My top priority every year is my ski trip with friends.
“Can you meet us to ski the second week of January?” This conversation happened just days after Christmas.
We are accustomed to pulling together ski trip details on short notice but with the flurry of activities and tasks that come with a new year, I was thrown a bit off-kilter.
Here’s the thing: these friends are like my family and making memories of skiing with “my boys” to keep up my status as cool Aunt Juls is my top priority for every winter.
We jumped into action to pull the last-minute trip together and chose nine days in beautiful Lake Tahoe because this would be an entirely new ski destination for the boys.
Skiing with my friends is one of my greatest joys in life and I feel like sporting in the mountains teaches many useful life lessons.
So in what is becoming an annual tradition, here is the 2025 edition of life lessons from a ski trip with friends.
1. Surround yourself with people who do what you enjoy
One day as I sat outside in the base area watching the sun set behind the mountain, three elder gentlemen walked off the slopes with their skis. The first says over his shoulder “For a bunch of guys of our generation, we did good skiing three days in a row.” They had a happy and satisfied vibe that was unmistakable and it made me smile as well.
Another day, I skied with a lady with whom I connected via a FaceBook group called Women Who Ski. Serendipitously, we are both coaches and love skiing. She gave me a great tour of the resort and we had a grand time chatting on the chairlift rides.
There is a positive energy that comes from hanging out with others who are enthusiastic about life and sports. And what’s a ski trip with friends unless you also make new friends?
2. Set audacious goals and find inspiration
I exited The Chalet after lunch and ambled over to the racks to collect my skis. A stately older gentleman was standing nearby waiting. I noted that he had backcountry ski boots on.
I engaged him in conversation, asking about his backcountry gear. Turns out, he is 80 years young and still enjoys both backcountry and resort alpine skiing.
He is a wonderful example of adjusting his equipment and style to keep skiing as he ages. He emphasized the importance of maintaining fitness and not neglecting the cardio.
I asked if I could make a video with him and he looked confused. “A video?” he asked. I prompted him and we recorded a video together. When I turned around, his daughter had come to join him and she looked so proud of her dad.
My goal is to ski when I’m 90. And I love meeting individuals who inspire me to achieve that goal
3. Exercise neuroplasticity
The brain can change and adapt throughout life. This is due to neuroplasticity. Trying new things and physical exercise both enhance neuroplasticity.
So, when the boys wanted to try snowboarding after ten years of skiing, we rented the gear and encouraged them to try it.
We tromped to the bunny hill and the boys tentatively strapped into the snowboards and pointed themselves down the slope. By the end of the day, they were riding the chairlift and linking turns.
G1 stuck with it for three days and boarded some steeper slopes gaining significant confidence. G2 gave it two good days and was ready to return to his skis.
I was proud of the boys for tackling a new skill with great attitudes even when it felt scary, awkward, and sometimes painful.
4. Go back to the basics
On Thursdays, the resort offers a clinic that focuses on a certain skiing skill depending on the conditions. That week it was on carving which is using the edges of the skis to make smooth arcing turns.
G2 and I took the group class together and practiced the basics on a gently groomed slope. We spent over an hour making slow turns on one ski—alternating from one ski to the other through each turn.
I realized that while I consider myself an expert skier, I had some sloppy habits that could be sharpened up. Since I had been one of G2’s primary ski teachers, I knew he would gain some new skills too.
One lady in the class had broken her leg last year and was taking ski clinics to gain back her confidence so she would feel comfortable skiing with her friends again.
With any activity or skill that we do over many years, we can all benefit from a review of the basics. To be observed and coached by a new set of eyes can point out where we are getting sloppy or can make an improvement.
It does require a learner’s mindset and openness to new perspectives, but the net result is growth and sharper skills.
G2’s mom commented that she noticed an immediate improvement in his skiing and control. And I noticed a new awareness of my technique, along with new sore spots in my feet.
5. Plan for relaxation
As an achiever, I tend to stuff my travels with as many activities as possible. On this ski trip with friends, we purposely stayed in one place for longer and slowed down.
We slept in, played games over home-cooked meals, watched old ski movies, and savored the moments together. A mid-trip rest day was filled with leisurely hikes and steaming lattes. Our bodies and minds responded to the fresh air and good company.
Each morning on the drive to the ski resort, we would read an inspirational devotion. And each evening as we drove back, we would watch the periwinkle alpine dusk over Lake Tahoe with tired satisfaction.
When I feel pressured by the never-ending tasks of daily life, I sometimes stop and ask myself, “What memories do I want to have as I get older?”
The answer is that I want to remember the joy of skiing with the people I care about the most, followed by a beautiful alpine sunset.
And I want to keep making ski memories year after year after year until I can walk off the slopes and say over my shoulder, “That was a pretty awesome ski day for an old lady.”