Friday, January 27, 2006
Nordic fun
For those who want an alternative to downhill skiing, cross country is available.
Mark Taylor
Mark Taylor's Outdoors column and notebook appears regularly in The Roanoke Times.
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DAVIS, W.Va. -- All week it had been near 60 with rain -- downright depressing weather for skiers.
But the snow report at the Whitegrass Touring Center is positive.
"Still snow on the ground" optimistic owner Chip Chase reported on the center's Web site, "and more on the way."
We leave before dawn on Saturday morning but are dubious. It continues to rain as we head north and west, but when we cross one final, ropy pass -- 3,500-foot Allegheny Mountain in West Virginia -- things start to change.
And when we pull into the parking lot at Whitegrass, a mecca for Southern and mid-Atlantic cross country skiers, telemarkers, and snowshoers, sleet seems to magically change to snow.
The night before, Chase tells me, he made the necessary prayers and sacrifices to Ullr, Norse god of snow, and that morning he was laying out the "snow farm," mesh sheets held up by old ski poles to catch drifts.
The snow isn't deep enough yet, so we spend the day at nearby Canaan Valley, an alpine area with man-made snow.
By the following morning the Whitegrass staff has rolled out the trails and the "white" carpet.
My wife and I enroll our children in a kids' clinic that starts inside with the basics: boots, bindings, and how they fit together. The seven kids in the $40 clinic range in ages from 5 to 8.
Outdoor educator Charlie Waters and pro mountain bike racer Sue Haywood exchange names and grease the kids' faces with bag balm.
Once outside, the kids put on their own skis and poles. Despite the chilly temperatures and gusty winds, Waters and Haywood keep the kids out for two hours playing games to learn movement and balance.
Then it's in for hot chocolate and lunch next to the potbellied wood stove. Bowls of steaming chili, grilled cheese sandwiches, and home-baked cookies, are all included in the fee.
While the kids are involved with the morning play, my wife and I kick and glide out one of the marked, groomed trails. Then we leave the piste for a narrow band of drifted snow held by the surrounding trees.
We make only about seven turns, but they are in downy snow and we might as well be flying. On my second run, I catch a stick under the thin cover and fall forward, goggles first, but giggling with delight. This day is not only about getting the kids to ski; it is about skiing like a kid.
At lunch I share the morning's discovery with Chase.
"Freeheel skiing is about quality rather than quantity," he says. "It's not about seeing how many times you can go up and down the mountain. It's about spending the day on the mountain."
Chase and I discuss several more reasons for "why Nordic."
The first is access. Freeheel skiers can travel places downhillers and snowboarders cannot, and those out of the way places are much prettier than a lift line. A left turn out of Whitegrass takes you to a wildlife refuge. A right turn takes you past a red barn and into an old orchard. Go straight up from the lodge, over 1,200 vertical feet, and you are in the Dolly Sods wilderness.
Freeheel skiing also offers more interaction with the environment, and it is better for you. Cross country skiing is the most aerobic of sports, and "Nords" rarely receive the kinds of injuries that boarders or skiers do.
Another advantage of cross country skiing is the cost.
Whitegrass charges $3 for kids; $12 for adults. A season pass is $25 for the younger set and $95 for adults -- not much more than a single day ticket at most resorts.
Whitegrass also has an "XC Gear for Life" program. With an initial investment of $175, kids can take their rental gear home and trade up each year until they reach adult sizes.
"We basically subsidize kids and their skiing," Chase says. "We feel like it's our responsibility to introduce this sport to young people and people in this region."
Yet another reason to give the sport a try is the challenge. With a free heel and less boot and ski, Nordic skiers must rely more on balance. During the afternoon, Waters relied on metaphors to help kids find this balance. They made a slice of pizza with skis to stop, French fries or the number 11 to go.
"We call it anything but what it is," says Waters, including getting "sneaky" to bend their knees. She has them trot like a dog and bounce like a ball. They ski under hoops and slalom around them to add to the fun, and the day ends with a game of ski basketball.
Sometimes, Chase will also put on a BB gun biathlon.
Waters has her own views on "why Nordic?"
"Both alpine and Nordic are good for creating lasting relationships with the outdoors, getting kids' blood pumping, building coordination, and interacting with natural terrain and other people," but she adds that she believes cross country offers more life-long rewards.
Before leaving I overhear Chase lecturing a group of snowshoers.
"We get over 150 inches of lake-enhanced precipitation, more than Buffalo," he says.
I'm no longer dubious, but under the Whitegrass spell.
The danger of cross country skiing may be that it can become addicting. Soon you're checking the snow reports faithfully, optimistically, like Chip Chase.
And then you're enrolling your kids, who were reluctant at first but are now hooked, in the "Skis for Life" program.
"They'll thank you," the clerk tells me. "They'll thank you for life."
