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Cross Country skiing anyone else?

pep.fermipep.fermi Posts: 154
in The cake stop
OK, wrongest time of the year, but still...

XC skiing is possibly my fav sport. We normally go to either Seefeld or Leutasch (Austria), or Dobbiaco or Sesto (Italy). Always thinking about Norway but not been there yet, I hear it's super expensive and the food is awful.
Thinking of entering my first "race" next year.

Anyone else loves XC skiing? Where do you go?

Posts

  • davidofdavidof Posts: 2,938
    pep.fermi said:

    OK, wrongest time of the year, but still...

    Yes it is a bit late !

    I stopped early this season due to the heatwave and lack of snow, last trip was skate skiing across the high Chartreuse plateau. No tracks, pure freedom to skate where you want and use the terrain




    Rollerskiing now.




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  • briantrumpetbriantrumpet Posts: 14,615
    davidof said:

    pep.fermi said:

    OK, wrongest time of the year, but still...

    Yes it is a bit late !

    I stopped early this season due to the heatwave and lack of snow, last trip was skate skiing across the high Chartreuse plateau. No tracks, pure freedom to skate where you want and use the terrain




    Rollerskiing now.





    I'm always impressed when I see rollerskiers in high summer trudging up cols I'm cycling up - when I asked one how long he'd take for the hill I was on, he said about 90 minutes (50 minutes by bike), which is impressive for the amount of effort required, and a bit nuts.
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  • ddraverddraver Posts: 25,582
    You're so weird.

    Skins FTW!

    ;)
    We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
    - @ddraver
  • masjermasjer Posts: 2,136
    Cross country skiers have recorded the highest Vo2 max of any sportsmen. I guess it's a tough sport.
  • davidofdavidof Posts: 2,938
    edited May 2022
    Here's a film of a couple of guys from one of the local clubs pushing cross country skiing to the limits

    https://youtu.be/bOXJlFP_hPo

    and in the same vein but less extreme a little excursion I did to a summit called the Grand Rocher in the Belledonne mountains in April

    https://youtu.be/-qMRbrQzGU0

    On touring gear this would have been a drag. It is around 17km round trip for about 600 meters vertical, so much more fun and quicker on lightweight gear (in this case skate gear but nordic skis would have been good too).
    BASI Nordic Ski Instructor
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  • davidofdavidof Posts: 2,938
    briantrumpet said:


    I'm always impressed when I see rollerskiers in high summer trudging up cols I'm cycling up - when I asked one how long he'd take for the hill I was on, he said about 90 minutes (50 minutes by bike), which is impressive for the amount of effort required, and a bit nuts.

    49 minutes to climb l'Alpe d'Huez on rollerskis (not me, I took 2 hours !) by Clement Mailler, a very good club skier. It is not the climb but the descent that is the issue though :-) (no brakes but the good skiers manage amazingly well anyway).
    BASI Nordic Ski Instructor
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  • ddraverddraver Posts: 25,582
    Can you actually go downhill? I thought they were an uphill training device only...
    We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
    - @ddraver
  • briantrumpetbriantrumpet Posts: 14,615
    ddraver said:

    Can you actually go downhill? I thought they were an uphill training device only...


    WTF would they do if they met a car and had to brake?

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8sNLrZMu10
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • briantrumpetbriantrumpet Posts: 14,615
    None of these very convincing or elegant...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRa1iy9h9xo
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • TheBigBeanTheBigBean Posts: 18,512
    Google seems to agreed with you, but why can't you do a T stop as is done on roller blades?
  • morstarmorstar Posts: 6,053
    TheBigBean said:

    Google seems to agreed with you, but why can't you do a T stop as is done on roller blades?

    Was wondering same. But the wheels are not under the foot so guess you’d just get ground contact with the blade under your foot when it flexed.
  • TheBigBeanTheBigBean Posts: 18,512
    morstar said:

    TheBigBean said:

    Google seems to agreed with you, but why can't you do a T stop as is done on roller blades?

    Was wondering same. But the wheels are not under the foot so guess you’d just get ground contact with the blade under your foot when it flexed.
    Good place to put some sort of stopper then?
  • davidofdavidof Posts: 2,938
    edited May 2022
    briantrumpet said:

    None of these very convincing or elegant...

    or effective ! and that is Andy Newell demonstrating and he's one of the top cross country skiers in terms of technique.

    BASI Nordic Ski Instructor
    Instagramme
  • davidofdavidof Posts: 2,938
    edited May 2022
    TheBigBean said:

    Google seems to agreed with you, but why can't you do a T stop as is done on roller blades?

    You can but there are a few issues
    1. rollerski wheels are relatively expensive
    2. you've only got two wheels, so less surface
    3. it doesn't work very well as you have to place the top of the T quite a way back, you are much more stable on rollerskis
    4. it is much harder to T stop on rollerskis than on blades, pros (who get free wheels) generally use it in competition to bleed a bit of speed
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