" "It didn't look this steep in the graphics." "It didn't look this steep in the graphics." Her sleek Lutra form leaned over the break in the slope, looking carefully. "Never does," I said, following her gaze. It nearly is a cliff for the first forty meters or so, almost straight down. Takes the edge off your skis rather quickly. Then the slope eases, only to become icy and uneven. The Ruins of Terra is an "ungroomed" slope. "Ready?" "You're going to do it?" she asked, incredulous. "I've done Ruins before." More than a century ago, I thought, but did not let her know that. "I'm going to watch you go first." She took a final glance downward, then pushed in at an angle. The first bit of fun came when she had to make her turn before the cliff- face ended. At one point her skis would be pointed straight down. She made the turn, but not easily. Near the end of the turn she flailed for balance. I smiled and headed out in the other direction, so that we'd essentially be 'stitching' our way down the hillside, meeting only where our ski-trails crossed in the middle. When we hit the moguls, she took off, however, completely ignoring me and sailing downwards, playing with air. Moguls seem to be her strong point; she reached the bottom of the hill at a speed that had my heart pounding. I took my time getting there. |