Unrestrained Laughter

When I attended my first few classes in the fall this year, the most common ice-breaker utilized was to name a fun-fact about yourself. Every time, I answered that I skied on the Vail Development team throughout high school. My love towards skiing and the mountains is definitely an enormous aspect of my life. Thus, the first thing I did when I got home for Christmas break was immediately drive up to the mountains and ski.

During the summer my dad bought a new pair of skis and this was going to be the first time he had used them. Both of my parents are great skiers, however, my dad tends to slow us down some so we were hoping the new skis would increase his speed and elevate his overall ability. The first day on the slopes is always a little rusty, but it obviously felt great to be back. Everyone was enjoying their day and my dad was beginning to get used to his new skis and ‘break’ them in. After a great day, we decided it was time to head home so that we would beat the traffic. On the last run, my dad was skiing over a little roller, caught an edge, and tumbled head over heels. Of course my mom was extremely worried because of his hard fall, but luckily my dad popped right back up and finished the run. After the somewhat scary crash, we definitely knew that was our last run of the day.

About 30 minutes into our drive home, my dad stated, in all seriousness, “I can definitely tell the difference of these skis compared to my old ones. They are so much wider and I can’t believe their stability”. Immediately my mother and I broke out into uncontrolled laughter. My dad had just had one of the worst falls he has ever taken and he was commenting about the stability of his skis!?! We couldn't control ourselves. Eventually we calmed down and respectfully responded to my dad’s statement.

This incident is definitely an example of the superiority theory of humor. In a sense, the laughing poked fun at my dad. My mom and I could easily tell that he was offended by our laughter and it bothered him. Looking back at it, I can understand why he may have been upset. My dad and I are both extremely competitive individuals and anything that denounces our athleticism or ability tends to bother us. If I was in my dad’s shoes, I am sure I would have been somewhat bothered by the uncontrollable laughter. Regardless, my dad’s comment after his fall is one of the funniest things I can recall from this year.