Gliding down the slope, dodging the snow covered pines and jumping the smaller of the many boulders, I’ve never felt so alive. The sun reflects off the snow, making the world seem impossibly white and for once, pure. My heart is pounding in my head, threatening to explode unless the adrenaline finds a way out. So I push harder. I take higher jumps, tighter curves.

Then the ground starts to shake, loosening small stones and pieces of snow. But with the help fo gravity, these small pieces rush down the slope behind me, picking up more and more snow, escalating into every boarder’s nightmare. I try to pick up speed, but know it’s no use. The wall of snow slowly creeps up behind me, pulling me under. I know this is it, the end. Then why am I not scared?