Cross Country Skiing

[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.

[Kubla]

Crankin,

We went to the Weston Ski Track for our group lesson last year. On a second outing, we rented snowshoes and hiked around the grounds. I fell a LOT the first time we used the groomed trails and was uneasy with people whizzing by in all directions.

A confident woman in her 60s made it look so easy; I envied her skill level. She laughed and said I'd be zipping along in no time.

This year I have already noticed a big difference while skiing around our neighborhood; maybe it is the powder snow instead of the icier surface at the ski resort that helped me stay on my feet?

On another note: does anyone know if replacement parts are available for bindings? One of the rubber accordion-like pieces on a binding has disappeared already. The mechanism still works; not sure what its function is.

It's not as if the skis were handled or stored roughly. Seems they shouldn't be breaking already...is this normal?

[Crankin]

I used to fall a lot, too. A couple of things helped. One, was getting shorter skis, with even better edges, and two, was just practicing and skiing under a lot of different conditions. One day it just clicked. Falling never bothered me, but it was embarrassing at times. I remember rolling around in the snow, trying to get myself up from a fall at Weston, when I took a "refresher" class with AMC about 7 years ago. And yes, the conditions make a huge difference. We *have* had more powder this year so far, so get out there!
Your skis shouldn't be breaking after this amount of time, but it does happen. If you got them at REI, they fix them pronto.

Another glorious morning at Windblown today. We didn't have a lot of time, so we got there by 9:45. They were having an orienteering event and I thought it would be mobbed, but it wasn't. It was busy, but again, once you are out on the trails, the people disperse quickly. My DH is recovering from bronchitis and hasn't skied since our New Year's weekend in NH, so we took it a little easy, since he's still coughing. We skied about 9.5K, doing some good climbing at first, some downhills, and ending with a couple of long flats. The conditions were awesome, packed powder, but very fast. There was ice clinging to the tree branches, glistening in the sunlight. This is why I love New England. Yesterday, I snow shoed on my neighborhood trails/conservation land for about an hour... should have brought the poles this time. It was tough getting up the big climb in deep snow.
More snow coming on Wednesday!

[Kubla]

I went out for about an hour today. The additional snow we got yesterday seems to be too deep for my BC 65 (Rossignol) skis. (We chose that model so we could use grooved tracks or venture out on our own.) I got around ok, but it was more of a compromised shuffle than a glide today. It was easier in the woods where the snow wasn't as deep.

DBF still owes me a Christmas gift, so I may be getting a wider pair for deep snow eventually...caught him researching ski equipment online when I got home.

That missing rubber 'accordian' piece apparently keeps the binding from collecting snow and ice and prevents the release mechanism from jamming. Which is exactly what happened. It wasn't a problem last week, but with the additional 6 inches of powder from yesterday, it filled up. I had to ski home and take my foot out of the boot because the binding wasn't going to release the boot until it thawed.

We bought everything at Onion River Sports online. I Emailed them Monday and got no response when I asked if I could get a replacement part. Not too surprised; couldn't reach them by phone but will try again.

[mudmucker]

So it was perfect conditions out my way. The snow was still dry with little moisture so nice and powdery. A temperature of 24 F. The kind of snow where your glide is long and effortless and you can trot up the hills without a herringbone because all is perfect; wax and excellent grip at the kicker, and no ice. I usually wait until later in the afternoon to ski because it is typically the fastest then and there are fewer encounters with people. Sometimes I end up coming out as the sun is setting or dusk and wonder that after 33 years I haven't become a pre-nocturnal dinner for coyote. I'm kidding, sort of. .. But it's all worth it. So just when I thought it couldn't get any better than this today...it did. The groomers came through about 3:15 pm.



I haven't been so excited to see machines in the woods in a long time. My heart was warmed when I saw them and I just couldn't stop smiling.



I was ready to wrap it up but until I saw the groomers I couldn't resist. I stayed out later and followed in the wake of their path and it was pure bliss. Pure unadulterated fresh groom was ALL mine. Few were left in the park at that time.




All mine free and clear for as much skating as I wanted. Talk about chi.