Seattle Mountain Rescue / National Pond Skimming Championships

Last Thursday evening I attended a Seattle Mountain Rescue (SMR) monthly board meeting.  I had applied to join the search and rescue organization a couple months prior and was finally able to attend one of their meetings.  The purpose of my attendance was for the board to ask me some questions and see if they wanted me to become a part of their volunteer organization.  I apparently passed and I'm now part of SMR.  I won't be around Seattle much in the next 6 months or so, but after that I'm excited to become a more active SMR member!


The morning after the meeting with SMR I started driving to Colorado.  I arrived in Broomfield, CO two days later, just in time for a going away party for Tony and Lisa, who are leaving the Boulder area and heading for Utah.  I snuck out of the party around 10pm to drive up to Summit County.  The following morning I met up with Keith, Edyn, and Graham (KEG) for a day of shenanigans at Vail during their last ski day of the year.  We skied for a few hours in the morning before KEG got costumed up and headed out to compete in the National (World?) Pond Skimming Championships.


I had seen similar events in ski movies over the years, but it was something else to witness an event like this first hand.  Aside from a truly horrible announcer, the event was incredible in the best way.  Contestants picked up as much speed racing down the hill towards a jump that marked the beginning of a 100-foot-long pond.  Five of the 100ish participants made it across.  Most flailed and splashed miserably.