Try Before You Buy. Many XC ski areas conduct demo days to give skiers an opportunity to test drive the newest XC ski equipment. It’s a day when product suppliers’ branded tents and flags are flapping in the wind and company reps stand guard armed with knowledge of their wares. You might participate in a demo because you have outdated[Read More…]
Not XC’s Poor Cousin Anymore. Back in 1971, when I transferred winter affections from downhill to Nordic skiing (due to a spectacular fall in Austria, that racked up one knee and stripped off my nifty French-made Fusalp ski suit– but that’s another story), I tried snowshoeing too. After all, cross-country skis and snowshoes were both made of wood and quite[Read More…]
An Old Idea Updated With High Tech. The cross country ski waxless “skin” bases, use inserted mohair strips on the ski bottom, which are extremely effective for all temperatures and snow conditions. It is high performance waxless base technology for the classic skier, who prefers to use a waxless ski. The ski strips are like small climbing skins and they[Read More…]
OK, That Sounds Salacious But It’s Not. I kind of collect belts, from the 50-year-old hand-stitched inches-wide leather style with ornate Mexican silver buckle; to a contemporary pseudo-leather critter with multiple off-set holes; to a futuristic version (my favorite!) that grips, flatters, goes through airport security without setting off alarms, comes in colors – and keeps my pants up in[Read More…]
What Are The Vails and Aspens of XC? Ask the general public to name an alpine skiing “Mecca” — described as a location where people, who share a common interest, yearn to go — even those who don’t ski can come up with at least Aspen or Vail, if not Killington and Sun Valley. But mention the Gunflint Trail or[Read More…]
Move Up To New High Tech Equipment. As a part of the cross country ski industry for more than three decades, I had to qualify my response when SeniorsSkiing asked me about new cross country (XC) ski equipment. There was an unknown research source in the 1990’s that proclaimed, in general, owners of XC ski equipment had their gear for[Read More…]
It’s Different, It’s Fun, It’s Accessible. So you’ve decided to try cross country skiing, You can call it cross country skiing, Nordic skiing, XC skiing, or ski touring – when trying cross country skiing the first few times it may be a totally new experience for you and it may take time for you to become confident. Experienced cross country[Read More…]
