Collegian
January 23, 1986
Interview:
Ski instructor comments on cross country's kick
by Chip Susol
Collegian Staff Writer
The winter season at Behrend
presents experienced cross
country skiers with the opportuni
ty to hone their skills as well as of
fering the beginner the chance to
learn the rudiments of Nordic ski-
Bowl. commentary
continued from page 11
If Tony Eason, the Pats young quarterback, can
remember that he is a good player, he'll, complete
more than three passes all game.
And if the New England defense can remain calm,
utilizing the same type of opportunistic play that has
been successful for them all year, maybe they can
pick-off one of McMahon's passes and rattle the
Bear cage. •
Yeah, maybe, maybe. Maybe God himself will
come down and point at the Patriot end zone. Sure.
The line stands-- Bears by 14.
The BrOthers and Sisters of
Sigma Kappa Nu are proud to
welcome newly inducted
Brothers and Sisters to the
NEW BROTHERS
William Almes
Robert Brown
Glenn Collins
Michael Corso
Gene Edwards
Armando Forlini
Gregory Garrison
Jeffrey Grant
Christopher Jordan
Thomas Lippert
Michael Mahoney
Stephen Needier
Jay Sedlar
David Wirth
Oscar Yiv
ing. Fitness consultant and
Behrend cross-country ski instruc
tor Walt Homer offers his advice
and insights concerning this
rewarding form of recreation and
sport.
Collegian: Cross-country
skiers, as a group, can be divided
Skin Family.
into- two categories; touring and
competetive. How do these
groups differ and what has been
their relationship over recent
years?
Horner: It used to be, in the
early 70's when people really just
started to' get into cross-country
Walt Horner, Cross Country skiing instructor
NEW SISTERS
Shelly Backer
Angie Busbee
Chrissie Clark
Raegan Conoran
Kerrie Davis-
Karen Decker
Renee Gregorich
Della Welton
Love,
Bill, Bobby, Dan, Ed, Gary
8., Gary S., James, Jeff,
Ken, Kevin, Larry, Lou, -
Mel, MikeS., Mike F., Pat,
Stan, Stu, 'iron, Amy,
Angela, Jenny, Michelle,
Shelly, Sue.
sports:_i: - 10
skiing,. that the people who were
touring skiers, I call them
"granola" skiers, were really
separate from performance skiers.
That'S not true anymore. The
slower paced skier takes the same
kind of technique points from the
elite racer and, if you look in the
80's at cross-country with its
sleeker look and more perfor
mance oriented skis being used
now by the general tourers, the
technique that they use is the
same. It is now just a matter - of
rhythm speed. The racer does it
faster than the Ma and Pa who ski
out in the lower 40.
Collegian: How does the
"glide", the forward momentum
of a skier resultant from the
"kick", differ between these two '
types of cross-country skiers?
Horner: In performance skiing
the difference between the gold
medal skier and the silver
medalists is measured in cen
timeters in relation to their glide
length. The people who are the
fastest are the ones who can get
the biggest glide out of their kick.
The difference between the elite
racer and the weekend skier is just
a matter of glide length. You can
increase your glide length by ski
ing at a faster pace, by being
stronger bio-mechanically, or
simply being able to attain - better
equipment.
Collegian: "Skating" is a
technique that has grown in
popularity as well as in controver
sy in performance skiing ifirecent
years. How has this technique ob
tained such a dual position in
competitve skiing?
Horner: Skating is the fastest
way to go across the snow. Bill
Koch, who won a silver medal - in
1976, skated in the 1982 world
championships and won it. He did
it because he skated. He had seen
(marathoner Olin Hassis) use-this
technique and was able to refine it
into what is now recognized as the
marathon - skate; one foot in the
track and the other foot outside
the track and you push off with
that foot and glide on the foot in
the track. This technique tends to
destroy any set track, thus
haMpering non-skating skiers. In
competition, what you have now
is a compromise where you have
some races tharban skating in the
first 100 meters, or they ban
skating in the last kilometer; or
they ban skating at different
points during the race, or they
seperate what they call "the
skaters" into a free-style category
and the regular "kick and glide"
racers into a traditional category.
Cross-country has become more
specialized this way.
Collegian:' Do you think that
the traditional, or diagonal, stride
will begin to die out as more skiers
opt for a faster finishing time
through skating techniques?
Horner: No. To be able to skate
even five kilometers you have to
do a lot of work in the weight
room. It takes a lot of upper body
strength. You burn probably one
third more energy when you s do
the ,marathon skate.
Collegian: In terms of
challenge, how would you rate
Behrend's trails? _
Homer: Behrend's trails, at the
very least, require an intermediate
skill level, except for on the flat
(across from Erie Hall). The pro"-
blein here is that the hills are
steep. Because a lot of people who
use these trails aren't cross
country skiers and they screw up
whatever track There is. The 'sur
face is always hard packed, and
possibly icy, with a lot of holes in
it. That makes it hard for you to
control your skis and do what you
have to do to stay upright when
your going dawn a hill. Plus, the
trails are narrow, and in some
places there is not a lot of room
for run-outs (at the bottom of
some hills). From this perspective
the trails are at least an in
termediate challenge.
Collegian:- What would you tell
someone who wanted to begin ski
ing here on Behrend's trail
system?
Homer: I would say take a
lesson. Take a lesson from
somebody who is an instructor or
go skiing with folks who have
some experience who are willing
to show you what to do.
Collegian: What --do you feel
could be done to upgrade the
quality of track siding at
Behrend?
Horner: I've been • skiing
around Erie now since about 1972
and I've seen a great evolution (in
skiing). Where you see evoluton is
in the tracks. Years ago, when
tracks were set in the snow, say, at
Elk Valley or Wilderness Lodge,
after two hours they would be a
mess because no one knew how to
ski right. Now, because many
people have upgraded their abili
ty, and the years have added to
their experience, you see a lot
nicer track over a given day. I
think that this could apply here at
Behrend. Behrend maintenance
could invest in a snowmobile and
a track setter and set some tracks
around here. Doing this over a
period of two or three years might
help skiers to' ski better and then,
'also, make Behrend a better place
to ski (for a larger amount of
skiers).
Horner on Erie weather: If you
are a beginning skier and you go
out and spend two hundred
dollars and buy equipment and
get all• pumped up to ski, and you
only have weekends to' ski and you
get rain or a blizzard, if you, are
continued on page 3