Cross Country Skiing

[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.

[beccaB]

We just started cross country skiing, been out maybe 6 times. Is there a good source for learning stuff about it? There's quite a learning curve, and we just have cheap skis and even cheaper poles and sometimes my hands hurt. Maybe it's that death grip thing. I would like to know if I'm even using the right ski for the conditions. Not something I learned from growing up in Florida, that's for sure!

[Kubla]

We just started cross country skiing, been out maybe 6 times. Is there a good source for learning stuff about it? There's quite a learning curve, and we just have cheap skis and even cheaper poles and sometimes my hands hurt. Maybe it's that death grip thing. I would like to know if I'm even using the right ski for the conditions. Not something I learned from growing up in Florida, that's for sure!

BeccaB, we are new to this, too. I have found the Onion River Sports site to have quite a bit of information. Their videos help demystify the equipment.

But-like bicycling-first you need to have an idea what style of cross country skiing appeals to you (groomed tracks at a resort?, skate skiing?, backcountry?, etc.) then you can focus a more on the equipment needed for the chosen discipline: http://www.orscrosscountryskisdirect.com

www.backcountry.com has a live chat feature that might help with your questions, as does www.skinnyskis.com (I'm sure there are others.)

There are XC forums out there too; the ones I've found so far are www.wintertrekking.com and www.xcskiforum.com

[roadie gal]

We just started cross country skiing, been out maybe 6 times. Is there a good source for learning stuff about it? There's quite a learning curve, and we just have cheap skis and even cheaper poles and sometimes my hands hurt. Maybe it's that death grip thing. I would like to know if I'm even using the right ski for the conditions. Not something I learned from growing up in Florida, that's for sure!

Do you have a cross country ski area (or a downhill area with XC trails) around you? If you do, I'd recommend taking a lesson. I've always found lessons so much more helpful than videos or books. There's a lot of technique to even simple striding. The better your technique the more you'll enjoy the whole thing. You can also try out better equipment to see if that makes a difference for you.

[roadie gal]

I went out for a skate yesterday. It was one of the few days that I didn't have a time limit. So I decided to go to one of the warming huts on top of the mountain that I've never made it to on my skaters, although I have on the striding skis.

Well, I huffed and puffed and stopped and went all of the way up to the hut. It seemed like it took forever. The only other person I saw was one of the nurses from work. She and I took turns passing each other and then stopping to catch our breath. At one intersection, she turned off onto a different trail and I kept going. I was VERY tired by the time I got back to the lodge, but I'm so jazzed that I made it! Maybe next time I can do it without stopping so many times...