It didn't take long before we were hiding in the bushes. Heavy machinery and watchful eyes lumbered down the rocky road below us. I suppose that's what we deserve for attempting to ride a closed road. But to our credit, we were on bikes and obviously, traffic rules don't apply. My brother, laying horizontal behind a log on an exposed hillside, couldn’t stop smiling. He was able to briefly escape the turmoil of medical school at the University of Washington to join me in Idaho for an annual get-together. This year’s objective was to ski the Devil’s Bedstead, a prominent peak in the Pioneer mountains of Central Idaho. 

Hi, I’m Cain. I'm 13 years old and I live in Breckenridge, CO. Outside of school, I love to run, Nordic ski, and play soccer. Living in an active "mountain town" like Breck, I get to see so many beautiful outdoor places and get to experience so many different things on a regular basis. It's pretty dang cool.

Guest Contributor: Megan Somloi

Remember what it was like to be a kid? The gleeful feeling of riding a bike without training wheels for the first time. Learning how to swim, play soccer, or even read your first chapter book. Everything was unfamiliar, exciting, and new.

​You were probably a little rough around the edges but despite this, excitement easily filled you to the brim and plastered a perma-grin on your face.

​Any active minded parent, like me, perpetually faces the conflict between encouraging your kid(s) to embrace experiences while not being overbearing. It’s an ongoing learning process for adults and kiddos alike. I felt the need to introduce my kids to skiing. I've learned a lot from my approach with my oldest.