Snow Surfers Hit a Snag

A QUESTION OF BALANCE. The author (right) and older sister Bonnie prepare to attempt their sledding feat. Click to Enlarge [+]

THE HYRE GIRLS. Betsy Chastain (front) of Knoxville, Tennessee; the author (middle); and Bonnie Hardt of Crossville. Click to Enlarge [+]

A favorite sledding spot for the neighborhood kids in my hometown of Winchester, Indiana, was the big hill behind Morton Elementary School.

Across a wide yard at the bottom of the hill ran a small creek, and the bigger boys—and some of the fun-­loving dads—liked to see if they could get up enough speed to make it all the way to the creek bank. I saw many a young man, along with my dad, end up in the creek, sled and all! Another obstacle was a huge tree at the bottom of the hill.

Most of the kids were daredevils and liked to see what kind of tricks they could pull. Part of the fun was watching the mishaps.

One snowy day in 1973, when my sister Bonnie and I were 14 and 13 years old, we had each taken a turn going down the hill while standing up on the sled. You had to hold the steering rope so it wouldn’t get caught in the runners, but you couldn’t really steer, and there was no way to brake.

Bonnie and I got a little cocky with our success and decided to try sledding upright together. She stood in front and held the rope, and I stepped on behind her and rocked the sled a little to get it moving down the hill.

Away we flew, with no control whatsoever. About halfway down, we hit a dry spot, the sled stopped dead and Bonnie went flat down on her face in front of it. Instinct kicked in, and without thinking, I started to run to try to stay upright.

I ended up running right up Bonnie’s back, with one foot landing on the back of her head, smashing her face even deeper into the snow before I landed face down in front of her.

Neither of us was hurt, but, boy, was she angry! She must’ve thought that I had some control over my feet and that I stepped on her on purpose.

I guess that day it was everybody else’s turn to enjoy seeing the Hyre girls’ mishap!

—Kathy Hyre Ward, Richmond, Indiana