I don't miss skiing anymore... am I broken?

PacificRimJob

PacificRimJob

Active member
Staff member
I haven't been excited to ski in so long... probably for a whole year now...

This last winter I just had no real motivation to do it. I got in maybe 20 hours or so in total all season. I went out simply for the sake of it. I was constantly trying to find that spark that always made me so amped up to slap on skis and go for it. I didn't even go for a backcountry tour one time.

My last day of skiing was way back in February. It was sunny and beautiful and cruisy and nice. The snow was good. Everything was pretty ideal. But I was over it. I haven't thought much about it since, nor felt the itch.

Usually by this time, if I haven't skied for a matter of months, I feel this desire... this itch... this FOMO... this urge to get out there and go for a ski. This year, I just don't really care.

--

Has anyone else gone through this? Where they just... don't care about skiing as much anymore? Perhaps you've taken a break for a while and came back to it with a totally new energy? I hope to get the stoke back... This sport has meant so much to me and taken me almost everywhere I've been...
 
topic:DingoSean said:
I haven't been excited to ski in so long... probably for a whole year now...

This last winter I just had no real motivation to do it. I got in maybe 20 hours or so in total all season. I went out simply for the sake of it. I was constantly trying to find that spark that always made me so amped up to slap on skis and go for it. I didn't even go for a backcountry tour one time.

My last day of skiing was way back in February. It was sunny and beautiful and cruisy and nice. The snow was good. Everything was pretty ideal. But I was over it. I haven't thought much about it since, nor felt the itch.

Usually by this time, if I haven't skied for a matter of months, I feel this desire... this itch... this FOMO... this urge to get out there and go for a ski. This year, I just don't really care.

--

Has anyone else gone through this? Where they just... don't care about skiing as much anymore? Perhaps you've taken a break for a while and came back to it with a totally new energy? I hope to get the stoke back... This sport has meant so much to me and taken me almost everywhere I've been...
Click to expand...

What else is going on in your life? Are you hyped or motivated about something else? Career, other hobbies, or lifestyle that you're passionate about or do you basically not feel spark about anything?
 
14441512:mystery3 said:
What else is going on in your life? Are you hyped or motivated about something else? Career, other hobbies, or lifestyle that you're passionate about or do you basically not feel spark about anything?
Click to expand...

I mean I'm definitely focused on grad school and my photography, but these sorta things never prevented me from being stoked about skiing before in the past... So it's pretty hard to say why I just don't feel any itch towards it now. Normally I'd be thinking already about how I'm going to fit skiing in around the rest of my life.

Like... I feel like don't even care about skiing next winter. My general feeling towards it is that if I don't then it won't bother me at all. I've never felt so apathetic about it in my life - even during 2015 when there was just a really bad lack of snow where I was living.

It's just really weird. Maybe my brain is just prioritizing things differently.
 
Do you have a girlfriend? Could be the common cause. Way too many people I know will pick up a chick and never have the drive to really ski again.
 
has happened to me between some of the best seasons of my life, dont worry too much. gotta step away from things you love to appreciate them in new ways. letting it all breathe
 
It's natural man. You get older, you start to prioritize things differently and pursue other interests. Skiing is fun, but it stops being the number one priority that keeps you up at night. I started to feel the same way going in to last season, then right around new years i broke my foot, but the doctor didn't catch it until months later. I would try to ski on a broken foot on powder days, and it would remind me of why I love skiing so much, but it would hurt so fucking bad. I got surgery pretty much right after the season ended. I definitely would love to be healthy for this ski season, but more than that I just need to exercise once my foot allows me to. It really has cemented a feeling i've been having for a few years, which is that I do sincerely love skiing, and I think it will always be a part of my life, but its not worth sacrificing everything else for.
 
hated winter this year, had no enjoyment for skiing or being outside. im realizing that being cold sucks and going up and down the canyons makes me want to blow my brains all over the walls
 
14441533:weastcoat said:
Do you have a girlfriend? Could be the common cause. Way too many people I know will pick up a chick and never have the drive to really ski again.
Click to expand...

Actually, I skied a lot more the previous season with a committed partner than I did this last season with the more inconsistent partner I now have...
 
14441518:DingoSean said:
I mean I'm definitely focused on grad school and my photography, but these sorta things never prevented me from being stoked about skiing before in the past... So it's pretty hard to say why I just don't feel any itch towards it now. Normally I'd be thinking already about how I'm going to fit skiing in around the rest of my life.

Like... I feel like don't even care about skiing next winter. My general feeling towards it is that if I don't then it won't bother me at all. I've never felt so apathetic about it in my life - even during 2015 when there was just a really bad lack of snow where I was living.

It's just really weird. Maybe my brain is just prioritizing things differently.
Click to expand...

Yeah, as long as you aren't bummed on everything then I'd be concerned about depression which is pretty common in young and youngish men these days.

If you're pushing hard in other areas and setting then meeting goals in your life I wouldn't be concerned, just hang 'em up for a whole and see where life takes you. I didn't really ski much in my 20s and got back into it to teach my kids how in my early 30s, now I ski more than I was ever able to previously, probably got 25-30 days this season.
 
After a childhood jam-packed with skiing non stop.... life and events took me away from skiing for y e a r s...30+

Last year was the first returning and, no surprise, had a blast and thought of it often

So ya, there's hope.

Don't have to beat yourself up.

It'll come back on your time

topic:DingoSean said:
I haven't been excited to ski in so long... probably for a whole year now...

This last winter I just had no real motivation to do it. I got in maybe 20 hours or so in total all season. I went out simply for the sake of it. I was constantly trying to find that spark that always made me so amped up to slap on skis and go for it. I didn't even go for a backcountry tour one time.

My last day of skiing was way back in February. It was sunny and beautiful and cruisy and nice. The snow was good. Everything was pretty ideal. But I was over it. I haven't thought much about it since, nor felt the itch.

Usually by this time, if I haven't skied for a matter of months, I feel this desire... this itch... this FOMO... this urge to get out there and go for a ski. This year, I just don't really care.

--

Has anyone else gone through this? Where they just... don't care about skiing as much anymore? Perhaps you've taken a break for a while and came back to it with a totally new energy? I hope to get the stoke back... This sport has meant so much to me and taken me almost everywhere I've been...
Click to expand...
 
Life is about balance. I was pretty anxious and fomo-esque about the season this year being a front range weekend warrior. Really felt like I was being robbed. Then my wife visited me (long story but her visa is still processing - european citizen) and we got pounded by great cycles pretty much every weekend. After those experiences, I was like “okay cool. I’m officially done with the season”. Plus, it’s always colder than hell where I ski.

Sometimes my passion ebbs. For me, the best is to accept it and embrace it. Maybe it will come back (probably), maybe it won’t. Both are okay. I think we sometimes get in this ecosystem of being this crazy version of ourselves for the sake of skiing and we forget to enjoy the ride. Enjoy the ride. Looks like you’re doing some cool shit.
 
14441588:Abomber22 said:
Then there's this guy.

100+ days x 28 years

View attachment 1044135
Click to expand...

I got this guy beat by plenty. 38 consecutive seasons. Only 1 with less than 100 day (blew my knee in 93). Lots of years with 180+. Opposite of OP, i got a problem, but at this point I'm just gonna run it til the wheels fall off. I made my decision, it worked out pretty well for me. Not the call for everyone, that's for sure.
 
My life goL right here

14441604:3mania said:
I got this guy beat by plenty. 38 consecutive seasons. Only 1 with less than 100 day (blew my knee in 93). Lots of years with 180+. Opposite of OP, i got a problem, but at this point I'm just gonna run it til the wheels fall off. I made my decision, it worked out pretty well for me. Not the call for everyone, that's for sure.
Click to expand...
 
Well so far I'm still Yung so the medical bills can hold off for 8yrs right?

I tore my acl this winter and it healed itself so that's a good sign.

14441613:Abomber22 said:
Let's guess you're 17

17+38 seasons = shitton of medical bills, emma right?
Click to expand...
 
14441613:Abomber22 said:
Let's guess you're 17

17+38 seasons = shitton of medical bills, emma right?
Click to expand...

In my 38 seasons

Blown knee (getting out of truck at 2am) not ski related, $1000 deductible

Broken Collar bone Grabbed the bones pushed them together, back skiing in 21 days. No doctors involved

Popped my shoulder out of socket had to go to the ER $1500 deductible

Moral of the story don't wreck so fucking much, and learn how to fall.
 
Shit gets old, I lose it when I only ski park for a while or anything else.

if you do ski try something new, ski weird, that’s how I keep interested. Doing the same line all day sucks let alone all season
 
14441622:MaimHelp said:
Shit gets old, I lose it when I only ski park for a while or anything else.

if you do ski try something new, ski weird, that’s how I keep interested. Doing the same line all day sucks let alone all season
Click to expand...

I was going Telemark skiing all the time just to keep myself kinda interested...
 
Life changes. I would just go with the flow. If skiing isn't doing it for you pursue other hobbies. Skiing will always be there when you want to come back to it. Life is so full of awesome things there is no use pigeon holing yourself to one thing, especially if you are not enjoying it.

I was an avid skier for 20 years. Absolutely obsessed with it. At the time I couldn't imagine life without it. Now in the past 5 years I've skied 20 times. I still enjoy getting out for a skinner to get some fresh air, but my passion is nothing like it used to be. Surfing, MTB, and moto has taken over my life these days. No regrets.
 
14441646:Loco-Deer-Slayer said:
Life changes. I would just go with the flow. If skiing isn't doing it for you pursue other hobbies. Skiing will always be there when you want to come back to it. Life is so full of awesome things there is no use pigeon holing yourself to one thing, especially if you are not enjoying it.

I was an avid skier for 20 years. Absolutely obsessed with it. At the time I couldn't imagine life without it. Now in the past 5 years I've skied 20 times. I still enjoy getting out for a skinner to get some fresh air, but my passion is nothing like it used to be. Surfing, MTB, and moto has taken over my life these days. No regrets.
Click to expand...

Yeah skiing will always be there if global warming doesn't melt a hole through the earth's crust.
 
14441533:weastcoat said:
Do you have a girlfriend? Could be the common cause. Way too many people I know will pick up a chick and never have the drive to really ski again.
Click to expand...

you fool, we all know people on ns have no rizz
 
Bruh skiing is the only reason I don’t commit suicide. It keeps me alive on a weekly basis. My life is simple, no skiing? No life!
 
I felt very much like OP this season, it took a much higher risk level to excite me this year, but even then, it was kinda just a chill “am I getting old”, what’s goin on kinda season, and I had some great days, but idk something was different, and I think the reason why, at least largely in part for me, was over stimulation, too much dopamine coursing through my system, from both weed and non stop stimulation the months prior, I did a lot of traveling, biking, sky diving, water sports, climbing, roading, lifting and other bs before ski season, where normally, I work and sit around waiting for ski season, and I think I literally wore fun receptors out, if I wasn’t pushing it and afraid, my fun level was down, and I don’t like that, I was almost in a hurry for the season to end so I could get to hibernate and wait for next season, even mid season I felt like I had to get to the next year, skiing is normally aggressively chill for me , can’t wait to go….not extreme and def not boring….prob doesn’t help that I see almost no point and have very little fun at my local resorts nowadays, I’ve really fallen in love with BC and especially resort side country and the big open bowls, steeps out west

I also went on a stupid low carb diet, and spent the better part of a year being half asleep and low on nutrients so maybe check your diet op??‍♂️ I feel waaay better carbd up

Andrew Huberman is a professor of neurology who does free podcasts on you tube if anyone feels like this is them, he’s got advice on dopamine, sleep and a lot of other stuff, I went along with some of his ideas and they’ve improved my life in different aspects ranging from minor to significant improvements.
 
Don't fight it and don't get down on yourself. I used to solely identify as a skier, especially after coming of age during the beginning of newschool skiing. I then ski bummed for 10 years and still live in a ski town and ski a ton. But at one point my back got fucked and my knees hurt all the time. It stopped me from jibbing and progressing in general and things became frustrating. After fighting it for a few years, I took basically two years off and moved to Ireland and surfed, hiked, and other random things.

I came back from that with a healthier balance. I didn't miss skiing while I was gone and I had a fresh outlook when I came back. I didn't feel obliged to ski. I did it when I wanted to. I'm definitely a powder snob now. I stopped judging freeride comps because I felt that just put me in ski boots when I didn't want to be in them and made me resent stuff.

Do what you want to do. Don't feel obliged to ski. Fuck that old Line Skis shirt for making me feel so guilty *I am a Skier*. You're more than that. You're a person who might want to go ski one day and might not want to the next day.
 
1044205.png

14441763:celadonrb said:
Sometimes I feel the need to travel and go as far as possible. Experience new things. Reset my brain. Maybe try new things?

You could give sandboarding a chance for something that feels like skiing but considerably different
Click to expand...
 
Thanks for the tip on Huberman... checking it

14441737:SavageBiff said:
I felt very much like OP this season, it took a much higher risk level to excite me this year, but even then, it was kinda just a chill “am I getting old”, what’s goin on kinda season, and I had some great days, but idk something was different, and I think the reason why, at least largely in part for me, was over stimulation, too much dopamine coursing through my system, from both weed and non stop stimulation the months prior, I did a lot of traveling, biking, sky diving, water sports, climbing, roading, lifting and other bs before ski season, where normally, I work and sit around waiting for ski season, and I think I literally wore fun receptors out, if I wasn’t pushing it and afraid, my fun level was down, and I don’t like that, I was almost in a hurry for the season to end so I could get to hibernate and wait for next season, even mid season I felt like I had to get to the next year, skiing is normally aggressively chill for me , can’t wait to go….not extreme and def not boring….prob doesn’t help that I see almost no point and have very little fun at my local resorts nowadays, I’ve really fallen in love with BC and especially resort side country and the big open bowls, steeps out west

I also went on a stupid low carb diet, and spent the better part of a year being half asleep and low on nutrients so maybe check your diet op??‍♂️ I feel waaay better carbd up

Andrew Huberman is a professor of neurology who does free podcasts on you tube if anyone feels like this is them, he’s got advice on dopamine, sleep and a lot of other stuff, I went along with some of his ideas and they’ve improved my life in different aspects ranging from minor to significant improvements.
Click to expand...
 
Happened to me my first year out in summit working at one of the ski shops. Got completely over it. That’s when I knew it was time to choose a different career path. It was only that one winter where I lost interest / motivation.
 
14441617:3mania said:
In my 38 seasons

Blown knee (getting out of truck at 2am) not ski related, $1000 deductible

Broken Collar bone Grabbed the bones pushed them together, back skiing in 21 days. No doctors involved

Popped my shoulder out of socket had to go to the ER $1500 deductible

Moral of the story don't wreck so fucking much, and learn how to fall.
Click to expand...

Ski in canada with 0 deductibles when you eat shit except when your skis get stolen like mine

**This post was edited on Jun 5th 2022 at 10:59:16pm
 
I relate to this heavily. Passions ebb a flow naturally, don't try to force it. I grew up in NH and moved to UT after high school because skiing was #1 in my life. After prioritizing skiing for years my perspective changed and I moved back East. Since I put skiing on the backburner and started prioritizing other things, my love for skiing is renewed. I'm not skiing nearly as much as I once did but I'm enjoying it just as much as I used to. Sometimes distancing yourself from a hobby can lead to newfound gratitude. That worked for me...
 
I like this thread. Just re set my password so i could log in and make my first post in years. I have been struggling with the same problem. skiing consumed my life and thoughts for a long time but i no longer have the same love. Part of it is getting older and finding new passions but the other part is me just being bitter and at least ill admit it. Skiing used to feel a lot more special especially freestyle skiing. Now a days it seems like a lot of bs. Almost like we are in the TikTok era of skiing. What people used to do to make themselves different is what everyone does now. This is just from a social media perspective, when i do get on hill i have a good time but watching skiing from a distance these days just kind of cringes me out. Perhaps i used to care more about fitting in and now i just want to have fun? And fun now means putting minimal effort into it so i can enjoy myself! I swear to god every fall i used to get pissed trying to find new skis and gear since i break them every season and it would stress me out. Driving 2 hours to ski one way stresses me out, tourists stress me out, and spending tons of money is not fun every year. I am aware that everyone experiences the same downsides but for me the cons just out way the pros of struggling to get on hill. I can say that when i do go out 3-5 times a season i am a lot more laid back then i was when i was trying to ski 4 days a week. It will always be there but for now im having fun exploring new things
 
Hi welcome back

14441941:Cahal said:
I like this thread. Just re set my password so i could log in and make my first post in years. I have been struggling with the same problem. skiing consumed my life and thoughts for a long time but i no longer have the same love. Part of it is getting older and finding new passions but the other part is me just being bitter and at least ill admit it. Skiing used to feel a lot more special especially freestyle skiing. Now a days it seems like a lot of bs. Almost like we are in the TikTok era of skiing. What people used to do to make themselves different is what everyone does now. This is just from a social media perspective, when i do get on hill i have a good time but watching skiing from a distance these days just kind of cringes me out. Perhaps i used to care more about fitting in and now i just want to have fun? And fun now means putting minimal effort into it so i can enjoy myself! I swear to god every fall i used to get pissed trying to find new skis and gear since i break them every season and it would stress me out. Driving 2 hours to ski one way stresses me out, tourists stress me out, and spending tons of money is not fun every year. I am aware that everyone experiences the same downsides but for me the cons just out way the pros of struggling to get on hill. I can say that when i do go out 3-5 times a season i am a lot more laid back then i was when i was trying to ski 4 days a week. It will always be there but for now im having fun exploring new things
Click to expand...
 
topic:DingoSean said:
I haven't been excited to ski in so long... probably for a whole year now...

This last winter I just had no real motivation to do it. I got in maybe 20 hours or so in total all season. I went out simply for the sake of it. I was constantly trying to find that spark that always made me so amped up to slap on skis and go for it. I didn't even go for a backcountry tour one time.

My last day of skiing was way back in February. It was sunny and beautiful and cruisy and nice. The snow was good. Everything was pretty ideal. But I was over it. I haven't thought much about it since, nor felt the itch.

Usually by this time, if I haven't skied for a matter of months, I feel this desire... this itch... this FOMO... this urge to get out there and go for a ski. This year, I just don't really care.

--

Has anyone else gone through this? Where they just... don't care about skiing as much anymore? Perhaps you've taken a break for a while and came back to it with a totally new energy? I hope to get the stoke back... This sport has meant so much to me and taken me almost everywhere I've been...
Click to expand...

I hear ya, man. Moved to Charleston SC about two years ago now. First winter away from the western mountains, I got a couple days in. This past winter? None. Didn't really miss it. I have a feeling I'm in a Simont Dumont-esque Miami phase lol.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top