Dave Murray Camp Reports

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The last Camp was full of contrasts. Ten centimetres of fresh snow on, you guessed it, Tuesday, followed by sunshine on Wednesday. I had a full group of 'Camp Virgins' (except for Mr. Tan who is an old pro with about 50 camps) while Traynor and Kim had groups full of 'Repeat Offenders'. We saw the return of 'Team Britain' - Sian, David, Stuart, Gill and Pat. Andy and Robbie, also from England, made their yearly appearance. These people met at the Camp a number of years ago, not knowing each other previously, became friends and now take their ski vacations to Whistler together. Robbie is even planning to move here permanently this year. Kim's group were gentlemen who have been coming to the Camps for years. Dana had a group who come back year after year, sometimes more than once, in search of their ski dreams.

What makes people come back to Camps year after year must be the same reason why we coaches, come back to work at the Camps year after year - we are having fun and even as teachers/instructors, we are learning just like our students. We learn about people. Take Lee, who skied with a painful knee, sometimes turning his smile into a grimace of pain, but he never gave up. I learned that Lee and Sarah are at the start of a six month journey which will take them around the world. I learned about people's trials on the first day and about their triumphs on the third day. I saw their smiles as they conquered difficult terrain they would never dream of skiing on their own. There is nothing more satisfying for a coach than to see your charges overcome challenges, tackle more difficult terrain, ski faster, ski better and smile a lot.

We have a saying, which is not to be taken literally, 'If you're not bleeding, you're not learning'! This means that to learn, you have to give a bit of yourself. You have to give a bit of courage and fear, a bit of strength and weakness and you have to give up a bit of your ego. In our everyday lives we rarely come out of our shells unless we are under the influence of some intoxicating substance. How embarrassed would you be if you tripped and fell on the sidewalk in your town, but we are all laughs when we are laying up side down in the snow after a crash. My icy driveway sends shivers of fear up my spine for I might slip and land on my ass, which, if witnessed by a passer-by, would be a certain indignity suffered by me. Yet I have suffered major ski crashes with joy and a laugh. Why are we like this? Heck, I have not a clue as I'm not a psychologist.

But I have been called a 'Prophilosopher' by my friends. Here is a bit of my 'prophilosophy'. I believe that we like to be challenged and that in accepting challenges, we accept the possibility of some failures. I like this saying - 'What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger' (also not to be taken literally). Every time we overcome a challenge, we are stronger for it. This is exactly what I see in the people that take Camps, camp after camp, year after year. While they conquer one challenge, they see a new one. That is what skiing is all about - no shortage of challenges!

My group overcame some great challenges and 'suffered' some 'failures' with smiles in the last camp. We skied some very difficult terrain and managed to find some virgin snow. In the end we experienced much exhilaration and spent a lot of adrenaline. And in the end - we drank some beer!

As I look out my window, the snow is falling and I can't wait for the next camp.