I did the Vasa/Natl Masters events the other weekend. After the last race my brother, a friend and I went for a cruise ski. I was classicking. My bro and friend were skating and my bro was wearing a GoPro in a fanny pack. Yeah…filmmaker recipe for total nausea.
Like everyone, I’m used to doing a herringbone where the ski doesn’t move. But my wax was sometimes slipping on moderate uphills so I’d just splay the tips and classic stride and get good glide while still getting some herringbone-type grip-purchase to prevent slippage. I wasn’t skating.
To show the difference I went behind our camera-man and did both diagonal-skating and “striding herringbone” up a hill. I also tossed in some regular striding to show that my new herringbone is definitely a classic technique. I should’ve also included a little “real” static-ski herringbone, but the hills weren’t steep enough (and I just didn’t think to). The resulting clip is only 30 seconds long so the wobble isn’t too disturbing. Here’s the YouTube video:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3FVQ5hjO2Q
The reason why hardly anybody knows about this technique is that it’s illegal for classic racing. To make judging simple, they tossed out this classic technique because it looks too much like diagonal skating — even though it has many distinct differences. The rule is that gliding skis have to be parallel and/or have to point down the trail. The actual definition of skating is that you’re kicking/propelling off of a ski that is moving. A classic ski always stops to get grip. Maybe the rule also exists to prevent skate-scootering but that would be a dumb way to try to ski — to kick off a ski held at an angle so it doesn’t slip to make the other ski glide. I dunno — I think the rule for classic skiing should be classic skiing. : ) I wonder if the rule could ever be changed? I also note the irony that the only time you can ski with tips apart is when you’re NOT SKIING. A technique that requires a STOPPED ski that stays stopped just seems lame. Skiing is all about glide, after all.
Anyway, not many skiers race and even racers only race for a small portion of their skiing: so there’s lots of room left over for this fun way to ski!
It’s just like diagonal striding only you pivot your hips one way then the other. You get all the same tasty kick and pole follow-thru feeling. It’s fun! And it works.
With herringbone techniques you’re doing two things: you’re lowering the upslope of the ski so your wax has a better chance of gripping; and you’re getting some bite with your edges.
The funny thing also is if you try to herringbone with non-waxed skating skis you’ll find it quite awkward. You have to really splay your skis and you have to stress your arms to keep your skis in place — they’ll try to squirt backwards otherwise. Skating really only works when your skis are gliding forward while you kick — especially on an uphill. It’s not hardly optional. So herringbone actually requires kickwax/grip. One might think you do it only when your grip no longer works — oh, it’s still working! In fact, herringbone works best when you hit the wax right.
Here’s another neat thing: Striding Herringbone teaches perfect Static Herringbone. A lot of time we don’t practice herringbone much and when we have to do it we wobble and flounder and kind of plod up. We’re in the toilet-seat and think it’s a lame, awkward way to ski. It actually should look just like regular striding. It should be pretty, relaxing, smooth and easy. The steeper the hill the shorter the steps, is all. No need to go under or struggle. Striding Herringbone is the SEGUE we need to understand this. Normally there’s a total break between striding and ‘boning. So we get thrown off. Try using the SH as a phase between. It’ll make you comfy with keeping a nice technique going even when your tips are splayed. Then when you really do have to come to a stop with your skis — on a really steep hill or in a classic race — you can keep that same great form and let your body work nicely without strain.
It’s not for no reason that the early proponents of and judges for classic skiing were against skating because it can be just plain ugly.
But skating doesn’t have to be THAT ugly. Diagonal skating can be one of the worse culprits, though. It’s very easy to do in an ugly way. It’s easy to sit back and flounder with it. In truth, classic and skating are supposed to be done using the same body positions. So practicing SH also helps us get our act together with DSkate. To do SH you need to use good technique. Keep the same technique, angles and posture going as you switch into DSkate.
So, even though many folks ski “inside the box,” using only the few same moves forever and ever, there’s always something fun and helpful to learn and do in skiing!
