Northern Hemi Season Trip Report thingy - Sälen, Sweden
Wow, thanks everybody for your kind words. I’m glad you’ve enjoyed it and I haven’t bored you all to tears.
@ozgirl….no we arrived about 2 weeks after lifts first opened, so that won’t be a possibility this season, I’m afraid!
I’ll do a whole post about what is next in the next day or two 
Also, if Väggen is your idea of heaven, you should give sälen a visit sometime. You can do Väggen one day, then head over to Trysil the next day - they have another 45 degree slope there - I think it is a bit longer than väggen, too.
@rider….thanks so much for doing that with the photos. I could and would have done it myself if I’d known there wasn’t going to be a quick fix. I really appreciate you putting in the time to do it and feel a bit bad that I didn’t already do it myself, now!
Thanks Mizu, Muddy, Lanox and Koper and MrRadPants
No worries at all, cords. You put in a huge effort with your trip report. We broke the photos, we will fix the photos. 
Wicked, Cords. You’re killin’ it! 
Trout was doing switch shiftys and 540s, I learnt to do backside shiftys and stiffys (dunno what they are really called, but its when you go over a jump, straighten your legs, have your arms straight and by your sides and your torso and head stiff and straight - anyone know what they are really called? I think it is called a stoney baloney when you spin while doing it?)
Can anyone help with what this is really called?
Here is a frame grab to help, although it isn’t the best example as my head should be up straight, too!
“Pencil Necker”!!!!!
I’ve heard ‘Candle Jump’....but that is just what Freddy calls it
Maybe a good idea for a new thread?????
“What Trick Is This”????? “Name This Trick”?????
Crackers’ mrs posted this on facebook.
Bit of swedish cultural insight!....its written from an American perspective so there is a few yank specific mentions but it is still pretty good and a fair amount of accuracy!
Lifts are closed here in Sälen for the season, as of last sunday. I had a bit of a downer end to the season though, not being able to ride on the last day because I am old and broken.
I slept funny last thursday night and woke up with a stiff and sore neck. This isn’t too unusual for me, overall my muscles are always tight and waking up with a neck spasm happens at least once every couple of months. Normally it just takes a day or two and I’m fine again. This time though, I went snowboarding and crashed and it just got worse.
I rode anyway on Friday and had a few crashes and friday evening my neck was even worse.
Saturday, however, was the most amazing weather and I convinced myself that if I went riding, I might loosen up a bit. Plus it was the 2nd last day of the season and I had things I wanted to get done! The first hour or so I was feeling pretty good and I did loosen up a bit, but a few short landings and crashes later, I wasn’t feeling too good at all. I had to work for a few hours on saturday night and I was in a lot of pain just holding my head up straight. I realised then that I was no chance at being able to ride again the next day, the last day of the season.
One of my goals was to bust a method out on the first jump in the red line in pink park. That saturday I gave it a red hot crack until my neck was seizing up more and more and I had to admit defeat, give up and go home. I found that if I was going a speed I was comfortable in attempting the method at, that it wasn’t quite fast enough to make the landing, and I’d stomp the knuckle….when I went fast enough to make it, I was just trying to maintain control in the kick and in the air and not able to lend any brain space to attempt the method.
This was the closest I could get:
If I’d seen that picture at the start of the season, I would have been over the moon. I’m pretty happy with it, but know if I’d been 100%, I might have been able to get the tweak in it that would have made it special (for me).
What I am definitely happy with is the height I’m getting off that jump. It is pretty good, for me, anyway!
Season is over here now then, but I have another few days riding left. Tomorrow we’re headed to Hemsedal in Norway (5 hours drive) for an end of season trip until sunday with our work company. Its closing weekend there and they are having a 1st of May festival with bands etc at afterski.
I’m pretty amped for this trip! We are paying a bit less than $250 each and included in that is 3 day lift pass, 3 nights accommodation in a sick on-snow lodge (owner of the company owns it), entry to the music festival and night club, 3 dinners and breakfasts, cleaning of the house after we leave and linen etc.
I didn’t even really know the festival was on, then when I looked it up I was pleasantly surprised to see that The Sounds are playing. Not my favourite band but I have listened to a bit of their music over the years so it will be good to check them out live.
As of tonight (weds), my neck is still giving me a bit of trouble, despite having not done a lot since saturday. I’ve been putting Voltaren gel on it and taking the odd Voltaren tablet. I’m really hoping its better so it doesn’t affect my riding on friday, saturday and sunday. I’ve been frothing on the idea of Hemsedal’s 800 metre long red level park line for the whole season - I simply HAVE to be able to ride it. Here’s some pics from their facebook page:
It is always fun to go ride somewhere new and I already am in love with Norway! It is my favourite country I’ve ever been to, I think.
Will try and update this when we get back early next week, but may not have time before we go to England for my birthday!
Those last 2 photos of that red line are boner inducing!
Tear it up!
Those last 2 photos of that red line are boner inducing!
Tear it up!
Couldn’t have said it better myself 
Killing it, cords!
Happy upcoming birthday! I hope you have a great time in England.
Oh and so when are you moving on? Whats next? I know you have the round the world tickets and are planning on an american road trip but whats in between?
I’m actually staying here in Sälen for the summer, now. The plan was to go home to sjötorp with Fred, but I got offered work here for the summer, and finding work in or around his little village for the summer would not be easy at all, so I took this work.
We’re both up here working until the end of May, then Fred goes home to start his canal lock-keeping job in early June. We’ll be going back and forth whenever possible (its 4hrs drive and his job is 3 days on, 2 days off). We moved house to share with a couple from Hungary for the summer. Its a sweet place, and big enough that the only thing we need share is the kitchen, which always helps. Best part is that we’re only playing 2500 kronor per couple, per month ($94 per week including electricity and water). Being apart for June/July/Half of August isn’t ideal (in fact it is going to downright suck!) but I couldn’t really turn down the definite money here, especially before our American trip.
So it looks like I’ll be doing some Downhill mountain biking for the first time ever! Going to try and get a cheap 2nd hand bike, but I know nothing about them, so I’ll just have to see! A downhill mountain biker I know who until recently has been living year round in Whis has warned me that I will very quickly get addicted. I told him that I already have too many interests and I can’t really afford to get addicted to this sport as well!
After America (roughly 20 August-20 Oct) we’ll be back home in Australia…. but only for a few weeks!
We had so much fun this season that we’ve decided we’re going to come back for one last hurrah and do next season here again. Also, it is pretty easy for us to save money here, and after the America trip we won’t be broke, but we won’t be rich either, so coming back and getting a little extra money behind us won’t hurt at all. Our rad boss has said that he’ll organise it so we can have jobs that are more like supervisor roles and we likely won’t have to do any actual cleaning ourselves, which means our bodies will be much better off, and not so tired and worn out on our days off, as they were this season.
I ended up with 63 days of riding this winter, which is a lot less than I had hoped for when I was dreaming about this winter from Australia. I am 4 years older than my last season though (did 86 days then) so I think surpassing that total was a little optimistic, maybe!
Gotta go now. Off to England in the morning. Will do a Norway/England TR update when I get back!
Safe Travels, cords!!!!!
Sounds like you have got it all sorted!!
Enjoy!