Show r Student by Steven R Life Monthly Review Price Ernest Hemingway once said that skiing now with the lifts and all is That was 1954 Now it is 1974 and skiing has about like rolller-skatin- g amassed a following of winter enthusiasts that number in the millions But not without paying the price of popularity With the exorbitant prices of ski equipment today and ever increasing ski passes many y skiing Many aficionados of alpine skiing are turning to it was realized or it who never skied because they thought dangerous expensive are becoming aware that the dichotomous choice of skiing r lift lines or not putting up with dollar hamburgers and y skiing has another option: In the October issue of Skiing magazine it was estimated that there are now half a million c skiers in the US double the amount estimated just a year ago Some of the reasons for the geometric prices that ski growth as mentioned above are the manufacturers have tagged on their equipment To the college student renowned for financial instability it must appear to be a phasing out of skier an evolution directed at making the lower and middle-clas- s skiing an elitist pastime a sport for kings mohair and fishscale c skis people who With the advent of x were baffled by the mystics and complexities of waxing c skis and those who were just too lazy to be so inclined have found that they too can experience the sensations of sliding across the snow seeking those places that hold the beauty of winter for those who wish to see Another important factor in times of gas shortages and ceiling-les- s groceries is the cost All the c equipment skis boots bindings and and those who were just too lazy to be so inclined have found that they too can experience the sensation of sliding across the snow seeking those places that hold the beauty of winter for those cross-countr- who wish to half-hou- see" cross-countr- x-- sky-rocketi- ng x-- no-wa- x-- x-- poles can be had for almost half the price of a single pair of good downhill skis The incentive here is obvious Also c skis can go just about anywhere there is snow No lifts no lines no parking lot hassles But transcending all the material reasons why people are becoming c converts: it is an exhilerating uniquely aesthetic experience It is one of the purest aesthetic sports I can also be a friendly communal one reminiscent of the atmosphere that once was downhilling seemingly lost in the long lift lines Mike Shaw ski instructor at Beaver Mountain and avid c skier expresses his feelings: “It is an intensely physical sport but the physical aspect is so consuming it becomes part of the aesthetic experience an inherent part” The artistry of winter paints a wonderous and awe inspiring scenario The c skier is witness to the beauty that few see from their cars Douglas firs heavy with the weight of snow creeds carved through flawless snow fields the irridescent sparkling sunlight on freshly fallen snow It is an exquisitely silent sport only the whisper of slender skis sliding on snow and the heavy rhythm of breathing X-- c skiing by moonlight on a crystal clearnight is almost a religious experience one not easily forgotten X-- c skiing is also exciting Graceful skiers that float effortlessly through the powder and seasoned hotdoggers resemble first-dag snowplowers when they become initiated into the great phenomenon of c skiing: going downhill There is really no dynamically sound way to stop except maybe falling or decorating a tree which is the ultimate sin of prestigious downhillers Thus c skiing is a cerebral sport as well as physical and one has to think to survive The Great Schuss on c skis can have all the excitement of x-- x-- x-- x-- y heart-stoppin- x-- x-- x-- "learning to evaluate snow conditions and choose the proper wax or combination of waxes can border on extrasensory perception The variety of snow conditions from wet newly fallen powder to granular metamorphosized much offers a melange of waxing decisions" |