Growing up in the ‘30s, before skiing split into Alpine and Nordic disciplines, skiing was just skiing to Berg, whether he was on his downhill boards or his skinny skis. He no doubt did some jumping with those same skis. I’m sure there were days when he schussed down Rib Mountain, then later in the afternoon met his ski cronies out at Nine Mile Forest for a run out to the fire pit where they would sit around the fire, drink and tell stories. It was all good, all skiing, whether cross country or downhill.
There aren’t too many people like Berg around anymore. In fact, the separations between disciplines have widened since the sport of skiing took off after World War II. Downhill skiing has fragmented into telemark, snowboarding and standard Alpine. Cross-country skiing has splintered into skating and classic. That’s not necessarily a bad thing – it’s definitely a positive thing for the ski industry – but it has in some cases pitted skiers against skiers.
These divisions keep skiers isolated and reluctant to venture out and try other types of skiing. For several winters now, I’ve tried to convince Susan to downhill ski with me, but she has never been on Alpine skis and thinks she won’t be able to make it down the hill without blowing out a knee or fracturing her ankle or an arm. It doesn’t help that she works in an operating room and has seen head injuries and femur fractures come off the local ski hill. Like a lot of cross-country skiers, the speed and the steepness of the runs, those black diamond thrillers, keep her away.
On the other hand, those few minutes of excitement slaloming down a headwall are what hook many downhill skiers, particularly kids who seem to thrive on the speed and have little or no fear. Besides, who wouldn’t want a free ride to the top of the hill – if Mom and Dad are paying for the lift ticket – before letting gravity take over?
XC boring? Bah!
The lure of downhill leaves me amazed that we have such a large group of kids to coach in our local cross-country ski program. When I see a kid struggling to herringbone up a hill or marching along in an ungainly V-1, I think to myself, “We’ll never see this kid again.” But to their credit, most of these kids keep coming back for more.
For many, both children and adults, cross-country skiing is simply “too boring.” I would disagree, since many times while screaming down a tree-lined hill on skinny skis I’ve wondered if I have an adequate health insurance plan. All I have to do is ski the Alps section at Nine Mile when the corners at the bottom of the descents are a wee bit icy. No, it’s not boring flying down a hill between unyielding oak trees on skis with plastic edges 40 mm wide. Watch any World Cup cross-country race and you will see plenty of thrilling downhills and spectacular crashes, which Universal Sports is only too happy to broadcast over and over.
For Alpine skiers, what’s boring about cross-country skiing is the trudging uphill, the interminable flats between the downhills and the slow, quiet, rhythmic pace of it all. On the Alpine hill, a skier gets run after delightful run with none of the sweat and toil of Nordic skiing; an instant gratification that lures not just Americans, but millions of people worldwide. It’s that way for many silent sports. Why ride a mountain bike when a motocross bike is so much quicker, more powerful? Why ride a road bike when a superbike with 150 horsepower can go 0 to 60 in three seconds? A wick of the throttle and the world is a blur. Although it’s not a motorized sport, Alpine skiing shares the rush of speed you get from these fossil fuel-based options.
Nordic speed
Even within the Nordic community, we sense the enticement of speed. Ever since the advent of skating – a revolutionary and faster technique, or so says the propaganda – we’ve understood skating as the faster of the two dominant techniques. Some Nordic skiers turn away from classic skiing because to them it’s dull; it’s for those who want to commune with nature on pine lacquered wooden skis. You know, the wool knickers crowd. Our modern world, with its emphasis on speed and efficiency, has conditioned us to think that a breakneck pace is the norm, so it’s no wonder we’re all addicted to speed and instant gratification.
In the end, winter is short – vexingly too short. We don’t get enough time to do the kind of skiing we love, let alone try new types of skiing. Our personalities and lifestyles can and do draw us to a particular kind of skiing. Some prefer the quiet simplicity of Nordic skiing, while others thrive on the stimulation of Alpine skiing.
Money, or lack thereof, can also keep us from checking out another form of skiing. An all-day pass at the local ski hill will set us back $64. If we ski only at night, it’s a mere $28. The price alone keeps many Nordic skiers off the hill. But then again, we have a reputation for being tightfisted, which gives new meaning to the phrase “cheap skate.” But cross-country skiing can be quite pricey. Just last week, I witnessed a friend drop $1,000 on a new ski package.
Regardless, it’s healthy to try other kinds of skiing. For readers of this magazine, a little bit of downhill skiing might make us more comfortable on that nasty downhill where we tend to cautiously snowplow. And Alpine skiers might not be as bored with cross-country skiing as they might think. I know a few hills that would curl their toes. And they won’t have to wait in line for a chairlift to try it.
Mark Parman lives in Wausau, Wisconsin, where he teaches English and journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Marathon County.
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