Skiing
It's all very simple.
Skiing is the greatest activity on this planet. The only
drawback is the high price of lift tickets. Thankfully this can
always be avoided by going out in the backcountry.
I am so incredibly
indebted to my mother for having introduced me to the slopes a the
age of three. I remember very vaguely being able to steer around
some little cartoon characters planted in the back of the day
care, and how proud I was of it. Even ski school gave only
pleasant memories. I once had an instructor who was taking us off
a bunch of jumps (we must have been around 9 or 10 years old) and
encouraging us to go faster by having us recite: We want more
speed. Why? So we can get more air. Why do we want more air?
Because more air is more fun! He was a great guy. Well, everyone
else was still taking the jumps tentatively. I got fed up and
decided to tuck it. I hit that lip and completely lost control. I
was flailing wildly and slammed really hard. The instructor called
my the "Flying Circus" for the rest of the day.
What a great day. If
there are any parents reading this who aren't skiers, please take
my advice: take your kids skiing! They will love it! There is only
one way to take the fun out of skiing, and that's by going at
night. Night skiing has to be the single worst idea anyone ever
came up with. This small downside is easily outweighed by another
bonuse of skiing: I've never been hurt doing it, and I get hurt
doing everything. Skating has really jacked me up, soccer and
track have torn my hamstring, climbing has blown my fingers, but
I've never gotten more than bruised while skiing. I'm telling you,
this sport is just the king. Cease all other pursuits.