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#1
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nordic walking?
There have been a couple of articles here and there about the sport of
nordic walking.....little known here in the US it seems. I went out and bought a pair of Leki poles for nordic walking and kind of enjoyed a little hike around our suburban neighborhood. People looked at me like I was nuts. I noticed that there is a related exercise called Exerstriding which uses strapless poles and a slightly different technique. I 'd appreciate any comments from those who know something about this "sport". Mark Danville CA |
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#2
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nordic walking?
Sport? As in championships? I don't know about that, but cross country
skiers and racers have for long used poles in the off season to do anything from ski walk to hill bound. The use of poles for hiking and backpacking became particularly popular in California about five or six years ago. The use of poles to walk around the block seems to be a commercial variant that was initially encouraged by Exel's marketing of a rubber-coated tip and a "Nordic Walker" pole or some such. I haven't tried the rubber tips but would be disinclined to use poles on sidewalks and asphalt for fear of doing in shoulders and elbows (many more strokes than with rollerskiing). Can't complain, though, if it sends some people toward cross country skiing. Gene Mark Eastman wrote: There have been a couple of articles here and there about the sport of nordic walking.....little known here in the US it seems. I went out and bought a pair of Leki poles for nordic walking and kind of enjoyed a little hike around our suburban neighborhood. People looked at me like I was nuts. I noticed that there is a related exercise called Exerstriding which uses strapless poles and a slightly different technique. I 'd appreciate any comments from those who know something about this "sport". Mark Danville CA |
#3
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nordic walking?
On Mon, 16 Feb 2004 18:03:10 GMT, "Mark Eastman"
wrote: I 'd appreciate any comments from those who know something about this "sport". This was amusing: http://www.slate.com/id/2095197 JFT |
#4
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nordic walking?
We do not go hiking without poles any more.
You can use them on wide enough trails only, or they become nuisance fast(especially on V-shaped trails). I prefer rollerskiing and do "powerwalking" (that's the proper name) to please my wife who likes to hike. Something should be said about length - they need to be shorter poles. I got mine in REI on sale ($10) and cut them to size. Rubber tips are available at the same place - look for "trekking" pole tips. Do not worry about looking like a nut. We are in California. We are all nuts. I have pictures of me taken while rollerskiing here in Pebble Beach and has been stopped for explanations (however feeble) of what the hell I am doing on these contraptions - countless times... Here in California we have people wearing bikinis to work all year around... I am talking about men... They are good, family - oriented people. They are happily (and legally!) married to other people... Also men... You don't worry about looking like nut with skiing poles here in California, Mark. Just keep powerwalking... |
#5
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nordic walking?
Gene Goldenfeld wrote in message ...
Sport? As in championships? I don't know about that, but cross country skiers and racers have for long used poles in the off season to do anything from ski walk to hill bound. The use of poles for hiking and backpacking became particularly popular in California about five or six years ago. The use of poles to walk around the block seems to be a commercial variant that was initially encouraged by Exel's marketing of a rubber-coated tip and a "Nordic Walker" pole or some such. FWIW Nordic Walking is not supposed to be an urban extension of hiking with poles, it is a sport in its own right in that it involves a slightly different technique (from hiking, roller skiing or skiing). The rubber-coated tip, or the "asphalt paw", is but one of the three tip options; depending on terrain there´s also a harder tip and a metal spike. It´s true that the boom (in Finland) didn´t start until Exel brought its NW poles into the market in 1998, but it wasn´t a case of Exel figuring out a smart way to sell gear in the summer, but of Exel designing a pole to meet a modest but existing demand (mainly from the "sports resorts" where pole walking was propagated as a great low-impact "health activity") and finding out much to everyone´s surprise that they had a hot selling item in their hands. The rest is history - and at some point money, greed, hype stepped in and other companies wanted to get on the bandwagon:-) I haven't tried the rubber tips but would be disinclined to use poles on sidewalks and asphalt for fear of doing in shoulders and elbows (many more strokes than with rollerskiing). I can assure your fear is completely unfounded; the shorter length of the poles and the different technique make NW completely unjarring - in fact, it´s great for relaxing those tight shoulder muscles (which is one reason for its high popularity with middle-aged office workers). BTW for someone who is already in good shape or rollerskis, NW is of use mainly as a variation (and requires some hills to be exerting enough.) (Juha Mieto is a keen NWalker, but he is the first to admit he is just a "cit skier" these days, at 120kg.) Can't complain, though, if it sends some people toward cross country skiing. I´m not sure there´ll be much crossover. In this country, those who didn´t ski before simply continue their NW throughout the year (thus bringing a newcomer to the fauna sharing our XC trails). Anders |
#6
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nordic walking?
The amusing dork writes, "I fear that, in the United States, even more extra
calories will be burned by Nordic Walkers as they flee hecklers, dogs, and bratty little kids on bikes. " Hmmm, I'm not a Nordic walker, but carrying two poles would negate those fears. Oh, "even more extra calories" -- wonder what college he slept through... -- Raider Rick "Just ski, baby" "John Forrest Tomlinson" wrote in message ... On Mon, 16 Feb 2004 18:03:10 GMT, "Mark Eastman" wrote: I 'd appreciate any comments from those who know something about this "sport". This was amusing: http://www.slate.com/id/2095197 JFT |
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