It is a tad long so if you prefer, you can find the PDF version in my downloads area, or for the lazy among you, click here
Now for the story ...
The life of a Snowboard
By Shannon DuBey
Dedicated to Tristan, the youngest snowboard wizard in my life. Ride on Lil’ Man!
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The sun was shining brightly through the thick glass windows along the front of the store. Timmy ducked behind Bruce to shield his eyes from the light.
“Morning Timmy!” Bruce said. He leaned forward to give Timmy a little more room.
Bruce towered above Timmy in the rack, standing a full 163cm. He was built for tall boys. Timmy was a rather short 114cm. He was built for younger riders.
Bruce looked after Timmy. He kept him out of trouble when the store was closed and he kept an eye out for just the right Little Rider while the store was open. Snowboards don’t really have brothers and sisters but that never mattered to Timmy or Bruce. Timmy thought of Bruce as his big brother and Bruce looked out for Timmy like any big brother would.
“Hey Bruce! Maybe today will be the day. Maybe today the perfect Little Rider will stop in with their mom and want ME!” Timmy excitedly jumped up and down, bouncing on his flexible tail as he talked.
Timmy was excited. He knew that today was Saturday, the busiest day in their small snowboard store. The snow started to fall last weekend and by now, Timmy could see that the ground was completely white outside the store. He was ready to find the right Little Rider and play with them in the snow all winter long.
“Might be Timmy, might be. Better keep those eyes open today and make sure you stay on the top of the stack. Out where all those Little Riders can see your slick graphics and smooth curves.”
Not long after the owner of the store turned on the ‘OPEN’ sign and unlocked the door, Timmy heard the bell chime as the door opened. It was a customer, with a small boy at her side. He stood up tall next to Bruce and waited. Would this be the Little Rider he’s been waiting to find?
“Mommy I like THIS ONE!”
Timmy felt the small fingers grab at his tip and quickly spin him around on his tail. Before he knew it he was laying flat on the floor and could feel the small feet of a Little Rider standing where bindings would one day be. Timmy was excited! He wondered if this could be his lucky day. He listened carefully as the store owner talked to the little boy’s mother about snowboarding.
“This little board is a bit big for him right now, but he’ll grow into it soon,” the owner said. “It will sure get him down the hill and be a great beginner board for your son. And he seems to like it, which counts for something.”
“Oh I DO like it Momma. Can I have it? Please!” the boy pleaded with his mother.
Timmy was crushed when he heard the boy’s mother say “Not today son. We’re just looking, remember?”
For the rest of the day Timmy was sad. He just knew he had missed his chance to play in the snow with a little boy who would love him and take care of him. Timmy was a snowboard and standing up in the rack getting dusty was just no fun. He wanted to slide down the hills as fast as they could go. He wanted to hear the giggle of a child standing firmly on top of him as they carved their way down the slopes.
“Cheer up Timmy; it’s still early in the season. We’ll get you out on those hills yet this season, I promise,” Bruce told him. He was trying to cheer Timmy up after a long day with no Little Rider taking him home to play.
Three whole days passed and not many people came into the small store at all. Each time Timmy heard the bell chime at the door, he hoped it would be the boy’s mother coming back for him. On the fourth day, a tall lady with short dark hair came into the store and walked right over to Timmy. She picked him up, twirled him around on the floor, tested how flexible he was, and walked him up to the register.
“Good luck Timmy,” Bruce whispered as she walked away from the rack with Timmy in her hands. “See you out on the slopes Little Brother!”
Timmy wasn’t happy he was leaving the small snowboard store with this strange lady. He didn’t see any children with her and he hadn’t seen her in the store before. “I wonder why she chose me, I’m way too small for her to ride,” Timmy thought to himself.
When Timmy left the small snowboard store, he was wrapped up in dark paper and placed into a large plastic bag. He couldn’t see where he was going and began to get very sleepy as he was carried along the noisy streets outside the store. When Timmy awoke, he was still wrapped up and couldn’t move at all. He heard the voices of children playing, laughter, and then paper tearing. Timmy was blinded by the sudden bright light and closed his eyes immediately to block it out.
“Mommy, it’s my snowboard!” a familiar voice exclaimed.
Timmy opened his eyes just in time to see the room around him spin in circles as the little boy twirled him around the room. When it stopped, Timmy was looking up at the ceiling and the smiling face of the same little boy who had found him in the snowboard store two weeks before. Now Timmy was excited, this was his Little Rider. Timmy had been a birthday present for him.
Not long after the birthday party, Timmy had bindings mounted where they belonged and was stored in the corner of his Little Rider’s room. They were waiting for their first lesson on the hill. Timmy could hardly wait.
On a cool Saturday morning, Timmy awoke to his Little Rider standing in front of him all dressed in a snowsuit and gloves. Timmy knew this was the big day and he was ready for it. Off to the hills they went. All the way there, Timmy was daydreaming about flying down the biggest hills as fast as he could. He wanted to feel the cold snow on his back, the weight of his Little Rider on his belly, and the wind blowing across his tip and tail.
At the top of the beginner hill, Timmy got scared. This was his first time playing outside and the hill looked a lot bigger from the top. He tried not to shiver when his Little Rider laid him in the snow and started to strap into the bindings bolted to Timmy’s tummy.
Before Timmy knew it, his Little Rider stood up tall. He and hopped in a circle until Timmy’s tip was facing down the hill. Timmy closed his eyes as his Little Rider pushed off and began to slide straight down the hill.
Their first ride down the beginner hill hurt! Timmy and his Little Rider fell many times. They ran into a soft fence at the bottom and tumbled to a stop. Timmy was relieved to be at the bottom of the hill when he opened his eyes again and felt his Little Rider undo one foot from the bindings. Timmy was not so relieved when they headed over to the lift. He knew that they were going back to the top of the hill.
That first day on the hill with his Little Rider was rough on Timmy. He needed a rest when they got back to his new house. Timmy leaned his tip into the corner and closed his eyes for a short nap as soon as they got home.
It was five more trips to the hills with his Little Rider before Timmy began to get comfortable sliding down the hill and carving into the snow. Eventually, Timmy began to enjoy the days he spent out on the hill with his Little Rider. When the sun began to melt away the snow and turn the grass green, Timmy was sad. He knew that meant summer was on its way and he would have to wait a long time before he could play in the snow with his Little Rider again.
Timmy waited patiently all through that summer and was happy to see the snow return the following November. He knew it was time to play again and this year, he wouldn’t be so nervous on the hill with his Little Rider. Timmy was right and each time they went down the hill together, both Timmy and his Little Rider got better at turning and stopping. Timmy loved playing in the snow with his Little Rider all winter and didn’t mind the long summer days that left him gathering dust in the corner over the next two summers.
It was now almost three years after Timmy had first met his Little Rider and the summer days were growing shorter and colder as each passed. Timmy was excited for winter to come back and even more excited when he heard a long forgotten voice on his left say “Hey there Little Brother! Been having fun out on those hills without me?”
Timmy’s Little Rider had an older brother who liked to snowboard too. That was why Timmy had wanted to snowboard since he could walk and had gotten his own board for his fourth birthday. Timmy jumped for joy when he saw Bruce leaned up against the wall next to him.
“Bruce! How did you get here? I’ve had the best time; my Little Rider is getting really good. He even tries to jump, but we must work on his landing more. Sometimes they hurt!” Timmy said.
“We’ll have plenty of time to work on those landings this winter Little Brother. Just when I thought I would never get a rider of my own, I managed to get the perfect one. Timmy’s older brother grew out of his snowboard last year. I’m his new one!”
“Oh Bruce, what fun we’ll have this year. I can’t wait!” Timmy exclaimed.
Timmy and Bruce didn’t have to wait much longer. By the end of the next week, they were both out on the hill with their riders. Bruce’s rider was much bigger and had more practice than Timmy’s Little Rider, but Timmy managed to keep up with Brice pretty good. They played and played on the hills with their riders in the cool winter sunshine. It was the best winter Timmy could remember.
Winter was almost over when Timmy and Bruce headed further north for a weekend of playing on some bigger hills with their riders. Both of them were excited to see the bigger hills and try new tricks with their riders in the soft snow. They went fast, and slow, and sunk into the fresh powder. They went faster and faster on the groomed trails and found jumps and turns everywhere they looked. They had lots of fun. It was the best weekend Timmy and Bruce had all winter and they were ready for a break by the end.
Since the trip home was long, Timmy and Bruce had been put on top of the car in a snowboard rack. They were locked securely in place. They had ridden this way many times before and neither of them was scared of it anymore. They felt safe up on the rack.
Timmy and Bruce were only about half way home when Timmy felt something strange on his tip. He opened his eyes and squinted in to the sun to see that the snowboard rack had come undone.
“Oh no! Bruce look!” Timmy screamed, but it was too late.
Before Timmy had finished warning Bruce about the rack, he felt the wind blow hard under his back and lift him off the top of the car. He was scared! Timmy could feel the wind flipping him end over end as he flew high above the car. He tried his best to flip over, but before he had time to turn all the way around, his tip smacked hard into the pavement and he fell on his side.
Timmy wasn’t the only one who had come off the top of the car either. Bruce was heavier but once the wind got under his back, he too flew up off the top of the car with a loud WHOOSH and began to roll over in the air. When Bruce landed, he skidded to a stop on his back and felt the rocks and rough pavement dig deep into his back. He was hurt!
Thankfully, when Bruce had been torn off the top of the car by the wind, the driver heard the noise and stopped as soon as they could. They ran back and picked up both Bruce and Timmy from the road. They quickly tucked them inside the car and continued on their way home. They new Bruce and Timmy had been hurt, but the only way to help either of them was to take them home first.
“Bruce? Bruce are you there?” Timmy called out when he managed to open his eyes again.
Timmy’s tip hurt and the room was spinning a little when he looked around for Bruce. He recognized the room, it belonged to his Little Rider, but he had never seen it from this angle before. When his Little Rider wasn’t playing in the snow with Timmy, he stood him up in the corner where Timmy could look out the window on his right, and see the door on his left. Now, Timmy could still see the door directly across the room. He could not see the window at all and he was up much higher than he had ever been before.
“Bruce? Where did my Little Rider put me this time, my tip hurts still, am I okay?”
“Hey little brother! I’m still here but you’ll have to look at your tail to see me,” Bruce said.
Timmy looked down at his tail and finally saw the side of Bruce’s tip. He was happy to see his big brother. Timmy didn’t understand why he had been moved from his corner spot with Bruce.
“Bruce, why am I not in the corner with you anymore?” Timmy asked.
“You hit you tip awful hard when you flew off the top of the car Little Brother. You can’t hit that hard without some damage,” Bruce replied.
“Damage?”
“You said you tip still hurts didn’t you?” Bruce questioned Timmy.
“Yes,” Timmy replied.
“Well, Little Brother, it hurts because it’s broken,” Bruce said sadly. “You’ve become a trophy for your Little Rider.”
“A trophy? You mean I can’t play in the snow anymore?” Timmy asked.
“That’s right. Now you get to guard the room and be the subject of many stories. You’ll always be remembered fondly by your Little Rider. They never forget their first snowboard Timmy, and you can hang on his wall to remind him of all the fun times you two had.”
“But I want to play in the snow Bruce!” Timmy cried.
“I know Timmy, but every snowboard has to stop playing outside in the snow eventually. Sometimes we are outgrown. Sometimes we’re just forgotten about. But the li=ucky ones, like you Timmy, the lucky ones go out in style!” Bruce said. “Your Little Rider will always remember you Timmy. You taught him how to ride, to jump, and to land! That’s something to be proud of Timmy!”
Timmy was sad that he could no longer play in the snow with his Little Rider but he knew that he had been a good first snowboard for his Little Rider. Timmy stretched hit tip as far as it would stretch. He surveyed parts of the room he could never see before. He was proud of himself, and of his Little Rider.
Timmy had four great winters to play with his Little Rider in the snow, to be his very first snowboard. When he was damaged and no longer suitable to play with in the snow, he had been proudly mounted on the wall above his Little Rider’s bed. It was a place of honor in any child’s room, Timmy knew that. He would always remember the fun times he had spent playing with his Little Rider in the snow, and he would enjoy getting to know all the rest of the snowboards that his Little Rider would have over the years. For Timmy, they would all be his Little Brothers, because Timmy had been his Little Rider’s first snowboard. That was something special!
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