I (Adam) had this bright idea to do the Black Diamond Powder Keg race. It's a ski race where you hike up and down hills with a total elevation gain (and loss) of 5400'. There was a race division and a rec division. I had to try and be macho and enter race. Bad idea. These guys had skinny skis, lycra tights, and thunder thighs waiting to leave me in the snowy dust. The first hill went up an icy mogul run at Alta. Super heinous with bodies and ski poles slipping and sliding to the bottom. I redlined early and couldn't catch my breath from that moment on. But the skiing was great---NOT. There had been no snow for 2 weeks and we had blistering high temps so the snow was icy, death cookie material. I made it to the top of 3 out of 4 hills but by then the hot sun had made avys possible and all remaining competitors had to stop and head straight to the finish. Thank God I didn't have to slog up that last hill.
Here's to doing it next year and hoping for a middle-of-the-pack finish in the rec division.
