SASS
I was put on skis when I was two years old probably against my will. I cried and wore an extremely puffy pink down jacket for years going to ski school. I grew up and learned to love skiing. It is a huge part of who I am and will be in my life forever. I am so happy my parents forced me into ski boots.
Graduating high school I wanted to go ski somewhere ‘cool'. My mom and I googled skiing in the summer. Unsure how we stumbled upon SASS (Surf And Snow Sessions) but it was hands down the greatest experience to come into my life. The owners happened to grow up at the same ski mountain I did and everything just made sense. I was eighteen and going to Argentina for the first time to ski for two weeks in the summer. WHAT. I am not even going to try and explain how amazing the whole experience is, you just have to believe me. It is more than just the skiing; it’s about the mountain, the people, the food, and the atmosphere. To prove how wonderful the whole trip is: fast-forward some years and I had been going down to Argentina for five years. It was my happy place.
You stay in this big house right on the mountain with everyone on the trip. People ranged in age from 12-50 and it was amazing. Everyday you wake up, eat as much as you can for breakfast, stumble into your boots, find your group, and leave for the day. You’re skiing from around 10 – at least 5 on a good day. The chairlifts are super old school and take you up above the clouds where this wide-open mountain arises. The main aspect to SASS is that it is not just normal skiing, not at all. You are hiking with your skis on your back to find the best snow everyday, and you find it. My first year I learned what backcountry skiing was and it was perfect to me. Every year I went back I was better and better and I wanted to learn more. The runs are beautiful and they all look down on this wide-open lake that makes it all feel magical.
This year I went on their trip to Japan in January. JAPANUARY. I skied the most snow I had ever seen in my whole entire life. I skied for ten days and it only stopped snowing for five minutes one day. It was the fluffiest snow in the world. You just had float over it. Japan was a super special experience because I had never skied snow like this. It was bottomless. If you fell it took every ounce of strength you had to dig yourself out of the snow that surrounded you.
The best part about SASS is the family you inherit when you leave. I met people through these trips that will be in my life forever. I pushed my skiing abilities to the absolute max and loved every second of it. I miss those mountains everyday and those experiences will stay with me forever.
If any of what I just said got you even a little excited, please go.
