Foreword

A few years ago I was skate skiing at the Chamrousse cross country ski area. I was slowly climbing a hill when an old guy, retired I guess, came past, seeminglywith little effort. He spoke to me atthe top ofthe hill and told me to followthrough with myarms more. He then asked what techniques I knew. Well I didn’t, I hadn’t realized there were any other techniques than skating and planting poles every other skate; something I now know as V1 or offset. So I began a long odysseyto discoverand improve myknowledge ofthis sport.

The winter season is short. Some people get a single week away on snow. I live in the mountains but even so the cross country season begins at the end ofNovemberatthe earliest and is pretty much done by April unless you visit glaciers. I was finding that I was only skiing well bymid season atbest.

Then I saw the French team rollerskiing at Valloire. They were climbing to the mighty col du Galibier. There was very little information about this side ofthe sport. Itseemed something that pretty much only athletes used off season and theykeptthe secrets prettymuch to themselves. After much hesitation, I finally took the plunge and bought a pair of inexpensive rollerskis but I knew absolutely nothing. Afteran autumn ofexperimentation I was able to pickup V2 technique on tarmac and hit the first snows, well if not skiing exactly like an expert, at least with another arrowin myquiver.

I’ve been rollerskiing now for 5 years. Most of what I know on snow I’ve picked up during the summer and autumn. So much so that I now feel I’m a better rollerskier than snow skier. Rollerskiing is harder in a number of aspects compared to its on snow equivalent. If you fall, it hurts. If you fall at speed, say descending, it can be pretty dangerous. Alotofthe time you are skiing on cycle tracks, on the road orin parks; specialized rollerski areas are comparativelyrare and relatively small. This has its own dangers in the form of other road users. Balancing on narrow rollerski wheels is harder than on skis and rollerskis are short making fore and aft balance more difficult. Climbing slopes on skate rollerskis is harder than on snow. Descending is hazardous.

So if that hasn’t put you off it is a greatmeans ofimproving yourcross countryskiing outside of the limited time we all have on snow. Skills transferdirectlyto snow.