On Saturday my dad drove down from Aspen so that he and I could participate in the Talons Challenge together at Beaver Creek Ski Resort. It was a sort of daddy-daughter date and we had such a blast.

The Talons Challenge is held once a year at Beaver Creek and it's a free event where you attempt to ski the 13 hardest black diamond and double black diamond bumped out runs at Beaver Creek Resort. These runs are super challening, expert only, bumpy LOVENESS! AKA - SUPER FUN! If you complete all the runs then you get entered into a raffle for sweet prizes and a chance to win a week long ski trip to Austria. Plus, finishing gets you a brat, a beer, a finishing pin, and and a hat!

Since dad has been a ski bum the last month he has gotten wicked good at all sorts of terrain. My bump skills have gotten much better recently. Dad has been helping me learn to properly weight my uphill foot. I am skiing nice and controlled over them now. 13 runs gives you some serious practice time! I was also really excited to try out my new Beyond jacket skiing. It's the BOMB. I had the pit zips open most the day, and my map, Talons pass, cell, and chap stick were always accessible via my chest and arm pockets. Dad said I was really noticeable due to the lilac color. It's just so nice to have something that fits perfect, especially skiing, when you already feel like a stuffed monkey. We started off the day trying to hit the hardest double blacks while the snow was still good. The resort had 4 new inches from the night before. That was on top of an awesome powder base. You really can't beat the snow in Colorado right now...it's the best we've seen in years! Dad and I worked our way through the runs, one run at a time, one bump at a time. We snacked on the lift ride, and chatted with tons of fun people. The challenge really brought out some awesome folks! I couldn't believe how many little kids were out there kicking major butt on the bumps! We rode up with one little boy that this was his 3rd year doing it, and he was 10! By the last few runs dad and I were ready to be done done done. The legs were shot! We finished strong, got our raffle tickets, and went to cash in on the free food. Not 1 minute after I sat down to eat my brat did I hear them call my raffle number! I won a Talons Challenge sweatshirt. I was pretty happy about that one! We stayed and basked in the sun until the end of the raffle where we did not win the trip to Austria (shocking). Strapping on our skiis to ski back to the village was delightful (ouch) and we just missed the strawberry lift by 10 seconds, so we had to ride the bus back down to town and then walk back to the condo.

All in all it was such a great daddy/daughter day, we both just had a blast together. I feel so blessed that I have such an active father. I could tell that lots of people we met yesterday were jealous of dad and I's relationship. It's not everyday that you see dads and daughters together on the mountain, enjoying the time they spend together.