Day 5 Snowboarding for the 2011 season
I got out of bed at 3:15am and rolled off at 3:35am for Tahoe. I arrived in Placerville at 6:30am, pulled over to get gas and paid attention to ice in the parking lot. Then I took a 30 minute break at Carrow’s and ate cream of corn out of a 7oz can. I waited for the sky to light up and do the last 50 miles of mountain driving in the light. I took care to watch out for black ice on the road. The truckers with big rigs all passed me, fine by me. They drive 75 mph on the mountain road beyond speed limit, super scary to me. I finally made it to Heavenly parking lot at 8:31am. The lot was mostly covered in ice. I picked a spot that had the least amount of ice. I had made it in my scheduled time. It was hot and nice in the car I had on flip flops. When I stepped out of the car to get my clothes out of the trunk, it was freezing cold with icy wind. I also walked slowly towards the trunk holding onto my car for support to not fall on the ice. It took me another 45 minutes to dress up, lace up and munch on more snacks. I hit the bunny slope at 9:30am. It really takes me an hour to get off the highway and to acclimate. 
I spent the first two hours to fully arrive in Heavenly. I felt clogged. It was nice to be here early to have the slope all to myself. It is amazingly beautiful. I was quite scared to ride on the board somehow. So I spent the first 2 hours on my heels. Then I finally switched to toes and I found it to be easier to ride on my toes. I think I figured out why I have trouble on my toes. It’s my stigmatism, when I wear these goggles, I have on contact lenses and they don’t correct my stigmatism. I can’t see with blind spots and sense of depth is off. This is why I can’t be a pilot and fly an airplane. I get it.
Today I graduated to another chair lift and got onto Powder Bowl Express. At around 11:30am I was hungry. I brought a bag of baked goods from Kristine, a lovely gift with 3 clusters of chocolate crisps crunch with dried apricot or mango. It was so yummy. I ate while overlooking the lake at a nice spot. I wore a new coral pink shell today, thin, it is good for 60 degree weather. Today the temperature was in the 30s-40s and I was cold. I had on 4 layers and I was still cold. Today’s park price for Heavenly is $92 for a day pass. It’s a good thing I have a season pass. 
I had to head down at 2pm. In my last stretch to snow beach I fell and slid far. Both the braces came off. I could have lost my board. I really didn’t want to leave but it’s time to go. I don’t want to drive the mountain at night. Plus I have been up since 3am and I still have hours of driving to do. At the parking lot I made and arugula salad with giant beans and artichoke. It was yummy, and I finished the rest of cream of corn. While I ate I watched the ice roll of my board on the hood. While driving on the mountain, I knew there were passing lanes and so I did not pull over for others to pass because all the pullouts had ice and snow on it. The distance was not enough for me to break and slow down, I’d run into the risk of sliding on ice and crashing my car.
