A "Split" Second

It was a dull, lifeless, cold and gloomy morning; sunrise was just around the corner. The bags were all loaded into the truck and we were ready to go. Lindsey and I had a long drive ahead of us from Glendale all the way to Flagstaff, Arizona. It was a quiet morning full of yawns, but we knew what was ahead of us. We had a long day consisting of nothing but snow and our snowboards at the Arizona Snowbowl. The anticipation is what made kept me awake through the drive that seemed to lag on endlessly.

Eventually we made it. The drive was long, but that was in the past now because staring right back at us was a giant snow covered monster. The snow was beautiful; there was even a light drizzle of powder sprinkling onto the nearby trees. It was a beautiful sight, one you see on postcards, but I could not wait to mess it up by shredding down the mountain on my new Burton snowboard. This snowboard was like a newborn child to a newlywed.

After an endless line to load onto the ski lift we were finally up on our way ready to take on any beef with this monstrous mountain. To be able to have a carefree attitude consume your whole body while snowboarding is one of the greatest feelings in the world, especially with a shiny new toy to do it with. Lindsey and I had a few good runs and then decided to take a break. When we got back, the line was completely backed up. About twenty minutes later, we finally loaded onto the chair lift bench, but with another skier. Instantly anxiety took over my body because being a snowboarder on the same chair lift as a skier is always a horrible idea. Right as I boarded off the lift, the skier cut me off and tangled me with his skis. Of course, he managed to untangle himself and make his way down the mountain even though my body was laying in the cold, freezing snow in extreme agony. My brand new snowboard had snapped. If it did not break in half, the fall would not have been as fierce as the one I took because I ultimately dislocated my shoulder. The pain took complete control over my body the instant I hit the ground; it felt as if the trees were closing in over me. Somehow a few short moments after, my shoulder managed to “pop” back into place and I eventually grew enough strength to strap my boots in and start boarding down the mountain. At that point adrenaline was pulsing through my veins uncontrollably. Not only was I in an extreme amount of pain, but I was willingly snowboarding down to the medics rather than being taxied down. Although I was technically disabled, I fought the circumstances and built up enough courage to fight through the pain.

Even though I ended up having to get surgery on my shoulder and was an entire snowboard short, I still believe that I won that day. Not only did I conquer the mountain in ways I never thought possible, but I never developed a fear of falling and still find myself snowboarding every winter. Life throws obstacles at you sometimes, but determining on how you overcome them truly determines your inner strength and character. I definitely now see myself as unstoppable on the mountain!