Bugaboo Dreams by Topher Donahue

Author:Topher Donahue
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-771600-22-4
Publisher: Rocky Mountain Books
Published: 2013-12-05T05:00:00+00:00

Topher Donahue. A ski guide in Kootenay works hard to stay ahead of a group of hungry powder pigs.

7

The First Track

A few points the guide should keep in mind:

First, he should show no fear.

Second, he should be courteous to all and always give special attention to the weakest member of the party.

Third, he should be witty and able to make up a white lie if necessary on short notice and tell it in a convincing manner.

Fourth, he should know when to show authority and, if the situation demands it, be able to give a good scolding to whosoever demands it.

— Conrad Kain, early Canadian guide

“Where’s the pickup?” asks a skier.

“At the end of my track,” replies the guide, pushing off into the void.

In its essence, this is ski guiding. When the helicopter is gone, along with the white noise of travel, expense and the complications of life, the only thing left is the naked black and white of alpine winter where even the green of the trees seems to retreat into monochrome, as if colour itself were a waste of warmth. The guide’s track is the only remnant of humanity, a serpentine beacon leading the way to fun, friendship, challenge and adventure. To depart from the track, however, means the veil of recreation suddenly lifts, revealing the unfeeling fangs of mountain winter. What minutes earlier was a benign and beautiful mountainside becomes a living, hunting predator waiting for a wayward skier to step on the wrong slope, ride a sluff off a cliff, flirt with the wrong tree well or simply fall in a tangle of alder where movement becomes impossible and the armies of cold can then march slowly and inexorably into the small space of a human being. Diving among sharks without a cage would be far safer than skiing where your ski guide warns you not to go.

Considering the options, it’s easy to trust ski guides. Not only do they point the way to the goods, they throw themselves in first every time. This ensures their decision-making comes from the core of their own self-preservation. Many professions call the shots from the sidelines. Doctors, engineers, mechanics, builders, judges, politicians, businesspeople and a host of others make important decisions about matters of life and death, but few pay the ultimate price if something goes wrong.

From a guide’s perspective, the trust put on their shoulders is staggering. Dropping onto a potential avalanche slope the size of a small town, a few seconds in front of 11 other skiers ripping down the mountain, is enough to raise the hackles of even the most steel-nerved alpinist. Sepp Renner remembers, “My first season guiding heli-skiers I felt like a fox being chased by an excited pack of dogs. I was always looking over my shoulder and skiing as fast as I could to stay ahead.”

Anyone who has skied with Sepp knows his perspective had nothing to do with his skiing ability. Rather, it is due to the forced mental adjustment needed to

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.