Kicksledding

Kicksleds kick butt Fun on ice and snow

By Mike Lomas

Say “kicksled” and most people respond “Huh?” Variously described as a winter bicycle, snow scooter, dogsled without dogs, or “two parallel skis joined by a kitchen chair with handlebars,” it’s a gawkylooking, human-powered vehicle. Looks aside, the craft glides swiftly on ice or compacted snow, and can carry a passenger or gear on its neat little front seat. F irst developed in northern scooter, but you won’t need as much Europe more than 150 years balance. Grip the handlebars; put one ago, kicksleds are prevalent foot (bearing most of your weight) today in small towns of Finland, on a non-slip pad on the rear section Norway and Sweden. Side streets of one blade. With your other foot, aren’t sanded or salted there, and kick at the ice between the blades. people use kicksleds to shop and run Continue kicking with a repetitive, other errands. But mundane pursuits leg-swinging motion. Once you build pale next to highly competitive up speed, stand with both feet on the racing. Kicksledding was a blades and coast. Switch to kicking demonstration sport at the with the other foot to keep up your Lillehammer Winter Olympics in forward momentum. 1994. Finland even boasts a Steer the kicksled by twisting its professional racing circuit. handlebars in the direction you want

Built primarily for use on ice, the to go. For a faster turn, drag one foot sleds rest on long, steel ice-blades. on the ice. Foot contact with the ice Most models come with clip-on is even more effective if you strap a plastic skis or snow runners to adapt pair of steel-studded crampons on the them for compacted-snow surfaces. soles of your winter boots. They also On hard, glass-like ice, the sled help you brake. Crampons are travels very fast, faster than most available for just a few dollars skaters. Even when the Rideau from kicksled retailers and stores, Canal’s ice has suffered overuse and such as Canadian Tire. As an developed a scruffy, scratched alternative to crampons, you could surface, you can still go at a pretty use spiked shoes designed for track, good clip, and outstrip most skaters. cross-country or orienteering.

Kick-starting a kicksled isn’t rocket Kicksleds don’t do well in deep, science. You pilot it as you would a soft snow or on steep, icy slopes. If you do tackle a steep slope, remember the sled has no brakes beyond your foot dragging on the ice. Safe operation may vary depending on your weight, strength, and agility and whether you have a passenger on board. Also remember, you can’t turn as quickly as when you’re skiing. And unlike tobogganing, you can’t simply roll off if the going gets rough. You’re in a vulnerable, standing position. Start out slowly on gentle slopes, to get a feel for downhill operation. Take care on steeper surfaces. Exercise parental caution and control if your children operate a kicksled downhill.

Can you mush a kicksled? It depends on your dog. A standard harness will work, but unless you’re an experienced musher with trained dogs, you’ll have limited steering ability. Donna Leaman gave up in frustration. Her family’s two-year old Labrador/Collie dog resisted attempts to train it in a kicksled harness. “His tolerance is a lot lower than

ours,” she admits, adding that the people in her family enjoy kicksledding.

Luise Weaver’s two hefty, black Belgian sheep dogs, a 31 kilo male and 25 kilo female, enjoy the sport together. He hitches them up to his kicksled with dog harnesses and a joiner lead, and takes them for a spin on an ice track around the lake.

Ottawan François Cousineau keeps a kicksled at his family’s Gatineau cottage. He says operating the craft is intuitive. “My fourteen year old son pushes our sled with my wife on the front. We also have a 90-pound coon hound that we harness to the front.”

Ottawa’s Colin Brown confesses, “I’m 75. I never did learn to skate. I tried skiing a few years ago in Calgary, and when I got up to the top of the hill, I realized I was not too sure about stopping.” But a kicksled gets him out in winter, frolicking with grandchildren. “It’s a great machine. (We use it) to get to the cottage. It’s three-quarters of a mile over a frozen lake and there’s no road in,” he says.

KICKSLED MAINTENANCE?

There is none. No waxing. No sharpening. No expensive peripheral equipment such as special boots or ski poles. No ski lift fees either! Breakage should be minimal, if any. Construction is of highstrength spring- and tube-steel and solid birch wood, with non-slip footpads on curved steel ice blades.

To store a kicksled, unscrew a couple of bolts and fold it down flat. This also allows you to transport it on a car roof rack or rear bumper bike rack.

Depending on how energetically you go at it, kicksleds can provide an excellent cardiovascular workout with minimum risk of injury. However, when kicksledding for the first time, take it easy! Lengthen your sessions gradually, to avoid back, hip and leg strain. The rhythmic kicking motion may look similar to skating or skiing, but it isn’t. A separate set of muscles and joints comes into play. You’ll notice the difference particularly in your hip area.

TO BUILD OR TO BUY?

If you have skill, time, tools and workspace, you might like to make your own kicksled. These web sites offer plans, advice or materials:

Canadian Tom Strang, at http://trytel.com/~tstrang/spark/ spart.html, displays excellent plans and procedures on his site. He writes that construction requires commonly available materials, ordinary tools such as saw, sander and drill, plus a “small amount of heat-forming and welding” for the runners. Your local garage might do the welding for you.

A U.S. website, http://www.blackicedogsledding.com/page20.html, offers individual kicksled parts for sale.

Ready-made kicksleds are priced at roughly $300. Available in a variety of sizes, including a lightweight, racing model, two brands are sold locally: the CrosSled from Norway and the ELSA from Finland.

CrosSled kicksleds are available online from Norwegian-Canadian Knut Brundtland, the North American distributor/retailer. His web site, http://www.crossled.com/, provides an in-depth look at kicksleds and their users.

Check out ELSA kicksleds on the manufacturer’s Finnish web site at http://www.esla.fi/indexe.htm. Locally, they’re available from: • James Sisttie at Expédition

Radisson in Wakefield, Quebec (www.expeditionsradisson.com). • Kari Siirala in Carnavon, Ontario (ksiirala@halhinet.on.ca). — Mike Lomas is an avid kicksledder living in Ottawa.

• Ottawa’s Rideau Canal Skateway is 7.8 kilometres long. Stretching from the National Arts Centre to Hartwell Locks, near Carleton University campus, it makes a superb kicksledding run. • One million skaters turn out annually. • Depending on weather, skating is possible on the Skateway from the end of December to the end of

February. • When you see a green flag beside the canal, the Skateway is open. A red flag indicates it is closed. (Don’t skate when it’s closed. NCC officers patrol the canal and will fine trespassers.) • The Rideau Canal Skateway started modestly in the winter of 1970/71, when men cleared the ice with shovels. A fleet of trucks and plows, accompanied by teams with augurs and pumps, keeps the ice in good condition now. • Heated change huts and toilets are located at various sites along the Skateway. • To reduce the risk of injury when you skate, wear protective gear on your wrists, elbows, knees and head.

Dress warmly. • Dogs are not allowed on the Skateway. • Ottawa’s winter festival, Winterlude, runs from January 31 to February 16, 2003. • Most Winterlude activities are free of charge.

For information on the Rideau Canal Skateway, visit http://www.capitaleducanada.gc.ca/winter/skateway/index_e.asp. For information on Winterlude, surf into: http://www.capcan.ca/winterlude/index_e. asp.