We Do Adventure

On the 5 th March 2012 I took my newly purchased first snowboard up our nearest mountain for its first run out on snow. Why do I remember this? Well, partly, it was one of those moments I never imagined that would happen; such moments have a habit of sticking in the memory. Yes, I was excited, and that could be part of it, but the more prosaic explanation is that as I sat on the snow, strapping my boots into the bindings, I noticed the board length: 153cm. To English eyes that was clearly code for 1 st used on the 5 th of the 3 rd . I knew then I wouldn't forget the date. Whatever I did that day it's certain it was not epic snowboarding. I had hunted around Youtube trying to find tutorial videos that made sense. Good ones seemed few and far between. I tried to remember what I'd watched and practise things in some kind of logical order. Fast forward ten months and I was on a slope in Sarajevo getting logical, structured instruction. I'd like to say that in a few d...

On Saturday morning I tweeted that we were “giving more young people their first snowboard experience today.” I added, “Let's hope they learn as much as the last group!” The last group was mostly girls, this group entirely boys. When we say girls and boys we're talking eleven and twelve year olds. Both groups were keen to get out on the snow with a snowboard; both groups found the first few exercises we gave them a little difficult. After an hour or two this Saturday it seemed we might be collecting strong empirical evidence that girls possess better listening skills than boys. Our boys were not progressing as fast as the girls had and were not really following instructions, even instructions of the clear and repeated kind. We broke for lunch. When we returned to the slope it seemed, instead of our previous suspicion, we had just proved boys perform better powered by a generous helping of pizza. By the end of our session all our newbies had mastered the basics and we...

This video was filmed during the first two weeks of this year. They were two weeks that proved beyond doubt there is no gain without a sizeable portion of pain. So much pain! Going from effectively no snowboard experience to nine consecutive days of intense snowboarding, with a healthy dose of long-distance driving thrown in for good measure, was a stern test of the resolve. However, and it's a big however, the trade off is we, and a group of the young people we work with, have learned to snowboard. Not just that, we've learned enough to pass those skills on to others. We're not the only ones excited about this. It won't be long before you'll be able to watch how far this story has come in just a couple of months. This video is just the beginning. (Bosnia and Herzegovina is a beautiful country that offers some great winter sport opportunities. We'd recommend anyone in search of new adventures to check it out. All our snowboarding was on mountains in B...

There is more going on in the world, and in our lives, right now than snowboarding. However, if you'll indulge us, I'll take this opportunity to explain why this photograph is actually a lot more exciting than the dog seems to think. Today nine of us, and snowboards, headed up to the local ski centre. Three of us where the Novi Most Jajce team, three were older teenagers would been part of the group that did the intensive snowboard course we ran a couple of weeks back, and three were younger teens who had no snowboard experience. The challenge for today was to see if we could put into practise the training we'd been given and pass on the skills we'd learned. We, the leaders, hoped this "we" would include the older teenagers; that they would help in training and encouraging those trying snowboarding out for a first time. That was the plan but we all know what can happen to the best laid plans. However, we also know we're not the only ones who love it ...

Novi Most International, the organisation we volunteer for in Bosnia and Herzegovina, has a challenge it gives its team members. It's called "How Dare We?" To a team that has committed to help work for a better future for young people growing up in this country the challenge is how dare we dream dreams for them we are not dreaming for ourselves. Over the past two years our work in Jajce has allowed us to introduce dozens of young people to experiences they've never had before. It's exciting to make a first trip to the cinema possible, or the first visit to a nearby city, or a first ride up an escalator. But "How Dare We" makes me ask what new experiences I've had recently. I like it. It stops you from standing still. The person who has stopped exploring will likely soon stop encouraging others to do so. So we explore. This January I was in the same boat as the young people we took to a winter camp on Jahorina, one of the Olympic mountains outsi...