Memior

The Last Run I can hear the snow crunching and compacting underneath my snowboard as I coast over to the ski lift. Only one of my bindings is secure – my right foot is pressed securely against the inside of the binding for support. It was the last day of my 6 day trip to Lake Tahoe, Nevada. This was my first out of state ski trip and up until today the snow conditions had been quite average; however, the night before had dumped about a foot of fresh powder onto the mountain. Needless to say, I was quite excited to get out on the slopes and take advantage of the fresh snow before everyone else got to it. This is exactly what I did. I hit the slopes as soon as they opened; which was around 9am. The conditions were perfect, the sun was up so it wasn’t too cold, the visibility was perfect, and the powder was amazing. As I ready for my final run of the day I sit on the chairlift, talking with my best friend Jay, who had came down for the weekend. As the lift reaches the summit we slowly disembark and kick our boards over to the run we had planned out on the lift. The lift operator calls over to us, “We’re shutting the lift down for the night, last run guys.” We nod off his comment and quickly repeat the routine of slamming our boards on the ground to clear out the snow from the unoccupied binding, before finally strapping our loose foot into the binding. The sun has already set, and the temperature had dropped quite considerably. The only light on the mountain came from the lights on the chairlift and from the moon. We weave through the course, our weight shifting mechanically back and forth. We traverse over to the hardest run on the mountain, it is a rather steep slope filled with vertical drops and tons of powder. We were ready for this run; excitement and adrenaline charges through us as we fly down the mountain. The course was very familiar to us, as this was our favorite run and we had done it countless times that weekend. We near the point where we know is a very large drop, around 10 or 12 feet, we both slow down slightly and eventually come to a stop around a hundred yards before it. We quickly decide that jay will take the drop first, and then me shortly after. Jay takes a second to steady himself and calm his nerves, though we had done this drop a few times, it was extremely exciting and felt new every time. Suddenly, Jay starts heading toward the drop, he carves back and forth in a practiced rhythm when he hits the drop he gives himself a little jump and pulls back into a back flip. A couple seconds later I hear him hit the ground. Finally, it was my turn. I excitedly head towards the cliff, weaving back and forth, and lining up straight with the cliff face. Suddenly, right before I get to the edge of the cliff I feel the edge of my board dig into the powder, this was it, I had no time to correct myself and I tumble off the edge of the cliff. My heart is in my throat as I try to keep myself perpendicular to the ground so my neck doesn’t end up breaking my fall. I can hear Jay yell something that I can’t quite make out as I wave my arms in an attempt to keep my balance. It seems like an eternity as I fall. As I near the ground I slightly loosen my legs to brace for the impact. Then, it happens. I feel a large shock as I hit the ground, first my legs, then my arms. I hear a crack as I roll down the slope in a storm of powder and limbs. Eventually I come to a stop about fifty yards from where I hit the ground. When I look up jay is above me asking, “Are you alright man'” I feel myself over, starting with my legs. I attempt moving my left leg first -- no pain, then my right -- still no pain. Then I move my right hand, I’m still good; but when I get to my left hand I get a shooting pain. I gingerly take off my glove and I can clearly see my wrist swollen like a balloon. I hear jay say “Oh shit man, you broke your wrist.” I wanted to reply with a sarcastic comment but the pain was too much so I just kept my teeth clenched. Jay grabbed me around the armpits and pulled me up. We then began the short trip to the lodge, and the EMTs. At this point I am grateful that I had only broken my wrist and not my leg so at least I can make it down the mountain on my own power. When we finally reach the lodge jay goes over to the medical station and a couple minutes later come out with two EMTs. They quickly put a field brace on my arm and call a cab to send me to the emergency room. Once in to emergency room I am quickly fitted with a full cast and setup with some pills for the pain. Now two years later, I have forgotten about the pain of breaking my wrist, but I’ll always remember the last run of that weekend in Tahoe.