A Day in the Shred - Argentina with SASS

Sarah Laird of South America Snow Sessions brings us our first report from Argentina.  Wanna get in on the fun?

Sarah Laird of South America Snow Sessions brings us our first report from Argentina.  Wanna get in on the fun? SASS and Powderroom have teamed up for an epic women's session in Argentina August 17-31. Get more info at http://www.sasnow.com/v3/packages/womens-snowboard-session

Everybody has those days that are just so epic that they remind even the most cynical riders why they love this crazy sport.  There’s fresh snow, blue skies, little wind and you feel like you are invincible, nailing every turn or cliff jump – simply destroying the mountain.  Today was not one of those days for me. I couldn’t have of asked for anything more when I woke up this morning.  There was fresh snow on the ground, meaning the mountain got dumped on for the third day in a row and I was finally ready to go back out and enjoy all this untouched powder.  It was a gorgeous bluebird day and I had a great crew to ride with.

I have been in the SASS Bariloche office the last couple days nursing an old knee injury that I am so fed up with I have considered simply cutting it off.  But today was the day!  I was ready to join everyone and get some fresh tracks for myself.  With a little bit of a late start I packed into the gondola with three other snow enthusiasts all itching to shred.  I mean its Argentina, that’s why we came down here! 

We all looked at each other and immediately agreed we were heading for the gondy trees.  They are gentle, well-spaced powder packed trees – the perfect warm up run, or so I thought. So excited to be back on the mountain in these beautiful conditions I, of course,  immediately overshot a little mushroom jump and took a face dive into the white bliss.  But I wasn’t going to let it get me down; it just woke me up, and I needed to wash my face anyways.  However, as the day went on and my face dives turned into a regular occurrence my frustrations started to mount. 

As I was riding up the chairlift with an Argentine local, grateful for the silence, I attempted to mentally kick my own butt into shape, and the cliché phrase I’ve heard all to many times back in Breckenridge started to run through my head “NO friends on a powder day!” And that’s when it hit me – not only were there no friends on a powder day there certainly was no babysitting a person you met less then a week ago when there was a fresh meter of snow!  It was time to pull myself together or let them go. 

I gave myself one more run to prove myself and sure enough half way down I had almost had it.  I told the crew to bounce and reminded them that there was a whole mountain filled with powder waiting to be ridden and I was only holding them up.  But to my utter surprise they all just patiently waited and told me “although there may not be any friends on a powder day there’s always family – the SASS family!”  And sure enough the next couple hours went a lot smoother and I too began to remember why I ride.

Today was the day I feared while I was packing for Argentina.  I was an LA girl turned Boulder hippy who liked to shred on the weekends.  I didn’t grow up in the mountains or start racing before I could walk.  I am nowhere near a professional rider, nor do I or even have the slightest chance at ever getting sponsored.  I love the lifestyle, the snow, and the people – that is why I ride and why I am here.

I took a few more runs and although my crew was patient and I started to link some turns without a face dive in between each one the mountain was still winning and my frustrations were alive and well.  So, I called it around one on this heavenly powder day and deemed myself worthy of a beer.

Thanks to all of SASS’s connections and eager to please nature I was set up in V.I.P. at Mute, the trendy bar/restaurant at the base of the mountain that looks over the whole front side. The waiters were absolutely gorgeous – dark and handsome with intricate tattoos making their exotic looks that much more enticing. And once again I realized how much I love Argentina. 

Today I felt like a real Argentinean, I made it out on the mountain for a couple hours then I dined on some delicious steak and cold beer for the rest of the afternoon.  A couple beers in I realized everybody has an off day once in awhile, but life is good.   I had an off day in Argentina surrounded by powder, beautiful scenery, and an awesome new family.