Is it fun?
Hard to learn?
What gear do I need?
Where do you do this? (living north of Boston)
I love skate skiing and don’t like classic, so I suppose that’s the first thing to figure out. As for cost, it’s kinda like bikes, you can get into it for probably around $500 for everything, but it’s easy to spend $1500 to $2000 too. I have a place near me that grooms and is lit at night…so that’s a factor when getting into freestyle skiing (skate), but if you don’t have a local place that grooms it might not be practical and would consider classic style. As for cross training I think it’s at least as tough as swimming. Whole body workout and definately good for building strength and endurance, plus I enjoy the racing no matter what the event so that keeps me motivated. Nothing quite as peacefull as skiing after a fresh snow. Hope you enjoy!
Does this look fun or what???
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5EM68Bw-vw&feature=related
World Cup XC ski sprint from Lahti Finland.
Just went for a 10K rollerski + 20K bike commute this morning to get ready for the upcoming season
I’ve been doing both classic and skate for years. I don’t run at all once the snow arrives and prefer x-county skiing.
The theory is that classic more closely mimics running while skate is good xtraining for cycling. The skate skis are shorter and work best on a groomed trail.
I’ve been recreational skiing for 30 yrs but did my first x-country ski race a couple of years ago and handily beat a guy in my AG who can beat me on a 10 kms run by eight minutes. X-country skiing is all about technique. And unlike running, you get a good upper body workout.
I have groomed (I think) trails 50yards from my house, but have never tried.
It’s fun.
2 technique families- skating and classic (aka diagonal stride). Each of these 2 has several sub-techniques within each family.
If you’ve done much ice skating / ballet / dance / balance beam then picking up skating is easier, as it is inescapably a 1-footed sport. That is, there is no way to skate any distance or time without being able to glide with all your weight on 1 foot, and then the other. The aforementioned activities give you enough dynamic balance and control over exactly where and when to shift your weight that ski skating isn’t a big transition. Biomechanically skating is easier as the legs pretty much do the same motion all the time, and the arms (with one technique exception) also do pretty much the same motion; what varies is the timing and frequency of the arm motions relative to the leg motions. Assuming equal competence in both skating and classic, skating on flat ground is generally faster, but skating uphill can be very seriously aerobic.
diagonal stride is also ideally it’s also done by gliding on one foot and then the other but this style of skiing can easily degrade so that your weight is more or less stuck in the middle because you don’t have the balance to completely shift weight from ski to ski. At the low end it resembles a shuffle or a hike on skis, and so at this level it’s easily done by people with much less balance and less fitness. It’s easier to diagonal stride badly than skate badly, but a lot harder to to diagonal stride very well than skate very well.
the gear you need is skis, boots, poles, some long underwear as a base layer, and then some cold weather clothing (coat, hat, gloves, etc.) on top of that. For skating the skis will be shorter, the poles will be longer (about to the chin / lower lip), and the boots will come up above the ankle. For diagonal stride the skis will be longer (and may have a fishscale pattern on the bottom), poles will be shorter (top of the shoulder), and the boots may be a bit lower.
I have no idea what’s near Boston. I’ve skiied in upstate NY and in VT but both of those are quite a drive from where you are.
Chris
it is FANTASTIC. i just got into it (skate, can’t say the same about classic) a few years ago, and i am so very hooked! it is just a beautiful way to move though the landscape and a great work out. i’d take it over biking if i had to choose. and i’ve loved biking since i was a kid. but this ski thing is profound!
my girlfriend had the same experience, got a pair of skate skis last winter and she is similarly enthralled.
we’re lucky to have a good venue (gatineau), but if you have a good place to ski … get some!
get lessons at first. it took my girlfriend 3 months with a couple lessons to accomplish what took me 2 seasons on my own. i suspect she’s faster than me now. but i do the waxing … heh heh heh 
if you’re lucky, you might find a local conservation area that rents xc skis so you can try it out. this place is 15mins from our house, at the south end of town, and for $28.50 ($4.25/person to get into the park, $10/person for skis) you can go all day on their groomed trails. the loops are short, but there’s nice scenery, and they have a range from beginner to advanced. we mountain bike on the same trails in summer.
cheers!
-mistress k
Is it fun?
No. It’s not fun. Do this instead.
Is it fun?
Hard to learn?
What gear do I need?
Where do you do this? (living north of Boston)
Fun, great for variation during the base training season in winter, and a great VO2 workout. Skating is great for bike endurance. Classic works better for running, but it requires some more technique.
I learned it as a kid, so I wouldn´t know. But if you can ice skate it should be easy to pick up.
Skating skis aren´t that expensive, you can get a good pair of racing skaters for some 400-500 dollars. Another thing is how much you want to spend on ski wax, some racing gliders can cost hundreds. But if you´re not going to race and only do skating, you really don´t need much except basic waxes. In fact, you won´t need to do much but apply basic glider a couple of times a season. Then you need shoes and bindings and ski poles. You can get all these for a couple of hundreds. But note that you will need different equipment for skating and classic - skate poles are longer, shoes are different and skis are longer with different carving.
Roller skis are NOTHING like real skiing. So whatever you do don´t pass any judgment on xc skiing based on rollers.
Where do you do it? Uh, in Finland. 100 km from Lahti is nice 
Yes, it’s great!!!
Now, no more XC talk until October1 per the (unwritten) forum rules-----and trukweaz We don’t want to jinx the snow.
It’s not bad. It can be a fun cross-training alternative. Depends on how close you are to a facility, though.
I like to skate ski (and I’ll venture that most x-c cross trainers here also skate), but that means going to an area groomed for skate. For me that’s 1 1/2 hour drive each way. The first year I bought the equipment I did the drive 1-3x/week. The second year 1x/month, the 3rd year…not at all.
These days, I have to have a really good reason to choose x-c as a cross training alternative, when there are so many other things I can do close to home…
It is fun though. And a great workout.
Its an awesome sport/activity. I only picked it up at age 45 but love it. I prefer classic, but thats probably becuz I suck at skating. I thought I would do better with years of hockey experience, but the skating is much more of a weight shift than the fast chop chop of hockey. Watching people who skate ski well is a thing of beauty. Be prepared to get beat by 75 year old Scandinavians, of course they have been skiing for 70 years at least. Efficient technique is important if you want to go long and fast.
Aside from the fact that XC skiing is awesome total body fitness, its also great for the mind. We are fortunate here in Vancouver to have several ski hills within a 20 minute drive. Skiing at night is fantastic, its so nice and quiet. You can get XC gear pretty cheap. For your first year, if you choose Classic style, I would recommend waxless skies. It takes a while to get the proper waxing right, and this may frustrate a beginner. Highly recommended.
Well west of Boston you would go to the Weston Ski track where they have lessons and rentals and you can figure out if you like classic or skating better. Once you get a set of gear and pick a style go can head further north to Gunstock or Waterville valley in NH where we have a whole lot more trails.
Then you pick up winter mountain biking and do some of the winter tris we have in the area and realize that trukweaz is just f ing fast whether its on the road or on snow.
yes.
no.
very little.
find some snow.
i havent taken to the snow in some time now. but when i first started i found absolute enjoyment cruising around on my Asnes tur langrenns. significantly more enjoyable than my memories of playing with klister.
I have done xc skiing once last year, and I absolutely loved it, and my technique and rented gear still sucked. It must be a hell of a sport on good gear and with a bit of specific training. One day I want to move to a place where they have lots of snow 6 months a year.
Is it fun?
Hard to learn?
What gear do I need?
Where do you do this? (living north of Boston)
If you’re north of Boston, check out Great Brook Ski in Carlisle. It’s not the biggest, but it’s definitely close by. I had a season pass there last year, and found it good for classic, acceptable for skate (some of the trails are a little narrow). Hard to beat the location though. They rent equipment too, but I’m not sure if it’s just classic or skate. REI had a great sale last fall before the season for XC ski equipment, btw.
It’s taboo to talk about around here until October.It’s a hard workout (skate skiing).It’s a nice change up from swim/bike/run to do during the winter and still stay fit.Years of downhill, including Canadian and Colorado double black diamond runs, don’t mean jack shit when you put on your first pair of skate skis. It’s different feeling, be prepared to fall. I for instance fell over in the parking lot 10’ from my car when I first put on my skis.Technique, technique, technique. Only in skiing (and probably swimming) can you show up at a race with Ironman fitness, a huge cardio base, above average leg and arm strength and be handily passed by 13 year old girls that are gliding along effortlessly as your heart is going 190+ and you feel like you want to puke.If your are entered into a 5 mile race, practice more than 2x before the race unlike what I did a couple years ago. And make sure that one of those 2 times on skis is NOT a 3hr marathon session the day before the race or else you will be referring to #5 above again.Seriously, it’s a great workout, way to get outside, change of pace etc…during the winter. I had to do a 5 mile race as part of a yearlong swim/bike/run/ski race 2 years ago so I got a pair of entry level skate skis and went out 2x before the race. I skipped the series last year but signed up again this year and am sitting near the top after the swim/bike/run so I’m going to work a LOT more on my skiing this winter and get some lessons and am looking forward to it for a change to the usual training.
Just don’t talk about it anymore for a few more days…