BY: Michael Switow

AS A teenager, I loved to ski, but I'm not sure if skiing loved me.

Just around my 16th birthday, I went one weekend to a resort called Ski Butler. It's more of a hill with snow and a chairlift really.

There were just two or three runs, and my friends persuaded me to join them on an intermediate slope. My third time down, I launched into an accidental flip and landed on my head.

"Get up before someone thinks you're hurt," said my buddy Waj, poking me in the stomach with his skis, fearful that the ski patrol would fetch me.

I returned to the beginners' slope, but by day's end, I had two black eyes. The colours changed daily, and my amused mother - who overcame the initial shock and fear of seeing her son with a swollen Mongoloid forehead - photographed me each afternoon as the blacks became shades of purple and blue.

Fortunately, I didn't turn my back on the sport. But I did start paying more attention to how good skiers make their turns, and I skied a lot.

Skiing is an amazing sport. Gorgeous mountain vistas, clean crisp air, speedy descents, adrenaline rushes and a thorough workout. It's an incredible mountain high.

Learn how to ski in fresh knee- or waist-deep powder (light, ungroomed snow), and it feels like you're floating down the mountain.

When you're standing on top of a ridge, your day-to-day life and job will seem a world away.So now you have your bright matching ski jacket and ski pants - a clear sign that you enjoy shopping and want to look good, but probably don't ski much - plus some cool shades to wear. But first, where to go?

One of the icons of North American ski resorts is Vail in the Rocky Mountains, easily accessible from Denver Airport in Colorado just two hours away.

At more than US$90 (S$123), lift tickets are among the most expensive in the nation, but the resort is also one of America's most popular, with more than 1.5 million skiers and snowboarders visiting every winter.

Vail is located in Eagle County, near several other resorts: Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin, which usually stays open through June and is a favourite spring skiing destination.

Vail has ski schools for kids and adults as well as terrain parks for snowboarders.

Purchase a "Colorado Ticket" and you can ski all of these resorts, which is great if you are staying in the area for several days and want variety.

At Vail itself, there are nearly 200 runs and over 21,000 sq km of skiterrain, including the "China Bowl", where it is easy to go off-trail, and several spacious descents on the back side of the mountain.

Vail also has half-pipes, jumps and three terrain parks for snowboarders. There is so much terrain that I wouldn't have minded a guide to show me the ins and outs of the mountain, even though I have skied there several times.

You can hire a ski instructor to do just that. Like most resorts, Vail has ski schools for kids, teens and private or group lessons for adults.

The newest hotel is the 100-room, 38-suite Vail Plaza Hotel & Club. Plush beds, Egyptian cotton sheets, flat-screen TVs and a ski-in, ski-out location in the heart of Vail Village make this a relaxing - and expensive - place to stay.

In season, rooms here go for at least US$500 a night (based on a minimum five-night reservation).

If you are on a small budget, stay in one of the nearby towns like Avon, Colorado. There are public buses that run frequently between Avon, Vail and the other resorts.

With the money you save, you could visit a luxury spa like the one at the Vail Plaza or the Vail Cascade Resort & Spa. The prices are in a different league from Bangkok and Bali, but after a couple days of skiing, your legs will really appreciate the attention!

Oh, and unless you are practising for the next Winter Games, I recommend keeping your skis on the ground and not over your head in the air.

This article was first published in Value Vacations, The Straits Times on July 8, 2008.