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A snowboarder takes on one of the many slopes at Wintergreen Resort.

photo from Wintergreen Resort

Even though he's younger than other instructors at Wintergreen, he's among the most diplomatic and most cordial of the staff. And he manages to remain patient -- even with his more trying students: "I had one girl who was afraid of heights -- it took 10 minutes to get her on the ski lift," he recalls. Then there was the girl who was certain the lift would decapitate her. But Sims takes it all in stride and mostly just enjoys being out on the slopes. Luckily his spring break falls during Wintergreen's December to March ski season. The resort added snowboarding to its mix of activities in late 1991, back when Sims was in elementary school. The resort still displays the first snowboard rented there.

Of course, snowboarding is not as easy as it looks, warns Dave Zunker, public relations director at Wintergreen. Slopes that are easy to ski suddenly become advanced terrain when you're on a snowboard. "It's exciting to be able to go down something that was real simple and find it challenging," he says.

As a friend and I headed to Wintergreen to give the sport a try, I kept thinking, "Maybe there won;t be any snow." I was grasping for a shred of hope -- however flimsy -- that we weren't actually heading toward imminent death, or at the very least, imminent embarrassment. Alas, Wintergreen has snowmakers to ensure the very best ski and snowboarding conditions.

Upon arriving we found The Mountain Inn lodge was like a mini-village, with restaurants and shops offering everything from swimsuits to fleece pullovers. Although we left Richmond with all the equipment we thought we needed, the shops had cool accessories on clearance. We promptly dropped $100 on "extras" -- a pair of gloves, a hat, waterproof pants and a pair of polarized sunglasses.

The official check-in time at the lodge was 6 p.m., which gave us plenty of time to don our new threads and head for the equipment rental area. In addition to the $28 all-day left ticket, the equipment, which includes boots and snowboards, rents for $27 per person.

All decked out, first-time snowboarders head outside to await the next free snowboarding class, which is offered four times a day. It's a popular day for snowboarding because there are 15 or so people waiting for the same class -- an unusually high number.

I was pretty darn proud of the fact that I quickly mastered the skill of standing still with the board perpendicular to my body, so I wouldn't slide. My confidence waned, however, at it came time to actually maneuver down the hill. With one foot strapped into the board, and the other free -- for the moment -- would-be snowboarders practice a few short runs, which include turning and stopping. At this point, falling was no longer a fear -- after the first tumble, you realize it's not so bad. Now both feet are strapped onto the board. This makes it extremely difficult to fall, because when you try to push yourself up with your arms, your feet slide out from under you.

A word of advice to first-timers: Do plenty of pushups for a couple of months before your trip. Otherwise, your arms will be so sore the next morning that just getting dressed will be pure agony. The instructor is pretty good at helping people back to their feet. (I'm sure he has had plenty of practice at this.)

All the activity on the slopes without actually going anywhere is enough to work up an appetite. A great place to stop for lunch is one of the stands near the slopes. It's quick, but the prices are steep: $13.25 buys two cheeseburgers, a hot dog and two 12-ounce sodas. A quick check at the front door reveals that our $165 studio room is ready a few hours. "Studio" is hardly the right word. The least expensive of Wintergreen's lodging is a two-story loft complete with a working kitchen. It also has a large sofa bed, which means the room can easily accommodate four people.

Heading back to the slopes, we encounter James -- an accomplished skier who's at the resort for the day. James is on his way to the Cliffhanger, one of the more difficult slopes. He affirms that snowboarding is no piece of cake, even for him: "I think it hurt like hell," he recalls of his first time. "I hurt my wrists. I never hurt my wrists!"

After a day on the slopes, visitors are more than ready for a quiet, relaxing dinner. The resort has several restaurants, ranging from light, healthy fare to hearty, sports-bar chow. The Copper Mine, described as casual but elegant dining, was our choice. It has low lighting and a working fireplace, and it offers a terrific view of Eagles Swoop, one of several slopes lit for night skiing. Diners can watch kamikazes crazy enough to ski it at speeds that would get them stopped by a state trooper. The most expensive entree on the menu -- filet mignon -- is worth every penny. The total bill for two comes to about $70.

There's more to do the next day before the noon checkout. The Wintergreen Nature Foundation has a hiking guide with maps of trails through the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Highlands Leisure Trail, an easy-to-moderate path, takes about 20 minutes to walk. But it could take longer if you dally at the overlook, captivated by the winter wonderland of snow-covered mountains strewn with Eastern Red Cedars and Table Mountain Pines. It's pretty amazing that the rock formations are the result of lava flows from more than 500 million years ago.

For those heading east on their way home from the resort, Charlottesville is the perfect place to stop for lunch. The Old Mill Room at The Boar's Head Inn, a perennial favorite, offers a Sunday brunch buffet for about $35 for two. For entertainment, there's a live harpist.

It makes for a surreal Sunday after a rugged weekend of snowboarding. The music is soothing, which is a good thing when your entire body feels like it has been hit by a Mack truck.

© April 1999, Media General Business Publications Inc.,
publisher of Virginia Business Magazine