Crazy Saturday

Woah, it's not even 3pm and today has been crazy.

Usually on Saturday mornings I make a bee line for Zumba class - as you all know, I looove Zumba!  But today was different.  It is absolutely gorgeous outside!  We have clear blue skies, warm(er) temperatures, and Mt. Werner just looks awesome in Steamboat's backdrop.  So I decided there was no way I could spend today inside.  With that in mind, I had to get some early errands out of the way before the day could really begin.  I hit the bank, the post office (we are Ebay people, so we're in the post office all the time), the store, and the SKI SHOP!  WOOT!  My skis were there for way too long and absolutely had to be rescued.  I'm dying to make some turns this week, and now I'm ready to go!

On the way home from Ski Haus, I decided to go a different route than I usually go.  This other route could be a potential way to work, so I figured it was worth exploring.

Just a few minutes up the road I realized it could be trouble, so I slowed way down.  The other side of the road was dry because it spends most of the day in the sun.  My side of the road was mostly in the shade from all the beautiful trees that line the side of the road and their placement relative to the sun.  So, needless to say, it was icy.  And slick.  And a little scary in parts.  The speed limit was 25 miles per hour, and I was barely going 20mph.

All of the sudden, out of nowhere, I completely lost control of my car.  Within seconds I slid off the road, into the ditch full of snow, and was headed fast for a tree - a big tree.  One that could clearly do some damage, and it was right in front of my face.  AH!

Praise Jesus, I stopped about a foot in front of the tree.  I could not believe it.  I immediately threw my car in to four wheel drive and tried to back out.  No luck.  Forward?  No way.  I was totally stuck.  And then I realized - I didn't have my cell phone! 

A super nice girl stopped just at that moment, and from there, I was rescued.  Turns out I did have my cell phone (whew), and the nice girl, and two other cars stopped pretty quickly.  We decided that with a little digging, pulling me out was totally possible, so one of the cars went up the hill to get straps and a shovel.  By the time they got back, we were ready to go.  I used my windshield scraper to get most of the snow out from around the wheels and thought I had made a pretty good contribution to my rescue given my lack of supplies.

These people truly rescued me.  There is no way I would have been able to get out of that ditch myself.  But these good Samaritans took time out of their Saturday morning and pulled me out of the ditch.  Yay!  I tried to give them all some money and offered to take them out to dinner, but they just said to pay it forward.  Help the next person you see stuck in a ditch :-D

So, future person that's stuck in a ditch - no fear, I WILL STOP AND HELP YOU!

I am so grateful for those cars of people who stopped to help me.  Wow.  Thank you friendly Steamboat people!  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  Thank you.  And Lord, thank you for stopping me from hitting that tree, because that was 100% you.

To recover from my quasi traumatic morning, I went for an awesome hike on one of the Spring Creek Trails by my house.  Fresh air, beautiful views, and getting my blood pumping was exactly what I needed.

All in all, a great day.  I would have settled for less eventful, but it's all good.  I'm just grateful to be unhurt and able to enjoy the great outdoors.

In light of the ditch incident, here are some Winter Car Emergency tips... just in case.
Winter Emergency kit... JUST IN CASE!

Live well friends, and enjoy the rest of this beautiful Saturday!
J