Most people would feel the fear and the feeling, but for Kelly Gallagher, the feeling is that of freedom.
"When you get a ski to fold and physically feel a shake of G [gravity] - This is exceptional. "
A daredevil; a story creator; and a Paralympic winter champion, Northern Ireland, 35, is no stranger to challenging odds and seriousness.
Gallagher suffers from oculocutaneous albinism - a condition characterized by very fair skin, white or light-colored hair and often visual impairment.
It is estimated to affect around 1 in 17,000 people in the UK.
"It's like an overexposed image [...] I find the perception of depth very difficult. I need a good contrast between colors and shapes to be able to see things, "she explains.
Although they are used to hitting the mountains at breakneck speed, overcoming challenges and channeling frustrations have been part of Gallagher's DNA since birth.
She remembers how at school she should have sat next to the teacher away from friends to read the whiteboard from a close distance.
At university, she felt "anger and annoyance" because of a lack of understanding of her needs. And throughout this period, switch between eyeglasses, contact lenses and sunglasses and apply sunscreen daily to combat sun exposure.
For Gallagher, however, albinism is also about empowerment.
Encouraged by her parents and encouraged by a determination inherited from steel to repel ignorance, she armed herself with the simple mantra: "I am the same as everyone else".
In skiing, she discovered an improbable passion and purpose in the most improbable marriage of ways and places.
Inspired by Ski Barbie
Although she was a child biking and rollerblading, sport, like the snow-capped mountains of her hometown of Bangor, was largely absent.
But a hidden sports inspiration emerged: a ski Barbie.
She fondly remembers having received the toy from her late father and how the plastic figurine - unlike the Cindy cycle - could not bend her legs.
What Barbie lacked in athletics, she made up for in glamor and that was ultimately to open up a whole new world.
However, it is only during an unexpected hijacking in Andorra on vacation with his parents that a 17-year-old Gallagher will first go on the slopes.
"I found something that really clicked with me [...] The physiognomy of being able to move around and being such a big open space and everyone going in the same direction, I think, just captured it. "
A need for speed had been ignited. An improbable dream come true. From that moment on, there was no turning back.
Gallagher made history by becoming Northern Ireland's first winter Paralympian at the 2010 Vancouver Games, although the defining moment in her career to date comes at the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi.
READ: Sochi Paralympic Games: Two skiers become one
A golden moment
In the years between the Paralympics, Gallagher had developed an unbreakable partnership with his sighted guide, Charlotte Evans - a former skier herself.
It details how years of constant communication, mutual respect and mutual understanding of ways and means have fueled a new belief.
"Sometimes, when I was at the airport, I thought blissfully enough:" I am a better skier than all those people lining up for this flight. " [...] I can ski faster than a car! "
Although their first races were "a disaster", they won gold in the Super-G category.
It was the first time since the start of the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games that a British skier had achieved such a feat on the slopes.
"It was not an exceptional race. I happen to be the girl who made the fewest mistakes," she humbly suggests.
His groundbreaking feat at the start "didn't seem very unusual to me because I always tried to do unusual things."
It wasn't until she returned home that the scale of what had been accomplished began to happen to her, especially when she received an MBE (member of the Order of the British Empire).
Honors such as an MBE are awarded twice a year, once at New Years, then again for the Queen's birthday, and recognize excellence in a variety of fields, from the arts and athletics science and politics.
There was a meeting with Queen Elizabeth II and the President of Ireland - Michael D. Higgins - at Windsor Castle and trips to Royal Ascot and Wimbledon followed.
"This is all tainted now because I can never enjoy a sporting event unless I am in the Royal Box! How am I going to have fun?" she's joking.
"I prefer to be a Serena Williams"
Since the jubilation of 2014, the road has been bumpy - literally.
Gallagher teamed up with new guide Gary Smith, an RAF communications technician, in 2016 before suffering a serious injury in a high-speed accident in January 2017.
Returning to the slopes filled her with fear, but she was proud to face her demons and participate in her third Paralympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang in 2018.
For now, however, Gallagher's urgent engagement is with a recent arrival - Brigid, his 12-week-old granddaughter.
"I am convinced that she is an angel sent from elsewhere and that she has nothing to do with me," she smiles.
"It's like having a really drunk persistent friend that you absolutely adore, but they're completely crazy!"
Currently on maternity leave from his job as a statistician for the public service of Northern Ireland, Gallagher uses the Covid-19 pandemic to carefully formulate his itinerary back on the slopes.
The pandemic has meant that the immediate prospects are far from clear, however, the chance to participate in the Beijing Paralympic Winter Games in 2022 is something she would like.
His competitive advantage and his desire to win are still as brilliant.
"I like that (my teammates) know that it is possible (to win) because someone has already done so. I would rather be a Serena Williams and say to myself -" No, I always win! "It would be much better!"
Equal opportunities for all
Beyond the competitive landscape, Gallagher is fully aware that there are still many challenges for greater coverage and recognition of people with disabilities in sport and society.
"Everyday life hasn't changed just because we did so well at the Paralympics. We continue to fight for it."
"I have been skiing for over 10 years and I always give information on the actual practice of skiing, rather than on the type of skier I am."
"If we could talk about skiing as much as the experts talk about football - man, that would be a lot of fun!"
She challenges all people to see disability from a different perspective and asks herself the question: are we, the disabled, disabled or is it the world that makes us disabled in the social rather than the medical model disability?
And it was this question, fueled by his lived experience of albinism, which sparked a new desire for equal opportunities.
"I want people to be included, whether or not they have albinism."
"When you can have access to education, you can defend yourself and make those choices for yourself. Having that choice means you can live the life you want for yourself. This is what everyone deserves and needs in his life. "
