the Nordic Ice Skating Thread

[jäätelöä]

@mca80 this is exactly what I needed! Thanks

[jäätelöä]

Now to something completely else, does anyone know if swedish brand isvidda is a subdivision of another brand, or? I can't find any official website, no contact on the skaters package, no warranty info (!?).

[tkarhu]

@jäätelöä Some Swedes use asymmetrical binding installations. However, I have not heard of anyone doing that in Finland. For basic skating technique, you should mount binding at blade center.

The skating technique I have been taught is that your weight moves from your inner foot to outer foot on every kick. Or on every slide to be more exact, long slides are key to the technique. I do not see how you could skate the technique, if your binding is not installed at about blade center. Well, that technique is not the only way to skate, and minor lateral adjustments may even help someone to skate the technique, possibly. That may depend on your foot shape.

Jäätelöä, as you are in Finland, I would strongly recommend you to join the SRL (Suomen retkiluistelijat) club. Nordic ice skating is even more about understanding ice (and metheorology! ) than about gear and sports. At a nordic skating club, you get great info on good discipline and current ice conditions. As well as company to skate with safely. Skating alone on natural ice is risky.

Even to go fast, the quality of ice is more crucial than the quality of your skates. And the quality of ice will obviously affect your health and safety, too. Well, your questions are good! I just want to point out the other great sources of skating information that we have in Finland and Sweden, too.

[jäätelöä]

@tkarhu that's awesome, I'll join there too. Thanks for the tips and overall advice. For now my goal is learn to skate first and hopefully afterwards with practice feel confident enough to join an excursion
I was using an asymmetrical front binding adjustment and it feels too awkward to start with.
I'll try a new adjustment centered-centered and practice some balance at home for now while it's too cold outside -20+ for the ice ring!

[mca80]

First time using nordic skates (and probably the last till spring, haha, 1.5" snow tonight and then scattered inch or so here and there for the week). Wow they are so different from hockey skates. And I also learned the importance of ankle support, and/or ankle strength. I lacked both today but being an expert+ skater on hockey skates I managed to figure some things out readily.

First lake was a very large lake but very shallow, impacted by wind and rain and thaw and new freezes. Fishing reports had indicated some cracks and pressure ridges in certain areas during the weather events but by now it was solid 6" or more everywhere, albeit lower quality ice that was gray in appearance and rough and bumpy as hell. About 50 fisherman and some atv/utv out there. There were patches of snow here and there maybe up to an inch, and a good quarter to half an inch on the rest. My initial thoughts were that my boots were too low cut and not rigid enough, but it may have just been the initial shock of new equipment and bumpy ice. I even got to thinking maybe plastic boots for more aggressive downhill skiing. It definitely gave me a new perspective.

Next lake was a very small one that was more protected from wind. More even distribution of snow. Scraping away the snow revealed a smooth black ice. I pounded my lurk repeatedly among some weeds and swamp near shore which should naturally be thinner and found it sufficient thickness after breaking through. Skating this smooth hard ice did away with any fears about it being harder or with a big learning curve compared to my skills with hockey skates. The glide was just awesome and sufficient edging/bite into the ice for the purpose of touring (albeit not for a game of hockey or tag or anything of the sort).

Overall I am impressed and wish I had discovered these sooner. On good ice my current boots are more than sufficient and a smaller blade would be more agile. On rough ice I am glad I have the longer blade and wish I had slightly more ankle support. Maybe with more than 1 morning of practice it won't matter much re the boots support. I have a whole chain of lakes with portages between them awaiting me sometime down the road and this will be a great way to cover some serious miles--most efficient form of human-powered transport there is. Thanks for all the input and support you guys provided.

[mca80]

Second day on nordic skates, did 20km in just under an hour. By the end my binding on one skate had slipped forward, else I would have kept going. Has anyone used titeloc or anything on these? I suppose I just need to crank them down better. Some fine citizens plowed the snow yesterday morning for a 10k path on this lake as part of a fundraiser. I only found out about too late, but managed to swing down and skate it today. Will have to donate eventually when I get over to the organization later this winter. Longer skates good for stability and smoothing out rough areas. Need to be very focused in crossovers, it isn't like the muscle memory on hockey skates.

[mca80]

Some heavy breathing since I am way out of shape, and not balanced camera work holding a lurk (I thought it would be useful to test ice...it was not) and trying to film while my second time on nordic skates with boots that aren't the best. Still pretty damn cool if you ask me.

[fisheater]

Very cool @mca80 ! Glad to see you found a way to enjoy this winter.
Hopefully winter will be winter for Telefest

[mca80]

Very cool @mca80 ! Glad to see you found a way to enjoy this winter.
Hopefully winter will be winter for Telefest

Dude check the 10day forecast on wunderground for white pine... granted thats about 6 miles inland of the Porkies but they have about 15 or 16" coming slowly, just a couple two tree each day, every day. Sounds great and if my truck keeps running and with gas prices finally down to more manageable levels I plan several trips, nordic trails, skinning, lifts if they are going, all of it. Although as much as I like skiing I think skating is closer to my heart, having started as soon as I could walk on some double blades before switching to Bauer size 2.

[mca80]

Actually, makes me contemplate getting skate boots and a skate ski (and a shorter nordic skate with skate boot binding). Those boots are so damn expensive though. But I think if I want to do the Birkie next year I would probably be better skating it than doing it classic, even though my sole skate experience comes from skating Nansen and Finnmark, hardly ideal skate skis. But, for me anyway, on a groomed or hardpack surface it is so much faster and efficient, even doing it with the wrong skis and boots. But probably that comes from skating from age 3 and starting diagonal stride at 39 or 40.