Hurt So Bad On The Very Last Day

May 11th, 2008 at 04:08pm Michael Conniff 2

Well, I almost made it.

In this, my fifth winter in Aspen, and my seventh straight winter as serial skier, I thought I had made it to the finish line after one more ski season unscathed. And what a winter it has been out here in the Roaring Fork Valley: snow that knew no surcease, piles of the pillowy stuff, powder day upon powder night.

By the end of the January this one was already in the books: the epic winter of 207-2008, with more snow in Aspen than in the last twenty years, and more in Snowmass than ever before.

Under such circumstances, there is surely nothing to complain about. Ever. In a season like that, if you live in a place like Colorado or Utah or Montana, there's really only one thing that can go wrong.

You could get hurt.

But that hadn't happened to me this winter. A good friend blew out her knee (again), and snowboarders blew out their shoulders and wrists according to the standardized quotas of their sport. But I had made it to the very last day on Aspen Mountain without busting or breaking or blowing out anything.

Then it happened. As I was loading my skis into a friend's truck after the last day of a glorious season--after watching them "bomb the Bells"--I felt something pop in the vicinity of my right bicep as I lifted my Heads over my head and into the truck.

Yes, it's true: I blew out my arm on the last day of the season--AFTER I was done skiing.

Now I'm not sure about your definition of dork, but it hurt enough for me to schedule an appointment with my doctor to see if any permanent damage had been recorded.

Even so, what did I care?

The season was over, and I have five months to get over the pain. In my book, you're only hurt if you can't ski.

Entry Filed under: Travel, Colorado, Aspen, Aspen Mountain, United Post, United States