Students Respond To The Call Of The Slopes

Students at Boston College lead busy lives. They challenge themselves academically, participate in a wide variety of extracurricular activities, and readily donate their time to help the less fortunate. Therefore, when the weekend rolls around with its promise of rest and relaxation, one is hard pressed to find a satisfying answer as to why any student would be willing to wake up at the crack of dawn on Saturday in the middle of the bleak New England winter, pack themselves into a crowded SUV, and then make the three hour trek to the nearest mountain.
For the members of the skiing and snowboarding community at BC, however, there is no place in the world they would rather be on a Saturday morning than at the top of a white peak, surrounded by spotless powder, with the prospect of an exhilarating day of skiing and snowboarding spread out below them.
Many students at BC enjoy skiing and snowboarding as fun and leisurely winter pastimes, but also ones which, due to the price constraints of lift tickets and the logistics of traveling and lodging, can only be enjoyed once or twice a year. While there is nothing wrong with this perception of skiing and snowboarding as simple recreations, there is a small but passionate group of students at BC who think of skiing and snowboarding as a way of life. During the winter months, these students wake up at 6 a.m. on Saturday mornings nearly every weekend to get together with their friends and make the two or three hour drive to the surrounding slopes of New England. After a long day and night spent on the mountain, they then find the cheapest room available for a few hours of sleep, only to wake up the next morning and make the same three hour drive back to Chestnut Hill.
 You might ask, "Why would anyone be willing to get up so early and drive so far for only a single day of skiing or snowboarding?" While opinions vary, most skiers and boarders agree that what compels them to go to such great lengths to get out on the slopes is their desire to share in the sport they love with the people they care about. Whether it means saving money in order to pay for lift tickets or not going out on Friday night so that the Saturday morning alarm is just slightly more bearable, these students are willing to sacrifice in any way necessary to enjoy that one Saturday a week of skiing or boarding. When others are complaining about the snow and cold, these skiers and boarders are thinking to themselves about how great conditions on the mountain will be with six more inches of powder. Nevertheless, despite their passion, there are still some instances where it is simply impossible to get to the slopes, in which case skiers and boarders are more than happy to make due by building jumps on Newton Campus to waste away the weekend afternoons. However, these distractions are only slightly effective, and it is not long before the allure of the mountain takes hold again and any excuses, such as homework or a lack of money, which formerly might have been standing in the way of a day of skiing or boarding, are swiftly swept aside.
"[Skiing's] a big release, when you're out on the mountain not thinking about anything anymore," says Christina Vaganos, A&S '11. Vaganos, an avid skier who tries to get out on the mountain at least 15 times a season, explains that for her and her closest friends, skiing provides a respite from the stresses and pressures of college life that cannot be found anywhere else. "It's the one thing in my life I'm the most passionate about … I can go skiing and there's nothing else in the world that matters," says Mary Kate Costello, A&S '11. No matter what type of week it has been on Chestnut Hill, skiing and snowboarding are there every Saturday, ready to clear one's mind and leave one refreshed for the week to come.
A lot of skiers and snowboarders, however, are not just looking to enjoy themselves out on the mountains, but instead to push and challenge themselves in order to improve. When you are skiing with people who get out on the slopes 15 or 20 times a season, people take pride in their ability to carve down the face of a mountain. There is no greater feeling in the world than expertly navigating down the face of a mountain, and then being able to say ‘you owned it,' says Costello. For these skiers and boarders, a day on the mountain is just as much about self-improvement and challenging oneself as it is about simply enjoying the relaxation and tranquility of being outdoors. "When you're skiing, it's the closest you are to the earth," says Costello. "Out in nature, it's serene."
Beyond challenging oneself to improve, most skiers and snowboarders agree that the single aspect of their pastime that they value the most is simply having the opportunity to enjoy being outside with friends. "There's a whole atmosphere surrounding it [skiing]," says Dan Ianno, A&S '11.
"I wouldn't have some of the great friends I have now if it wasn't for skiing," says Costello.
 Beyond the recreational opportunities and athletic challenges provided by skiing and snowboarding, the single greatest reason these students are willing to deal with the large expenses, long distances, and early hours characteristic of their sport is because of their desire to spend quality time with close friends.
With such overwhelmingly enthusiastic responses to skiing and snowboarding events, such as those sponsored by the Ski and Snowboard Club and SnowJam, it seems clear that when given the opportunity, the students at BC are avid and eager skiers and boarders who like nothing more than a day on the mountain. More remarkable, however, is the dedication and passion shown by students such as Ianno, Costello, Vaganos, and their friends, who, week in and week out during the winter months at BC somehow find the means to enjoy the New England winter to its fullest, even if it is only one Saturday at a time.