Urban Ski

When we left Theo for an overnight at a pal's house in the middle of a blizzard, I was pro-active and also left his xc ski equipment.  I was unsure about my ability to collect him the next day by auto.  Sure enough, Monday dawned with snow piled quite deep in the streets and several intersection looking impossible-by car.  So I convinced Eli to strap on his skies with me and we took an urban ski over city streets to our friend's house 1.5 miles away.  Theo was already in his ski gear when we pulled up- he and his pal had been skiing around the block- so we just plopped the essentials from his overnight gear (snow boots and his turtle) into my backpack and hit the road home.  It was not perfect ski conditions- we found it easiest to get into a tire track and kind of mince your way forward- but it was fun.  And that time that the snow plow was bearing down on us with no sign of stopping and we had to dash across Snelling and then dive into a snow bank to get out of its way- we'll remember that for a while.  And it will be a happy memory because the plow did indeed turn at the last minute, sparing us an ugly death.  I did dream last night of the lights and the noise and the mayhem as the plow got ever closer and we were unsure the driver either saw us, or cared.  And the best part is that our neighbor Pat watched the whole thing, shaking his head, wondering what kind of nonsense his neighbors will think of next. 

I do prefer a quiet ski through the woods, but when the city is blanketed 1.5 feet deep in fresh powder, it kind of begs you to strap on the skies and get out there.  Ildar wanted us to rig up a rope and drive around, dragging him on his snowboard behind the car.  And we might.  But we'll have to wait for the next blizzard for that opportunity.