Overcoming Fear

There has been a joke in our home for many years. About a week before Gabby and I met Gabby was out on the slopes of New Hampshire, shredding the gnar. That was the last time she ever snowboarded (until this weekend). That was 15 years ago. Not all my fault, if Gabby had pushed, we would have gone, but we did not. Without a doubt, I was nervous about getting on a mountain. My body has always been how I have paid the bills, either as a first responder or as a CrossFit coach. Breaking myself on the side of the mountain is a bad plan when it is done voluntarily. All that changed this past week though. My brother was coming to Tahoe. He had taught himself and his family about 10 years ago and they now make a lifestyle out traveling to mountains and crushing them. 

Getting back to the big picture for a moment, my brother Dave wanted to go to Tahoe and snowboard Heavenly. They live in Washington DC and there was no way I was going to miss out on some family time when they were only a short distance away. My value words after all are Family, Discipline, Accountability, and Growth. I was going to see my family and I was going to learn and play a new sport. I was going to become a snowboarder. 

So off we went… Liam went to kid ski school and I went to adult board school on day one. The coaching nerd in me loved all the cues getting thrown around; “lift your toes”, “dig your toes in”, “keep your body over the board”, “rotate your hips”, “bend your knees”, “eyes up!”, any of these sound familiar MSCF?! 

Over the course of that first day, I fell a lot. And I mean A LOT! I needed to learn how to fall too. It is not a simple thing to be sliding down a mountain when you catch an edge. I can not believe that folks used to go on these mountains without a helmet on. For sure I “rung my bell” at least twice those first 2 days. They said my legs would be sore, nope, these thick thighs don’t lie. Cardio at altitude, not an issue. After two days, the skills were beginning to sink in. It was time to level up. On day three Liam and I were off to our own devices during the morning. We must have hit the first timer run x10 before my family came back from the far side of the mountain. Liam and I were going to the intermediate runs, the Blue’s & the Black’s. There I found a familiar thing again, coaching. 

Dave built on what I already had learned. Heel side stopping and “snowflaking” (sliding facing down the mountain) was now turning into digging into the snow and whipping my hip. Same on my toe side but I kept on falling, hard! One time I tumbled 3-4 rotations. He told me with a grin and a chuckle, “you fell down good”, all the while catching the whole thing on video.

The coaching never stopped… Slow down did not work, turn your hips did not work, turn your shoulders, did, not, work. What worked was simple, direct, and actionable. “Look up at the mountain!” Boom, I got it, from that moment on I carved smoothly down that mountain. Sure it was not pretty, sure I looked like a beginner (I AM) but I had the skill! 

A moment like “Look up at the mountain” is what the MSCF coaching staff wants for all our athletes. In the gym or outside of it we want to see you succeed. All these verbal, visual, or tactical cues, all these odd analogies, it is all being done so you can have a moment of “it clicks”. You do the thing! You conquer a fear, you reach the goal. 

Whatever it may be or however long it takes. No matter what fears you may have built up around your goals, we got your back. Your success is our success. What I am trying to say is this: 

Having coaches by your side sure does help when your goal is the size of a mountain.