[verslowrdr]

Just got out for the first real skate yesterday since I finally located a sufficiently packed trail. Holy crap- I've been weight lifting with this in mind since August, and STILL kicked my arse!!! :eekster:

I don't think a better fitness/core strength exercise has ever been devised.

 

[connie]

Not yet - Park City has been slow to get enough snow for the skate skiing trail I like to use to get ready. I broke out the classic gear and broke my own trail last weekend, and that was fun, but hopefully I'll get out on the skate gear this weekend. I'm anxious to see if the speed skating will transfer to skate skiing at all...

 

[chuky]

Yep,as much as I can. Took some clinics at the West Yellowstone festival this year (OMG, changed my skiing completely), and our local course is great now (Mtn Dell). When White Pine opens, it will be hard to decide where to go when.

Really trying to embrace winter this year - got a Brighton Pass, ordered some rad snowshoes/poles and JMH and I are waxing our own skate skis now. I am having more fun than I thought possible, don't miss the bikes one bit.

I Heart Utah.

 

[verslowrdr]

Skated yesterday at lunch for a half hour (shorter than normal because I had to stop by the bank), then went skijoring w/ hounds for 8 miles last night. I managed to hit the trail basically post-groomer corduroy so the dogs and I were FLYING.

Wondered why husband was already in bed when I got home... until I noticed it was 11PM. Eep! But I had wanted to get the hounds out before the next big dump of snow we've got headed at us so we didn't have yet another slog-tastic run.

 

[verslowrdr]

As a winter sports neophyte, what is skate skiing? It sounds like XC skiing, which is penitence

Definitely NOT penitence- it's Grace, lol! XC skiing might actually be my best athletic skill-sport, but it's one of the very few endurance activities that might favor big/tall gals like myself, and I've had years to practice with and without dogs.

But honestly it WOULD be penitence for someone who only got to beat themselves up once or twice a season... XC skiing in all it's forms is extremely technique/skill demanding, and the learning curve can be brutal. To put it in perspective: most people know how to balance on a bike and turn pedals around, so even an out-of-shape beginner can make a mile or two on a flat dirt road the first time out- which is measurably decent progress in their mind. A beginner XCer without much fitness base might struggle to make even 100 yards of forward progress on a flat set track. Needless to say, that isn't such a convincing first taste of the sport.

The good news is that once you've paid your dues and gone beyond exhausted flailing, XC skiing is one of those things I've seen 60+ year old people pick back up and it can actually be a remarkably effective way to get around.

Skating... Maybe think rollerblading or ice skating on snow? Classic XC depends on a forward/back kick-and-glide. Skating involves pushing out laterally to propel you forward. Here's a vid that might explain it better:

 

[chuky]

But honestly it WOULD be penitence for someone who only got to beat themselves up once or twice a season... XC skiing in all it's forms is extremely technique/skill demanding, and the learning curve can be brutal.

Totally agree. We have been explaining to people that it is a lot more like swimming than it is like riding - it is pretty easy to not drown, but being a fast swimmer takes a lot of technique refinement. JMH and I had the opportunity to clinic at West Yellowstone this year and it was pretty amazing. A day of technique work made us both exponentially faster (which shows how new to the sport we really are).

We took a professional athlete friend of ours out recently and he was so bummed at how slow he was and how awkward he felt first time out, but he will get it eventually and then he will crush us all (don't think I will encourage him to take any lessons )

The good news is that once you've paid your dues and gone beyond exhausted flailing, XC skiing is one of those things I've seen 60+ year old people pick back up and it can actually be a remarkably effective way to get around.

]

Totally true - JMH's dad started skiing again this week after a many years break and he is doing well.

Another random thought - one of the best things about California and other warm places is the year round riding. This is also one of the worst things. It is great for people who need year round quality training weather (which I did for a long time, and totally appreciate), but the constant weather tends to discourage changes in habits. Picking up a new sport can really complement your riding, can help an experienced rider through the doldrums and will make it so that you really cherish your bike time. Winter forces a lot of us to change things up, and it is amazing how much it can alter a person's perspective. Since moving from LA to Utah, JMH and I have taken up skate skiing, snowshoeing and snowboarding. I am super stoked every time we go out, and I know that it is because I have a new set of problems to work on, new skills to master that aren't the same set of challenges I have been working on for years. Good to get away from the wheels sometimes.

plus, MORE GEAR!

Cheers,
C

 

[verslowrdr]

Seasons are awesome!

I'm one of those crazy people that loves to embrace seasons. I grew up on the Olympic peninsula, and while others might have loved to bike or ride horses all year I really didn't care for it at all. Now that I'm in the mountains of central WA I think I've found paradise... Every mushing season that starts up about Labor Day seems like a shot at redemption, then there's skiing when we get the first snow, the euphoria of all our months of hard work coming together with the first skijoring runs, and to be honest I get the same rush every spring when I can haul a bike outdoors again.

How great to have so much to look forward to!

And I've got an even scarier butt-kicking on skis coming my way... I talked my 3yo daughter into putting her tiny Karhu skis on yesterday, and she decided she liked scooting around in them with mom's legs behind her w/ hands around her arm pits so much that she insisted on going ALL THE WAY TO THE MAIL BOX. That's at least 150 feet of pretty icy driveway. !!!! The little buggar not only trooped out and back quite well, but was gerbiling on about the birds we saw and the ladybugs we didn't ("they're asleep") as she was clearly getting the hang of keeping the skis pointed correctly and even started duck-walking a bit to get up a little hill.

This summer's adventure will be figuring out the kinderbike now that she's finally big enough for it. :thumbsup:

 

[Di_bear]

Our trails have been groomed since mid-November. It's been great! My first skate was 2 hours. I couldn't stop. It was just too much fun. I've only been out a handful of times this year. It's a combination of being really busy and not wanting to drive anywhere. I've done more snowshoeing and snow blowing than anything. Actually, I have to snow blow before I go skiing, today.