This week long course was designed to give basic instruction and technique to cross country skiing as well as evening lectures. The course took pace in and around Trollaktiv activity centre which is based around the Evje area in Aust-Agder near to the village of Syrtveit.
Day 1
The plan was to go to a local area to ski but the weather was bad and there was a lack of sufficient snow therefore, it was decided that there would be two evening lectures of Ski tutorial and day pack essentials.
Ski Lecture
There are a lot of different types of skis but the main ones explained included cross country, which are used in tracks, zero ski which have a different plastic on the sole and is good for conditions of 0 degrees centigrade and skating skis which are good for skating. Different bindings are also found on skis including toe (Clip), toe (pin) and toe and heel.
Snow crystals dig into the waxing area and this creates grip. These crystals change due to temperature and erosion due to wind, humidity and the ski’s. This can create graupel and therefore a softer wax would need to be used. The snow temperature is used to let us know what wax to put on and the humidity can be used to check to see if the water runs out of the snow.
Hard wax (Dry conditions, Cold) ————————– Soft wax (Wet conditions, Hot)
Wax ski stages…
- Clean ski with cloth and cleaner
- Put on glide wax in glide area
- Brush it
- Gently rub with sandpaper (wax area)
- Holding wax (Iron in)
- Rub in with cork
Tips…
How long does wax last? Dry snow lasts the longest and icy conditions last least (around 4-5km)
You cannot put harder wax onto a softer one but you can do the opposite
Using ski skins you can go uphill but it is very hard to glide.
Pack Lecture
The second lecture involved what to pack in your daypack. Here is a list of what items should be carried
Essential items on the mountain-
- Group items…
- Avalanche probe
- Emergency shelter
Personal items…
- First aid kit
- Food
- Sunglasses and goggles
- Spare gloves and hat
- Map
- Compass
- Pen and paper
- Fire lighting equipment
- Spare warm clothing (down jacket)
Items I like to carry…
- Emergency satellite beacon
- head torch
- Mat for sitting on breaks
Useful websites
Swix.no for useful ski information
Yr.no for weather forecast in the area is Gautestad.
Day 2 – Introduction to techniques
The weather had cleared overnight but there was still a lack of snow around the Evje area so it was decided that we would make the trip to Bortelid Skisenter which was around a 40 minute drive from Trollaktiv.
Once we got to the centre all the ski’s daypacks and equipment were unloaded and we were divided into 2 groups. The days weather was sunny with a temperature of around -1 degree centigrade therefore it was decided that we would try with the red wax. Once the wax was on our group was led by the lecturer Len, to an area to practice some techniques. These techniques included U- turns and double poling. I felt very comfortable at this point with controlling the ski however this wouldn’t last. After a short tea break of around 20 minutes we strapped our skis back on and headed for an uphill section where we would practice going up and downhill.
After a lunch break we headed for a short tour. The weather was still sunny and it was great to practice new techniques and even though I wasn’t great at this stage I could feel a slight improvement from the morning session.
Day 3 – Day tour
It was decided that we would go for a shorter ski tour of around 8 to 10 km to put our new learned techniques to the test. Some of the group were better than others and this became apparent with pacing. Within the first 2 km the most able of the group had sped away leaving some behind to pick up the pace. Len remarked on this by saying that if the more able wanted to go in front then they should only go for around a couple of hundred metres and then turn around and come back to meet with the group. After this the group seemed to stick together. Whilst I was not slowing the group I did keep falling over a lot which made it harder work especially with a pack. By the end of the day I felt much more comfortable going up and downhill.
Day 4 – Longer Day tour
Today we were to use all techniques learnt as well as navigation in order to complete a longer day tour. Once again the minivan was loaded and we headed to Bortelid Skisenter. Every person would get the chance to assume the role of the Veileder and lead the group on a leg. A lot more group decisions were made at this point with Len there to lend advice on routes around areas which worked really well as it felt as if the group had more responsibility. This type of leadership could be described as democratic. Once we stopped for lunch I picked up on a trick another group member had used which was to use reindeer skin as a mat to sit. This was really warm and whilst fairly bulky was light and could easily fit two people on as well as being able to be used as an emergency layer.
Day 5 – Half day tour
The last day involved a short half day tour around the Evje area. Conditions were fairly icy but sunny and warm therefore red wax was used. I could really feel improvement in technique at this point. When we stopped for lunch the two groups met and we used the grill to cook some food and socialise. I even practised some skating technique, though I wasn’t very good at it.
Overall By the end of the week I really felt as if I had improved and had become much more confident using the Ski’s.