Learning Cross Country Skiing

Here is a good video about some basics for Cross Country Skiing.  Learning these new skills gives me a chance to get outdoors and just enjoy a little fresh air.  In my case snow covered wheat fields of Eastern Washington.

Skiing Japan's backcountry

Here is a video just to encourage people to get out in the snow and enjoy a little fresh air.



Backcountry skiing in Japan from Mitch Potter on Vimeo.

Completion of a Skiing Goal

Always looking for people who have set themselves a goal, in the world of adventure, and completed it no matter how much time it takes, I found this clip on the The Adventure Blog.  Back in 1999, before the Y2K scare, Noah Howell bought himself a copy of the book, "The Chuting Gallery: A Guide to Steep Skiing in the Wasatch Mountains ," by Andrew McLean.

Some of the routes listed in the book require more than just a little hike with a powder filled frolic.  Instead of me telling his story, however I thought I would let Noah speak.

 

Saving Money for Winter Events

It is that time again, at least in the Northern Hemisphere, winter is coming.  The mountains have started to acquire that white frosty covering.  Excitement is beginning to build for the winter sports.  And what better way to celebrate the coming season then a ski swap.

The ski swap has been a family tradition since I was a small boy and continues to be for me.  In the days when saving money and doing as much as possible yourself was the norm the ski swap was a wonderful way to buy semi-used gear at a wonderfully reduced price.  

Where I live it is the Mt Spokane Ski Patrol Ski Swap.  Not only can used equipment be found but also last years models.  Unless you are a ski snob, last years gear will do very well and so will the savings.

Hiking in Thuringia

I always seem to have more dreams than time or money.  Hiking the Rennsteig trail in Germany sounds like an interesting adventure.  According to The Local, Germany's News in English, the Rennsteig runs through the Thuringia hills past historic castles along an old Medieval Trade route.  The Rennsteig is the oldest known trail in Germany extending 170km or 105 miles. 

Being in Europe there is always a beer hall or hotel close to the trail with fairly easy access.  The Local also mentions how simple it would be to take a pack with a few changes of clothes and still stay at what I would call luxury accommodations, a hotel, and eat something more substantial than trail food.  

This five or six day hike will go on my dream list, meaning, I will probably never get to it due to the afore mentioned time and money.  But if you have time plan a trip to Thuringia for a trip along the Rennsteig trail.

The Cascade Challenge

Greg Stafford, Will Fain, Cole Iverson, and Rex Shepard have set their sights on something they call the Cascade Challenge, a 1000 mile Multi-event trip; biking, skiing, and climbing over 14 mountains in the Cascade range. 

The four young men are currently getting all of the logistics together, how to transport all of their support gear, what equipment they will be using along the way, how their bike are set up, etc... It is actually amazing how much is required in pre-event planning, layout out of routes, setting time schedules, getting the necessary gear and making sure you have some reasonable means for transporting your gear, and last but definitely not least, training for all of these events.

This sounds like a very exciting adventure and I would love to be joining these fearless four, I wish them clear skies and trouble free riding.

To read more about their trip visit the First Ascent blog.