Chapter 8: International Ski Tribes

​After returning from a year abroad in Switzerland, I went back to CU and I joined the University of Colorado’s C-ski team, running and participating in dryland training at Chautauqua Park, at the foot of the Flatirons in Boulder. I met my Norwegian friends on the ski team. After training all Fall, we began skiing in November. We went to Aspen for Thanksgiving where I got to know Neal Beidleman, a C-team coach.  I wanted to be a good skier, and even learned about racing through the gates. Not only did I prove that I was a good skier, but I knitted my future husband a beautiful sweater. I learned the skills that I thought I would need as a young wife in Switzerland. Colorado, Switzerland, and New Zealand were meeting places that brought me in touch with lifelong friends. We all belong to an international ski tribe.
Chautauqua Park:
https://www.chautauqua.com/preservation/chautauqua-history/
 
a-ha’s ‘Take On Me’ was one of our favourite songs!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djV11Xbc914
 
 
After the University of Colorado, Neal Beidleman went to climb mountains far from home. Here is his Everest story:
 
https://www.colorado.edu/coloradan/2011/12/01/when-everest-speaks
 
 
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2003/mar/30/everest.features
 
https://www.aspentimes.com/news/aspens-beidleman-shares-story-of-trek-to-find-closure/
 
Here is a picture of Nebraska families on a Colorado ski trip in the 1970’s when I was fourteen years old. The Berguins, Hansens, Welches and Mossmans all gathered to ski the Rockies!

Here is the sweater that I knitted for Angelo the year before we married. It is made out of Icelandic wool and has pewter buttons with skiers.