Most skiers head down the slopes, but some head up.
Cross-country skiing does not involve riding chairlifts, resting your legs, and then going down the mountain. It’s quite the opposite. Cross-country skiing consists of using your own effort, not gravity, to get somewhere.
The sport dates back to the 1700s when the military in Denmark and Norway held four different skiing competitions. These are now the major ski races held in the Olympics: biathlon, slalom, downhill, and cross-country. The original type of cross-country skiing was called classic skiing. In the 20th century came the second type, called skate skiing.
In classic skiing, cross-country skis remain parallel as the skier propels himself forward. The skier uses two poles to help assist in the forward motion. Classic skis are designed so that the bottom side of one ski has grip. Once the skier shifts weight from the grip ski, they glide on the other. This motion is repeated in strides to move across the snow. This type of cross-country skiing is traditionally done on a track with grooves for the skis to follow.
Skate skiing is performed on a groomed track with a different movement pattern. The forward motion is achieved when a skier shifts weight from one ski to the other in an alternating fashion. Unlike classic skiing, the skis do not remain parallel. The skis are constantly changing angles to help the skier move forward.
I was born and raised in Utah and first learned to ski when I was three years old in Jackson Hole. It wasn’t until the end of the 2014 spring season that I decided to give cross-country skiing a chance. My brother and I rented skate skis at the U’s Campus Recreation Services. When I went in to rent them, the employees asked me if I had ever done cross-country before.
“No, but I’m going to give it my best shot,” I responded.
We drove up to Park City, found a parking spot, and walked over to the groomed track with our skis. I clipped my boots in and adjusted the poles for the right hand grip. We were off (to a rough start, that is). The skis were so slick that we were both falling left and right. After about 10 minutes of falling, we began to get the hang of it. Since this experience, I went and bought new gear and am ready for the 2014-15 ski season. But that was before I met Torin Koos, a U alumnus and an Olympic cross-country skier.
Koos, originally from Minnesota, grew up running. After finishing high school, he was offered a scholarship to run on the men’s team at the U. But he broke his femur in a running accident. During his recovery, he worked primarily on low-impact sports, such as rowing and skiing. That’s when his cross-country skiing career took off. He has since made the U.S. National Ski Team and competed in the 2010 Olympics.
“The reason I enjoy cross-country is it goes back to the soul of the sport, using your legs and lungs,” Toos says. “Skiing is beautifully complex. The conditions are always changing, and technique is never ending.”
He advised beginners, like me, to “get out there and ski.”
Cross-country skiing is not only a sport, but a lifelong activity that can be done socially as well as competitively. There are many places near Salt Lake to ski, such as Millcreek Canyon, Mountain Dell Golf Course, and Park City. Cross-country skiing is just another way to experience the “greatest snow on Earth.”
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