2 Weeks Passed
/I have been in Verbier for just over two weeks now and things are going really well.
Since day one things have been improving rapidly and I am now at the point where I can ski anywhere I want.
I have been jumping of small stuff for about a week now and each day I try to step it up a little more.
This is the biggest I have dropped so far:
Since I am feeling really comfortable with skiing off piste in general, I have been riding more with guys who are sending big cliffs and throwing flips.
Watching them from the sidelines is both frustrating and inspiring.
I so badly want to be skiing the same lines as these guys and in a way that is the perfect motivation to make sure I do this right so that I can eventually be back to falling of tall rocks!
Looking out over Chamonix from the FWT spectators zone
I also went over and watched the first stop of the FWT at Chamonix last weekend, it was an awesome show and something I am really please I was able to do. It was another big motivator for getting back to 100%, I think immediately after the comp I was a bit overwhelmed by the level of skiing compared to my current level. But after a couple more days of skiing I thought back to day one and realised that my improvement has been significant after only 2 weeks on snow. That set me back on the right track.
Little goals.
We got absolutely slammed with snow this past week.
As well as the high avalanche danger It has been cloudy a lot of the time, so we spent a few days riding in the trees at Bruson, which is just over the other side of the valley from Verbier.
Bruson is great, especially once you start to learn your way around the mountain. I haven't really skied trees since Ive been back on snow, so that was another achievement.
I was happy to find I could really go for it in the soft stuff, so yet another best day of the season to add on to my growing list.
As well as skiing I am still trying to keep up a couple of gym sessions a week. I often go and spin on a stationary bike for 20 minutes after a hard day skiing to loosen everything up for the following day.
The video below is a compilation of a bunch of the activities I was able to do in Wanaka in preparation for skiing in Europe. Doing things like paddle boarding and flips off the bridge were all valuable in getting my head back into the mode of thinking fast and testing my balance and spatial awareness. I think it was a vital part in regaining the confidence to return to big mountain.
Getting totally immersed in the local produce.
Riding the storm, filming with Lachlan in Flégère, Chamonix. Photo: Lachlan Humphreys
Mt Blanc, with a cloud for a hat.
What is that thing?
The Aiguille Du Midi from outside out accommodation in Verbier.
Bruson Team Shred
The Head Cyclic 115
Rainball?
