Cross-Country Skiing: Building Skills for Fun and Fitness »

For the novice to intermediate crosscountry skier: instruction by a member of the national Nordic Demonstration Team

• Technique demonstrated in stepbystep photos
• Special learning activities reinforce instruction
• Sidebars for troubleshooting common problems and matching technique to terrain and snow conditions
• Tips for engaging the family

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 certified instructor, he's introduced hundreds of people to the sport; he also wrote the study guide for the Professional Ski Instructors of America certification exam. Here he shares the same techniques he teaches on the snow, 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 the classic and skate skiing basics (including stance, poling principles, and downhill tactics), to effective racing technique. It also takes up more advanced variations of the sportfreeheel, telemark, and ski mountaineering.

Author Bio: STEVE HINDMAN is a Professional Ski Industry Association (PSIA) registered instructor who teaches in the Pacific Northwest. He is currently serving his third fouryear term on the national Nordic Demonstration Team. He has written for Cross Country Skier, The Professional Skier, Backcountry Magazine, Ski Patrol Magazine, and Ski Trax.