February 9, 2000
Ever since I can remember, I’ve had nightmares about my walls turning into hundreds of living snakes. My first real encounter with a snake happened when I was about two years old and I saw a garter snake on our patio. My dad proceeded to kill it with a rake, pick it up, and toss it over the fence. My next experience was in seventh grade; a friend of mine had a four-foot ball python named Vengeance. One night she slept over at my house and had to have her snake with her. When we went to sleep, she placed the snake under the turtleneck she was wearing so it wouldn’t get cold. She woke me up in the middle of the night to tell me the snake was gone. We couldn’t find it anywhere and went back to sleep. The next day I had to tell my dad–he was furious. I think at that point I was the most scared I’ve ever been. I knew there was a snake lost in my house somewhere and if any one of my family members stumbled upon him, they would probably have a heart attack–or I’d find my poor little cocker spaniel strangled to death. My friend eventually found Vengeance the next afternoon, no harm done.–Tara Miller What’s the most scared you’ve ever been? Blaise Rosenthal Age: 26 Sponsors: M3, Planet Earth, Thirty-two, Etnies, Active, GMC Gloves, Flux, Arnette
"The most scared I’ve been was at Wiegele’s Heli-ski. Matty Goodman got buried in a tree well and I was the first guy on the scene. I unstrapped and he had totally disappeared. I found his board a couple of inches down and kept looking for his head–where I thought it would be because I thought he was laying flat–but I couldn’t find it anywhere. I knew I had to find him or else he would die. It turned out he was completely vertical upside-down. He was bright blue when we finally found him."
Tricia Byrnes Age: 24 Sponsors: Lamar, Uvex, RSM, Xnix, Spoon, Nokia
"I’m pretty lucky nothing really scary has actually happened to me, but when I let my imagination get the best of me I am the most scared. I believe that snakes are under my bed, sharks are in the pool, and midgets with guns are trying to kill me."
David Pitschi Age: 22 Sponsors: Salomon, Billabong, Smith, Level, Globe, Nixon, PULP68
"The most scared I’ve ever been was when I was about twelve years old and there were huge constructions by my house. There was this big pile of dirt and some friends and I decided to dig a tunnel through it. It was all fun and games until the tunnel caved in on me. I was buried alive; I couldn’t move an inch. I panicked, used up all my air, and then I just laid there waiting for death. Luckily, someone dug me out in time. I think that was the closest I’ve been to death. Now my worst fear is avalanches. Never ride with out a Pieps [avalanche beacon] and practice finding it."
Jeff Anderson Age: 20 Sponsors: Burton, Volcom, Oakley, Liberty Board Shop "The most scared I’ve ever been was also probably the most sad I’ve ever been, when my friend Jamil died. It was a realization of how easily avalanches and death can occur, and it really hit close to home. Pretty much every day I go out in the backcountry I’m scared, but that time I was scared the most–I guess it was sadness as well. It really freaked me out for the rest of the year–I couldn’t even go out and ride in the backcountry at all."
GOT.SOMETHING.TO.SAY?
TELL
US IN MESSAGE BOARDS
Transworld Snowboarding Archives
subscribe | privacy policy | �2001 TransWorld Media