Published on December 21, 2024 8:30 PM GMT
There's a nice sleddinghill a short drive from our house. It has an area with a gentlerslope, where we would go when the kids were younger, but at this pointthe main attraction is a slope that drops ~60ft over ~400ft:
The big downside is that it's steep all the way down to a fence atthe bottom. The town usually puts hay bales at the bottom, and whilegrowing up I was told they were put there after too many kids diedfrom hitting the fence, I can't find the news stories that I wouldexpect to accompany any such deaths so I think that's an urbanlegend. The key to having a good time on this hill is to sled theright route:
You pick up a lot of speed on the initial downhill, turn left to goparallel to the fence while continuing down the hill, and then shedyour speed by turning uphill at the very end. I like to use my handsto steer and brake, with sturdymittens—I don't know how people can tolerate using heels,with the amount of snow spray that kicks up.
Afterwards you walk back up the other side, following the essentialetiquette of staying out of the sledding zone:
At this point Lily (10y) can do it herself; Anna (8y) still prefers togo with me. Before letting Lily go down alone (here, or any otherslope where there's anything you could hit) I did have her show meshe could reliably bail. And we don't let them use tubes, where it'shard to steer and you can end up going backwards.
(This park also has a great slide, source of the name "Big SlidePark", which hasreopened after almost two years, ayear behind what was originally planned.)
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