warehouse). They have a $5 menu and the food is pretty good. After dinner we went and caught up with Lisas friends and roommates for the second day of Australia day! Yes they drag it out as much as possible here as there are so many Australians. Probably more than back home. Somebody was saying that about 60% of Whistler are Australians. They all kicked on for a bit and we returned to the hotel to ensure we had a good sleep under our belt and had all the relevant bits and pieces together for a day on the slopes.
So it was time to get up, have some toast for breakfast and get ready for ski school. We padded Toots feet up for the ski boots so that there were no bits of boot rubbing on her leg where there are bits of metal. Once all padded up we headed to the area around the gondolas to put on our ski boots, pick up our skis, dump the crap in a locker and meet up with the other people in our group. In our group there was us, a guy from Brisbane and a man from Newport Beach, Southern California. Our instructor was a young English guy and it was a great little group of people. Once we all met up we jumped on the gondola and headed to the mid station on Whistler Mountain to put on our skis for the first time and learn a few things. We learnt about french fries and pizza our basic feet positions to go and stop. Once we had mastered this we cruised around in circles for a bit on the flat to show that we could manage that and then it was time to head to the magic carpet.
The magic carpet is a travelator type thing that takes you to the top of the bunny run without having to walk it and there is obviously no chair lift for us beginners. It was a nice break to stand and do nothing for a couple of minutes while it got us there. We started off by having a basic run down the slope with just getting used to wearing the skis and moving on them while sorting out our balance. We all did well on this and there was no stacks. After our first run it was then time to start learning to turn and ski without our poles to learn balance without depending on them. We had to ski around cones to show we could turn and once we mastered all of this it was time for a quick lunch. We started heading back to the gondola and had to go down a bit of a short steep bit and thats when the first stack happened. Poor Tooty took a small tumble after picking up a little too much speed. All is good though and there were no major injuries.
For lunch we headed to the bottom of the mountain where we could sit down and loosen the damn ski boots. By this time Gordos shin was starting to get a little sore from her boot so it was nice for the break and a bite to eat. For lunch we ate Beef dip. It is a strange combination but actually really nice and was recommended by our instructor. It is a toasted beef baguette with some cheese and horseradish mayo with a side of waffle fries. But here is the strange part. To eat the baguette you must dip it in a bowl of beef broth first. A strange concept but delicious. After this it was time to strip a layer and head back up the mountain.
The afternoon session was about sport concepts. Tom the instructor told us that we were going to play some basketball. This meant no poles and pretending to dribble a basketball in order for our feet to turn without us thinking about it. Hard to explain but really worked. While playing basket ball we also had to do a little jump. It was scary at first but makes you balance better without thinking about it. We did some Hockey stops which Gordo really didn't master that well and had a couple of tumbles but again no major injuries. We also did some ledge runs which meant going down another short steeper section and turning while doing this. No stacks here but it might have been a close call. Tooty tapped out early due to sore feet and knees. But she did very well and there was only one stack and that was just before lunch. Her main injury for the day was pulling a lower calf muscle while taking off her boot at the end of the day. *sigh*
After ski school finished we returned our gear and met up with Troy and Jnr, Britt and Kayde (their housemates) and had a coffee. From here the boys went home to return snowboards and ourselves and Jnr went for a wander around the village and then met up with Troy for dinner for some Mexican.
After dinner it was a small walk around then off to bed to rest our weary bodies.
Since we spoke we have had a foggy but smooth transfer back from Victoria to Vancouver and headed up to Whistler.
Once we were settled in to our hotel we headed around to the Ski School area and picked up our lift pass and got fitted out for skis, boots, helmets and poles. We stowed our skis and poles in the free storage and then walked our boots and helmets back to the hotel. After our first brush with ski equipment we had dinner with Jnr at a place called Furnies (El Furniture Warehouse). They have a $5 menu and the food is pretty good. After dinner we went and caught up with Lisas friends and roommates for the second day of Australia day! Yes they drag it out as much as possible here as there are so many Australians. Probably more than back home. Somebody was saying that about 60% of Whistler are Australians. They all kicked on for a bit and we returned to the hotel to ensure we had a good sleep under our belt and had all the relevant bits and pieces together for a day on the slopes.
So it was time to get up, have some toast for breakfast and get ready for ski school. We padded Toots feet up for the ski boots so that there were no bits of boot rubbing on her leg where there are bits of metal. Once all padded up we headed to the area around the gondolas to put on our ski boots, pick up our skis, dump the crap in a locker and meet up with the other people in our group. In our group there was us, a guy from Brisbane and a man from Newport Beach, Southern California. Our instructor was a young English guy and it was a great little group of people. Once we all met up we jumped on the gondola and headed to the mid station on Whistler Mountain to put on our skis for the first time and learn a few things. We learnt about french fries and pizza our basic feet positions to go and stop. Once we had mastered this we cruised around in circles for a bit on the flat to show that we could manage that and then it was time to head to the magic carpet.
For lunch we headed to the bottom of the mountain where we could sit down and loosen the damn ski boots. By this time Gordos shin was starting to get a little sore from her boot so it was nice for the break and a bite to eat. For lunch we ate Beef dip. It is a strange combination but actually really nice and was recommended by our instructor. It is a toasted beef baguette with some cheese and horseradish mayo with a side of waffle fries. But here is the strange part. To eat the baguette you must dip it in a bowl of beef broth first. A strange concept but delicious. After this it was time to strip a layer and head back up the mountain.The afternoon session was about sport concepts. Tom the instructor told us that we were going to play some basketball. This meant no poles and pretending to dribble a basketball in order for our feet to turn without us thinking about it. Hard to explain but really worked. While playing basket ball we also had to do a little jump. It was scary at first but makes you balance better without thinking about it. We did some Hockey stops which Gordo really didn't master that well and had a couple of tumbles but again no major injuries. We also did some ledge runs which meant going down another short steeper section and turning while doing this. No stacks here but it might have been a close call. Tooty tapped out early due to sore feet and knees. But she did very well and there was only one stack and that was just before lunch. Her main injury for the day was pulling a lower calf muscle while taking off her boot at the end of the day. *sigh*After ski school finished we returned our gear and met up with Troy and Jnr, Britt and Kayde (their housemates) and had a coffee. From here the boys went home to return snowboards and ourselves and Jnr went for a wander around the village and then met up with Troy for dinner for some Mexican.
After dinner it was a small walk around then off to bed to rest our weary bodies.
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