News from Steve…

Trollahugen Clinc/Demo: Jyneen and I will be instructing this weekend at Trollhaugen. After the clinic, from noon until 4pm Sat and Sun there will be demo skis available from 4 major vendors. The fee is $5 and you can ski on the manmade snow. In the afternoon it will be a lot of back and forth on a small area. But it's still a good workout and a way to test out some top end equipment. The full downhill area is open for skiing from 7-9 AM both days.

Wax Packages: Be sure to check out the wax packages on the web site. I have endevored to select the minimum required set of tools and wax to get you started. I probably have 6 full sets and lots of extras. First-come-first-serve and priority given to new people. Get your request in. I'm thinking of having the Waxing Party (Gang Wax) on Dec 5th. We'll demonstrate how to wax by using one of your skis as a test vehicle and then you can do the other one. More on this later. You can always go to Finn Sisu on Monday nights for their free wax clinics.

Equipment: Several people showed up at Joe's but as I thought they really don't have much of a selection for the types of equipment we need. There were good options for Casual Skate and Classic, but Sport was non-existant and waxless wasn't very good either. We'll have a buying event at Finn Sisu. I'm thinking Sat Dec 4th at 9am. If you can't make that day and want to go at an earlier or later date, let me know and I'll make sure you can stil get the prices. This is a preliminary date for now.

Trips: The Thanksgiving trip us pretty much full up. It isn't looking very good however. I wouldn't be surprised if we have to cancel due to no snow. There's none up ther right now and nothing in the forecast. There will be snow for the Janurary trip for sure. I'm taking reservations. It's Jan 4-7. You can go 2,3 or all 4 days. Some people head up Thursday morning or evening, some Friday morning or evening. It's pretty flexible. The full trip involves skiing at Blue Hills on Thursday, Birke Trail on Friday and ABR on Sat and Sunday. Let me know of your interest. Lodging will be about $30 per night for Fri and Sat. Thursday night is free at my cabin.

Coach Ed, Steve, Gene and Randee lead a group of about 30 out on our first pole hike of the season. We walked through the golf course and across several streets in the darkness and arriving at an area dimly lit by the picnic ground and walkway light fixtures. We did a good 12-15 minute warm-up. Steve led the group through some stretches and warm-up exercises prior to getting into the basic ski strides and some ski specific drills.

Ed started the group off with the basic V1 stride. 3-2-1 was the count Coach Ed used (what comes between 3 and 1? . . .!). We did several passes of practicing the counts. One could hear the “chants” as the coaches and students walked back and forth. Then we pole hiked another lap around the park to warm up for the next demonstration.

Next a demonstration of the V2 alternate (or as someone mentioned the “waltz”) after all, isn’t skiing just dancing on snow?!!! Again, the chants of “swing, pole, and push” could be heard in the evening light.

We did a brisk pole hike back to the parking lot with a lot of individual conversations going on. Good to hear since we’re hear to learn and have some fun as well. We did the snow dance and called it a night. I saw lots of progress in all the students even in the first night. This is a sign that we have many fast learners and students anxious to learn to ski on snow. Remember to practice some of the drills and techniques during the week and the weekends.

See you all next week! -Coach Steve

We had 18 intermediate skaters. We took them on a 15 minute warm-up ski-walk and then did a little stretching, we should have done more but we were anxious to get started. We found a flat and well lighted area and started with the very basics of skating. We went through the progression from a static relaxed position through the falling forward drills, then started adding explosive kicks to the falling forward motion. Gradually we started linking individual motions together to mimic skiing, without poles first, then later with poles. We worked on switching from one side to the other during V1 and reviewed all the basic timings of the V1 stroke, the most important technique for skaters. The V1 is your Bread and Butter technique. It is your friend, learn it well. We finished up with a ski-hike back to the parking lot followed by a spirited Snow Dance. We'll get into bounding next week. In general we always review each week and then proceed. If there are a lot of new people we have enough instructors that we can take a group and review for them or target some area were multiple people are having trouble while the other proceed in different areas.

Participants: about 8 people + 1 dog

We did drills that emphasized strength, explosive power, balance, quickness, and good technique. Long slow workouts should represent 70-90% of the time spent working out for people in the advanced group. We did not do any of that - it's my opinion that our time is better spent on drills and technique.

Here is a list (not complete) of drills we did:

• V1, alternate V2, and V2 walking without poles to emphasize timing and good separation between poling and weight transfer
• Quick feet drill on low stone wall + agility drill hopping over 3 lines spaced about 6 feet apart
• Standing broad jumps (aka: frog hops)
• static "plank" holds for 15 sec per position
• wall sit static drill
• leg crossover with explosive push off
• dips
• Garfield balance drills + "figure skater" balance drills
• side steps

Part of the classic group went with Todd and I. I don't know if the groups were "correctly" sorted or not, but we had a good mix of abilities at the start. [Gotta get one of those "sorting hats" I've heard about], and a good level of proficiency at the end. We worked a bit on walking with poles, correct pole strap position, weight transfer drills, kick drills, and arm swings. We claimed the small bowl area near the Glacier, and that is where we will be doing most of our on-snow work.

Contrary to what others think, I believe the dryland drills and workouts are very helpful to casual skiers. It is a good way to learn the basic techniques and train (or retrain) the muscles, without the variable of slippery snow. Will the casual athlete continue to do these drills just for fun after the ski season is past? It’s not likely. But as a preparation for skiing, I hope you work on them all winter long.

Next week we might want all the classic folks to stay together, and separate the group after the warm-up. We'll see. But I'm hoping to have enough snow the next week for skiing.

And a few words of wisdom: Eat lightly before class. Lightly! Eat a snack later in the afternoon, not a full dinner. Wear the same jacket and hat each week, to help us learn your names. And check your shoes for goose-poop before you enter your house.

Starting next week, Todd has offered to lead a casual stretching class in the parking lot, starting at 6:00pm. So if you see a group standing around blocking traffic, join in!

The Intermediate Classical group was led by Arvid and Ken. We had half dozen participants, all of whom had considerable skiing experience. Most of them have raced, or plan to race this winter.

We started the workout with a short pole hike to warm up. We followed this with stretching and balance exercises. The drills that followed included jumping drills, "Indian Hops" and bounding exercises. With the bounding exercises, the intent was to increase stride length each time. Next we did a side-step drill to loosen muscles. The remainder of the session consisted of intervals with poles, Bjorn Lasserude's patented "skipping" drill and a warm-down pole hike.

This was a moderately intensive drill, and as it was a first workout for some of the group, Arvid and I emphasized the need for moderation. These training sessions should leave you feeling like you've worked hard, and if you're sore for a couple of days, that's a sign that you had a good, productive workout. But if the drills lead to injuries or prolinged soreness, you've worked too hard. As you train, you need to be attuned to your body's fitness level and response. If the drill hurts, do it at a lower intensity, or skip it.

Another point to keep in mind is that these drills train ski-specific muscles, and get you thinking about technique. They should be done at an intensity that allows use of proper technique. The first one up the hill during dry land training is not necessarily the fittest or the fastest skier. What's more important is that if you do the drills properly, you'll have a head start when the snow comes.

A year ago I was asked to try XC Skiing by mara. I told her I didn’t think I would like it because I didn’t think it was a very aggressive sport. I grew up riding BMX, skateboarding, and mountain biking. Why would I want to throw on tights and skis and pole myself around a lake or something? Seriously, that is what I thought XC Skiing was. I listened to mara and gave it a try and also joined Ride and Glide. Wow, was I wrong about this sport! It is hard work (similar to mountain biking), requires a ton of skill, and oh boy going down those hills can be scary. It didn’t take me long to start loving the feeling of being on skis and I have only done it one season. The best part is; I have something to do in the winter now. I used to sit on my butt and play video games all winter. Then come spring, I had to get in shape for mountain biking. Last spring I was rockin’ the mountain bike hard ahead of most riders. That is until they got in shape a few months later. XC Skiing is a great sport and at age 39 I wonder how I missed out on it for so long. Oh well, it’s never too late to start something new.

I am the new editor for the newsletter. If there are any questions, comments, or concerns, please let me know and make sure Steve Thatcher is informed also. Also, if anyone has pictures from lessons and/or ski trips, please send them to me so I can pretty this thing up a bit! This first newsletter is pretty basic. Being a techie and web programmer, I also plan to come out with an HTML version in the future. That way you can view and read it online from any computer with a browser, Word will no longer be required.

Have a great ski season everyone!