Cross Country Skiing

[Kathi]

Keystone Nordic is offering a "Women's Workout" on Jan. 29th and Feb. 5th. Lessons are "Starting Skating", "Next Step Skating" or "Improving Classic Skiing". $25.00 with equipment rental, $20.00 if you have your own gear. Not sure if this price is for 2 lessons or 1. Pre-registration required. Keystone's web site has no information so call the no. 970-496-4275.

Although I want to learn to skate ski I'm working on improving my classic skiing first, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to do the "Improving Classic Skiing" lessons.

Keystone does offer beginner classic lessons on Fridays and Eldora has a Women's program during the week.

No matter which you chose I do recommend lessons to start off right, especially if you don't Alpine ski.

The beginner trail at Keystone Nordic is pretty flat with a couple of little hills. The intermediate trails are hilly with some flat. I haven't skied other Nordic areas here because I can ski at Keystone Nordic free with my Vail ski pass.

[solobiker]

Keystone Nordic is offering a "Women's Workout" on Jan. 29th and Feb. 5th. Lessons are "Starting Skating", "Next Step Skating" or "Improving Classic Skiing". $25.00 with equipment rental, $20.00 if you have your own gear. Not sure if this price is for 2 lessons or 1. Pre-registration required. Keystone's web site has no information so call the no. 970-496-4275.

Although I want to learn to skate ski I'm working on improving my classic skiing first, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to do the "Improving Classic Skiing" lessons.

Keystone does offer beginner classic lessons on Fridays and Eldora has a Women's program during the week.

No matter which you chose I do recommend lessons to start off right, especially if you don't Alpine ski.

The beginner trail at Keystone Nordic is pretty flat with a couple of little hills. The intermediate trails are hilly with some flat. I haven't skied other Nordic areas here because I can ski at Keystone Nordic free with my Vail ski pass.

Jess, this sounds like it would be a great Idea for you and pretty cheap too. Eldora where I often go is known to be hilly which can be frustrating if you are new to the sport. I am still more then willing to give you some pointers if both you and I head up there at the end of Jan.

As for the Womens programs at Eldora the 1st session has already started and the second sessions start in the middle of Feb I think. Last year they had them on Tue and Wed (you pick which day works best for you) and it runs for 6 weeks. I did the womens telemark last year and it was pretty fun. I had to switch my days off to make it work.

Hope you find something that works for you. It is really fun and great exercise.

[jessmarimba]

Thanks for the info! The Keystone program sounds perfect.

[solobiker]

Have fun Jess!!!!

[Kubla]

We tried XC late last winter and were immediately hooked! (I'd been wanting to go for a long time, but DBF wasn't totally on board with the idea at first.)

I am middle-aged, fairly active-but not a 'natural' athlete. Group lessons (where I'm typically one of the oldest students and not as quick to catch on as the others) aren't my best learning environment.

Less than a week after taking a group lesson, he asked, "So are we ordering ski packages - or what?!" Unfortunately there was a problem getting the right size boots for me and it only snowed once after we got them.

In the past few weeks I've been out 3 times and it's starting to feel more comfortable. We live next to conservation land and can make our own trails to some extent, but hopefully I can improve my skills with a private lesson somewhere nearby to kick things up a notch.

[solobiker]

Had the day off from work yesterday so I headed up to the local nordic center for some skiing. It was a little on the cold side and windy..(my water bottle started to freeze) It was so nice out on the trails because I pretty much had them to myself. I only saw maybe 6 other people the whole time I was out. I manged to get in about 10 miles which felt great. Hope to get out over this weekend too. This time maybe hit the backcountry for some touring. Ahhhh to many choices I love Colorado!!

[Crankin]

Kubla, I don't think there are any x country centers in SE MA. You could try the Weston Ski Track, which would be the closest for you, for a private lesson. It's not that pretty (a golf course overlooking the highway), but it's good for learning. It's right near the intersection of 128 and the Pike. Great Brook Farm in Carlisle would be prettier, but further away. They have lessons, too.
I think you will find that this is a sport that is done by many older people. You can ski at any speed you want and find terrain that suits your needs. I skied for about 12 years on beginner trails, until 1) I got better skis with metal edges and 2) I found friends that were willing to coax me up and down the hills. It didn't take me very long to "get" it. Of course, taking up cycling in the interim helped more than anything else.