No Steep Hills!

If you can’t beat fear, do it scared. This is me… I despise fear. I like my feet placed firmly on the ground, where I know I am safe. I like the box that I live in. I like my comfort zone. I like all soft, warm, cuddly feelings and comforts. I have small fears, such as snakes, heights, and anything under the surface of the ocean water. I am not an adrenaline junkie, unless you consider pressing Buy Now on an online website for a pair of overly priced Prada sunglasses.

I don’t love skiing, but I will do it for a family day. Skating feels the same, but like I said, it makes my kids happy so I will do it; living in the Rocky Mountains, we have a world of endless opportunity to be adventurous.

My husband Brady is born and raised in this valley and grew up to love sledding. Not the kind where you go around in big circles pulling a GT sled or toboggan around in the snow. I’m talking about the back country, climbing vertical mountain faces, and dropping 80 feet without touching a single surface kind of sledding (snow mobiles). And, lucky me, our son has been blessed with the same zest for life. (As a result, I will be completely grey by the time I am 40 years old.) They often go together and enjoy the same scenes, white snow, sunny mountaintops, and the need for speed.

Brady wants nothing more than to have me fall in love with sledding, get my own, and explore the valley with him. But, here we go. This is one of my fears. For one, I don’t enjoy being cold. It doesn’t take much, no matter how many layers I wear, all the proper winter gear, hand, toe and anything warmers on, I still get cold. Two, I am not a fan of steep ground. I would rather walk it, hike it, toboggan down it, anything other than driving an 800 lbs machine up it. What if it tips over backward? No, thank you.

I finally got the courage to head out for the day with the family. Bella and I had our own sled and Kaydn and Brady each rode their own. We had a plan to head up a trail (easy), stop at a cabin, and have a picnic lunch. Doesn’t sound too bad? Might even be fun! After Brady reassuring me that there would be no steep hills I was talked into it.

The ride up was insanely bumpy. Not steep mind you. But, having Bella sit in front of me and holding onto the sled was tough, but we managed. Once arriving at the cabin I was happy and satisfied. I thought okay, the boys can take off and go exploring, Bella and I can hang back and play in the snow, make lunch, and enjoy the sun.

It wasn’t long before I was informed this was not the destination. We were headed up Catamount Glacier to see the Olive Cabin. Pardon? Seriously? The toughest part was we weren’t alone in this group; there were a tonne of Brady’s friends. I very quietly let him know that I wasn’t the least bit impressed. This is where the quote comes in. Fear, I see you. Either I let you beat me, or I face you scared. We approached the hill we needed to climb in order to get to the top. I didn’t like it. Brady wanted me to ride my own sled up it. I refused. I’m glad I did, because little did I know there was a much steeper, larger hill waiting at the top of this one. He decided he would ride each one of us up on his sled (except Kaydn because come on… this kid is seriously insane), and I was okay with that decision.

Getting to the top of the glacier was breathtaking. But, I couldn’t quite relax and fully enjoy it with the knowledge we had to go back down the vertical cliff. (Pictured above, the look on my face says it all.) We hung out for awhile. The boys tried talking me into going further and seeing another glacier, I dug my heels in and said, hell no, we’re heading back to the cabin. That was enough adventure for one day. We started on our way back, Brady again tried to talk me into riding down on my own, but he didn’t get far. His friend Jessie gave me a lift. Before descending, I said to Jessie “my stomach is in my throat,” and he replied, “that’s adrenaline.” Lovely. And, this is what they enjoy?

Going down, I could actually see the grade of the hill, because on the way up, I had closed my eyes. It was almost completely vertical. Our track did not touch the ground once, until we got near the bottom. And yes, my nine year old rode his sled down this hill, by himself.

After this experience, I decided this kind of adventure is not for me. I like to sit back and watch and let them enjoy what they love so much. I would rather take my adventures to the ocean and lay in the sand. But, I am proud of myself for going and doing it. Take that, fear!

Written by: Krystle Rhea; Just Breathe Mama