2012/2013 XC Ski Thread
- Thread starter pixychick
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bloodninja
Member
I want to get into xc skiing, but I'm kind of confused about the different kind of skis and styles of skiing. What do I need if I want to ski the same trails that I ride my bike on?
Got reports that High Point is grooming this morning. I want use the skate ski's so I'm gonna head up to HP and give it a shot. I'll bring the classic ski's as well. I haven't been there in a few years, even if the skiing is not great its a nice area to venture on a day off from work.
I'll try to get some pics.
I'll try to get some pics.
The 1.5 hour drive up to High Point this morning was definetly worth the trip. I really wanted to get on my skate skis and conditions were ok for me to do so.
They recieved about 4" of snow which they rolled last evening. They roll it with a 3' diameter ads corrugated pipe, there was not enough snow for them to take out the groomer. Rolling compacts the snow enough for skate skiing.
I did go down a couple times due to some inconsistant terrain. The roller does not do the best job to groom the snow but I was really happy just to be on the skate skis in NJ.
Skate skiing is such a great work out. Looking at my Garmin file this is the same HR work out as a 3 hour tempo ride on the road bike. I really enjoy being able to mix this type of work out in. I am a firm believer in mixing it up in the off season and work different muscles. Plus mentally its a good break to pursuit another passion and give the bike a rest if you can.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/263144824
They recieved about 4" of snow which they rolled last evening. They roll it with a 3' diameter ads corrugated pipe, there was not enough snow for them to take out the groomer. Rolling compacts the snow enough for skate skiing.
I did go down a couple times due to some inconsistant terrain. The roller does not do the best job to groom the snow but I was really happy just to be on the skate skis in NJ.
Skate skiing is such a great work out. Looking at my Garmin file this is the same HR work out as a 3 hour tempo ride on the road bike. I really enjoy being able to mix this type of work out in. I am a firm believer in mixing it up in the off season and work different muscles. Plus mentally its a good break to pursuit another passion and give the bike a rest if you can.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/263144824
Looking like snow this week so it should be good.
Whats the best parking lot to start from?
Just back from 4 days of XC skiing up in Maine doing a "hut to hut" tour. Overall, it was a great trip and I'd highly recommend it.
Day 1 we skied in from the parking lot to the first hut, which only about 3 miles. After dropping off most of our stuff, we went back out to do some exploring, primarily on a snowshoe/hiking trail. This kind of skiing is not really a skill set that I have so it was a lot of work. It was also the first outing on all new equipment: Rossignol BC 65 skis and BC X2 boots. The skis were great, but the boots I ended up hating. However, my biggest issue on the first day was getting my pole straps shortened. I couldn't move the stupid things, which resulted in some really sore hands as I was relying on the poles a lot to make up for my poor pseudo-backcountry abilities.
Day 2 was a lot longer, but pretty much entirely on groomed trails. Towards the end I could feel my heels getting a bit tender, but I managed to make it to the next hut without losing too much skin.
Day 3 started out really well. Great conditions with clear skies and fast snow. We took a detour onto some singletrack that paralleled a river, which was probably my favorite skiing of the trip, despite skiing into a small tree that was down across the trail. At the midway point this turned into a mini blizzard and the world's stickiest snow. We "skied" up hill (basically hiking with about 10 pounds of snow stuck to each ski) for quite a while before things got better. I found the most challenging element to be having a right ski that would mysteriously glide just fine and a left that was great at sticking to the snow. Descending this way was...awkward. The end of the day's route was a fairly long climb up to the hut, thankfully on non-sticky snow.
Day 4 was a quick descent down to the cars. Temperatures were in the low single digits, which made for a chilly, stiff descent.
In summary, I had a great time. Check out http://www.mainehuts.org/ if you're interested in a similar trip. I tried to keep the recap brief, but I can provide a lot more info if anyone wants. Accommodations were really nice and the food was excellent. Highly recommended.
I certainly enjoyed it enough to start searching for better boots. The Rossi X2's held up fine, but I would like a little bit more stability and definitely less heel lifting. I also found them challenging to get tight enough with the lacing system. I'm going to attempt to find some X6's to try on, although if they're shaped the same way I may have the same issues. Unfortunately there don't seem to be that many options for the BC bindings.
Day 1 we skied in from the parking lot to the first hut, which only about 3 miles. After dropping off most of our stuff, we went back out to do some exploring, primarily on a snowshoe/hiking trail. This kind of skiing is not really a skill set that I have so it was a lot of work. It was also the first outing on all new equipment: Rossignol BC 65 skis and BC X2 boots. The skis were great, but the boots I ended up hating. However, my biggest issue on the first day was getting my pole straps shortened. I couldn't move the stupid things, which resulted in some really sore hands as I was relying on the poles a lot to make up for my poor pseudo-backcountry abilities.
Day 2 was a lot longer, but pretty much entirely on groomed trails. Towards the end I could feel my heels getting a bit tender, but I managed to make it to the next hut without losing too much skin.
Day 3 started out really well. Great conditions with clear skies and fast snow. We took a detour onto some singletrack that paralleled a river, which was probably my favorite skiing of the trip, despite skiing into a small tree that was down across the trail. At the midway point this turned into a mini blizzard and the world's stickiest snow. We "skied" up hill (basically hiking with about 10 pounds of snow stuck to each ski) for quite a while before things got better. I found the most challenging element to be having a right ski that would mysteriously glide just fine and a left that was great at sticking to the snow. Descending this way was...awkward. The end of the day's route was a fairly long climb up to the hut, thankfully on non-sticky snow.
Day 4 was a quick descent down to the cars. Temperatures were in the low single digits, which made for a chilly, stiff descent.
In summary, I had a great time. Check out http://www.mainehuts.org/ if you're interested in a similar trip. I tried to keep the recap brief, but I can provide a lot more info if anyone wants. Accommodations were really nice and the food was excellent. Highly recommended.
I certainly enjoyed it enough to start searching for better boots. The Rossi X2's held up fine, but I would like a little bit more stability and definitely less heel lifting. I also found them challenging to get tight enough with the lacing system. I'm going to attempt to find some X6's to try on, although if they're shaped the same way I may have the same issues. Unfortunately there don't seem to be that many options for the BC bindings.
Sounds like an awesome trip, how many miles did u cover each day? Any pics. How were the people u went with?
Snow can be tricky, one minute your gliding along the next its sticking to your skis and acting like a brake. Did you use glide wax on your skis? Adding glide wax to waxless skis is important to protect bases and prevent the sticky snow build up that occurs when wet snow mixes with cold air.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmEDaRSMK3A
I stopped in at Neal's sports emporium on my way back from High Point last week to check out what he had. One thing I did notice was a nice pair of Alpina BC boots, They were NNN compatable so they would work with your skis. They were his higher end Alpina's with an ankle strap but did not appear to be too heavy.
Hopefully more snow is on the way for this weekend. Maybe I'll plan a keg to keg tour.
ok, i'm in the club now. got some rossignol BC something or others. they seem big but apparently fat guys like me need some float.
so when we going? and where's the goat herder? he's been bugging me for three years to get them.
so when we going? and where's the goat herder? he's been bugging me for three years to get them.
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People that I went with were great. Nobody was an expert skier necessarily, but everyone was decent and in reasonably good shape, so we made ok time. The first day was a short one...I think it was only a 3 mile ski in and then 4 or so of exploring. Days 2 and three were a bit over 10 and the final day was really short. We weren't out to break any records and we usually arrived at the next hut around 2 in the afternoon, giving plenty of time to drink beer before dinner.
Nope, no glide wax. I knew that it was an option, but didn't realize that it's standard practice to use with waxless skis. I'll order some or pick some up at Neal's. I should be up that way on Friday. Fingers crossed for a decent amount of snow.
Dang, what u get bc 65's or bc 70's?
Now that u and Utah have ski's, and with me and 6'er we can make it the official MTBNJ XC Ski Team.
I think goat herder lurks more then he posts, he usually shows up with 26. We could have a nice posse at Mahlon if we get more snow.
dunno what size they are poo. they're in my truck still...gotta look. bigger than me but that ain't saying much. the guy at dover (the goat's recco btw) told me to go bigger for float, even for the BC. maybe 185s?
yep, of course. should have bought water skis.