Women set to complete amazing ski challenge

It’s September and two women claim to have skied every month so far this year – in California! Their aim is to ski each month from January to December in 2011 in the Golden State. This is the dream of skiing friends Diane Giuliani and Peggy Reis and so far, despite living in a state renowned for its glorious sunshine, the pair have pulled off nine out of nine months. [caption id="attachment_940" align="alignleft" width="277" caption="Skiing in California"][/caption] Some months, as you’d imagine, have been a lot harder than others. Diane, who is 54, reports that in the months of June and August they were required to get a little creative. The friends were forced to head off the beaten track for some back-country skiing when snow was much harder to find. The intrepid skier says: “In some ways it’s more fun because you are completely isolated and you don’t have the buzz of the ski resort.” Of course, with snow and sunshine, the women have not had to wrap up so warm, and have often skied in t-shirts or light baselayers. The friends have found the rigours of back-country skiing to be of huge benefits to their physical well-being. Having survived breast cancer in 2010, Diane was looking for a way to stay in shape. Diana says: “It’s kind of more of a full-body workout. You are just working so hard… climbing up hills. We go because we want the exercise.” Peggy, a cardiac nurse, is no stranger to outdoors adventures. She has climbed a peak on every continent (all over 18,000 ft) with her husband. She reports that the skiing challenge is not for novice skiers. “It’s a hard challenge and finding snow hasn’t always been easy. But we reckon we’ll make it to the 12 out of 12.”