Standing at the top of the yuolo the view was amazing, defiantly should have taken a picture, (next time it’s clear) but I was in a mix between determination and nerves. The lift up holds 20 people, I was number 21. I had expected my mates to wait at the top, so I could share a nervous joke and receive words of encouragement. But a miscommunication had meant they were back at the bottom expecting me to still be there. Giving myself another pep talk, as a group of kids fully armoured up shot off down the steepest and highest slope I had found myself starring over the edge of. “What the hell had I got myself into.” Th only way was down. Waiting for the other skiers I shared the lift up with to head down first, soon it was just me and the mountain. With another chairlift fast approaching, I didn’t want 20 people to watch me stack it spectacularly. My friends had said the yuolo was no steeper than the Rest of the Reds… What a porky they had told! “Well here we go” I thought as I pushed off and headed down. The first few turns were sketchy at best and I’m still not sure how I managed to pull them off. Perhaps the sign showing a man falling off the edge of the cliff was enough for me to hold on, as I pictured my face on that very sign, and the headline ” amateur skier missing presumed dead, after foolishly listening to friends.”

The best moments always happen when out of your comfort zone, my belief anyway. I ended up skiing from the very top of yuolo to the very bottom taking in as many red runs as I could on the way down, and before I knew it I was back on the chairlift heading, beaming. This was our first day of real snow, and I truly discovered why skiing is so popular. Unlike the past week I was no longer sliding on ice and bruising each time I fell. Now when I fell, the worst was a mouth full of powder. With the fresh layer of white stuff everything began to click. Although the falling snow was not Christmas movie size flakes it was flakeey nonetheless and some of the deepest I had seen. Coupled with the flakes, were the occasional whiteouts as the clouds came down. My only other experience of a white out was navigating by myself through the Moelwyns of Snowdonia, praying I had my bearings and pacing correct to avoid falling down one of the many mine shafts littered in this area of Wales, this was a scary experience. The white outs on ski slope, with great access and infrastructure were no where near as scary. In fact they made the challenge of reds much easier as I simply had no clue what I was skiing down or into, just hold on and hope for the best.  

With the extra forgiveness the fresh snow and the fact I could not see a thing my turns became neater, faster and much straighter. After 2 or 3 hours of lone skiing working on my technique I eventtually I stumbled back across my friends. All of a sudden I was no longer watching them become specks in the distance, I was keeping up, and on the odd occasion even overtaking them, Boom! Finally I felt I had cracked this skiing malarkey, so so stoked! 

So with another day came more snow, and by lunch today  I had completed all the Reds at Courmayuer, with only the occasional mouthful of snow rather than the regular bruising of my sides (I had previously experienced on the icy pre snow days), a whole new world of skiing had opened up and I felt at a similar level to my friends, and together we began taking on the occasional section of off piste. Now I understood why the seasonaires banged on about the powder days, it was awesome! 

As I sit here knackered, struggling to twist the top off my beer like an old lady with a jam jar, legs aching, back killing, and eyes drooping. I have began thinking about  my next ski trip, a February long weekend anyone? But first I must drag myself off this increasingly comfortable sofa to do some Christmas shopping. Earlier than my usual Christmas Eve rush around, I cannot afford to waste waste anymore of the few precious ski days I have left before my flight back to the UK. A few days of powder caused revelations that  may have changed my life. Ski season next winter definitely on the cards.