Unexcused Absences

Toile fabrics, short for Toile de Jouy, originated in France in the town of Jouy in the 18th Century (thanks, Wikipedia). Typically depicting pastoral scenes, complicated designs repeat in a single color (usually dark blue, burgundy or black) on a neutral background.  Toile continues to be popular, especially for draperies and upholstery.

Toile fabric sample - for sale today

Windmill in rural Bourgogne

Charolais cattle

The views on our journey south from our winter-over spot in Baye toward Decize on the Canal du Nivernais mirror these bucolic scenes. White Charolais cattle graze in green fields dotted with buttercups or placidly chew their cud in the shade of solitary, ancient oaks. Sheep and horses pasture near rural chateaux. All that was missing were villagers in period clothing!

Rural chateau, cattle and horses graze on the grounds

"La Fête" traditional Toile design from the end of the 18th Century

It’s quite a relief after all the planning, packing, and preparation to be back in France. And it’s just a few days after they elected their new socialist president. We’ll see how that works out for them.

Windmill in western Burgundy

Our first mission was to stop at Ikea and buy a new set of kitchen cabinets for the good ship Après Ski. The old pressboard cabinet doors are slowly turing to sawdust, so I figure we’ve got about a year and a half before they completely disintegrate. We arrived in Charles de Gaule airport at 6am, and were in our rental car by 7. Special note; all semblance of customs and import control has completely vanished. Not being folks to flaunt the rules, we fully intended to declare all the bottles of Jack Daniels (future gifts) we had in our luggage, but there was not a single douane (customs) official to be found. We simply got our passports stamped, grabbed our luggage – thankfully all pieces accounted for (unlike last year) – and headed for the exits. What if we were trying to import some elicit American goods like Vermont cheddar? Oh, wait, no one in their right mind imports cheese to France.

And speaking of cheese (I’ll get back to Ikea in a moment), after last year I feel the goal of finding exquisite French cheese is not that much of a challenge now that we’re “seasonal locals.” At our provisioning stop I walked up to the cheese counter, looked past all the varieties of Brie, Tomme de Savoie, Reblochon, and Compté, and zeroed in on one of the best cheeses in the world, Vieux Salers. I asked for un petit degustation (a little taste) and was rewarded with breathtakingly savory mouthful of crystalized nuttiness. The poor lady behind the counter had no idea that we were less than 6 hours “in country,” and surely wrote off our animated expressions of ecstasy as les Américains fous (those crazy Americans).

First evening happy hour

So now that I’ve got the cheese thing nailed, my focus for 2012 is wine. Last spring/summer in the south of France (mostly Languedoc/Roussillion) picking good wine was like shooting fish in a spatially constrained area. The wine in the south is completely underrated, unappreciated, unsung. We found whites for less than 9 euros a bottle that matched or exceeded many of the Grand Cru Chablis from Burgundy costing north of 30 euros, and reds for under 4 euros a bottle that could easily beat wines from “known” regions costing five times as much. We even had pretty good success with “bulk” wines in the 1 euro per liter price range.

But last fall, in and around Burgundy and the Loire Valley, finding good wine for any reasonable amount (7 euros or less) was mostly an unfulfilled dream. We did find a Touraine  for about 5 euros that held its own, and a Bergerac red (ironically from the south) in a 5 liter box for about 25 euros (equivalent to less than 4 euros per bottle) that was just shy of out of this world, but in general the inexpensive options from France’s famous wine areas were less than memorable.

Central square in Chatillon-en-Bazois

Thus my mission for 2012; discover, through extensive testing, a “famous wine region of France” wine for less than 5 euros per bottle that lives up to the reputation that Burgundy and the Loire Valley have earned, albeit earned from their very expensive offerings costing 30 euros and up.

Now back to Ikea. It’s 9am on our first morning in France, and we’re trying to fall asleep in the parking lot of Ikea Paris-South – there are six (!) Ikea around Paris – to wait for the 10am opening. Lots of other cars gather – Ikea seems to be really popular – and at 10am the masses surge for the showroom. There’s a cheerful Swedish/French looking person handing out coffee, cookies, and lingonberry juice. We make straight for the kitchen section, and to our dismay discover that Ikea has all sorts of options for their 40cm, 60cm, and 80cm base cabinets, but only one door option (a full-height door with no drawer) for their 50cm and 30cm cabinets. And yes, you guessed it, Après Ski needs one 30cm and four 50cm cabinets. Because of the size of the sink and fridge, it won’t really work to use 40′s and 60′s. And we thought we were so well organized.

Vast fields of Rapeseed (Canola)

The paysage (landscape) is beautiful this time of year. Due to various European Union incentives, anybody with any land at all has planted rapeseed, used for making bio-diesel. It’s bad news for allergy sufferers, but it does make for some lovely views.

We stopped in Clamecy, home to the lovely folks at Caves du Val d’Or (wineries in the golden valley), where last fall we found the fantastic 5 liter box of aforementioned Bergerac. Our hopes were dashed, though, when the assistant proprietor said he was out of Bergerac. We sampled a number of his wines, but didn’t find anything quite as good. In the interest of trimming the boat (her wine cellar is distinctly barren), though, we did purchase a couple other boxes of wine, a Bourgogne Aligoté (white), and two wines from the south, a Merlot and a Rosé. The surprise was that as we were checking out, the owner came downstairs and handed us un cadeau (a gift), the tasting box of Bergerac from last fall, still with about 4 liters in it! He had overheard us downstairs, remembered our previous visit, and gave us this open box, which since they were out of that particular batch of Bergerac, would no longer need. Very nice! They are located just east of the church at the top of the big hill, right in the center of town. Well worth a visit.

Heather works a lock

Continuing towards Baye, we made a grocery (and flower!) stop in Corbigny, then drove the final 15 minutes to Aqua Fluvial, the boatyard where Après Ski spent the winter in the capable hands of Michel Sicard and his team. Michel had craned our boat into the water earlier that day, and she was tied up to the temporary dock at the craning area. I quickly de-winterized the engine (re-installed the raw water impeller, checked the fluids, opened the seacocks) and we took a quick cruise up and back to the first lock to check out our new helice (propeller) and make sure the engine was running smoothly.

Back in a regular slip, we quickly saw that we were not alone. Multiple couples had their cars pulled up to the docks and were unloading clothes, dry goods, supplies, jugs of diesel, and of course numerous bottles! The spring ritual of boaters (mostly from the UK, although some French) getting ready for the season repeats itself all across the canals of northern Europe, I suspect. I had a few small boat projects, but nothing like the multi-day extravaganza of one year ago. And as always, our fellow boaters are absolute fonts of knowledge, eager to share.

So here we are, ready to give it a go for a second year on the French canals. We haven’t been posting too much recently, with all the chaos of moving back from Colorado, work, plus my recovery (going very well, thank you) from shoulder reconstruction. I intend to post weekly updates, as well as miscellaneous musings from our 2012 trip to France. Stay tuned!

Jack Rabbit Alley

This is an extremely accurate drawing of how I spent my winter, courtesy of my final group of students. In fact, all the colors of everybody’s ski boots, snow pants, helmet and jacket are perfect!

I taught quite a few returning students this winter; I really enjoyed seeing my students again! They’re all bigger, stronger, and smarter. I’m absurdly proud of their progress as skiers and as ‘people in training’. I love seeing their little minds at work. At the same time, I’m torn to see them grow up and realize that the ‘gold’ for the Gold Mine isn’t actually gold and comes from my pocket.

I normally teach kids, mostly girls, from about age 5 until 13. I almost exclusively teach half-day private lessons, which gives the kids a chance to rest before meeting me again the next morning. I’m delighted to report that there is a lot of good parenting out there that makes my job MUCH easier. I love that my students are polite, clean up their area after their snacks, and alternate well in the lift line. Thanks Moms and Dads!

My typical winter’s work day begins at 9am when I meet my students at their home, hotel, or at the base of the Centennial chairlift. During the first run, we warm up and familiarize ourselves with the conditions. Next, we play some games (disguised drills) and work on some skiing drills (drills I haven’t figured out how to disguise). There is normally a ‘recess run’ through Jack Rabbit Alley (where my students unknowingly work on balance and agility, practicing their latest skills).  Next, we take a potty break disguised as a hot chocolate break. We then repeat the same process and usually hit a race course on the way to meet their parents at lunchtime.

A lot of parents ask me to join them and their children for lunch — which I really enjoy (and not just for the excellent free food). Over the past two years, I have met lots of great people.  I enjoy catching up with them while they’re on vacation, learning about their lives, and finding out what their kids are up to outside of skiing.

My evening looks a lot like my students’ evening. I tend to eat dinner and immediately register that I’m exhausted. I try to stay up until 9pm to preserve my self respect, but admittedly I fail occasionally. It’s pretty much bathing, dinner and bed for me in the evenings.

All in all, it was a great season at The Beav!

Oh, and something needs to be said about Jack Rabbit Alley. Children love this run. I enjoy it quite a bit if there is decent snow coverage. Children who can ski blues can handle this run which goes through the trees, over stumps and large bumps and under obstacles. But, it’s hard to ski Jack Rabbit Alley if you are a grown-up! Children weave throughout the woods on their tiny skis, making terrain features that are simply navigational hazards to grown-up skis. But, with good snow it’s a blast to zigzag through the forest, under teepees, over small jumps and through a natural halfpipe!

So, if you find yourself at Beaver Creek and want to know what your kids will find fun, here is a list of kids’ favorite places:
-Jack Rabbit Alley.
-The Gold Mine (hint to parents: bring your own ‘gold’).
-Any path through the trees.
-The Spruce Saddle for a hot chocolate break with LOTS of whipped cream (whipped cream is out on the bar).

And here are a few fun places that most parents don’t know about

-The Poma lift above the Ritz Carlton where kids can ride the lift on their own (they don’t leave the ground).
-The ‘secret’ fort at skier’s right and about 50 feet below the first intersection of Gold Dust and Cinch.  The entrance is marked with a carved beaver.
-Buffalo Bumps (in the Haymeadow, just above and to the east of the Hyatt).

Kent in his Race Dept Uniform

The Injury

On March 4th while Kent carried a large, metal box containing a race timing display to the finish of the Bear Trap race course at Beaver Creek, his feet (in only his ski boots) punched through the snow, trapping his legs and pitching him onto the box. His left shoulder took the full impact and promptly dislocated, damaging most of the soft tissues of his shoulder.

The Doctor

Because Kent’s injury happened at work and in uniform, his medical bills will be covered by workman’s comp thanks to Vail Resorts. We saw lots of concern in friends’ eyes when we mentioned Kent would be treated by a workman’s comp doctor. As soon as we mentioned Dr. William Sterett’s name, their faces would light up. “He did my shoulder, my knee, my friend’s ACL” we heard over and over again. Many thanks to the kind folks at Avon Occupational Health, especially Rochelle, who used her connections to set Kent up with the surgical “A” team of the Valley.

Not only is Dr. Sterett a beloved local doctor (folks say it’s difficult for him to make it through the grocery store in a timely fashion since he runs into pleased patients in nearly every aisle), he also happens to be the head doctor for the US Women’s Alpine Ski Team and the team doctor for the US Olympic Team. Kent couldn’t help but notice (and photograph) the 2010 Olympic bibs from Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso in his office!

Olympic Bibs

The Surgery

So when it came time for his surgery on March 20th at Vail Valley Surgery Center, we knew he’d be in expert hands. The procedure went well, although Kent did such an excellent job tearing up his shoulder that Dr. Sterett invited several colleagues come around to gawk at the extent of the damage. The surgery center staff took wonderful care of Kent, seamlessly integrating his treatment with Vail Summit Orthopaedics. The entire staff there are absolutely at the top of their game.

The Recovery

Sadly, Kent’s ski season is officially over, as is his golf season, and his windsurfing season. For the next six months, he will need to limit his activities to snapping his fingers to summon me to peel and feed him grapes! He now works in the offices of the Race Department rather than out on the hill and spends his time sorting through the archives digging out, preserving and digitizing the official FIS (International Ski Federation) plans for every official race held here since the 1960′s in preparation for the 2015 World Alpine Ski Championships. His daily routine includes physical therapy, an uncomfortable [Kent's note: painful] process, although with Mary and Shannon at the Howard Head Rehab Center in charge of his PT, he couldn’t be in better hands. He takes some sort of medicine every few hours throughout the day and night. His schedule involves waking at 2 am, eating a snack, taking pills, and returning to bed only to have the pill alarm awaken him again at 6 am.

The Support

A few local friends have been through shoulder surgery, and they have been advising him as well as loaning him some clever devices which made the ordeal easier. Thanks for the loans from our friends Elizabeth for the LaFuma Recliner and Susan for the Ossur Cold Rush!  We can’t recommend these devices enough if you have shoulder surgery.

On TV!

For those of you interested, check out Dr. Sterett’s latest appearance on TV8′s morning program.

What a difference a day makes! Yesterday the Beav reported 9 inches of fresh, the first meaningful snowfall in over 10 days, and everyone in the valley must have called in sick. The slopes were packed! We got first chair up Strawberry Park Express (ok, actually more like 4th chair), and still only had three proper untracked runs. By our fourth run, everything on the mountain was cut up. No real complaints, mind you, we had quite the perfect powder field our first run down Yarrow, and our second down Larkspur was effectively fresh tracks, so it was nothing to sneeze at. This photo below (stolen from the official Beaver Creek website) was taken about two minutes before we arrived at that spot on Yarrow, where we saw them shooting this pic from the chairlift.

Our Pilfered Powder Pic from the BC website

But today was another thing entirely. Everyone who called in sick yesterday probably couldn’t justify a second day of *cough* powder skiing *cough*, so the place was practically deserted. The official report was only 2 inches, but that was at 5am, and by 8:30 the actual on-the-ground was more like 4-5 with the snow continuing, and in special places where the wind blows just right – that whole local knowledge thing – it was well over the boot-tops. I didn’t go to Stone Creek Chutes, but Drew (Race Dept) reported it was over his knees.

For those who care, a rundown of how to stay away from the crowds on a powder day. The key is that most expert skiers head directly to the Chutes or the Royal Elk Glades (the far edges of the resort). The visitors, most of whom are afraid of powder, head to the groomed runs off of Cinch Express in the middle top of the mountain. That leaves all kinds of advanced terrain in the lower middle ripe for the taking.

• First run, Centennial. Skier’s right on the upper pitch was completely uncut, then moved to skier’s left on the lower half for more untouched powder.
• Second run, Centennial again. Shadowed my tracks from the first run, then cut over below the terrain park and was literally the first person that day on a wide open powder field.
• Third run, Red Tail to West Fall Road to lower Peregrine, where I was the second person on the slope up to that point.
• Fourth run, Grouse Mountain, was again the second person of the day, this time on Screech Owl.
• Fifth run, up Birds of Prey lift and down Cataract, had mostly fresh lines on skier’s left.
• Six, back on Cataract, this time skier’s right, again mostly fresh lines.
• Seven, had fresh pockets again on upper Sheephorn and was literally the first person in the glade of Mystic Island (it was now after 10:30am).
• Eight, more first tracks, this time far skier’s right on Gold Dust. Traversed left over to Fools Gold, which was partly cut, then traversed over to Assay for more untracked powder.
• Nine, did the same loop as eight.

So through good luck and a little good management I managed to ski mostly untracked or lightly tracked snow for three full hours. There’s talk of yet more snow tonight, so we may score again tomorrow.

Oh, and where was Heather? She had her PSIA level 2 exam at Aspen today (she passed!), where they had a foot and a half of powder overnight. Makes my fantastic day seem downright trivial.