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The Slice: Seeking advice on cross-country skiing
I’ve been considering getting back into cross-country skiing, and I have questions.
Here’s hoping Slice readers have answers. Let’s get right to it.
How much should I expect to pay for halfway decent skis?
Will I be required to change my name to something that sounds Scandinavian? Any suggestions?
When I owned a seldom used pair of new cross-country skis in the 1970s, I needed something like a dozen different waxes – not to mention tar and a blow-torch. I never really knew what I was doing. Has it gotten simpler?
Is there après-ski in the cross-country world?
Where is the best place to ski in the Spokane area?
Is it true that if you are not sweating like a draft horse you aren’t doing it right?
Do you have to buy special togs?
Is cross-country skiing an activity that relentlessly mocks those who are not whippet thin?
What is the most common injury?
If you find yourself listening to a bird and admiring snow-flocked boughs, does it mean you are lost in the woods?
Do cross-country skiers take “natural breaks” like bike racers?
How long does it typically take to go from total novice to not embarrassingly bad?
What do wildlife think of cross-country skiers?
You know how cross-country skiers in the Olympics collapse after the finish? Never mind.
What pre-winter training can one do to help prepare?
Are you required to carry a rifle?
What’s the easiest way to spot a X-country snob?
Can one learn about going uphill without sustaining a groin injury for the holidays?
When following a member of the opposite sex on a trail, is there any way to avoid staring at that person’s butt for 40 minutes?
Is there a secret handshake?
Do skiers experience post-session euphoria?
Are you required to congratulate yourself and other skiers for not being home on the couch?
Can a beginner reach a point fairly soon where he or she reaps workout benefits or does that require technical proficiency?
Colder the better, right?
Today’s Slice question: What changed your mind about cats?