Cross Country Skiing - maybe the last

Possibly our last ski of the year. The weather is getting warmer and warmer so the snow is becoming less ski-able. There was a bit of ice on the bottom of the more worn tracks. But the tracks were still deep so we went FASSSST on some parts. Fast for us anyway! ha! That, of course, made the downhills interesting. It was dusk so the top layer of snow which had been melting all day, became a crispy layer. Just another speed inducer! Yay! It was a beautiful end to the season. But I'll hold out a tiny bit of home for another snowfall that will allow us to get out there again. In the meantime, I need to get our bikes in for maintenance!

Cross Country Skiing

I had Friday off so I took the opportunity to go cross country skiing in the Carleton College Arboretum. There was no one around since it was during a weekday. It was beautiful and quiet. I'm definitely getting better at skiing. Though definitely not where I was many many years ago when I was skiing all the time. What I'm having the most trouble with is skiing downhill within the tracks. As I pick up speed, I start to get scared that I won't be able to stop because I can't snowplow within the tracks. So I step out of the track to snowplow and slow down. But stepping out of the track seems sometimes more dangerous than just going with the speed. When we first started skiing this year, I would stop at the top of every hill, even the small ones, and get my courage up. At least now I don't pause before going. Progress! It's just nice to be out in the fresh air... 10 degree air no less!