On Saturday December 11, I went skiing at Copper Mountain with Scott and Chris. Conditions were cold but beautiful. Copper had gotten about 9 inches of powder overnight.
I wore my Olympic uniform which I only pull it out maybe once a year. While standing in a lift line a man says to me: "I haven't seen one of those uniforms in a while". Come to find out he produced the video of "Light the Fire Within" for the Salt Lake Olympics. His name is J.R. Hildebrand. He told us that he was up there by himself. So I invited him to ski with Scott, Chris and I. We spent most of the day together. I feel like I have a new friend. J.R. skis on old PRE 1200 skis with 80's Solomon clamshell boots. Old school stuff. But his skiing is nearly flawless. My own skiing was marginal that day because I'm not used to skiing in a lot of powder.
When I got home last night, I looked on youtube and found that video I was talking about. It reminded me of the hard work and sacrifice that I put into the Olympics. Now I only had a small role as a course worker in the men's downhill at Snowbasin. But we, all 2,000 of us at that venue, helped create an Olympic moment for all of the people there, racers and spectators alike. I will always have fond memories of the Olympics and Snowbasin.
Thanks J.R. for the great skiing and reminding me that the Olympics were a real high point in my life.
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