Thank you to all I met by matthaeus

Hey guys !<br><br>Where shall I start. I guess it all started with bicycling which might sound pretty strange but the catch comes here. It was in late October after the flood that I decided to cycle to Paradise from Seattle. I did it in two days so. On the second day I climbed from Ashford to Paradise where I met Corey. He and Sky were getting ready to climb to the Muir Snowfield. I did not have a lot of time as I still had to cycle back to Seattle. I asked Corey about ski touring and he gave me this website. It took some time for me to figure out where I can rent the equipement and to find some people I could join. With the help of Pro Ski Service at Aurora Road I got the equipement and Charles invited me to come along. We skied in really stormy conditions this day together with Ron, Janet, Jerry, Stefan (who just switched to AT) and Dorothea and some other people. The next weekend Stefan picked up and we went to Mt. Rainier again with Ron and Jerry. The sunday after thanksgiving I saw Mt. Rainier for the first time on skies without clouds in perfect corn so Charles, Silas and I had a great time together. Now in early December the resorts where getting ready to open but not before I skinned up to the upper chair lift at Alpental for the first time. This was also the first time to ski with Corey, Sky, Josh & Jason and more people I can not remember. The opening of the Alpental resort was great and my altimeter read almost 30000 ft (29940ft) by the end of the day. I toured another day together with Corey at Alpental before my girlfriend arrived for Christmas/New Year. We camped at the loop road at Paradise. We got 1 1/2 ft of fresh snow over night almost burying our tent. The next day we met Matt and Diana. After that I was touring with Matt and another time together with Charles and Russ at Arrowhead. I skied another time at Alpental but this time not alone. Adam soon took off to hit the fresh powder. The first run was pretty impressive as we witnessed a Snow Boarder hugging the cliff at Piss Pass and Brad did a stylish backflip on the way down to Scotts Bowl. The last runs I skied together with Sky. The next weekend I teamed up with Derek to ski Mount Baker on Saturday. But white out conditions did not allow a summit bit this day. On Sunday I got the chance to be on top of Snoqualmie Mountain together with Corey (the first time for Corey ) , Josh & Jason, Sky, Derek, Ben, Troy, Dave and Paul . Their was another party of four, too. I hope those guys just had a bad day as I do not want to repeat their rediculous behaviour speakwise.  Then there was this dog ski trip together with Sky, Josh & Jason, Justin, Lisa and the dogs Medicine and Shasta. On one of the last weekends Sky, Ross , Josh & Jason had a really long trip without the expected outcome, unfortunately. And on my last skiing day I took part at the Randonee Rallye. Derek had told me over and over that I can win it. Finally I got second in the recreational division but I was the first on top. Curios was that we parked next to Matt who beat on the downhill of the race. The story came to an end as I skied the my last runs in Alpental together with Corey who I met at Paradise. After the race I got to know Greg who is also part of the tay community. I think I forgot Scott until now. Great thanks to hot pool and sauna, too. <br><br>Overall I want to thank everybody I met for the time we spent together. I hope to get another chance to visit Seattle again in the future so I can catch up with you again.<br><br>Back at home now, skiing is far away (at least 5 hours drive) and will not be an every weekend happening anymore.<br><br>         Take care<br><br>              Matthaeus

Hey guy,<br>your e-mails said Matthaus, and on TAY it's Matthaeus, so WHICH IS IT?<br>Whatever your name is, it was great to ski with you. Sorry we couldn't bag a big one, there are always factors beyond our control in this game. Try to come for a week in early June, and I have a hunch we'll be able to make something happen.<br>Take care, and don't go crazy dreaming about skiing. I'm too far gone, but do as I say, not as I do, eh? <br>Cheers,<br>Sky

Hey Matthaeus, thanks for the report. We're glad we washingtonians were able to host and show you what a wonderful state this is. Hopefully, you'll be able to transfer over here one day. ;D <br><br>By the way, you're e-mail wasn't working for me. Do you have a new one? Let me know.

Yes, Matthaeus, it was great meeting you, too bad it was on the last day of your stay and I didn't get a chance to ski with you . . . but you'll be back again, I have no doubt. Stay in touch, maybe you can send some photos of skiing or climbing in Europe to TAY?

I promise to post a trip report of my outing in the Alps by early april and maybe some pictures of last year.

Matthaeus, you have proven, beyond a shadow of doubt, that backcountry skiing is truly a sport that transcends international boundaries.<br>Your easy going demeanor, your ever ready smile and your willingness to do more than your part on a tour makes you a pleasure to have along on a trip, as all the response on this thread seems to indicate. I believe I may be also speaking for the others when I say that we wish you a speedy return and look forward to skiing with you again whether it is in Washington or elsewhere.<br><br>Oh, and by the way, better cut down on those HUGE cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Now that you're back home and slowing down a bit they might start adding weight to your... er.. pack. <br>Take care my friend; and keep the slippery side down.

Matthaeus sends his greetings from Germany . . .<br> <br>on his e-mail header, it says Matthaus with an umlaut over the "a" so it looks like "Matthaeus" is an English approximation.

This straight from the source:<br><br>"Yes, you are right with the umlaut. How did you get this  "ä" with a american keyboard ?<br><br>In German I spell my name Matthäus and for the English speaking countries Matthaeus. So far I have seen only one guy who had the same first name "Matthäus". Far more common is Matthias here.<br> <br>Thanks for those pictures from the Randonee Rallye. I looked at your email again and can see now all 3 pictures, mysterious why I could not see them the first time."<br> <br>                           Ciao Matthaeus<br>