Popping ollies and avoiding oysters

It's now over two weeks since leaving Lloyds and I question how I have ended up on a bus in the Rocky mountains about to embark on a snowboarding lesson at Breckenridge. Where was the rational, predictable Ian when I made the decision to quit my job and spend 5 months snowboarding? I’ve been here for two days and am feeling a little jet-lagged and possibly suffering with the ‘altitude sickness’ that the Coloradoan, sat next to me on the plane, warned me about. Helpfully she also advised I tip between 10% and 20%, always tip in bars and avoid the local delicacy known as ‘Rocky mountain oysters’ (which are not oysters).

I arrive late for my lesson but with a typically snowboarding attitude the instructor is nonchalant. After a day of riding the green slope and confidently linking my turns, the instructor encourages me to ‘pop an ollie’ (effectively this means doing a jump). He explains the technique and I manage to pop slightly less than one inch of air. Shaun White needn’t be concerned.