skate skiing, anyone?

[Karin Kirk]

I have experienced a weird lapse in motivation this November. Usually I am out cross-training and getting ready for ski season, but I just couldn't make it happen this fall. (which is a whole 'nother story, actually)

But since we got a big snowstorm ~2 weeks ago, I have been rediscovering the joys of skate skiing. It's very technique-oriented, which keeps my mind really engaged (see Tom's thread) and I don't even notice how hard my body is working.

So I am finally back in a routine of doing something active. I was thinking how helpful it is to have alternate sports during the off-season to keep things fresh and fun. Seems to me that x-c skiing could be a great way to work on base fitness while giving yourself a break from riding, and this can help lower the likelihood of mental burnout come July.

Oh, plus, you can re-use all your nice winter cycling clothes for skate skiing too - it sure is nice to already have all the layers for each variation in temperature and wind.

So - does anyone else out there use this or other forms of winter training?

[Pete Serotta]

When I lived up north, I use to love cross country skiing. It was hardwork but very relaxing to me.

It was quite different than cycling but I think it was a winter complement. The thrill of "down hill" was not there but getting into ones zone(state of mind for me) was wonderful. No matter how cold it was, I was not cold after 15 minutes of workout,,,,

I think we all experience those "down" days/weeks.....

Smile and get out there skiing.....

Good luck. PETE

[CNY rider]

My wife and I do a lot of back country skiing in the winter.
We're lucky to be in a part of upstate NY that gets plenty of snow and has great terrain for skiiing.
I've never used skating technique, mainly because all our skiing is on ungroomed trails in the woods.
I have trouble relating to the threads about bicycle trainers. I need out door exercise, no matter what the weather, so that means commuting by bike whenever possible and skiing/snowshoeing or playing hockey the rest of the time. I'm not even the least bit interested in riding a trainer indoors.

[J.Greene]

Since winter is the best riding season here, I ride my bike. I'm envious of you guys though.

JG



I have experienced a weird lapse in motivation this November. Usually I am out cross-training and getting ready for ski season, but I just couldn't make it happen this fall. (which is a whole 'nother story, actually)

But since we got a big snowstorm ~2 weeks ago, I have been rediscovering the joys of skate skiing. It's very technique-oriented, which keeps my mind really engaged (see Tom's thread) and I don't even notice how hard my body is working.

So I am finally back in a routine of doing something active. I was thinking how helpful it is to have alternate sports during the off-season to keep things fresh and fun. Seems to me that x-c skiing could be a great way to work on base fitness while giving yourself a break from riding, and this can help lower the likelihood of mental burnout come July.

Oh, plus, you can re-use all your nice winter cycling clothes for skate skiing too - it sure is nice to already have all the layers for each variation in temperature and wind.

So - does anyone else out there use this or other forms of winter training?

[dauwhe]

Backcountry skiing is about my favorite thing, but it's been much harder to ski since I moved east (from Colorado).

I'd like to learn how to skate sometime. Unfortunately I don't learn such skills easily. I taught myself to ski on narrow, rocky hiking trails in Rocky Mountain National Park. So I have an interesting bag of tricks for survival skiing, but my turns are pretty ugly!

Dave

[benb]

You already have snow? That's cool I guess.

I did skate-style XC ski racing in high school.. it's cool and all but I wouldn't ignore Nordic style XC skiing. You can't actually "go places" very easily with skate skis. They are maybe a little better downhill but it's a lot harder to climb a significant hill and you really need groomed snow to have the most fun.

You basically have a certain hill size where up to that size skating is faster.. but above that size the skiier on Nordic skiis continues up the hill and the skater has a ton of trouble.

I guess you could consider it the equivalent of two riders.. one on a road bike with a double and one with a MTB.

All I care about is enough snow to do either one without driving hours.. it seems to be hard to come by lately.

[Karin Kirk]

Excellent points Ben!
Just like bikes, more than one setup is a good thing. I just went out and bought a pair of cheap, used touring skis so that I could "go places" and ski when it's not groomed. That way I can do whichever suits the snow or my mood, which will get me out there more often!

[lemonlaug]

If I had snow I think I would be into XC skiing. My limited experience with it was a blast.

As it is, I tend to head for the handball court in the winter. Even though good court design is non-existent and pretty much all of them have climate-control issues, it's indoors in the winter. Also it's sufficiently different from cycling that it's a nice change of pace mentally. Also, the old guys at the club love the fact that I'm half their age. They haven't seen a handball player under 25 (or 35 for that matter) in years.

[Bud]

Backcountry and tele- that's my winter workout regimen. And commuting by bike, too. Right now, we need more snow. I haven't even been out once yet. This weekend will be the first time to get some turns in.

[pdonk]

I prefer skate to classic skiing, even though i only own classics right now. I find the technique needed to enjoy classic really hard to master, and by the time I do, the season is over.

Worst part of living in Toronto, is that you have to drive a long way to get any good skiing in, making it not so much fun to do (drive 1-1/5 hours each way to ski for 2 hours does not make much sense to me)

[link]

oh so lovely and smooth with a V1

a little more speed and we off to V2 Alternate

hit the hill up and get the heart pumping with V2 for some some serious butt whooping

back to the car and swap out the gear to finish with some Classic

I keep a cold skate pair and a regular pair along with one set for teh classic


There are no more friendly people than those at the nordic center - my favorite thing about the whole experience is the people ...I don't mind getting to the fresh groomed trails first either.

[gdw]

I run and will do some snowshoeing and backcountry skiing when we get snow. Skate skiing is a great workout and looks like fun but I don't like being confined to groomed trails.

[swoop]

man, that sport looks hard. at least with bikin' there's somewhere to sit and cranks to tell you where your feet go.
talk about a learning curve!

maximum respect for the skate skiers.

[manet]

So - does anyone else out there use this or other forms of winter training?

manet does

[manet]

the glide is hypnotic

[stevep]

really, when the snow is really good...
it really rocks.
all in all i thk i would do it over riding ...
but the snow has to be good.

god, its a beautiful sport.
must be great karin to have good, cold snow...

[Bittersweet]

yes but classic. Usually do one 50k marathon a winter to scare myself into shape. Nothing works the core like 20k+ of double poling. I'm so excited for snow right now and by April I'll long for the bike.

[Onno]

yes but classic. Usually do one 50k marathon a winter to scare myself into shape. Nothing works the core like 20k+ of double poling. I'm so excited for snow right now and by April I'll long for the bike.

This is me exactly. We're expecting quite a bit of snow over the next week, and I'm drooling over my skis, both skate and classic (though for the first snows of the season, skating around here in upstate NY is impossible--the snow is too fluffy and deep and wet--come to think of it, classic ain't that easy in early season snow around here either, except on the crown skis). By the end of March I can't wait to put away the ski bench and take out the bike stand--which for me really signals the change of season. But that's four months away. Bring on the snow! And the grooming machines! I love the intensity and smoothness and challenge and variety of both kinds of racing skiing. Backcountry is lovely too, in its own way, but I rarely hanker for it the way I do for a beautiful new corduroy skating track, or virgin classic tracks.

Karin, what is the nicest place you've ever x-c skied? I skied the 35k of trails at Mt. Washington, Vancouver Island a few years ago, and it remains the most beautiful and fun place I've been to.

[manet]

breia trails?

[tch]

This is me exactly. We're expecting quite a bit of snow over the next week, and I'm drooling over my skis, both skate and classic (though for the first snows of the season, skating around here in upstate NY is impossible--the snow is too fluffy and deep and wet--come to think of it, classic ain't that easy in early season snow around here either, except on the crown skis). By the end of March I can't wait to put away the ski bench and take out the bike stand--which for me really signals the change of season. But that's four months away. Bring on the snow! And the grooming machines! I love the intensity and smoothness and challenge and variety of both kinds of racing skiing. Backcountry is lovely too, in its own way, but I rarely hanker for it the way I do for a beautiful new corduroy skating track, or virgin classic tracks.
.
I'm on the same schedule -- maybe just starting a bit later in the season and ending a bit earlier. I love the variety of the seasons. Warm (relatively) months are for riding; cold are for skiing in all forms: classic nordic, skate, backcountry, and downhill. Since I live in NW Connecticut, none are regularly exceptional and I really don't have any training/racing/technique building buddies, but there are wonderful moments. Last year, I got in 45 days of cross-country of all varieties and had one of the best downhill days of my life during a 18" blizzard that kept everyone else from getting to the mountain.

One of the nicest features of my ski life is that somehow I ended up friends with one of the largest private landowners in Connecticut -- and he is a major nordic skier! Owns his own double-track groomer with a piston bully and he grooms for both classic and skate. It's not unusual for me to be the first skier out on the groom -- and then, the next day, to be the second.
Karin, if you're ever east, I can hook you up...

On the downside...it's 40 degrees and raining now, and snow is still a fond hope for the future.

[gasman]

Karin-

I love it all.tele,classic, skate, downhill. I discovered skate skiing a few years ago and the workout is physical and mental-you need a lot of technique to move quickly. Ya don't need a lot of time to get wasted. It's like uphill intervals on the bike. I will get out skating several times this winter-it's never enough but the snow is 1.5 hrs away and there is never enough time.

[AgilisMerlin]

my wife used to skate ski race, here in maine, back in high school...

since we just moved back, her uncle is giving us a pair of dry land skiis, for pavement, and just a minute ago, i just told her about them.........


saw woman ski by my door the other day...............cool stuff............

skate skiing will jack your heart rate..............like any cross race could........

good to hear you are back to floating on snow :banana:

[Karin Kirk]

Karin, what is the nicest place you've ever x-c skied? I skied the 35k of trails at Mt. Washington, Vancouver Island a few years ago, and it remains the most beautiful and fun place I've been to.

Wow, that sounds sweet!
I'm not a connoisseur and I haven't been too that many places on x-c skis. But the place I'm most fond of is SPAC in Saratoga Springs. It's a big state park and golf course and it was on my way to work, so I could get in a couple of laps in the morning. There was good snow, nice grooming and it was mostly flat, which was good for me! That was the only time I skate skied regularly.

Sounds like some of you are rather accomplished - cool! TCH - wow, that sounds like quite a setup you have, with your own "private" ski area!
I am in a state of the perpetual beginner because once alpine skiing starts, I rarely have time for anything else. But there is something refreshing about being a beginner. I have low expectations, I have fun in that ignorance-is-bliss style, and I get a killer workout in a short time. (as others have also observed)

I took today off from the skiing, because yesterday I was even more pathetic than usual. I'll go again tomorrow with renewed vigor! :)

[RIHans]

When I lived in Tioga County, NY, there was snow from now until April, so we skiied...skinny skis.

Classic was for the tourists, skate ski was for the burn!

We always took a winter trip to Mt.Von Hoovenberg each year to ski in Lake Placid.

We did the men's Olympic 50 K one year as fast as we could...And when we were done, we were in shock how fast the '80 Russian had done it...Zimyatov in 2:27. I think it took us close to 3:30. As I remember, the course is a be-otch.

[Bittersweet]

Classic was for the tourists, skate ski was for the burn!

.

Feeling the burn classic style

http://youtube.com/watch?v=w4h_2H0mC1A&feature=related

[CNY rider]

Wow, that sounds sweet!
I'm not a connoisseur and I haven't been too that many places on x-c skis. But the place I'm most fond of is SPAC in Saratoga Springs. It's a big state park and golf course and it was on my way to work, so I could get in a couple of laps in the morning. There was good snow, nice grooming and it was mostly flat, which was good for me! That was the only time I skate skied regularly.

Sounds like some of you are rather accomplished - cool! TCH - wow, that sounds like quite a setup you have, with your own "private" ski area!
I am in a state of the perpetual beginner because once alpine skiing starts, I rarely have time for anything else. But there is something refreshing about being a beginner. I have low expectations, I have fun in that ignorance-is-bliss style, and I get a killer workout in a short time. (as others have also observed)

I took today off from the skiing, because yesterday I was even more pathetic than usual. I'll go again tomorrow with renewed vigor! :)

I would say that two "must do" ski trips in the northeast are Avalanche Pass, in the Adirondack High Peaks, and the ski trail from Bolton Valley Vermont to Stowe. Both require some good backcountry skiing skills, as well as good snow cover. They are both classics and will put a smile on your face for a long time after.

[dauwhe]

Bolton-Trapp is magnificent--one of my favorite skis anywhere. Skytop is pretty sweet, too!

I've only been to the Daks once, but did ski to Avalanche Pass when there was almost no snow (but plenty of ice). I'd have to lift one ski to avoid a rock, while ducking my head to avoid a tree branch. Not very elegant, but fun in an odd way.

If I had all the money in the world, I think I'd live at the Chateau Lake Louise in the Canadian Rockies in the winter, and spend every day on skis, with the occasional trip to Skokie, Mistaya Lodge, etc. !

Dave

[Onno]

breia trails?

Yes, for classic, and Salmon Hills for skate, but there are some other options too up here. Do you ever come up this way?