Piste Off!

Doing any alpine skiing this week? Ah, yes, there you are—in your goggles, your jaunty knit cap, and your incredibly chic Rossignol jacket—swinging from the chairlift, your thumbs flying as you tweet about how gracefully you've been schussing down the slopes and sucking up the moguls, until—

Abruptly, the moving line of Helvetica characters pauses in mid-screen, and the thumbs hover in midair, just above the surface of the virtual keys. . . .

On my first run, I went straight to the . . .

. . . uh . . . straight to the . . . uh . . . straight to the

—is it ea? or ee? or i? Damn! . . . 


Not even off the lift, and already you’re piste off. . . . But wait! Suddenly the light of salvation flares, and victoriously you tap out . . .

TOP of the mountain!

That was a close one, wasn’t it? Clever you; you have just prudently avoided making an incorrect choice from among a certain trio of homophones. Ms. Picky understands. You need to know the difference among peak, peek, and pique. . . .

Ms. Picky confesses she had some fun with this introduction, but those sensible people who don’t indulge in the sport might need some help with it. Here it is: Alpine skiing is downhill skiing, of the type done in the Alps (as compared with Nordic skiing, also known as cross-country skiing, of the type done in Nordic countries). Schussing is making a fast, straight, downhill run on skis. Moguls (pronounced MO-guls), in this context, are mounds of hard snow that can be obstacles on a ski slope. A skilled skier is said to “suck up” the moguls when he bends his knees and uses his legs as shock absorbers. Helvetica (pronounced hell-VET-i-cuh) is the name of a sans serif typeface, but Helvetic also means Swiss (taken from the Latin “Helvetia,” for Switzerland). A piste (pronounced peest) is a ski trail, and “off piste” means off the ski trail, or back-country skiing, away from the approved trails. Now, enough silliness, and on to the business of the day. . . .

Peek, Peak, and Pique

Peak:

The noun “peak” means the highest point on a mountain, or the high point or apex of any activity.

Example:

He had a spectacular view of the Jungfrau peak as he skied down the Lauberhorn. 

Peek

The verb “peek” means to take a quick or secret look at something.

Example:

Before the last run, he took a peek at his watch.

Pique

The noun “pique” means a feeling of resentment or annoyance

The verb “pique” means to arouse someone’s interest or curiosity.

Examples:

(Noun) He had a fit of pique when he stupidly skied over his own pole. 

(Verb) She had never tried it, but snowboarding piqued her curiosity. 

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