Nordic Rollerskis at Saddleback, Maine

Posted by Mitch Kaplan Aug 9, 2006

I never thought about what Nordic skiers do in the summertime.

I know what alpine skiers do in the summertime-those who can't get to Mt. Hood, Whistler-Blackcomb or the southern hemisphere to actually ski.

Alpine skiers play tennis. They golf. They run. Some mountain bike. Some I know even go fishing.

But, what about Nordic skiers?

Well, apparently serious Nordic skiers keep right on skiing, no matter where they are. They do it on rollerskis.

I came upon this eye-opening fact during a recent visit to Saddleback Ski Area in Maine. Now, as alpine ski areas go, Saddleback is a bit of a throwback. It's family-owned; operates a set of old-fashioned, slow-moving, fixed-grip chairlifts; and its owners-the Berry family-insists on keeping ticket prices low enough for "the average Maine family to afford skiing."

And, part of that keep-it-real attitude is affording the Rangeley Lakes Trails Center to create a Nordic skiing trail system on Saddleback land based on a 15-year lease in which the first 5 years are free.

After all, everyone knows Nordic ski areas can't make money.

I and a handful of my Eastern Ski Writers Association colleagues dropped into the Trails Center headquarters, a 30-foot diameter yurt set just off the Saddleback access road, for an introduction to the Center.

Which is where I ran into Dorcus Wonsavage, former member of the US Women's Nordic Ski Team.

Dorcas was tooling around the access road on a pair of 30-inch boards with Nordic bindings fixed to the top and a wheel at each end.

Rollerskis.

Turns out, Dorcas has been training on these things since the 1980s or so, and that most serious Nordic competitors do the same. As one who still competes on the Masters level, she'll spend, she says, anywhere from one to three hours on them, three times a week.

Why? Great exercise without the impact of running, and a near-perfect simulation of Nordic skiing.

Who knew?

If only there were some kind of alpine ski simulator that would do the same for we downhillers.

Anyway, it turns out that Nordic skiers not only rollerski. They mountain bike. At least that's what the good folks at the Trails Center are banking on. Once they're fully operational, their spanking new 35-km trail system (complete with a river-crossing bridge fabricated from a pair of defunct logging truck trailers) will be used by mountain bikers during the summer. And they expect to eventually attract more cyclists than skiers.

On the other hand, they might get together with Dorcas and organize some rollerski events. If they made some available as rental, I bet they could create a festival. I can't think of any skier out there who wouldn't welcome the chance to strap on the boards in high summer.

Related Story: Summer Nordic Skiing on Roller Skis