My knee didn’t always feel like this. It’s the IT band, I’m
told. Only a few years ago I was blissfully unaware of what an IT band was or how
it could contribute to a nagging creakiness in my leg. I guess what I’m trying
to say is, it doesn’t seem I’m getting any younger despite a steadfast refusal
to admit my glory days are in the rearview mirror. Thanks to the virtues of
modernity, I’ve found the fountain of skiing youth right in my backyard. No, I
haven’t started taking illicit performance-enhancing drugs. I started going to Woodward Park City.
Woodward Park City is a state-of-the-art action sports hub with world-class
indoor and outdoor facilities for skiers, snowboarders, skateboarders, mountain
bikers and more. The indoor trampoline hub has five Olympic fly-bed trampolines
as well as two SuperTramps. Numerous immaculately-maintained terrain parks have
suitable features for everyone from first-timers to Olympic hopefuls. Woodward
has everything the next generation needs to progress and take the sport to the
next level. Turns out it’s also perfect for people who are nothing like that.
People just like me.
What does this cutting-edge training facility offer the aging
never was who was once an exceedingly mediocre park skier? The ability to
reclaim the mediocrity I was once so proud of. When I was growing up, skiers had
to hone their skills and learn tricks on hastily-constructed, janky features. We
didn’t have the resources and facilities to progress in a logical and safe
manner like today’s super groms do. For all but the most talented among my generation,
achieving mediocrity was a hard-earned badge of honor.
With each passing season, my already-sparse bag of tricks
shrinks further. I earnestly admire 50-year-old freestyle skiing legend Mike
Douglas who still does a d-spin on his birthday every year and openly discusses his excitement
for the first backflip of each season. I still manage a few inverts and the odd rodeo
540 each year, but they increasingly feel like rolls of the dice. Woodward, I’d
hoped, would facilitate some sorely-needed repetition to rebuild muscle memory
and air awareness without subjecting me to persistent aches and pains that accompany
slams on hard snow.
I’ll admit to a bit of trepidation in the moments leading up
to my inaugural trampoline session at Woodward. I was quite a bit older than everyone
else hitting the tramps and far less skilled. Thankfully being a new father in
my mid 30’s has sanded some of the more prideful edges from my obstinate adolescent ego, so I
was willing to look bad by comparison. A few warmup hops and an over-rotated
backflip shook out the jitters. A handful more off-kilter efforts got things
rolling. A few wobbly rodeos here and a frantic misty 720 there and I started
to find my center. Before I knew it the session was over, but I’d logged more
airtime than in the past few seasons combined. I didn’t even feel like I
needed to spend a month in an ice bath.
I decided one more trampoline session was in order before I tried
to take things back to snow. Nothing revolutionary, but I was again able to
work out the kinks without beating myself up. Then it was time to click into my
skis. I hadn’t skied much park lately, but fortunately, Woodward had about a
million features of varying sizes so I could work my way up without jumping right
into the deep end. I won’t be challenging for a spot in the X-Games any time
soon, but I’d describe the day's results as not completely embarrassing. And that’s pretty much exactly what I was going for.
Rekindling my very middling skills Woodward proved that whether
you’re aspiring to do your very first tricks on snow or are looking to do some
groundbreaking things on snow, having the resources to train safely is invaluable.
The repetition builds muscle memory and confidence by allowing you to fail
without dire consequences. More than anything, however, it’s just fun. This old
dog didn’t exactly learn new tricks, but I had a blast relearning some old
ones. Whatever your level or goals, give Woodward a try. If nothing else, it’ll make you feel
like a kid again.
Daily passes; memberships; classes; and indoor, outdoor and all-access passes are available for purchase on the Woodward Park City website.
