There is a story I have been meaning to tell for a while, and thinking about it still trips me out. Back when I was in my twenties, I had one of those moments where things could have gone very wrong very fast, and I walked away from it by sheer strength and instinct.
I was on a ski lift at what I believe was Hunter Mountain, though honestly the exact location has faded over the years. What has not faded is what happened on that chair. I was a snowboarder, and anyone who has snowboarded knows that getting off a lift is its own skill. It is awkward, it is unnatural, and it takes practice to get comfortable with it. I was never fully at ease with that part, and on this particular ride I made the mistake of raising the safety bar too early. I was just trying to get ready, trying to get ahead of the dismount. Instead I shifted my weight wrong, lost my seat, and the next thing I knew I was no longer on the chair.
I was hanging off it.
We were up high enough that a fall would have meant at least one to two stories straight down. That is not a fall you walk away from clean. I remember grabbing on and just refusing to let go. Not out of bravado, just pure survival instinct. I knew that letting go would be worse than whatever came next. So I held on and got dragged all the way to the top. When the chair came low enough near the unloading ramp I dropped off, got my board under me, and just rode away like my heart was not pounding out of my chest.
I was lucky. I was young and strong, and I had enough grip to hold my own bodyweight for however long that ride took. Honestly even now, with the injuries I am managing, I think that same instinct would kick in. You do not let go. You just do not.
Snowboarding is behind me at this point. The cervical issues alone make it a non-starter, but it is not just about my own skill level. I was a solid snowboarder. The problem is the people around you. I have been hit hard by beginners before, and that is a risk you cannot control no matter how good you are. It is not worth it.
But that lift story is real, it happened, and I am grateful every time I think about it that I was strong enough to hold on that day.
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