Hi! A brief blog post about cross country skiing!
As a kid I xc skiied often with our family. I remember really liking it. We went on old roads through the woods with family friends. One of my friend and I would go on trails across from my house... I really enjoyed it. Then, somehow... I stopped skiing. I think I got too busy with basketball. (Yes... I am 6'6" tall and I Used to play basketball!) So I hadn't skied in years. Last winter, as I was working to get healthier, I agreed ot go cross country skiing with a friend of mine and her daughter who was 6. I figured I may be able to keep up with a 6 year old!) Last year I fell twice before even moving my feet. Once as I was getting the skis on... then again after I got the skis on and turned to look sideways! But after that I stayed upright and really enjoyed it. I felt like I walked with skis on my feet for most of it, but by the end I felt pretty good.
This year I am down even more weight and wanted to see if I could get a little instruction... especially on hills... so I had reached out to see if anyone else was interested in doing one of the LLBean Discovery School adventures... 4 other women signed up! I was so excited! Then, due to no snow, our adventure was canceled! I decided to reschedule and got into today's lesson... the other four women didn't! I was a little nervous to go without moral support, but... I am so glad I did!
The Nitty Gritty: The XC ski lesson with LLBean was $25. It included skis, boots, poles, etc... you just had to show up (At the counter just inside the store next to the GIANT boot) dressed for being outside in cold temps. (Layering is KEY!)
I was one of the first to get there... (I know, no surprises!) I met a few of the other people going... there was a young boy and his mom, a couple new to Maine from the south, a couple of other couples, a few other women who are also seeking more outdoor adventures ( I told them about FitMaine.com!) and there were a couple of men who had come alone as well. It was a nice group!
Most of the people in the group had never been on xc skis before... one woman had done down hill skiing.. and me, who had experience as s kid...
After checking in we all got on a bus and were driven to an old farmhouse, maybe 10 minutes from the flagship store... We got there and picked out our ski boots (there were signs so you knew which size to choose!) and then went into a room and sat down. (I was glad they reminded us to take off a layer or two while inside so we didn't start sweating!) The instructors, Wilson and Lee B., went over some basics of skiing... how to put your foot in the binding... and described different types of cross country skis. The pairs most of us would use were classified as 'recreational' skis... I like that... because I am a recreational kayaker!
They showed us how to select the right poles (height) and how to use the poles.
Eventually we got outside and were told to not use our poles.
What? Skiing poleless? What kind of trickery is that?
It was good actually... I mean instructors knew what they were doing!! We did a couple of 'laps' around a large tree in the front yard... to get the feeling of being on the skis... moving our arms back and forth... in tracks that had already been there. Then we got to use our poles... and did a few more laps. I was feeling pretty good.
After a while they got us to head out into a field...again there were groomed trails so we pretty much got to keep our skis in tracks.... then we got to the little hill...
Lee showed us how to go down the hill... using a snowplow move...(toes of the skis pointed in) and then to go up the hill on the other side to do a herring bone technique (toes pointed out) ... She made it look simple! I was worried I would fall.. but that's what I was there for...to learn... something that became so obvious to me as the day progressed... if fear creeps in... you are more likely to make a mistake... and fall... and when doing the hills.. just go for it! Be ALL IN! (I may not feel the same on really big or steep hills!)
I went down the hill and .... didn't fall! And was able to get up the hill on the other side... Lee encouraged me to use my poles a bit further behind me as I climbed the hill... that was a good tip!
Everyone made it down the hill then back up. Wilson asked us if anyone wanted to do the hill again for more practice..... A year ago.. I would have said.. nah.. I'm good, I am still standing... I got nothing to prove... but this year... I was like 'Hell Yea!' That was fun and I wanted to see if I could do it again and again! A few of us went down and up a few times... I liked it!
Then we stopped to take a break...
Photo opp!!
We stood for a bit... the instructors had brought water and cocoa for us! That was nice... they told us we didn't need to bring our backpacks because they were bringing it for us... I think skiing with a backpack wold present challenges... but I am going to try it sometime soon! (need to carry water, layering options.. and I think next time I am going to try mittens vs. gloves!)
After we had some drinks we got to 'play' a little... break trail in some of the field. It was nice.. reminded me of snowshoeing... then we got to do a few laps at a circle that had some inclines, declines, and turns... that was fun!
Then we headed back to the farm house.
A couple of people did fall... but they too made it back to the farmhouse!
If you want to try xc skiing this is a GREAT way to do it!
(No I am not getting paid to promote LLBean... but.. if they wanted to make a deal I am open to it!)
I think purchasing skis is in my future. I am going to wait until the end of the season when things are on sale... and by then I will have earned a lot of points on my insurance plan in which I can turn points into money to be used in certain places... including LLBean! So.. I am hoping that I will have my own skis next year!
No comments:
Post a Comment