Nordic Skiing Unit
Outdoor Adventures
Introduction:
Winter brings a new dimension to the Outdoors. Places like swamps and creek beds considered impassable in summer can be corridors to solitude in winter. The sparkling brilliance of sun bathed snow crystals in the back country can cast a spell on the fortunate few who find themselves making a silent arrival on skis to witness it.
Cross-country skiing has become very popular in the United States for several reasons. The fitness boom has made it popular because the sport provides the best cardiovascular benefit of any sport, save snowshoeing in deep snow with a heavy pack. It also is an enjoyable way to get outdoors in the winter. Nordic skiing offers quiet seclusion that you can’t get at local Alpine slopes and there is no waiting in lines at chair lifts. A slope is not necessary for Nordic skiing. Just find a lake, wooded area, groomed trail, or adventurous skiers can break their own trails. Avoiding hills altogether makes it much safer than Alpine skiing. If faced with a steep descent however, one must realize control is sacrificed with the skinny skis and lack of a heel lock.
Nordic skiing is easy to learn with a few lessons and practice. It can be a leisurely sport called touring or it can be very competitive as in ski racing. The combination of Nordic and Alpine (downhill) skiing is called ski mountaineering, also known as, “Telemarking” or “Rondonee’.”
Nordic skiing is not an expensive sport. A package of skis, boots, and poles can be purchased for less that $150.00.
HISTORY:
Norwegians and other Scandinavians used the first skis in the Arctic. Lap Landers had a scooter like glide ski with a short fur covered kick ski.
The “Overboe ski,” recently unearthed from a Norwegian marsh, has been carbon dated to 2000 BC.
The Norwegian military has had a strong tradition of the use of skiing cross-country. Nordic skiing was introduced to North America by Scandinavian immigrants.
A 19th century mail carrier nicknamed John “Snowshoe” Thompson, in the Sierra Mountains often relied on his extra long Nordic skis to deliver the mail in deep snow.
Pleasure skiing began at the start of the 19th century in Europe and has grown to be the most popular, if not the only use, of Nordic skis today.
Olympic ski events had been dominated by Scandinavians for decades until Robert Koch, an American, won a gold medal in 1976, using a modified “Skate” technique. It is still a rare occurrence to beat Norway in their National sport. Since ‘76’, the “skate technique” has transformed Nordic racing.
HISTORY OF SKI EQUIPMENT:
Ski construction materials have gone through an evolution from wooden skis with “pine tar” bases, to fiberglass with a polyethylene base. Strong, lightweight materials continue to improve an athlete’s performance for races or recreational use. Many traditional skiers prefer to use traditional equipment when they ski. Wooden skis still hold a strong aesthetic appeal to many. Well crafted skis of rich-grained hickory or birch have an attractiveness that find no simile in fiberglass or plastic.
Boots and bindings have improved in quality and design. Cable bindings, still used by some today, were replaced with “3 pin” bindings. Now many equipment manufacturing companies have their own special bindings with improvement potential to lure buyers.
SKIING VOCABULARY TERMS:
CAMBER: A ski placed on a flat surface will arch upward in the middle. This arch is called “camber.” Depending on the skier’s weight, height and the type of skiing desired, the amount of stiffness of camber should vary. Camber, is designed to lift the skier off the snow slightly for better “glide” when his weight is distributed over both skis, and to grip the snow for better “kick” when all of the skiers weight is over one ski.
KICK: A vigorous downward push on one ski that moves the other ski forward. It is like pushing a skateboard. LEAN FORWARD!
GLIDE: A free ride on the opposite ski, or on both skis.
POLE PUSH: A forceful down and backward push by arms, shoulders and back, working together which adds to forward power. The pole push is made at the end of the glide.
PARTS OF THE SKI:
TIPS:
Ski tips are designed to ride up and over the surface of the snow. The degree of upward bend can vary in different skis. The tips of skate skis for instance are less prominent than classical skis. Ski tip flexibility varies as well. The more flexible the tip the better they will ride in the tracks of groomed trails especially on sharp turns.
SIDE CUT:
Skis have a concave edge. When a skier applies pressure on the edge of the ski while gliding down hill a turn is carved out of the snow. The more pronounced the side cut, the easier down hill turns are make. Pronounced side cut affects speed in flat tracks however, by producing excessive drag, less side cut offers faster smoother track skiing. Sharp edges on the ski bottoms helps in turning ability. Metal edges such as those on Alpine skis, aren’t feasible due to excess weight. Telemark skis may be the exception to this.
BINDING:
A clamping device on the ski which attaches to the toe of the ski boot. The heel is free to rise. Bindings of specially made Telemark skis are able to lock the heel for an Alpine-like descent.
HEEL PLATE:
The heel of the boot rests on the heel plate. Spikes on the heel plate help prevent the heel from slipping sideways.
GLIDE AREA: The “glide area” of a ski is the tip and tail. Glide wax is applied in the glide area of a ski. Glide wax makes the ski slippery.
KICK AREA:
The kick area of the ski is directly under the binding and several inches forward and rearward. On wax-less skis, this area has a fish scale-like pattern embedded into the ski bottom. This makes sliding forward easier than sliding backward. The kick area of a ski is where “kick wax” is applied on waxable skis. Waxable skis will usually outperform waxless skis but require greater knowledge of skiing conditions and greater effort for preparation. Kick wax varies in degree of hardness. Harder wax is needed for colder conditions. Cold snow has sharp crystals that will penetrate hard wax for necessary “kick.” Warmer or older snow has more rounded crystals and needs softer kick wax. Klisters, super soft wax, is required under temperatures above freezing. Wax too soft for snow conditions will cause snow to stick to the bottom of your skis, good kick but no glide! If your are unsure which kick wax is needed for the days conditions or expecting conditions to change throughout the day, apply two waxes, one over the top of the other. Just make sure you lay down the harder wax first. If the weather warms as you ski, requiring a softer wax, just apply it over the harder wax.
Kick wax needs to be smoothed after application. A cork block just large enough to fit the palm of the hand is used for this purpose. A small scrapper, resembling a putty knife is used to remove wax altogether.
POLYETHELENE BASES:
Fiberglass ski bottoms are made from a plastic-like substance called “polyethylene.” Either solid P-tex or Sintered (porous) P-tex. Although more expensive sintered bases are more durable and hold wax better, offering a better glide. Repair to these surfaces can be accomplished by filing or sanding them smooth. Deep gouges can be filled by melting and dripping a “P-tex” candle, followed by more filing and sanding. Wax is ultimately used on the bottom of skis to make them smooth.
FITTING YOUR EQUIPMENT:
SKI CAMBER:
Skis vary in the amount of “Camber.” To match the correct camber with your weight, try the “paper test.” Standing gently, (not sliding) on the uncarpeted floor with weight distributed over both skis, a sheet of paper should slide under your bindings. With all weight transferred to one foot, the ski should grip the paper. Heavier people, those wearing a backpack, or skiers with an aggressive “kick,” need stiffer camber. If you are not fitted for proper camber, you will know soon after you start skiing. Too much camber and your skis slip backward during the kick phase. Too little camber and you have no glide.
SKI LENGTH and WIDTH:
This is an area of the greatest transformation in Nordic ski equipment. The skis are getting shorter and narrower! Historically skis had to be longer to provide taller or heavier people with enough glide. Some manufacturers would suggest a ski long enough to fit from the floor to inside your grasp as high as you could reach. Nordic skiing has a strong tradition-oriented mind-set and was slow to change to skis that have the same camber or same stiffness in the tails to allow good glide, but were shorter and narrower. Shorter skis are less likely to get tangled on both up and downhill slopes. They may take some getting used to because of an increase in responsiveness and sensitivity giving the skier an unsteady sensation. Certainly wider bases are steadier, and offer more flotation in fresh untracked snow. Wider skis with more surface area and friction are slower. For people in a hurry, this could make a difference. Shorter skis allow for parallel downhill turns that typically required snowplowing with longer skis. A drawback of “micro-skis” is the lack of stability at higher speeds downhill.
POLE LENGTH:
Poles in Nordic skiing should be much longer that those used by downhill skiers, the reason being that the poles are for different purposes. Alpine skiers use a shorter pole to center their weight as they turn. Nordic ski poles are used for propulsion forward and thus the longer the pole, the more the forward push allowed. A general rule for pole length is: from the floor to the armpit, or the top of shoulder. Skate skiers need poles to their mouth or nose.
BOOT SIZE:
Because of its European origin, sizes of ski equipment, including boots are measured in Centimeters. Ski touring boots are generally better insulated than racing boots. Make sure your boots allow room for warm socks without being tight. Cutting off blood supply to an extremity in cold weather is a good way to invite frostbite.
GETTING INTO YOUR EQUIPMENT:
SKI BINDINGS:
The toes of all Nordic ski boots are meant to attach in some way to the bindings of the ski. Most modern bindings allow the boot to simply be depressed downward to lock. The heel is not attached; however some bindings have a ridge that runs under the boot to give it more support for the “kick.” To remove your boots from the binding, depress the plastic piece in the very front and lift the toe out. A ski pole allows you to do this without bending over. Two binding systems popular today are NNN (New Nordic Norm) and SNS (Solomon Nordic System.) Your boot and the bindings must be compatible.
GRASPING THE SKI POLE:
The strap on your ski pole should distribute the force of your push around the backside of your hand. Grasp the ski pole grips by coming up through the bottom of the straps and down to the grip with the straps now between your hand and the grip. The grip of your pole is actually grasped very lightly even during a forceful push. Skiers will actually let go of the grip during the return phase of poling.
HOW TO DRESS FOR NORDIC SKIING:
Skiing is highly aerobic and generates much heat accompanied by perspiration. The evaporation of sweat will cool the body, a physiological attempt to prevent overheating. Clothing must wick this perspiration away from your skin or it collects and causes the shivers when you stop. Synthetic fabrics today help to do this. Good quality underwear, the layer immediately adjacent to the skin, is of primary importance. Add to this, an insulation layer, one that traps dead air to reduce convective heat loss. Again, synthetics exist that are lightweight for this, but traditionalists wouldn’t think of snubbing wool for this layer. Finally for the upper body, a windbreaker is needed, made preferably of breathable fabric such as Gore Tex. Believe it or not you should be quite warm with this combination skiing at temps below zero. Get out the parka once you stop for sedentary camp activity.
For the lower body, less insulation is necessary but cotton fabrics are strictly taboo. Cotton holds moisture filling the otherwise valuable air spaces with water. Nylon athletic pants work well over long underwear. Ski racers are seen with skin tight synthetics like lycra. This cuts wind resistance giving them every advantage to stream line their bodies. Long wool socks are helpful to have over regular non cotton socks and outside ski pants. Gaiters for off track skiing will keep cold snow from getting in your boots. Gloves and a hat or headband are also essential. Sunscreen and sunglasses help protect skin and eyes from the sun, which can be especially intense on snow or at high altitudes.