Disaster: Florida State 38, Boston College 7
There were many bad moments for Boston College in this game tonight, and perhaps I will rehash the stats in a future article (because I don’t have the stomach for it now), but the definitive moment telling us where this game would go came early. Boston College was backed up deep in their own territory to start a drive; a bad snap which almost went over Chase Rettig’s head led to a loss of 11 yards on first down. Boston College proceeds to run the ball on 2nd & 21 for no gain. They then decide to run the ball again on 3rd & 21 before punting. The men in headsets gave up on that drive, plain and simple. It’s bad enough that BC tried endlessly running on an excellent run defense as if they were playing Maryland (the football equivalent of trying to fit a square peg in a round hole), but they tried running on 2nd AND 3rd and very long. The odds of converting on either one of those, especially against a team like FSU, are at best minute. This, of course, is paired with Spaz’s gutless decision to punt on 4th down in FSU territory down 31 with three minutes to go. But it’s okay that the coaches gave up on that possession, and the rest of the game for that matter, because Spaz buys people lunch.
Heliski in Iceland
The farmhouse, Klængshóll (Raven Hill) Lodge, is our base for the four-night trip. Whereas most heliskiing accommodation is in purpose-built hotels or chalets that are a blend of Alpine and Rocky Mountain kitsch, this is a real home. It is not luxurious (most of the six bedrooms are not en suite) but it is cosy. JB, whose name literally translates as Glacier Mountainman, grew up here, helping his family of sheep farmers. In the lounge is a bookcase built by his grandfather in 1921, with his initials and the date carved into the wood. The latest ski magazines sit alongside leather-bound Icelandic sagas on its shelves. On one wall is a black and white photo of the valley from the 1940s. It looks exactly the same as it does now.
One day in the 1980s, a Swiss woman knocked on the farm’s door and asked for directions for her hike. The farmer sent his grandson JB to accompany her, the young shepherd’s first guiding job. He went on to work as a ski guide in Chamonix and for several Canadian heliski companies, before returning to try to develop skiing here, partly to raise money to keep the farm in the family. After successfully running ski-touring trips, he first trialled heliskiing here in 2008, building up to a first full season this year.