Jumping Journal: February 04, 2009

Can you say BRRRRRRRR!  Gee...another two days in a row of jumping, unthinkable...at least this winter it has been.

 

It must be getting down to the wire for the high school jumping season once again.  When I find myself travelling to jump meets on a school bus and I find myself at the Proctor Academy ski jumps I know it's got to be getting toward the end of the season for the boys and girls.

 

I hopped on the bus with Ron, the kids and one of the other parents for the 20 minute drive over to Andover for the pre-state high school meet.  It's the next to last jump meet of the season for the high school kids.

 

We arrived at the jump site and got everything off the bus and I suited up quickly, hoping to get in three jumps before the tressel got crowded.  It's been my normal Wednesday evening routine for the first six weeks of the new year pretty much since I started jumping.  The past few years I have waited until they start jumping 25 meter hills or bigger but I generally always practice with the kids.  I know the local kids and some of the kids from other school districts jump in Lebanon on the weekends during the winter at the eastern division jump meets.  I typically get to know the the kids that jump both high school and eastern division the best.

 

I headed up the landing hill and walked on up the tressel with a decent number of kids already on the tressel.  After waiting for my turn I hopped on the bar and got the signal from one of the coaches on the knoll.  I started down the inrun and jumped at the takeoff.  I got the shock of a lifetime the second I started to make my move at the takeoff.  Turns out their is a big pile of snow right underneath the takeoff that had never been there before.  You couldn't miss seeing it no matter how hard you tried.  For a second I thought I was going to hit it...it was sticking up that high from the knoll.  I reacted to the sight of it and I noticed the right ski made a sudden abrupt jerk that was very unnatural.

 

I managed to keep my wits about me and landed the jump and rode through the transition.  Normally Andover has had a sharp transition that you have to watch out for.  Last year it seemed like they did a better job at smoothing it out.  This year was much more improved over last year.  I didn't notice any sharpness to the transition like I have in the past.

 

I rode the tow back up to the knoll and walked on up to the jump where the line had gotten longer.  The temperature were in the very low teens if not 11 or 12 degrees during practice.  The sun was setting at the time and the wind was kicking up on occasion made for some rather cold conditions to be out jumping in, especially when you are standing around wait in line to jump.

 

After freezing for about 8-10 minutes it finally came my turn for my second jump.  I got the signal and headed down the inrun.  This time I knew to expect the pile of snow at the takeoff so it didn't bother me like it did the first time.  I jumped at the takeoff and it seemed like I had made a bit of a move around the knee but the jump still seemed short compared to what I was expecting.  I would say I probably only went 24-25 meters.

 

I got back up top for the third jump and the line was even longer.  Now to add insult to injury the line was almost stationary as well as everybody was going from the same bar instead of spacing themselves out.  No one wanted to go from a different bar and they didn't want to put their skis on until the person in front of them went.  It made the long line MUCH, MUCH, MUCH longer.  I was freezing my rear end off.  My feet were one step below being numb, and I kept pulling my finger inside my gloves to try to warm them up.  The wind would just bite right through you without blinking an eye.

 

I finally got up to the top and grabbed the bar higher than everyone else was jumping from and managed to get my third, and thankfully, last jump of the night in.  It wasn't quite as nice as the second jump distance wise even though it seemed like it held up reasonably well technically.  I was probably aroudn 24 meters on the jump, very rough guessing.  I couldn't tell for sure how far I was down the hill but by knowing how I jumped I figure I didn't make any further than that.

 

It sounds like I may be jumping tomorrow evening again...WHAT???  LOL!  Yep, another high school practice in Newport.  Gee, I'm to make up for lost time in Newport this winter it seems.  I don't mind the conditions in Newport are the best I've ever seen them.  Ron was commenting on the way to Andover this evening about how weird the conditions have been this winter.  The snow is well packed yet very soft.  It's the same thing I've been saying.  I can't remember a time in the past eight winters when I have seen conditions like they have been this winter.  Hopefully the conditions will stick around for the rest of the winter as well.

 

Crash