How To Speak “Ski” in Bend, Oregon
When I first arrived in Bend, someone asked me, “Do you alpine ski?” I stared at them blankly. They barreled on, “No? Do you Nordic?” This did not help clear things up. I finally replied with the worst possible answer, “I just, um, regular, normal ski, you know downhill…” I then got a quick (and impatient) lecture about the different “normal” types of skiing. It seems people in Bend were born knowing these ski lingo distinctions. I just nodded and smiled…and died…