Aaahh, the sweet smell of freshly fallen snow. The muted sounds of skiers and snowboarders carving turns below you. The sight of that beautiful run in front of you, glistening in the sun, willing you to start your descent through that sweet powder. The feel of your skis gliding across the snow as you begin your route…
And then it happens. Your skis catch on something (I’m convinced there are snow-gnomes hiding and waiting to grab unsuspecting skis and boards as they pass). You fly through the air and so begins- The Yard Sale.
For the enjoyment of everyone who gets to witness the spectacular event, please make sure you do the following.
Don’t use wrist straps on your ski poles. We want to see those bad boys fly! Plus it’s fun to watch you try to find them.
Don’t use the strap or clips on your gloves to attach them to your coat. The farther they fly, the better the yard sale.
Disable the binding brakes on your skis. It’s not fun when they stop only a few feet from where they come off. They should become missiles that shoot straight down the mountain potentially taking out additional skiers and boarders, causing additional yard sales.
Don’t use your helmet strap. It’s totally fine just sitting on your head, thereby creating another item to display at your yard sale.
Keep your coat pockets unzipped. Bonus points on the yard sale if you can manage to lose your chapstick, keys, and any other random items from your pockets.
While having a yard sale can be slightly painful and embarrassing, there are definitely things you can do to minimize the spread of your belongings and get you back on your skis and board safely.
Anything that has a strap or clip to keep it attached should be used. This not only prevents you from losing your gear (the rest of your ski day is going to suck if you can’t find your other glove, just saying), it also keeps other skiers and snowboarders safe. Items being strewn about the slopes or worse, projectiles flying down the mountain, can be a major safety hazard.
Double check your ski binding brakes to make sure they completely deploy when your skis detach from your boots.
Keep all the pockets and zippers on your coat, pants, backpack closed. You can always do a quick “crash test” on your pack by shaking it upside down and around before putting it on.
So keep your stuff strapped on correctly, make sure your gear has all its safety features in working order, and try to laugh at yourself when you have the yard sale. Because we’ll all either be laughing at you or with you.
Ski safe and see you on the slopes!