Locals

"When it comes to skiing, there's a difference between what you think it's going to be like, what it's really like, and what you tell your friends it's like."

For years we have been stopping at Foster's General Store on the way to Sunday River. And for years we have been talking about the locals, and the area in a less than praising way. On Friday night, I spent five hours behind the wheel to get up to the Jordan at Sunday River. It started snowing as soon as we got into the notch Friday and never stopped. The stop at Foster's was needed by all more so than on a regular drive. The driving conditions were less than prime as we got going again, and shortly after the intersection we started fish-tailing and sliding and shortly were off the road. (Come to find out, we didn't actually drive off the road, we just slid into the unpaved shoulder.) By the time we came to a stop and knocking a reflector down, two cars had already stopped to help us. It is at this point where my comment about locals comes back. One car was a guy from Mass, but the other car was 2 local guys, just stopping to help. Now, keep in mind that they had just finished their own day of skiing and they see a car full of girls stranded on the side of the road (I don't know if this influenced their decision or not.) I do have to say though, that if I had been in southern NH and had gotten in an accident, I feel it would be very rare for one car to stop, never mind the first two. While I felt guilty about not realizing how to get out of the snow bank, considering Karolyn had slippers on, I didn't even have to time to comprehend what had happen before these three guys had a plan for us. They also kept me laughing, talking about where we're from, why we're on the road, where we're going, making fun of accents and other subjects relating to snow and skiing which kept me smiling throughout the whole incident. At this point I should mention that one of the locals was in snow pants and a T-shirt, and the other was in work-boots, shorts and a parka. Within a minute a policeman was also there and helping us. As the guys pushed/pulled the car out of the snow, I was very thankful to the "locals," and how appropriate for the day after Thanksgiving. I wish that I knew who these guys were, because 1) they seemed like fun guys but 2) I wish I had the opportunity to thank them. If you run into guys from Twin Mountain, NH who pulled 4 girls out of a snowbank the Friday after Thanksgiving in 2009, please tell them that me and my 3 passengers want to thank them.