Book Description
For the novice to intermediate cross-country skier: instruction by a former member of the PSIA National Nordic Demonstration Team

* Technique demonstrated with step-by-step photos

* Special learning activities reinforce instruction

* Sidebars for trouble-shooting common problems and matching technique to terrain and snow conditions

* Tips for helping kids fall in love with the sport

From the first time you step into your bindings to mastering the stride, the glide, and the skate: Steve Hindman has you covered. As a fully certified instructor, he's introduced hundreds of people to the sport; and also contributed to the last two instruction manuals on nordic skiing for the Professional Ski Instructors of America. Here he shares the same tips he uses on the snow to help you have more fun whether you're setting out for a city park, looking for family fun at a groomed ski area, or heading into the backcountry to set your own track.

This comprehensive guide covers equipment and accessories, waxing for grip and glide, training and conditioning, snow camping, route finding, and avalanche awareness. It will take you from how to fall (and how to get up again), through classic and skate skiing basics (including stance, poling principles, and downhill tactics), and up to more advanced variations of the sport. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent XC ski book
Steve Hindman's book is an outstanding introduction to Nordic skiing.He starts from scratch, describing the types of skis and bindings, and showing you how to get started for the first time. He then gradually progresses to the more advanced techniques of efficient and enjoyable cross country skiing. I have been Nordic skiing for 26 years without much instruction, and I learned a lot from the book. I highly recommend it.

An excellent comprehensive primer on enjoying the snow via skis
Aspiring skiers will love Cross-Country Skiing: Building Skills For Fun And Fitness: it joins others in Mountaineers' 'Outdoor Expert' series, providing a long-time PSIA instructor's techniques using step-by-step photos and learning activities to back instruction. Common problems receive sidebars of easily-accessed information, while technique is surveyed for different terrain and snow conditions. Cross-Cross-Country Skiing: Building Skills For Fun And Fitness: isn't just about technique, though: it includes games, health concerns, and tips on selecting skis and clothing. An excellent comprehensive primer on enjoying the snow via skis.
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Customer Reviews (5)

Cross country skiing
Great book. Beautiful color photos, great historical stories that give an enjoyable perspective on XC skiing. The technique and equipment are also reviewed.

Good basic
This book begs to be picked up.The photos are beautiful.Why 3 stars?Because there are simply too many errors in the actual ski techniques to get you past novice.

Great Looking Book
This is a great looking book on cross-country skiing.Color photos andsuperb layout.It is one of the nicest books for beginner and noviceskiers.

Better skiers are going to find it weak on technical contentwith most of the explainations taking a certain artistic licence at theexpense of accuracy. Two books advanced skiers should look into are"Tao of Sking" and "Ski Skating With Champions."

Great book for beginners
I recently started Cross country skiing and I purchased this book.I found it very helpful and informative.Anyone just starting cross country skiing should buy it.It has many great pictures and diagrams that help inlearning different techniques.

An excellent book for the beginning cross country skier
This is an excellent book for the beginning cross country skier. Theauthor gives a good overview of classic track skiing, skating, andbackcountry skiing. I would not recommend it for somebody who has XC skiedfor more than one or two years. For those who would like to begin and haveno idea where to start, this is the book for you. ... Read more

Book Description
Everything you'll need to know to enjoy cross-country skiing in the Sierra Nevada.

Cross-Country Skiing in the Sierra Nevada provides detailed descriptions of 13 cross-country ski resorts in California and Nevada, including favorite trails, races and events, five reasons to go to that resort—even summer bonus items. Learn how to ski, what to wear, how to stay safe on the trail, and most importantly, how to have fun. To zero in on the best ski area for you, turn to "Best Ski Areas to..." for the best places to see beautiful views, get good grub, ski all day long, the best place to ski on a snowy day and much more. 30 black & white photos, 13 maps. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A great book for all cross-country skiers, new, old and wanna-bes.
Living in North Lake Tahoe for over 33 years cross-country skiing has become one of my great passions. In the winter months I spend four to five days a week skate skiing for fitness and pleasure. After all this time I figured I knew just about all I needed to about the ski areas in and around my home, but was I wrong. A short time into Tim's book I had already gathered new information and ideas for some exciting excursions both close to home and a day trip away. I would recommend this informative, fun book to both experienced and novice cross-country skiers. Also, if you have thought about cross-country skiing but haven't had the chance to try it, this is also the book for you. It will help you make some good decisions on where and how to start this great sport. Now, get out there and have some fun!

Great guide to Sierra Nevada XC skiing
With brevity and charm, Hauserman shares his thorough knowledge about local and regional cross-country ski areas. (There are 13 between Mt. Shasta and Yosemite.) Anyone yearning to get out there on skinny skies - either as a novice or as a veteran looking beyond the everyday workout - should buy this book. For beginning skiers, Hauserman breaks down the complexities of this oft-misunderstood sport and tells where to get more help on the web or at local ski shops when you need it. For veterans, he provides ski maps, directions, resort highlights, activities and even a little natural history. The chapters and guide entries are straightforward. During his two-plus years of field research, Hauserman explored thousands of kilometers of trails and ate in every resort restaurant (for research, of course!). He checked out local lodgings and interviewed managers and local skiers. The end result is a book that clarifies details and whets appetites for the best of the Sierra Nevada's groomed resort terrain.
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Book Description
Tao of Skiing provides a comprehensive insight into thetechnical aspects of modern cross-country skiing, where the secrets are inthe basics and the way (Tao) is in the correct preparation and execution ofthe details. The information is an expos? of key information from the worldof elite xc skiing which is designed to fast track the development ofspecific skills and fitness. Beginners and Experts will benefit from therichness of ski tips, generous use of photos and intelligent explanations.An excellent tool for coaches and instructors. The definitive multimediareference on XC skiing (300 pages).

This product is included on the Nordic Skiing Technique DVD, and Learn ToNordic Ski DVDs sold on amazon. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Key product
The amazing thing is that... this CD cost me less than a day pass at the local ski site, and saved me years of floundering around on snow.Tao (the way) of skiing is a large web site on a CD-Rom, complete with ample advise (text, images and small movies).The movies were a lot of fun and the text was straight to the point. (The way you would want to be instructed).Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed the package and appreciated what it has done for me... and I'm not hung on an occasional Typo.

Great format and delivery - Well Done.
The CD-ROM is packed full of great advice delivered in easy to read point form (like an Aide Memoire). Each sentence or teaching point stands on its own.I could take one gem of knowledge at a time; without having to wade through pages of pretentious prose.The explanations were very precise and most meaningful to those with some skiing experience under their belt. Best read with an open mind.

What a fun way to study technique
A CD-ROM; I do not know why someone did not think of this before. It is great. I spent hours digesting hundreds of hints on everything from technique, to training and playing the fun and informative Quicktime videos. It is not often that you can look into a decade worth of training diary entries and training notes of a World Cup Gold medalist.

Excellent in every way!
Tao of Skiing is technically not a book.It is a CD-ROM packed full of goodies.The multimedia works very well especially if you are looking for a better way to ski.The Tao of Sking is the most rewarding reference I have found.Thousands of hints and ideas, photos, diagrams and a dozen quicktime videos kept me totally engaged.I also purchased the xczone video "On Snow" and can highly recommend both.

Totally Amazing
I was completely blown away with this CD-ROM.The information is priceless and the multimedia presentation was captivating. It is good to see some world class skiers putting together something that can inform both beginners and elite skiers alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Still the best all-around cross-country manual
I've been a serious Nordic skier for about 20 years, getting out every possible weekend in the winter; serious, but sort of a permanent "upper intermediate". Along the way, I've collected many cross-country ski books and guides, from the 1960s to the present.
Gillette and Dostal's has remained my favorite, and overall the most useful. It was issued by the Mountaineers press, and is better than the Mountaineers later effort. A good practical guide for the novice through intermediate, and if you have only one, this is the one to have.

For the novice to intermediate skier
Cross-Country Skiingby Ned Gillette, John Dostal will appeal to theactive person wanting to take-up the sport of nordic skiing. Why 3 stars?Because skate skiing is covered only at a novice to intermediate level (seecover photo)and would be of limited use to the more advanced crowd.

The definitive reference for classic nordic skiing
Gillette died a horrendous death in the Hinda Kush.He left behind this book and one on a circumnavigation of Everest.This was the best book for nordic skiing up till about 1990, when the current telemark equipment evolution took the sport out of its nordic contextinto the realm of pure alpine skiing.For those who still arenostalgic for skiing on skinny skis, this book is still the best.Foranother classic, see Steve Barnett's Cross Country Downhill.For the latest on telemark skiing, read Paul Parker's book on Freeheel Skiing.

excellent overview of a sport, and a good read too
Too many manuals are written without a sense of humour, but this one doesn't suffer there.The authors write in a way as to appeal and interest across all levels.This book is useful for an XC skiier to help hone theirskiing, and useful to loan to doubting friends to get them interested.

worthwhile!
Ned Gillette was a talented and experienced xc skier -- he was on the US nordic team in the sixties and ran the xc center at Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, VT in the 1980's.He also skied around the base of Mt. Everest and wrote a book about that as well, it is called Everest Grand Circle. ... Read more

Book Description
For a generation the Basic Essentials series has been as much a part of the outdoors experience as backpacks and hiking boots. Information-packed tools for the novice or handy references for the veteran, these volumes distill years of knowledge into affordable and portable books. Whether you're planning a trip or thumbing for facts in the field, Basic Essentials books tell you what you need to know. Discover how to select or rent the right starter gear, master the basic stride and glide gracefully over the snow, perform classic techniques; the diagonal stride, herringbone, and kick turn, pick up the pace with skating techniques and perform basic Nordic downhill maneuvers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Starting out
Basic Essentials Cross-Country Skiing appears to be geared towards thebeginner skier and someone with a limited understanding of the sport.Ifthis is the goal, the book succeeds quite well. This is not 'basicessentials for advanced cross-country skiing.' Accomplished skiers may findthe technique more inexact than basic.

This book is ideal for theaverage beginner to stuff in their back-pack on a weekend ski outing. ... Read more

Book Description
For fun and fitness on snow, there's no better sport than cross-country skiing. More effective than running, cycling, or swimming, all the fitness experts agree—it's the best exercise for a healthy heart and lungs.

Fitness Cross-Country Skiing has everything you need to get the most out of your skiing. Inside you'll find:

•Fifty-eight great workouts spanning six color-coded training zones, from low to high intensity

•Indoor and summer workouts for year-round fitness

•Tips on choosing the right equipment

•Cross-training advice for running, cycling, hiking, and in-line skating

•Three levels of training programs covering basic conditioning through high-level racing

•Guidelines for setting up a personalized training program

Written by former U.S. Ski Team coach Steve Gaskill, Fitness Cross-Country Skiing is part of the Fitness Spectrum Series—a collection of books from Human Kinetics that offers fitness enthusiasts and athletes a practical and flexible approach to training. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Very good for beginning training
This book has the basics and more for someone beginning a training program for Cross Country Skiing.It also contains an endurance test, strength tests and stretches specific for Nordic skiing.The wide variety of levels/workout programs will fit anyones needs and desire, with some exercises and training sessions for each level.This book is skiing specific with some equipment selection and skiing technique infromation.There is also some handy tables and forms.*THINK SNOW*

Another good book on ski training
Fitness Cross-Country Skiing by Steve Gaskill is a commendable book foranyone who wants to train seriously.It covers pretty much everything butstops short of integrating technique with fitness. Other books which Ifound useful in my training were Training for cross-country ski racingbyBrian Sharkey and Tao of Skiing cd rom by xczone.

for the serious cross-country skier
This book is definitely for the cross-country skier who is also a racer, or wants to begin racing. This is not the book for the occasional skier who only wants to slide and glide on the golf course. Steve Gaskill, theauthor, was coach of the US Ski Team forten years. Since it was writtenby a coach, "Fitness,Cross-Country Skiing"is a very highlyorganized, step by step instructions for getting it top shape to compete inthe demanding sport of Nordic racing - everything from 5K sprints up to 50Kmarathons. Everything a competitor needs to know is here, dry landtraining, on snow training, exercises in the hills, on the flats, rollerblading, stretching, and rest days. There are heart rate charts, caloriesburned charts, and suggested levels of training for everyone from theout-of-shape weekend racer to the elite world class athlete. This isa wonderful resource of the competitor or one interested in total fitness. ... Read more

Book Description
& 100 b/w photos & 6 x 9 .Thorough guide to gear and technique & Authoritative advice from leading skiers and instructors & Detailed photographs throughout In only six inches of snow, in any place, and at any age, anyone can take part in cross-country skiing, one of the fastest-growing winter sports in the nation. It combines safe, low-impact activity with a complete cardiovascular workout; there is simply no healthier total body conditioner. In this illustrated guide, Jules Older examines technique, equipment, preparations, safety, and ski touring centers--all in a conversational and entertaining style that emphasizes the importance of going at your own pace and enjoying the outdoors. Jules Older, an avid skier and winter sports enthusiast, teaches writing at the University of Vermont and has been published in national and international skiing magazines. He lives in Albany, Vermont. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Retroactive
If you are someone who loves cross-country skiing for its quiet nordicstep and glide through the woods, wearing woolen knickers and munching ongranola, or if you are looking for a traditional introduction into thesport then this book is for you.

On the otherhand, if you are a skiskating racer in day glow spandex gulping power-gels and looking for thestate-of-the-art technique and training advice then keep looking.

What a kick!
One of the things I love about cross-country skiing is its diversity. Another thing is the easy-going quality-- you just go and enjoy the hell out of it, whether you're skating or track skiing or telemarking or runningaround the backcountry yodeling. The thing I DON'T like is how manypractitioners take it sooo seriously.Jules Older's book is a kick inthe pants. He has the right priorities. Whether he's talking aboutequipment, clothing, technique, skiing with your old dog, even waxing(which attracts the real fanatics!), you feel he's about to giggle. andit's contagious! There's still plenty of useful information; but thecontext - including photos - makes it fun. If you'd like to learnabout a great sport, hear some great stories, and laugh a lot in theprocess, I'd choose this over any other book! (And yeah, I used to be oneof those fanatics; turns out it's more fun to learn and laugh at the sametime.) ... Read more

Book Description
Fully revised and comprehensive. Trips described include groomed trails, backcountry peaks, and Tuolumne expeditions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Comprehensive description of Yosemite ski tours
This book has 34 or so ski tours at all levels in 78 pages. It covers not just the Badger Pass area but also Yosemite Valley south wall chutes (for advanced skiers!), Crane Flat north of the valley, Tuolumne Meadows, Tioga Pass to the east, and 3 Trans-Sierra tours. Detailed b&w topo maps trace each tour.

What's missing? An index would be nice (although it has a Table of Contents).Also, I would like the old ski trails described. These trails went down from the top of the downhill ski area (near Tempo Dome) down to Highway 41. The one still trail that's still maintained is described (Chinquapin), but what about Strawberry Creek. Old signs mark the run.Also what about the trail from Ostrander Lake to Buena Vista Peak or Horse Ridge? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Simply the best book ever
Tony Chamberlain is my english teacher. I've never read this book, but I can make the assumption that it will blow you away. If, of course you "swing that way" you know, ... skiing. Oh well, stay safe on theslopes this winter! And be sure to wear your coat, however cheaply made itis. ... Read more

Book Description
One of the most popular national parks in summer, YellowstoneNational Park is virtually undiscovered at other times.In winter, thepark is quiet and impressive.With geysers ringed by frost-laden treesand wildlife basking in thermal-pool steam, Yellowstone is an unmatchedwonderland, enjoyed best from cross-country skis. This guide takes youon more than 200 miles of ski trails in and near the park, highlightingscenery, wildlife, trail grooming and levels of difficulty.Detailedmaps and trail descriptions help every skier-beginner to expert-enjoythe beauty and solitude of Yellowstone country! ... Read more

Book Description
When author Michael Jeneid moved west to start the Sierra Club's Cross-Country Ski School at the Clair Tappaan Lodge he discovered that California is one of the premier ski areas in the country. Now, after years of investigation and research, he has compiled a book detailing California's major cross-country ski areas and local resort, hotel and lodge accommodations.

This combination how-to and trail guidebook covers virtually all of California's groomed cross-country ski areas. The trails were selected for their variety and the accommodations that surround them. Photos demonstrate turn techniques and show the beauty of the 22 areas covered.

Author Michael Jeneid is a fully certified P.S.I.A. cross-country instructor. He has raced in all of the major ski marathons of Europe and has twice skied Canada's 100-mile marathon, the Coureurs de Bois. He is also the author of Adventure Kayaking: Trips from the Russian River to Monterey. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Misleading Title and Disappointing Content
I have high respect for the author and I find the front matter on skiing history and ski techniques very interesting & informative.

However, for a guidebook, I was disappointed to find NO maps of ski trails for anywhere.No ski tours are described. Instead each ski area is described in general terms.The description of developed ski facilities and lodging is good, but where's the ski trails?

Furthermore, the coverage is spotty.All the areas around Tahoe and Donner are covered, but the southern and eastern Sierra and southern California ski areas are poorly represented.

I recommend buying Marcus Libkind's "Ski Tours in the Sierra Nevada." He has 4 volumes for various parts of the Sierra and another book on Lassen.

Disclaimer: I am not a professional reviewer hired by the publisher, but a real skier.

An excellent guide to the best skiing.
Michael Jeneid's Cross-Country Skiing California provides a guide to both trails and resorts, with chapters covering all of the state's major ski regions and local accommodations as well. An excellent guide to the bestskiing. ... Read more

Book Description
This comprehensive trail guide describes hiking, mountain biking, and cross-country skiing routes on more than 200 miles of trails in New York State's legendary Shawangunk Mountain Range.

The 50-mile-long Shawangunk Ridge features some of the most interesting and spectacular scenery in the Northeast. This well-known landform is located less than 90 miles from New York City and less than a day's drive from more than 40 million people. Much of the ridge is open to the public as preserve land and state park. The combination of beauty, countless recreational possibilities, and easy access make this one of the Northeast region's most popular weekend and vacation destinations.

It is estimated that nearly half a million people visit the Shawangunks every year. Many come to hike, mountain bike, or cross-country ski the more than 200 miles of trails that crisscross the ridge. Now Jeffrey Perls has created this comprehensive handbook and guide, detailing how to get there and what to do on nearly every mile of trail. The Shawangunks Trail Companion is the first and only book to provide both a thorough description of the landform as well as a complete guide to its trails. 22 black & white photographs, 15 maps, index. ... Read more