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travel / adventure / guides / winter 2004
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Cross country checkup
It's all the inspiration you need to greet every fresh snowfall like
your new best friend
BY MARION HARRISON
AS
A TEENAGER, I found the best way to thaw my frosty relationship with
the elements
was to take up cross-country skiing. When all my
high school pals were lining up at the ski hills, I was slipping
out the back door of my Guelph, Ont., home for a few hours of no-fuss
fun.
I
skied with a friend who, like me, loved the liberation from noisy lift
lines and crowded resorts. Our idea of winter nirvana was to escape
to the fields, forests and frozen ponds beyond the city, where we would
chill in the peace and quiet of the countryside, sharing the company
of birds, rabbits and deer.
The joys were
ours to create. We didn't
have to beg a parent to drive us or deplete our meagre babysitting
earnings to purchase
lift tickets. We'd pack a lunch and, after skiing for a few hours
in brilliant sunshine, stop under snow-laden branches for a delicious
snack and a nip of whatever we could siphon from our parents' liquor
cabinets. Pure adventure!
Classic
That was 30 years ago, when cross-country skis were sold at only one
shop in Toronto and in just two colours: red or blue. A wiry, weather-beaten
man fitted me with the red ones, which had the appropriate camber,
or flex, for my height and weight. Made of solid wood, my skis were
outfitted with bamboo poles that sported suede grips and supersized
baskets. My square-toed, black leather lace-up boots had holes for
three-pin bindings. At home, I had to tar and wax the ski bottoms before
setting out the first time.
top
Ski gear may be
more sophisticated these days, but the sport of classic cross-country
skiing is basically
the same and equally easy to enjoy.
With today's high-tech materials and manufacturing methods, cross-country
skis are lighter, sturdier and more flexible and the poles are made
of strong carbon fibre. The footwear revolution has turned cross-country
ski boots into something more like winterproof running shoes. State-of-the-art
binding systems prevent the boots from wobbling.
Reacquainting yourself with this sport is simple. Start by renting
a pair of skis from a sporting-goods store or Nordic centre. A painless
introduction for first-time cross-country skiers is waxless skis. Designed
with scaled undersides, waxless cross-country skis grip the snow and
let you push off. These skis are great for beginners who want to concentrate
on technique. If you are jumping in headfirst, buy waxed skis and get
a good book on how to wax them. It's a bit of a science, but
waxing your skis gives you better grip and glide in different conditions,
temperatures and snow.
The options for cross-country skiing venues are
limitless in Canada. As long as there is snow on the ground, you can
set out from your back
door and ski around your yard or street to get the feel of your equipment.
Schoolyards or parks allow you to set your own course and get some
mid-week exercise and fresh air. On the weekend , drive the distance
to a bona fide cross-country ski area, where the trails are mechanically
groomed with grooved tracks and are rated for difficulty. Just find
your favourite setting and fall into that beautiful rhythm of striding
and gliding.
In my early twenties,
I moved to Alberta, where cross-country ski areas offered hundreds
of kilometres of trails. As people discovered
the
joys of the sport, facilities here and to the east added warm-up shelters
heated with wood stoves, waxing huts, day lodges, information centres
and accommodation ranging from crude do-it-yourself huts to comfortable
cabins and, eventually, luxurious inns. Ski resorts for the classic
cross-country crowd finally came of age when innkeepers linked their
hotels with trail networks. Imagine staying in luxury one night, then
skiing the next day to another hotel or lodge while your luggage is
ferried ahead for you. It's a dream ski vacation.
top
Skate skiing
If you'd prefer a more athletic workout, skate-skiing
might be for you. As the name implies, skate-skiers get their aerobic
rush
using a diagonal stride similar to that of ice skaters and in-line
skaters. Skate-skiing is a high-exertion sport that first came to mainstream
attention when world-class skiers adapted the technique to increase
their competitive edge. At full pace, it is more demanding than stride 'n' glide
because it involves strong arms and legs to propel you along. With
the pace you're moving in skate-skiing, good balance and powerful
lungs are also assets.
Skate-ski gear
is different from that of classic cross-country. I once tried skating
on classic
equipment, which is
probably why my hips are
permanently akimbo. Don't make the same mistake. Specialized
skate-skis are shorter and more rigid and are accompanied by long poles,
which are designed to give you maximum thrust. Your hips and inner
thighs will thank you, and you'll have much better success with
the technique. A lesson or two can be useful for learning the techniques
of shifting your weight and using the poles. Most cross-country areas
groom hard-packed trails for skate-skiers.
You'll be working at
a high aerobic level and will likely sweat a lot, which means chills
set in quickly if you slow down or stop.
Serious skate-skiers — like joggers — wear a second skin
of light athletic clothing to avoid overheating.
top
Telemark
I first ventured into the Rocky Mountain backcountry about 12 years
ago to telemark ski. The thrill of being high in the mountains combined
with the strenuous exercise have kept me going back year after year.
Today, it is my favourite type of skiing.
Backcountry equipment
is quite different from that used for either classic or skate-skiing.
The
skis are fatter, which allows you to "float" in
deep powder. Removable synthetic "skins" attach to the
ski bottoms so that you can ski up mountains. Telemark boots are made
of leather or stiff plastic and have high ankles for good support and
control. The bindings, which are heavier and sturdier than those required
for other cross-country ski types, still leave the heel free.
(The free
heel is the feature that distinguishes telemark skiing from alpine
touring, or randonnée, even though both types of skiers
cover the same backcountry terrain. Alpine touring is just what it
sounds like — a combination of downhill and backcountry skiing.
The gear easily accommodates both as the bindings are convertible;
they give you the option of going free heel when touring and "locking
down" for a descent.)
Telemark skiing is notable for its graceful
bended-knee turn, which you can learn from an experienced friend or
by taking lessons through
an outdoor school or at a resort.
To practise the turn and limber up
my knees,
I typically spend a day at a resort at the
beginning of every season.
Backcountry skiing is the most demanding
of all the sports I do, winter or summer. Cutting trails through deep
powder is exhausting, and you
can spend hours gaining elevation just to get in an hour of telemark
skiing. For every graceful turn, I also manage a few face plants that
leave me floundering in soft snow.
Apart from the physical demands,
backcountry skiing is mentally demanding as well. Travelling safely
in the mountains requires skilful route-finding,
and avalanche training must be updated frequently and practised on
every outing to keep the risks at a minimum. In mountainous terrain,
your equipment should include avalanche transceivers, probes, food,
water, extra clothes and first-aid and tool kits.
If you love the
mountains, the sport is irresistible. Huts and lodges, operated
commercially or through the Alpine Club of Canada, provide varying
degrees of comfort
at a range of prices, with guided and catered trips topping the list.
It's hard to beat a day
of skiing followed by a gourmet meal, friendly conversation around
a cheery fire and
dreamless sleep under a down-filled duvet.
top
Marion Harrison is the executive director of the Alberta Magazine
Publishers Association and former editor of Explore magazine.
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