Pain Killers
Beyond weariness, let's get real, what was the real cost in pain? Remember my twisted ankle. Honestly, I hardly noticed it all day. If it hurt bad, I wouldn't have been able to handle half the adventures I had that day. Painkillers? I'll avoid references to well known athletes. Alright, my sister advised I take advil, and, yes, I did. I'm certain it helped. But it didn't stop my ankle from swelling up like a balloon that night; it was a small balloon. Yeah, two weeks later and I was still sleeping with a pillow under my right foot. Three weeks later and I have yet to go jogging. That's not all! Other leg muscles are telling me they got banged up during my snowboarding adventure. Besides my ankle twist nothing caused me such excruciating pain, in which I let slip #$@* out of my mouth, as falling on my tailbone - Ouuch! It's like a piercing high decibel pain. But it doesn't last, and my hind quarters were completely fine two days later. I wonder whether padded bike shorts would work? Despite all my snowboarding wounds, I'm happy to report that my old sore-hip never fully metamorphosed - good news!
The bad news! Pain in learning to snowboard is unavoidable. Also, it's tiring, so you best be in good athletic shape. Although I'm forty-one, I was fit from exercise including lifting, running, and field sports like ultimate frisbee (field sports are a great way to cross-train). So snowboarding is not for the faint of heart. You need good coordination abilities. Patience and determination also add well in the mixture. The saying C' est la vie is also always very real, so I'd say a good prayer for protection as good insurance.
