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    The Drop
    The Drop
    The Drop
    Ebook108 pages1 hour

    The Drop

    By Jeff Ross

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    About this ebook

    Alex's goal in life is simple: to snowboard all day, every day. His ultimate dream is to be part of the Backcountry Patrol, an elite group of snowboarders who patrol the ungroomed slopes of British Columbia. But first, he and three other young hopefuls (Dave, Bryce and Hope) must endure a series of tests, which takes them to remote and dangerous terrain. When Bryce disappears, the teens are left with Sam, their dubiously qualified instructor, and no links to the outside world. As Alex and Hope scramble to find out what happened to Bryce, they must confront their own fears of the whiteout conditions and the ominous, mysterious drop.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOrca Book Publishers
    Release dateMay 1, 2011
    ISBN9781459800335
    The Drop
    Author

    Jeff Ross

    Jeff Ross is the author of several novels for young adults including several titles in the Orca Soundings and Orca Sports series. He teaches scriptwriting and English at Algonquin College in Ottawa.

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    • 5/5
      An exciting thrill ride that takes you out of the June humidity and plunges you in the powder-filled back country of Whistler. A mystery full of intrigue and a bit of romance thrown in, it was a fun read.

    Book preview

    The Drop - Jeff Ross

    The Drop

    Jeff Ross

    orca sports

    ORCA BOOK PUBLISHERS

    Copyright © 2011 Jeff Ross

    All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission in writing from the publisher.

    Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

    Ross, Jeff, 1973-

    The drop [electronic resource] / Jeff Ross.

     (Orca sports)

    Electronic monograph in PDF format.

    Issued also in print format.

    ISBN 978-1-55469-393-1

    I. Title. II. Series: Orca sports (Online)

    First published in the United States, 2011

    Library of Congress Control Number: 2010942089

    Summary: When Alex and three other snowboarders find themselves in trouble in the remote mountains of British Columbia, Alex must confront his fears and lead them to safety.

    Orca Book Publishers is dedicated to preserving the environment and has printed this book on paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

    Orca Book Publishers gratefully acknowledges the support for its publishing programs provided by the following agencies: the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund and the Canada Council for the Arts, and the Province of British Columbia through the BC Arts Council and the Book Publishing Tax Credit.

    Typesetting by Christine Toller

    Cover photography by Getty Images

    Author photo by Simon Bell

    www.orcabook.com

    Printed and bound in Canada.

    14 13 12 11 • 4 3 2 1

    To Megan, for her patience. To my parents, who always let me have just one more run, and to my kids.

    Contents

    chapter one

    chapter two

    chapter three

    chapter four

    chapter five

    chapter six

    chapter seven

    chapter eight

    chapter nine

    chapter ten

    chapter eleven

    chapter twelve

    chapter thirteen

    chapter fourteen

    chapter fifteen

    chapter sixteen

    chapter seventeen

    chapter eighteen

    chapter nineteen

    chapter twenty

    Acknowledgments

    Titles in the Series orca sports

    chapter one

    The helicopter pitched forward, almost tossing me out the open door. I grabbed the safety handle and pushed my goggles down over my eyes. There was a tap on my back. I turned around to see Dave waving at me to get out. In the front of the chopper, the copilot was making little circular motions with his hand. I knew what that meant: jump. The wind tossed the helicopter around and threw pellets of snow that felt like gravel on my face.

    I shifted my snowboard away from where I had it wedged against the door. The helicopter jerked backward again, and I held on to the safety handle with all my strength.

    Take a deep breath, our instructor, Sam, said into my ear. I turned to look at him, and he smiled his big white smile. Now exhale. I nodded. And then you just float out. His hand drifted before him like a feather falling to earth. I nodded again. Inhaled, like he had told me.

    Exhaled.

    Go, Alex, Dave shouted. Dave had been heli-boarding half a dozen times. This was the first time I had ever even been in a helicopter.

    Never mind jumping out of one.

    I inched my board forward and let it dangle over the edge. The ground was thick and white, like a giant duvet. The rotor blades of the helicopter forced the snow up and out. It seemed like I was about to fall into a cloud. I wanted to jump, but you know what they say—the first step is the hardest.

    I inhaled again.

    Exhaled.

    Then I jumped.

    It felt like I was falling forever. When my board finally touched down, I bent my knees to soften the impact. It still made my spine shake and sent a shiver through my entire body. But at least I was on the ground. The helicopter was floating above one of the highest peaks in British Columbia, far from the lift lines and groomed trails of Whistler Mountain. The powder was so deep here that there wasn’t even a chance that the helicopter could land. So you had to jump.

    I hopped a couple of times to get going. Then I leaned into the downhill and pushed hard to break free from the tornado-like conditions.

    When I came out the other side of the whirlwind of snow, the world was bright blue and glaring white. I could see forever. In the distance, other peaks poked into the clouds. I had never been up this high on a mountain before. I did two quick turns, dug in hard on my toe edge and settled in beside Bryce and Hope, two of the other Backcountry Patrol hopefuls.

    What took you so long? Hope asked.

    My board got caught on the door.

    The little bit of Hope’s face that wasn’t covered by pink tuque, goggles or neck warmer screwed up in a familiar way. You mean you got scared.

    I pointed at the front of my board. It got stuck on the doorframe. I had to get it out. I didn’t want to scrape up the bottom.

    Seriously, Alex, how many rails did you do yesterday? she said. And now you want me to believe you are suddenly all concerned about the bottom of your board?

    I had spent the last two weeks training with Dave, Hope and Bryce. Dave was arrogant, but he didn’t have the skills to back up his talk. Bryce was the best nonprofessional snowboarder I had ever seen. When the rest of us were making big jumpy turns down the hill, Bryce was cutting smooth lines. He was good— great even. But it was nothing to him. Just something he could do. Hope was… well, I don’t even know how to explain what Hope was. First off, she’s a girl. Not that I think girls shouldn’t be Backcountry Patrollers—just not this girl. I could only imagine what she would do if she found someone half dead in the woods or caught on a ledge. My guess was that, at best, she might become a groomed-slope Ski Patroller. Which, as far as I was concerned, was about the worst thing you could be.

    Believe whatever you want, Hope. I knelt down on the ground, my board out behind me, and let the cool breeze rush across my face. The helicopter was pitching in the wind. It went forward, then back, then a little higher, then down so low that it almost touched the ground. Suddenly Dave dropped out of the side of the helicopter and disappeared into the tornado of snow. A moment later he was beside us, wiping snow from his goggles.

    Nice one, Bryce said. Dave nodded as though he already knew it had been a nice jump. The helicopter pitched back again, then lifted up another twenty feet off the ground. What’s happening? I asked. Sam, our instructor and lone connection to the rest of the world, was still on board.

    He said he’d be right behind me, Dave said. We watched as the helicopter rose again, higher into the endless sky.

    He can’t just leave us, Hope said.

    Maybe it’s part of the test, Bryce said.

    Leaving us on the side of the mountain? Hope said. "Alone? That is not what I signed up for." The chopper lifted slightly, and Sam slid out the open door. He fell for a moment and then grabbed the landing skid. He did a couple of quick chin-ups, held the back edge of his board with one hand and let go of the

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