At One

Lower Narrow Gauge at Sugarloaf USA - Feb 20, 2017

People often ask what I say when I am guiding my friend Noah Carver, who was born blind. When we are skiing whatever is said has to be pretty concise, especially now that his technique has improved so much that he is ready and willing to ski pretty fast. Basically we use "And right, and left" for calling turns and the word 'hold', sometimes repeated more than once, to traverse and adjust where we are on the trail. When we get on a flat I often say, "Let 'em run, let 'em run," until the slope falls away again. When we are going to stop I try and get him to the side of a trail and then have him turn so he is facing toward the center of the trail. For instance, if we were heading to the left side of the trail I would say, "And right to a stop." Other than that, we just ski!

We had an amazing day skiing together earlier this week. It was an experience that really touched me in many ways. The following poem is an attempt to capture the sensations of the day and was written as a gift to Noah, who in turn is a gift to so many... Thank you, Noah, for all the positive energy you put into the world.

At One

‘Okay, give a push and we’re off…
And right, hold, hold, hold,
And left, hold, hold.’
We head down a favorite trail
as I work to find a sweet spot,
 a perfect fall line with
no other skiers in our way.
‘And right, hold,
And left, hold,
And right, hold, hold, hold…’
Ahhh - there it is,
we have our opening.
Right,
left,
right,
left,
right,
left …
It feels as if we could
go on and on and on
as we fly down the slope
in a rhythmic dance.
A sense of trust,
an openness of spirit,
a connection that goes
far beyond any words
between us.
A synergy that,
for a time,
makes us feel
at one
with the mountain
we both love.

For Noah
From Sarah
February 24, 2017

Lower Narrow Gauge, Sugarloaf USA - Photos by Suzanne Carver