Return of the Peep

Snowriders on the slopes of Mt. Bachelor beware....

The Peep is back!!!

The Peep is back!

My friend Kim has this most excellent Peep costume (just like the marshmallow Peeps you see during Easter).  Last year I borrowed it to wear for Mt. Hood Meadows' last day of operations.

Fast forward to this year.  Kim and I were planning an early April trip to Mt. Bachelor, and I had a brainstorm.

Me:  "Kim, can you bring your Peep costume?" 

Kim:  "Whaaa.....you want to wear it again?  Okay, I guess."

Me:  "And can you bring your son's GoPro camera?  Wouldn't it be fun to get the Peep on video?"

Kim:  "Ha, ha sure!  Linda you're such a dork!"

Kim and Dale - my partners in crime

We met up with my brother Dale, who lives in nearby Bend.  When I slipped the yellow fuzzy Peep costume over my jacket, he busted out in laughter.  Kim strapped her son's GoPro camera on a chest harness, and we spent the next several minutes figuring out how to use the thing (creating a bunch of footage of my face staring at the camera asking "Is it on?")

But finally - success!  We made a video of our first run, and just had to try a second.  The only problem - it was snowing so hard and the flakes were so wet, the camera lens became spotted with water drops.  We were busy wiping off our goggles, but no one thought to check the camera lens! 

I figured skiing in early April, we'd have sunny skies, warm temps and nice soft snow.  Well, the skiing gods have a sense of humor (especially this year).  The weather at Mt. Bachelor that day was nothing but gray, foggy skies, with huge, wet snowflakes falling.

The above video is one of our later creations (when it finally stopped snowing).  Dale is really good at spinning 360s on his skis.  I made a couple attempts at a 360, much to Kim's amusement.  Check it out.  (Kim's comments are hilarious!)

Havin' fun with my bro

It was really a hoot to watch people's reactions to a costumed skier.  I got lots of stares, a few laughs, and one guy serenaded me with "the Rubby Ducky" song in lift line (he thought I was a duck).  A couple folks asked if I was a banana (later I realized the Peep bill had flipped up, so it did make me look more like the fruit than a Peep).

During one of our first morning runs, we came upon a group of skiers lined up and posing for a picture.  Kim joked "You should photobomb them."  Soooo......I skied over and placed myself on the end of their line-up.  And Kim captured the whole thing on film!  Check it out in the above clip. 

My video crew

It snowed heavily all morning.  By lunchtime, all three of us were soaking wet from the slushy snow.  Taking a break in the lodge to eat, I removed the heavy, waterlogged Peep costume, and hung it over the back of my chair.  If it didn't dry out some, I wasn't sure I wanted to put it back on for the afternoon.

Peep points the way

But some warm food and drink in the belly always changes one's outlook.  And it helped that when we emerged after lunch, the snowfall had stopped.  Although the slopes were still super foggy, at least we wouldn't get wetter.  Time for more Peep foolishness!

The afternoon conditions proved better for shooting footage.  At least the camera lens stayed clear.  And although dense fog made for poor visibility ("skiing by Braille" as Kim called it) we still managed to get some fun videos.  This last video is my favorite.  Although Kim usually stays in the center of the groomed runs, I like to ski up the sides and into the trees, popping in and out of the main run.  After zipping through a short glade, I emerged onto the main trail, headed straight for Kim.  She caught our near-collision on video and I think it's one of our funnier moments.  Check it out for a laugh.

Rear view

Oh my - such a fun day!  Even though the weather was less than stellar, the good company, and the goofy antics made it memorable.  Of course, now I want a GoPro camera of my own.

And I've grown rather fond of the costume.  I have a feeling the Peep isn't done skiing yet....