Cross Country Skiing

[DebW]

I skied Saturday at Prospect Mt. near Bennington Vt. It was great snow and good trails. A group of us did the Moonlight ski that they have once a month. You get a dinner in the lodge, then ski ~2 km to a pond where they have a bonfire. A guy does a visual dance swinging firepots while shirtless in 5 degree weather. We were supposed to be skiing by moonlight, but the moon hadn't risen yet, so most of us used headlamps. Did a lovely but not hard snowshoe hike today.

[Crankin]

Just got back from another great day at Northfield Mountain. It was 30 when we started and went up to about 35. We did the same climb up to the top of the mountain, which felt long, but getting to the top was awesome. This time, we didn't eat at the top, though, and skied right down the blue trails. It didn't feel hard or scary at all.
After lunch, the 4 of us went up a green trail we had skied down previously, but then switched to a blue trail we had no idea about, as far as if it was a climb or a descent. It was probably the longest climb I've done on skis. Not super steep, but bad enough that I was saying "I am going to die," about half way through. Once I stop, like for lunch, I find it is a lot harder for me when I go back on the trail. But, we were finally rewarded with the long downhill on the green trail, where I got in a tuck position and sped down really fast. I kept hearing the voice of the guy on my winter training core video, saying " If you do this, you'll be able to stay in the tuck position for a longer time, on the bike." I have to say, my legs were screaming, but all the core work has helped.
A total of 9 miles. I am going to have ribs and beer tonight!
Next weekend we are going to Franconia for 3 days.

[mudmucker]

I have about 18,000 acres of either state forest or WMA within 6 miles of my house. About 2000 of those have access about a quarter mile from my house. This doesn't even include Wendell SF or the Quabbin, which is 25 minutes from me. First thing I do when I move to a new place is get myself a map and compass and head out to the woods, or explore by mt. bike. I've lived here for 7 years and have done a lot of exploring and am familiar with a lot of these places.

But today I went to an area to ski that I hadn't thought of which slipped off the radar years ago. You can connect to parts that I do know from it. I have to say after all these years I actually was in an area I had never been. I didn't recognize a thing, not a landform, nothing. It was great. It was so wonderful to not know where I was, to have this woodland experience be so fresh and new and full of antipation. I kept wanting to go further to discover what was around the bend, to see if it did finally connect to something I recognized. It never did. It was a larger area than expected. It was getting near 4pm and because I was unfamiliar with the area, wanted to get back to the car before dark. Nor did I have a topo map and it was cloudy with no sun. There were all sorts of diversions and offset paths heading to different areas. I wanted to explore all of them and see where they went. There were so many I'm not even sure I'd be able to explore them all with what winter is left. I'll have to come out on the mt bike to be able to cover greater area. But then it started to snow and there was one trail that was just too darn inviting. It went through a grove of white and red pines so you felt you were going through a tall cathedral forest. Likely a pine plantation of an old management practice that was once commonly used to quickly reforest abandoned deforested land. You see them a lot around here. The snow was falling softly. All was quiet. It was cleared. A snowmobile had gone through once but it looked like it had been few days ago. A thin veneer of snow was laid over the snowmobile tracks making for perfect snow conditions. So I shuffled through the pines, just me and the quiet. The snow and ski in such harmony that the uninterrupted kick and glide gave a zen like quality. I was in a zone. The fresh cool air, flakes falling so slowly and peacefully. It was heavenly, a perfect feeding for the soul.

Never know what fresh experiences lie ahead in the day when you wake up.

[jessmarimba]

I learned today - we spent about 5 hours at Eldora between the lesson and the trails we went on. It was much easier than I was expecting, though I don't think I weighed enough for the ridiculously long skis I had. Hard to get the part beneath my feet to ever touch the ground, so going up hills was stupid slow sometimes. Next time I want to learn skate skiing.

[Becky]

We got ~8" of snow on Thursday, so DH and I finally got to try out our new skis! Rossi BC65s for me and BC70s for him. I am pleased to report that we chose well for our conditions- they're beefy enough for breaking trail without being overwhelming for our typical snow amounts, short enough to turn easily, and metal edges really do help when it turns icy.

Hooray!

[DebW]

I
But today I went to an area to ski that I hadn't thought of which slipped off the radar years ago.

Never know what fresh experiences lie ahead in the day when you wake up.

Cool.

[lph]

Ooo. Went skiing today in our local woods, after shuffling my feet for two weeks. It was excellent. Brilliantly groomed, even though the base is a bit hard and icy. I have new skis. Ooo. My 13 year old son is now an efficient and strong skate skier, almost as good as my dh, but I can report that I can still double-pole the h*ll out of both of them.

[solobiker]

Whaaaaa...I didn't get to go out this weekend. I had a bad cold all week and by Friday just as I was starting to feel better I ended up with the stomach flu Oh well, There is always next weekend. Hope everyone Had a fun time. LPH way to go!!

[Kubla]

I just found (what seems to be) a pretty good online deal for a backcountry ski package at Akers Ski in Maine. Here's the catch: the skis will be pre-drilled, but the bindings will need to be installed by the buyer.

Does anyone know what is involved for installation of 3-pin bindings? Do they just snap into place-or is there a lot more to the task (glue, brute force, etc.)?

I plan to write to them, but they are closed on Sundays and it doesn't appear initially that installation is available at an additional cost.

[DebW]

I just found (what seems to be) a pretty good online deal for a backcountry ski package at Akers Ski in Maine. Here's the catch: the skis will be pre-drilled, but the bindings will need to be installed by the buyer.

Does anyone know what is involved for installation of 3-pin bindings? Do they just snap into place-or is there a lot more to the task (glue, brute force, etc.)?

I plan to write to them, but they are closed on Sundays and it doesn't appear initially that installation is available at an additional cost.

3-pin bindings install with screws. If they come predrilled, it takes alot of the work (positioning and alignment) out of it. You need elmer's glue or slow-cure epoxy on the screws/in the holes to seal out water. You also may need a special posidrive phillips screwdriver. I did a set from scratch recently with a friend's help.

[Kubla]

This afternoon DBF and I took our skis and explored the conservation land behind my house. It was his first outing this year-and my fourth.

Our skis (Rossignol BC 65s) don't do well in in deep snow, but we were lucky enough to find some trails that had been packed down by snowmobiles, so it worked out ok.

We've been looking for backcountry skis that would handle the deep snow more efficiently. Does anyone have experience with the Rossignol BC 90, Alpina Lite Terrain or Madshus Epoch? We don't need anything too aggressive for steep downhill. We'll stick to trails and fairly gentle slopes.

[mudmucker]

This afternoon DBF and I took our skis and explored the conservation land behind my house. It was his first outing this year-and my fourth.

Our skis (Rossignol BC 65s) don't do well in in deep snow, but we were lucky enough to find some trails that had been packed down by snowmobiles, so it worked out ok.

We've been looking for backcountry skis that would handle the deep snow more efficiently. Does anyone have experience with the Rossignol BC 90, Alpina Lite Terrain or Madshus Epoch? We don't need anything too aggressive for steep downhill. We'll stick to trails and fairly gentle slopes.

I just saw this. Funny, I've been looking at the same 3 skis over the last 2 weeks. I don't have any personal experience but I've been doing some research and can offer some thoughts. Can see if it matches yours. I think our terrain and goals are similar...100% off trail use on rolling topography. No wilderness. No long gladed descents. No mountain type environment.

I too have a pair of older backcountry skis that have tip and waist similar to your Rossi 65s. I don't seem to want to do as much distance with those skis. And I'd like to better be able to carve out a couple of lazy turns in deeper snow if I want.

I'm looking for more float. Don't want anything too heavy.

I'm leaning towards the Epochs.

I have not seen any of these in person yet. I've called a couple of places to talk with the reps but I hope to go to a shop this weekend. The Alpinas have great float but appear to be more "telemarky" and I don't really have any extended long terrain that would warrant them. They are probably heavy because of it and I think there would be too much comprise of kick and glide.

The Rossi 90s on the other hand seem like they'd be lighter and have some control on the turns, and maybe better kick and glide on the level. But I'm wondering if the dimensions would actually offer that much more float over what I/we already have. Not sure if 26 mm extra of tip and 7 mm extra of waist would make that much of a difference with the deep snow that we have. Our snow usually has moisture and packs well but how comparable would it be? I'm thinking pretty similar.

So I'm leaning towards the Epochs. They have healthy dimension for float. A healthy sidecut for carving on a hill if you want that option. And I think still a fairly soft camber for quick responses for turning and navigating through tight trees for when I want to go through those areas. I have a lot of more open logging roads and access roads though that would probably be my predominant route but it's nice to have the extra option. You'd probably give up some kick and glide but I have fast skis if I want to do that. Can add skins I think if I want to climb something bigger. I don't mind slowing down for the remote and "no one's been through here yet or ever" experience that I'd like to get back to lately.

The verdict is still out for me. I hate to fork over all that money. I don't mind putting out for the skis. I already have an SNS system on my skis with a Salomon backcountry boot. I might be able to get away with that with the Rossi 90s but I probably would have to change out with the Epochs.

Let us know what you decide if you go forward with one of them.

[Crankin]

All this snow is making me dizzy! I cannot wait to get out there. Hoping to go out tomorrow after the storm ends.
We are going up to Franconia Friday for the weekend. I will be skiing at some places I haven't been to before, and the inn we are staying at is ski out the door.
On Saturday I said that I think I like x country skiing better than riding. My friends thought I was kidding, but I am not. I think it's because I feel more confident and I actually like the descents. I feel like I have more control descending on skis than on my bike, where I am a wimp.
I am not giving up cycling, obviously, but I am very happy with all of the snow that is falling, and I am sick of everyone else complaining about it.

[Kubla]

I just saw this. Funny, I've been looking at the same 3 skis over the last 2 weeks. I don't have any personal experience but I've been doing some research and can offer some thoughts. Can see if it matches yours. I think our terrain and goals are similar...100% off trail use on rolling topography. No wilderness. No long gladed descents. No mountain type environment.

I too have a pair of older backcountry skis that have tip and waist similar to your Rossi 65s. I don't seem to want to do as much distance with those skis. And I'd like to better be able to carve out a couple of lazy turns in deeper snow if I want.

I'm looking for more float. Don't want anything too heavy.

I'm leaning towards the Epochs.

I have not seen any of these in person yet. I've called a couple of places to talk with the reps but I hope to go to a shop this weekend. The Alpinas have great float but appear to be more "telemarky" and I don't really have any extended long terrain that would warrant them. They are probably heavy because of it and I think there would be too much comprise of kick and glide.

The Rossi 90s on the other hand seem like they'd be lighter and have some control on the turns, and maybe better kick and glide on the level. But I'm wondering if the dimensions would actually offer that much more float over what I/we already have. Not sure if 26 mm extra of tip and 7 mm extra of waist would make that much of a difference with the deep snow that we have. Our snow usually has moisture and packs well but how comparable would it be? I'm thinking pretty similar.

So I'm leaning towards the Epochs. They have healthy dimension for float. A healthy sidecut for carving on a hill if you want that option. And I think still a fairly soft camber for quick responses for turning and navigating through tight trees for when I want to go through those areas. I have a lot of more open logging roads and access roads though that would probably be my predominant route but it's nice to have the extra option. You'd probably give up some kick and glide but I have fast skis if I want to do that. Can add skins I think if I want to climb something bigger. I don't mind slowing down for the remote and "no one's been through here yet or ever" experience that I'd like to get back to lately.

The verdict is still out for me. I hate to fork over all that money. I don't mind putting out for the skis. I already have an SNS system on my skis with a Salomon backcountry boot. I might be able to get away with that with the Rossi 90s but I probably would have to change out with the Epochs.

Let us know what you decide if you go forward with one of them.

We are really new to this so we're learning as we go along. Since the winter is zipping along, it will have to be a crash course. Neither of us minds checking out product reviews and FAQ information. After one outing/lesson, we were hooked enough to want to get away from renting and dealing with the 'traffic' at a resort.

But-like other sports we are involved with-(cycling, kayaking, etc.) it's hard to choose one set of equipment that will serve fairly well in multiple situations. We have touring bindings on our BC 65s (part of the package they came with) and touring boots. They do well on groomed/packed trails or a few inches of snow but flounder in the depth of white stuff we've been blessed with in the past couple weeks.

We'll probably skip over the backcountry bindings/boots option and go to a 3-pin setup with removable cables this time. Hopefully that strategy will serve us well in deeper snow and on hills. Our plans are similar to yours: trails in the woods, slogging through deeper snow and ungroomed trails in a state park or conservation land. No extreme or mountainous terrain. (At 57, I have no desire to fly down a mountain at warp speed. I do want to learn to navigate efficiently.) Turning and stopping would be handy skills...

John wanted to order the BC 70s, but I pointed out that they would not be different enough from what we have. I leaned toward the BC 90s at when the search began but-like you mentioned-they may not be aggressive enough. In retrospect (which is always 20/20), the 90s might have been a better choice for the first set of skis-although the 65s will still fit in a groomed track. We do like them.

I believe you can use either a backcountry or 3-pin system on the 90s, but think the Madshus Epochs require a 3-pin setup. Of course, this means another pair of boots, but it seems inevitable that we'll need another collection of equipment.

I don't know much about Alpinas yet, but the Madshus brand seems to be well-regarded. After what I've read (so far), the Epochs appeal most to me of the 3.