While I was walking near the Dartmouth X-C course last night, I got a good look at 10 different people as they circuited the trails. It occurred to me then that I needed to make an improvement on my skate skiing steps and balance and I was itching to get on the course to see if I could mimic their technique. I got permission for a late start for work and headed over to the Eastman X-C Center to get an hour on the trails. I started at 0930 and, within only a few minutes, I could feel a big difference in my whole skiing approach. Instead of stepping and pushing with only my poles, I got a “flying V” going with my feet (little steps and push off). As I’d suspected, the motion was bit similar to skating. Armed with some newfound confidence, I tackled some bigger hills and a long (for me) circuit on one of the trails. My legs and arms were almost in constant motion - the kind of workout I’ve been wanting. What a huge technique breakthrough! In an hour (done by 1030 after close to two miles), I went from “why am I always having to learn this again?” to “The rest of the winter is going to be fun!” Can't wait to build on this success - looking forward to many more "work breaks"!
