A Breath of Fresh Air at the Top of the World!

Posted on March 22, 2019 by Sheryl Checkman

Montorosa Ski Valley — Alagna Valsesia, Piedmont, Italy

I recently spent a week skiing in Montorosa, a vast ski area consisting of three valleys in the Italian Alps. While we had no new snow for the 5 days of skiing, we were blessed with warm temperatures and bluebird skies. There is nothing like breathing crisp clean alpine air and skiing along side one beautiful vista after another to rejuvenate the soul and invigorate the body!

Sipping a glass of Italian wine Aprés Ski — Me, sipping a lovely glass of white wine for about 3 Euros! Gressoney-la-Trinité, Aosta Valley, Italy

I spent my week taking it all in — skiing till my muscles ached, eating pasta in every shape and form and tasting as many Italian wines as was possible — when my ski day came to an end, of course!

I came home with a healthy looking tan, a resolution to start a diet and some new ideas for t-shirt designs to add to my store, Life is Balance. You can see the new ski designs here.

Finding Nemo…My quest for a day of skiing after the big storm

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Sheryl Checkman

As a skier, hearing that a huge snowstorm is coming is usually a really good thing — unless of course it is scheduled to arrive right when you would be traveling to get to the slopes. This is precisely what happened this past weekend. I had been looking forward to a weekend of skiing at Mount Snow, Vermont for weeks. My plans were set. I was to drive up on Friday with some friends of mine. Then Nemo hit. On Friday morning it was still only raining in New York City so we attempted to try to make it up. We only got as far as Yonkers when the rain changed over to snow and the roads started to get bad. Not wanting to take a chance of getting stuck for hours or worse, my friends decided to turn around and go home. Maybe we would try again on Saturday. Disappointed as I was, it was the safe and responsible decision to make.

The next morning, my friends, having just gotten back from a week of skiing in Montana, decided to bag the entire weekend and stay in the city. Resigned to the fact that this wasn’t to be I headed off to a yoga class. But, after yoga, another friend called to say they were going to make the drive and did I want in? Drive 4 hours to Vermont for one day of skiing? You bettcha! We bypassed the still snow-covered Connecticut roads and opted to drive up via the NYS Thruway and had clear sailing all the way – a good omen for the next day to come!

We awoke on Sunday to beautiful blue sunny skies, lots of snow and comfortable temperatures — a perfect day to ski! My friend’s condo is right on the mountain so with a short walk across the road, I put on my skis and headed to the lift! It was one of those days that every skier hopes for – sunny, warm, not overly crowed – just great company and quad burning turns. After skiing till I just couldn’t make one more turn, we skied back to the condo and packed up to leave. A short trip, but oh so sweet!

Life is Balance: Going for the Gold!

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Sheryl Checkman

Life is Balance is a sponsor of the Empire State Winter Games I’m excited to report that Life is Balance® has become a sponsor of the Empire State Winter Games in Lake Placid, NY. The Empire State Winter Games is a multi-day sports event, taking place February 2-5, 2012. For more than 31 years, the Games have brought together nearly 1,000 athletes from across the State to compete in a variety of winter sports. What better venue for Life is Balance® t-shirts? I’ll be placing a brochure in each athlete’s gift bag with a coupon code for a discount on the Life is Balance website. And, two t-shirts are going to be raffled off during the weekend!

Not only am I able to help support young athletes in their quest to realize their dreams, but I learned about some sports I’ve never heard of! The winter sports included in these games consist of: alpine skiing, biathlon, bobsled, cross country skiing, figure skating, luge, skeleton, ski jumping, ski orienteering, slopestyle, snowshoe racing, speed skating, women’s ice hockey and skier/border cross. Slopestyle? Skeleton? Sounds more like a fashion show for Halloween!

Did you know that the Slopestyle competition takes place on a course consistingof variations of jumps and handrails. Anywhere from 3 to 5 of these “features” make up a standard size run. Athlete get two attempts to execute their most difficult and creative maneuvers. Another one new to me is Skeleton – a fast winter sliding sport in which an individual person rides a small sled down a frozen track while lying face down, during which athletes experience forces up to 5g. Crazy? They don’t think so. I think I will stick to downhill skiing!

Here are some of the winter sports themed t-shirts available from LifeisBalance.com: