Over semester break, Mr. Kuhn, Mr. Wolff and Mrs. and Mr. Mornini took a group of over 50 students to Breckenridge, Colorado, for four days of skiing. The trip was filled with tons of great skiing and many memorable wipeouts. Matthew Bruns, who went on the trip, blogged for The Spectator about his experience while in Colorado.
Day 1: Our flight left at 3:55 p.m. from Dulles to Denver, Colorado. The destination: Wedgewood Lodge in Breckenridge, tucked away in the Colorado Rockies. Exams over, we were off to powder-heaven deep in the mountains. Once we landed, we swiftly gathered our bags and made our way to our private bus. Two long hours later, we pulled into the driveway of the Wedgewood Condominiums.
Day 2: When we woke up the next day, the mountain was cloudy and visibility was poor, but we still made our way to the Snowflake lift across the street just in time for its 8:30 a.m. opening. I was first in line for the chairlift, and was rubbing it into Sam Oshinsky’s face that I’d be the first up the mountain that day. Unfortunately, once I got on the chair my ski immediately caught the buildup of powder on the ground, and I was pulled off the chair and into the snow below. Embarrassed, I hurried back to the chair trying to ignore the chorus of jeers coming from the seniors. That day, we took as few breaks as possible, sacrificing our aching muscles for maximum time on the slopes. In town later that evening, we met some chill locals who enlightened us on some of the hidden secrets that the mountain has to offer.
Day 3: We woke up that morning and were at the Snowflake lift by 8:15 a.m., and I was already wishing I had worn the long underwear my mom had packed me. As we skied down we discovered some untouched powder and tore through it. After a quick lunch break, we hit the slopes for a few more hours, attempting to find as much untouched terrain as possible. Later that night, Stephen Werner, Ben Page and I walked to town and reserved a few tables at the restaurants on Main Street. We eventually chose the sports bar Eric’s, since we got two booths in front of a few T.V’s. During our meal, our waiter caught Stephen, Peter Riz and I saying some uncomplimentary things about her. It was well deserved though, since the minute we sat down she clearly resented serving so many kids.
Day 4: On Sunday morning, blue skies surrounded the mountain for the first time all week. Because of good conditions, the Imperial Express lift was open all day. The Imperial lift is the highest lift in North America, reaching heights of 12,998 ft. The entire morning, we skied the Imperial Bowl. Afterwards, we decided to make our way to the Falcon Superchair on Peak 10. By the time we made our descent to Falcon it was already 2:30, and I was exhausted. While skiing through the glades, I got separated from the group and was too tired to track them down. Resigned, I decided it was time to hit up the Jacuzzi with my fellow roommates before passing out in the room.
Day 5: The entire condo was up at 8:00 for our final day of skiing and our last full day in Breckenridge. After many hours of skiing the Imperial Bowl and T-Bar runs, we started to feel the effects of such non-stop skiing. Around 2:30 Stephen, Tommy Scholl and I decided to go up the T-Bar one last time, then hit Peaks 7 and 8. Around 3:30, we made our final descent up the Peak 8 Superconnect, which we knew would be our last, and planned out our evening. Once at the top, we took a few photos and took our last run down Four O’Clock, en-route to the condo. Back at the condo, we learned about Eddie Jones’ fall while attempting the Lake Chutes, which he happened to catch on video. After tearing through the many feet of powder, he took a line of the cornice of a cliff and got plenty of airtime. After sticking the landing, he quickly lost control and tomahawked head-over-heels for a hundred of feet or so. Unharmed, he gathered his skis and continued his route down the mountain. Needless to say, many were anxious to see a video of such a nice wipeout.
Day 6: The wakeup call was 6 a.m. sharp. Going home was much quicker, but weren’t very excited to get back to Bethesda. We had been gone for five days, skied four, and had some of the best times of high school. Waiting for our bags in security, Stephen mentioned that it was only 361 days until we left for Breckenridge 2012. I’m sure many of us will be counting them down.
