Newcomers to the sport of cross-country skiing are often surprised at how easy it is to get started. But some decisions must be made about equipment and styles of skiing at the outset.
Cross-country is essentially divided into two classes. Classical, or diagonal-striding skiers, kick and shuffle their feet straight back and forth. Freestyle, or skating skiers, kick their feet out sideways in the same motion used on ice skates. Skating is 30 percent faster than diagonal, on average, but also requires more exertion and expertise. Probably 95 percent of all beginners choose diagonal.
As recently as the 1970s, most skis required waxing by hand. But in recent years manufacturers have devised special patterns on ski bottoms that give nearly as good a grip and glide on snow as wax does. As a result, retailers estimate that 9 out of 10 beginners today start with no-wax skis. More and more, wax models are sold primarily to competitive skiers seeking extra performance.
Within each segment, there are still plenty of choices, with ski packages (including boots and poles) priced anywhere from $150 to $500 at most stores. Newcomers are advised by most experts to rent skis for a day or two first. Mary Ellen Spirek, co-owner of Bikes Plus in Arlington Heights (with branches in Schaumburg and Barrington), has 600 sets available for rental, nearly all of them waxless, and supplies area public schools with equipment for weekday gym programs. Her prices run about $10 a day for rentals, less for small children.
Spirek also offers lessons-group or private-instructional books and videotapes. She has pieced together a useful 24-page booklet listing information about major ski centers in the Midwest (price: $4).
“A simple ski lesson is the best way to learn the sport. People have to be taught even basics like how to hold their poles,” Spirek says. “And don’t buy equipment if you aren’t sure you’re going to enjoy the sport. Rent first-like test-driving a car before you buy it.”
The big hangup among the uninitiated, according to Joan Payne, owner of the Cross Country Ski Shop in North Aurora, is the wrong clothes. Synthetic polypropylene materials today are available in underwear and shirts that “wick” perspiration (and skiers do sweat a lot) away from the body without absorbing any dampness.
Wool pants and cotton socks will often get soaked with snow and sweat and become uncomfortable, while heavy down parkas restrain movement too much. “Dress in layers,” Payne concludes. “It’s amazing how many people I see who don’t have a clue about how to dress for winter activities.”
