So, you fell in love with a skier! Happens to the best of us. Skiers are sexy, smart and adventurous - what's not to love? Erm, well actually, these 8 things...
It doesn't matter if it's your birthday, if they were supposed to show up at work that morning or if there's a raging blizzard that threatens to force road closures... powder always comes first. Don't count on a skier on a powder day, because there's just no way they're missing it. Hence the term, "no friends on powder days".
Hotels and restaurants in ski resorts will know the pain of trying to keep a full roster of staff throughout ski season. How many times do we need to repeat it? NOTHING comes before skiing, and that includes work. Don't expect the love of your life to ever be able to hold gainful employment if they're a diehard ski bum.
There's a reason they're called "ski bums." Somehow, they're always broke when you need them to chip in for meal costs or rent - it doesn't help that their entire salary goes straight into a new pair of powder skis. They're obsessed with everything ski and have a season's pass plus all the latest gear.
Ski gear stinks. Maybe it has something to do with the fact we don't wash it half as often as we should. Why would we, when we're just planning on heading out to the slopes again tomorrow? So it acquires this musty smell which we try to beat by putting it on the radiator, only to have the radiator diffuse the odour all around the flat. Too bad, get used to it.
You like the beach, maybe an all-inclusive on the waterfront? A nice city trip, some history and exotic cuisine? Too bad for you. If you're dating a skier, your only holidays will be to the mountains, to the mountains and to the mountains. Forget about summer holidays - while your friends are soaking up the rays in the south of France, your skier will be logging overtime at work and eating instant noodles so they can afford to do more skiing next winter.
You would think there are only so many times you could watch people doing the same trick! Well, you would be wrong. Welcome to the world of skiing films, which we skiers can watch for hours and hours and hours and never get bored. It's the closest thing to actually being on the slopes, so it's what we spend every possible minute doing while not on the slopes.
If you live near a ski resort, be prepared for your skiing partner to wake you up at the crack of dawn every morning throughout ski season so they can get fresh tracks. It doesn't matter if they indulged in a little après-ski the night before; they somehow have a superhuman power to get out of bed and dressed in the same crusty old ski clothes in under ten minutes after a fresh dump of snow.
Assuming you're not a skier and that's why you're reading this article... well, get prepared to learn. It's very cute that you thought you could just date a badass skier and bask in their reflected glow, but you're going to have to tug on a pair of uncomfortable ski boots and join them on the slopes one of these days. There's a good chance you'll want to kill each other by the end of your first day skiing - it's almost impossible to learn to ski with a partner. Can it be done?
Born and raised in the ski paradise of Vancouver, Canada, I learned to ski before I can remember, balancing precariously on my parents’ skis as they sailed down the hill. I started snowboarding in my teens and am now delighted to be exploring everything Europe’s ski scene has to offer!
