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WICKED INDOOR SNOWBOARDING

So I had been working at the Flying Pig beach hostel for 3 months and heard lots of stories about the wicked snowboarding in The Hague. But had never put my arse into gear to go over there. Probably because I spent too much time being a beach bum. Then one week we had a few people who were really enthusiastic to go, so we organized a beach hostel snowboarding mission for a few days later.

I had visions of an awesome snowboarding day carving up the snow and then back to the hostel to chill with a few beers. Well the bestlaid plans often go astray. The night before the snowboarding trip was meant to be a ‘quiet one’. You know, to get ready to hit the slopes and all. I am not a very good snowboarder to start with so I didn’t think being hung over and tired would help. But as all nights at the pig the drinking just seems to happen. A couple of drinks with new friends and shit before I knew it I was wasted again. Then the 1 euro shots came out and it was all over from there.

Get up and go! I woke up the next day to Jos -the boss- telling me to get my lazy ass up and go snowboarding. I rolled over in an attempt to go back to sleep and ignore the whole thing, yeah right. 10 Minutes later I was effectively dragged out of bed and told to get moving. I put on some warm clothes still pissed and stumbled upstairs to be greeted by a bunch of sorry asses, and half pissed backpackers ready to snowboard. So we all piled into the van, smelling of pure ethanol and drove over to The Hague. When we got there I decided this might turn out to be a bad idea as I felt so horrible and couldn’t even pull my boots on. Myself and another Aussie laid around on the couches for half an hour feeling sorry for ourselves, boots mid-way on, before we got our butts into gear. Hit the slopes! Finally we hit the slopes. Once I breathed in that ice-cold air I could feel my headache and hangover begin to fade. We started of on the ‘kiddies’ slope first, to get on our feet so to speak, with directions from Jos, to be like a leaf, floating like a leaf. It looked so graceful and easy.... Hmm but there was nothing graceful about my descent. The first hour was really funny. Watching 1st timers falling on their ass and laughing so hard for 10 minutes before they could attempt to get themselves up without looking like a beached whale. Eventually I thought I was ready for the deep end. So I waited in line to get on the lift only to fall off twice before I got halfway up the mountain only to stack it again. Then I got a little cocky and tried to pull a few turns since it looked so easy. But bang the front edge was in and there I was sprawled all over the snow. It really begins to hurt after you do it over and over. Not to mention the cold wet jeans and ass. But man it was worth it. I started to get the hang of it and was cruising down the slopes, okay maybe not cruising and floating! But all in all it was an awesome day. It was great to board with new people I had met at the hostel and touch up on my own skills. The headache in the morning was definitely worth it. As was the party the night before and the sore ass the next day. Can’t wait to get back there again. This time I may stay up all night drinking then I could carve up the slopes like a pro. Hmmm we shall see. <<

The Flying Pig organizes snowboarding trips the whole year on. Ask at the reception.