We've not had any significant new snow in Fernie for over a week now. But the slopes are still in great nick. It just means that rather than falling over in the powder we've been working on our technique on the groomed slopes. Not only is this a great confidence booster but we've also had much more technical instruction this week. Everyone I've spoken to has really appreciated this and we all seem to be making significant improvements. Good job too as the Level 1 instructor exams are in 3 weeks.

We've been focussing this week on the 5 core skills. Now I could tell you guys what they are but I'd be drummed out of the ski instructors magic circle if I did; forced to live the life of a renegade, a ne'er-do-well backstreet instructor. So sign up for an expensive lesson with me next winter to find out more... Oh, OK then I'll tell you: Stance & Balance, Edging, Pressure Control, Pivoting and Timing & Co-ordination. It sounds pretty technical but it's simple enough and it's been really interesting to see what difference it makes if you try and isolate a particular skill and then combine them all together. I really feel like I've made a lot of progress this week.

The other thing I've learned this week is that my skis totaly rock! Especially in this kind of groomed and hard packed snow. So the Salomon Crossmax 10 - I salute you! Start laying down some high speed turns, get 'em on an edge and it's like you're on rails, accelerating out of one turn into the next. mmmmmmm. Big smiles all around.

Saturday was a fun day up on the hill. It was the annual Cardboard Derby. Teams get together to construct some manner of craft they half to navigate downhill and onto a target but only from cardboard, gaffer tape, string and glue. Some of the entries were incredibly elaborate: a pterodactyl with flapping wings, a roman chariot with horses, an F1 car and a pizza slice. Some were much simpler but thats the nature of the day: just go out and have fun. I think the crowd's favourite was the pirate ship that crashed and disintegrated about 20 yards from the finish, and the "Sumo girls". These were two girls in inflatable sumo wrestler suits. Their craft didn't make it to the finish but they carried on sliding anyway! I saw them later on skiing in their costumes; they were the talk of the mountain.

That's very Fernie: good times in the snow, whatever you are doing. I must write more about how friendly the atmosphere on the ski hill is, but I'll save that for another time.

Photo Fun:
- The cardboard derby paddock
- Frozen Sea in action
- Frozen Sea in pieces
- The raging elk mobile
- Chicks with tix
- Sumo girls 1
- Sumo girls 2
- Sumo girls 3