SlimCache

Snowshoeing is certainly nothing new, but new to me. Today I tried it for the first time and found that I absolutely love it. Thanks to my company's wonderful health and wellness department I attended an hour long workshop of sorts introducing me to the sport. Afterward I had to fight off the urge to go out and buy a new set of shoes on the spot.

It was a relatively short jaunt, probably only about a mile, behind our warehouse. We wound around a short walking path, across the train tracks, and into a nearby field where clay shooting and other outdoor discovery programs are held. The snow was deep and untouched along the path. I felt terribly awkward as I clumsily punched through the crusty snow. My form needs work. A few of the attendees were experienced in the sport, and were a massive help to this noob. They told me to shorten my stride, widen my stance, lift my knees more, and brace for my footfall thereby softening my impact. It's a somewhat different motion to get accustomed to, but I think with more experience I could get it down.

I realized that this could be extremely liberating. I knew there was a trail there, somewhere underneath the foot of snow, but the trail no longer mattered. The trail is now everywhere. The idea of a trail somehow now seems limiting. With this new tool I can blaze my own trail.