45 minutes away from Latrobe is a place where several outdoor enthusiasts spend their weekends in the winter. The place is Seven Springs. And those people are the skiers. One has to wonder what incites a human being to wear layers of clothing and step into the tundra of the Laurel Highlands and strap skis to their booted feet and travel downhill, weaving between trees at a totally absurd speed.
Brayden Johnson’s spark is what drove him to the manicured slopes. At first, he admitted it was hard to describe what he liked about skiing, but he did explain it was quite “fun spending time with friends, learning new tricks, skiing on fresh snow, and just getting out to explore.” To Brayden winter is a welcoming season that gives him the opportunity to challenge himself with this sport.
Many skiers were introduced to the activity from an early age. Johnson, for instance, started skiing in first grade. “The idea of always striving to be better is a huge reason. The challenge of learning new tricks and perfecting the ones I already know how to do,” said Johnson.
Josh Enfinger is another student who has a love for skiing. He started skiing when he was nine and tries to go every weekend with his friends during ski season. Their passion for skiing influenced Josh and Brayden’s decision to work at Seven Springs as well. They have been working there for two years. Brayden was once the kid he is now instructing. “I was once in the exact shoes as the kids I instruct, so yes, I see myself in them,” Johnson said.
Jason Spillar said he loved the idea of an activity that took him into the snow. “I usually always go to Seven Springs to ski, but sometimes I will head over to Hidden Valley when I feel like something different. When I go up I ski with friends from school such as Christian Chambers, Matt McCreery, Josh, and Brayden. I also go with my girlfriend, Abby Cook.”
People get together and hang out, pushing their bodies to the limit, and daring themselves by staring fear in the face with goggles on as snow is falling in front of them. Some students also go to other states to ski as well which shows how committed they are to challenging themselves with new peaks. Brayden has been to Colorado to ski. He explained, “Skiing in Colorado is much better than Pennsylvania. The runs are way longer and the snow is better. There’s more challenging and fun terrain.”
Christian Chambers, who also skis the west, started to ski when he was three with his grandpa. He reflected upon his grandpa’s skiing experience and stated, “He’s been skiing at a very young age probably around the age that I started and he enjoys it the same if not more than I do. My grandpa has been just about anywhere you can think of when it comes to ski resorts in the US. And he has even been skiing out of the country like in Canada and the Swiss Alps.” Christian has skied in Pennsylvania and Utah. He said that, “In Utah the slopes will take anywhere from 5-20 minutes depending where you go compared to Seven Springs the slopes only take a few minutes. The resorts are bigger and the mountains are gigantic.” A normal day of skiing to Christian looks like this, he first meets up with all his friends that are going that day usually at Brayden’s house. They then drive up to Seven Springs and get all geared up. Once ready they take the lift up and start to ski. Depending on how much snow there is they will either choose to stay at the parks or ski through the trees when there is a lot of snow. They will ski together for a couple of hours until they collectively decide they are done for the day. On their way home they stop at Sheetz for a late night snack and continue their journey back home. When he told me this it seems like a great way to get closer with friends during the winter.
They enjoy the more advanced slopes like “Goosebumps” and “Santa’s Beard” on the front face; “Gunnar” and “The Alley” on the north face. They don’t really dislike any of the slopes but the ones they rarely go on are the slopes like “Lost boy” and “Fawn Lane.” Christian said, “The ones we like are steeper and have moguls which are bumps on the slopes made by other skiers from just skiing.”
Skiing around Laurel Mountains gives these risk takers an activity to participate in during the cold winter months, a much needed kinetic, social activity. The friends bond and pursue personal bests all bundled up in icy conditions. The season of winter is full of adventure and an exhilarating experience, especially only right of the mountains.
