The Yellowstone Ski Festival
by Jamie Greene
July 9, 2004
It's July and summer has arrived in West
Yellowstone, Montana. And while tourists from around the globe
are swarming to Old Faithful and taking pictures of elk and
bison, some of us are counting down the days until we can pull
on our ski boots, step into our skis and knock out a few kilometers
on the Rendezvous Ski Trails. You have to love winter to live
in West Yellowstone year-round and our winter begins with the
Yellowstone Ski Festival. This year the Yellowstone Ski Festival
dates are November 23, 24, 25, 26 and 27, 2004.
For over 25 years, cross country skiers from across the country
and around the world have started their ski season in West
Yellowstone. Our location and elevation mean that we usually
have enough snow to start grooming our trails by mid-November.
In the late 1970's, with encouragement from the Swanson family,
the US Ski Team started to make annual trips to West Yellowstone.
Over the years, Drew Barney and Dick Hunt added a series of
ski clinics during the week of Thanksgiving. Known as Fall
Camp, these clinics drew a few hundred skiers to West Yellowstone
every year. Eventually, Drew and Dick invited the major ski
manufacturers to attend and allow the public to demo the latest
in Nordic equipment. Today, the Yellowstone Ski Festival includes
skate and classic clinics for skiers of all levels, an On-Snow
Equipment Demo, an Indoor Ski Show and the NorAm XC Supertour.
Two years ago, I participated in the three day Fall Camp
Clinic. I was a year-round resident of Island Park, Idaho,
lived just 35 miles from West Yellowstone and skied almost
every day during the winter. I had an old pair of waxless
classic skis and boots and I shuffled around Harriman State
Park, kicking but not really gliding. My skating gear was
nothing to brag about and I didn't skate enough to enjoy the
feeling of flying across the snow because I was either off
balance or bent over trying to catch my breath. When one of
the owners of Freeheel and Wheel, the Nordic ski shop in West
Yellowstone, encouraged me to sign up for the clinics, I thought
it was probably a good idea but I wasn't sure I'd learn too
much. I could not have been more wrong.
On the first morning of the clinic, Drew and his coaches
lined up all of the participants and asked us to ski about
100 yards so we could split into groups of beginner, intermediate
and advanced skiers. My skate skiing was good enough to land
me in the intermediate group but my classic technique - which
I thought was quite good - did not impress anybody and into
the beginner group I went. For the next three days, I did
my best to forget all of my bad habits and to put into practice
all of the techniques that the coaches taught us.
The coaches are an impressive group of skiers. They come
from a variety of backgrounds and they each have their own
style and reason for skiing. I remember learning very specific
technique from Torbjorn Karlsen and then being told by my
next coach to "ski with abandon". Another coach
taught a whole range of techniques in one class while Jon
Engen taught us one key thing and told us to go practice (ski)
for an hour.
By the end of the three day period, my whole approach to
skiing had changed. Most importantly, I gained an understanding
of how much more fun I would have on my skis if I improved
my technique. And over the season, with lots of practice,
I began to see that when all of the small technical aspects
of skiing came together you really can ski with abandon. But
for me to really get the most out of my experience, I had
to upgrade my gear. There is no better place to try out all
the gear on the market and make a decision based on your own
experience than at the On-Snow Demo at the Yellowstone Ski
Festival.
By the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, all of the major cross
country ski, boot, pole and wax manufacturers have their tents
set up at the head of the Rendezvous Trail System. They are
there for one reason: so the general public can try out the
latest Nordic ski equipment. The manufacturers know their
gear inside and out and can help you find the best skis, boots
and poles to suit your needs. It's really an incredible service
- you can literally test drive the skis that you are interested
in. When I went to demo gear, I had already decided which
ski I was going to buy. I was really just going through the
motions and seeing what else was out there. Two hours later,
I had completely changed my mind and ended up buying a totally
different ski package. I have never been disappointed with
my decision and I am thankful that I had the opportunity to
try so many different skis.
So, you come to West Yellowstone, you participate in the
clinics, you shop for new gear and then what? How about watching
world class skiers compete in the NorAm XC Supertour? This
aspect of the Yellowstone Ski Festival is relatively new but
I can't overemphasize the races' importance to the Festival.
For me, watching and sharing the trail with these great skiers
was both inspiring and instructional. Want to really understand
the importance of shifting your weight from one ski to the
other? Watch those classic skiers. Then watch the skate skiers.
You'll get it. The NorAm XC Supertour is the icing on the
Yellowstone Ski Festival cake.
So, if you hadn't guessed, I'm a believer in the Yellowstone
Ski Festival. It's a great place to learn new techniques,
refine your skills and become a better skier. It's a great
place to shop for your next pair of skis. It's a great place
to watch expert skiers in action. And it's a great place to
spend Thanksgiving. Make your plans now!
If you have any questions or if you would like more information
about the Yellowstone Ski Festival, visit www.yellowstoneskifestival.com
, email [email protected] or call 406-646-9427.
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