Skier Takes His Mom Down "Blackcomb's Scariest Runs"

Pavelick's mom, who's 60, stepped up to Blackcomb's Saudan Couloir, Blow Hole, Sapphire Bowl, and CBC trees.

The thing about Blackcomb is that, unlike some other mountains, it provides ample opportunities to ski some truly spooky stuff. Access to real alpine terrain will do that. None of the runs proved to be much of a challenge for Pavelick's mom, though.

As skiers age, we experience a funny kind of role reversal with our parents—assuming they were the ones who taught us to ski. Early on, they're the standard to beat, always a few turns ahead, capable of skiing those fearsome double blacks.

Then, one day, you're skiing with your mom or dad, and it hits you: they're behind you. At whatever age this happens—it doesn't really matter—most of us are thrilled. Finally, after all those years of being the caboose, you've bested your dear old mom or dad with your rubbery, infallible knees.

With that goal post surpassed, the skier's life truly begins. You head out with your teenage buddies, capturing those first real tastes of freedom in the mountain. Forget mom and dad—they're boring and don't want to do backflips.

A final phase arrives with the dawn of adulthood. Past the years of teenage angst and annoying ski patrollers, you realize you wouldn't mind taking a lap with your parents. Heck, maybe you want to ski an entire day with them. Hopped on a steady dose of gratitude—they taught you to ski, after all—you begin hatching plans to reunite with your original ski buddies, like Pavelick did.