Rollerski questions I cannot find answers for

Hi group,

This place is really great, I've gathered loads of ski-info already over the
past month, which I'll be putting into practice next winter.

Just before I turn 30, I'm entering the XC / Biathlon world the snowless
way, as there is none where I live, and I've never stood on ski's my whole
life. Mountainbike racing has been fun the past decade, but my summer asthma
has not. And since I wanted to be a biathlete forever anyway, time to start
NOW.
Rollerskiing on heavy Crosskates now for about 2 months (got those in a
business transaction years ago), ~200-300km behind me. Dieing to upgrade to
proper (lighter) air tire rollerski's of some kind, which I may even have to
fabricate myself to save money. and of course professional boots that don't
kill my feet.
I am only interested in skating for now, not classic, the sport is difficult
and expensive enough as it is. I can always diversify later on.

Questions I cannot find answers for, I hope you can help me by answering
some :

*1* Why are 2-wheeled race-specific rollerski's "all" 530mm axle-to-axle?
Fast, easier, safer? I can see it being lighter.

*2* I have a 995mm/39.17" inseam. Should I look for long rollerski's to
learn technique the best possible way? Could the V2 Aero 150 Combi SC's (27"
axle-to-axle) work for me, skating-only? Their skate-specific version is
24". Aero 125 (I'm too heavy for those) is actually longer than the 150.
Also if I end up making my own, it will be good to know what is going to
work best.

*3* Bindings. I can now make a choice which binding/boots to use for all my
future sports for years to come : Rollerski, XC Ski skating, Nordic ice
skating, etc. Is SNS Pilot the way to go? It seems quite popular. What's the
most practical way to go for boot cost/selection, when race-performance is
important? I'm a size 48/13 foot.
Obviously, I hope to use my rollerski boots next winter on ski's. My
rollerski binding will have to be good for competitive snow skating.

*4* Skating boots. Do I want affordable ones, or if I can afford, something
with carbon and stuff? In cycling affordable shoes seem more comfortable,
sometimes quite light, and hardly any slower. Salomon seems pretty
affordable on German web-stores.
I have flat feet.

*5* Brakes. Apart from speed reducers and V2 Aero add-on brakes, are there
any other good speed killers? Documented home built decives? I'm not exactly
very graceful with wheels stuck to my feet and traffic is crazy around here,
so I want to be able to stop when I feel unsafe.

*6* Big hands. I have years old Swix Alulite poles. Thin short plastic
handles, simple wristbands that tend to try to slip. Is it just me, or are
these handles totally inappropriate for an XL-XXL glovesize hand? How do I
make it longer and thicker, handlebar tape? Tennis grip tape? Please don't
tell me to get new poles already, I want to save up for something nice.

*7* WWW. Any rollerski forum anywhere in the world I can tap in to? From
cycling I'm used to just read and read till i can answer all questions
myself, but it's so hard to find any rollerski info, like it's all in-crowd.
Websites are very outdated, just thumbnail sized pictures, etc.
I think I've got links to all manufacturers in the world now, don't need
those anymore, thank you.

*8* Home training. Does it make any sense to get a (don't know English word)
"skate sliding mat" to train my hips/bum? I'm right-handed and especially my
left thigh seems to have a hard time.

*9* Heartrate. I can't get my heartrate close to threshold (~10bpm) short
yet, doing mostly V2alt as that's what I can manage. Can't climb good enough
yet to use my cardio system. To get my heartrate up, should I "just"
increase effort, to what seems like a sprint? Or train more and hope to
build stronger skate-specific muscles that suck the air out of me?

*10* Pole tips. Am I the only nutcase using rubber pole tips? (similar to
http://www.crosskate.com/images/roadtip.jpg).
Someone in an outdoor store sold them to me. I read that carbine doesn't
work on cement very well, just open asphalt, but where I go there often is
asphalt. when I first tried the stock Swix carbide tips, they would not
provide traction, my speed and technique may be better now to make it work,
but I do hate the metal-on-stone sound.
The rubber does slip a bit when the surface is loose, unless I adjust my
poling technique.
Since there are air tire rollerskis for dirt roads, what pole tips to use on
dirt? Plain carbide tips that might sink in deep, or combined with a snow
basket? I asked the store, they didn't have a clue.

Thanks for your help, I really did Google till my fingers hurt. Really, in
cycling I just look up what I want to know, forum discussions everywhere on
everything.

Kind regards,

Jan Gerrit Klok (call me "J")
The Netherlands

On Tue, 4 Apr 2006 19:31:52 +0200, "Jan Gerrit Klok"
wrote:

*2* Should I look for long rollerski's to
learn technique the best possible way?

I doubt it. The most important thing for you is a lesson or two.

*3* Bindings and *4* Skating boots.

Fit is most important -- like cycling shoes (tight but comfortable).
Beyond that light weight and warmth (for skiing) are bonuses. Then
when that is set, pick the binding that matches.

*6* Big hands.

The most impt thing are the straps -- really you should barely be
gripping the poles anyway (you push against the straps), so I'm
surpised grip length matters much. Swix makes their high-end straps in
several sizes, for example. I suppose you could use tennis grip tape
or cycling handlebar tape to extend the grips if you want. I used
cycling tape to rebulid a grip that was trashed, for example.

But don't get something too grippy -- you hands will be sliding over
the straps and there isn't a need for super security with the grips.

*8* Home training. "skate sliding mat" to train my hips/bum?

Maybe. Perhaps a slideboard to train your upper body would be more
important.

*9* Heartrate.

On flat terrain I think you need slower wheels.

*10* Pole tips. Am I the only nutcase using rubber pole tips?
(similar to
http://www.crosskate.com/images/roadtip.jpg).

I've been curious about those but, so far, have only used carbide
tips. If your tips don't grip in asphalt, you might need to sharpen
them with a diamond stone or grinding wheel.

Since there are air tire rollerskis for
dirt roads, what pole tips to use on
dirt? Plain carbide tips that might sink in deep,

Plain carbide tips -- if the dirt if firm enough for skiing they won't
sink too deep.

JFT

****************************
Remove "remove" to reply
Visit http://www.jt10000.com
****************************

First, thanks for your points, John!

"John Forrest Tomlinson" wrote :

*2* Should I look for long rollerski's to
learn technique the best possible way?
I doubt it. The most important thing for you is a lesson or two.
Then should everyone, tall and short, be fine with a given fixed length,
contrary to snow ski's? Or is just any size fine? I do plan on getting
lessons when I'm set, I know I'm doing some stuff totally wrong somehow.

*3* Bindings and *4* Skating boots.

Fit is most important -- like cycling shoes (tight but comfortable).
Beyond that light weight and warmth (for skiing) are bonuses. Then
when that is set, pick the binding that matches.
Interesting! To be honest, I just always order cycling shoes in size 48 (no
one has that in stock), and then it's fine. Only once, Time 48 was too
narrow for me, I never tried Sidi.
If fit is harder to get right with boots, I have a problem, where am I going
to find my size boots to fit? I was hoping to find maybe one classic Salomon
boot my seize, and then web-order a Salomon skating boot in the same size,
for instance.

*6* Big hands.

The most impt thing are the straps -- really you should barely be
gripping the poles anyway (you push against the straps), so I'm
surpised grip length matters much.
I hardly get into the simple straps the way I feel I have to set them. And
even then, 2 fingers end up on the bare pole, rather than the grip. It's
just a hard platic thin "grip" that's indeed slippery.

*9* Heartrate.
On flat terrain I think you need slower wheels.
Even with headwind where I go a slow jogging pace, my heartrate won't rise.
I actually manage the same heartrates with tailwinds, topping out at 25kph
or so, 30kph with unsafely strong winds. My muscles give up before the
cardio system does. I just set a new PB tonight on a flat 1000m flying
start, couple corners to step through, 2m55 so just over 20kph. All I got.
Half good, and half bad winds. Are my wheels too fast already for a proper
workout? I do end up totally beat after a ride, in my muscles that is.

*10* Pole tips. Am I the only nutcase using rubber pole tips?
(similar to
http://www.crosskate.com/images/roadtip.jpg).

make sure the tips are oriented the right way. the 1st time I installed
them I flipped them 180 degs, rendering the poles useless.
I've heard about rubber pole tips, but have never seen a single
rollerskier using them. So, to answer your question directly, "yes, you
are"

schreef in bericht
oups.com...

*10* Pole tips. Am I the only nutcase using rubber pole tips?
(similar to
http://www.crosskate.com/images/roadtip.jpg).

make sure the tips are oriented the right way. the 1st time I installed
them I flipped them 180 degs, rendering the poles useless.
I've heard about rubber pole tips, but have never seen a single
rollerskier using them. So, to answer your question directly, "yes, you
are"
Good to hear :-)
I'll just have too dig up my still brand new carbides and swap them out one
day. Too bad I already know I'm going to hate the noise. I've ones come
across a group of rollerskiers, and it was second only to "nails of
blackboard" to me.

Ok, why not throw in a mini-reviews of rubber tips, as these seem new to
most.
I got mine a size too large, as I did not know poles came in sizes, so I
guessed at the shop. Well, nothing a bit of cloth tape around the pole
couldn't solve!
Same as with carbides when I did my very first attempts to get forward
propulsion on crosskates, from a dead start there's no real grip. But once I
get rolling, it's really good, up to perfect. Even when double-poling full
on, it's really hard to hear the tips strike the road over the other
surrounding noises. Peace. As long as I'm rolling, on wet asphalt
surprisingly, I also get very decent grip. Cement floor in a cycling tunnel,
wet and dirty from rainy bikes that have gone over it, grip is absolutely
gone. I hate to skate myself out of that tunnel, my poles would help me back
up.

One useful thing the shop told me, is that sometimes rubber tips are use
with the carbide stuck through it. The rubber is for the initial silent and
smooth landing, the carbide then digs in and provides actual propulsion.
When my rubber tips wear out I my try to do just that, not sure they're
designed for it though.

"Jan Gerrit Klok" wrote in message
...
First, thanks for your points, John!

"John Forrest Tomlinson" wrote :


snip

*3* Bindings and *4* Skating boots.

Fit is most important -- like cycling shoes (tight but comfortable).
Beyond that light weight and warmth (for skiing) are bonuses. Then
when that is set, pick the binding that matches.
Interesting! To be honest, I just always order cycling shoes in size 48
(no
one has that in stock), and then it's fine. Only once, Time 48 was too
narrow for me, I never tried Sidi.
If fit is harder to get right with boots, I have a problem, where am I
going
to find my size boots to fit? I was hoping to find maybe one classic
Salomon
boot my seize, and then web-order a Salomon skating boot in the same size,
for instance.

The same size from different brands fit differently - wider vs narrower,
high vs low arch, large toebox or small, etc. If you cn order your ski boots
from the same brand that makes cycling shoes ou like, they may fit the
same - or not.

*6* Big hands.

The most impt thing are the straps -- really you should barely be
gripping the poles anyway (you push against the straps), so I'm
surpised grip length matters much.
I hardly get into the simple straps the way I feel I have to set them. And
even then, 2 fingers end up on the bare pole, rather than the grip. It's
just a hard platic thin "grip" that's indeed slippery.

You are holding the poles wrong. The correct way to use XC poles is to reach
your hand up from below. As your hand slides down the grip, the strap
surounds the meat of your Downhillers reach in from the side (like you are
doing).

http://bmary.com/strap1.jpg
and
http://bmary.com/strap2.jpg
show it. (The strap is loose because it's adjusted for my hands with
gloves).

A lesson would show you the proper technique. In XC, you don't really grip
the pole - you let it swing almost free. You just guide it to where you want
to plant. Then the force is all on the straps.

Bob

*8* Home training. "skate sliding mat" to train my hips/bum?

Maybe. Perhaps a slideboard to train your upper body would be more
important.

There are countless machines that you *could* invest in for home
strength training, but you can do exercises with your own body weight
or free weights to replace almost all of these machines. If you are
interested in some ski-specific strength workouts, I could post some
that I have used; however, I recommend that you concentrate more on
your aerobic base and ski technique at this stage of the year.

Colin

Jan Gerrit Klok wrote:

Interesting! To be honest, I just always order cycling shoes in size 48 (no
one has that in stock), and then it's fine. Only once, Time 48 was too
narrow for me, I never tried Sidi.

I have long feet too, luckily the right size for me is salomon 48 2/3.
I tried a pair of salomon racing skate 9 and they were comfortable, then
I tried the carbon, and with my surprise I noticed these seem just a bit
longer (perhaps 1mm) and narrower...I definetively prefer the carbon's
tight fit, so I chose these one...and I'm really satisfied with them.
About bike shoes: if you have 48 (or 13) don't even try a sidi lesser
than 48, for me 49 is the right size...no idea on how they choose their
sizes!

Even with headwind where I go a slow jogging pace, my heartrate won't rise.
I actually manage the same heartrates with tailwinds, topping out at 25kph
or so, 30kph with unsafely strong winds. My muscles give up before the
cardio system does. I just set a new PB tonight on a flat 1000m flying
start, couple corners to step through, 2m55 so just over 20kph. All I got.
Half good, and half bad winds. Are my wheels too fast already for a proper
workout? I do end up totally beat after a ride, in my muscles that is.

two questions: where are you writing from? and where can you practice
rollerski? (I mean, do you have proper tracks, or just common
roads/cycling lanes?)

--
beorn
"You've got to learn to crawl
before you learn to walk"
Aerosmith (Amazing)

"beorn" schreef in bericht
...
two questions: where are you writing from? and where can you practice
rollerski? (I mean, do you have proper tracks, or just common
roads/cycling lanes?)
The Netherlands. All altitude differences are man-made around here.

The most active rollerski club in the country (though their website hasn't
been updated in years) is 17km from here. They have a track with on 10m
hill, and choice of either 2 of 5 km per lap.
Also a few cycling clubs at similar distance have tracks with hills. Have
not tried them all yet, but have always used them for bike training.
I train just by picking cycling paths through the countryside. Often pretty
bad surface or too narrow. And a couple evenings per week, I try to hook up
with a friend who joins me on his rollerblades. There's a business park
across my street with super low traffic at nights, and perfect asphalt.
I'm not confident enough to try more busy roads, and it's a bad idea anyway.

"Bob" schreef in bericht
...

http://bmary.com/strap1.jpg
and
http://bmary.com/strap2.jpg
show it. (The strap is loose because it's adjusted for my hands with
gloves).

Thanks Bob!!
That explains a lot. I'll change my straps to way today and see what
happens. Amazing that I seem to be able to pole at least half-dcently doing
it SO wrong...

A lesson would show you the proper technique. In XC, you don't really grip
the pole - you let it swing almost free. You just guide it to where you
want
to plant. Then the force is all on the straps.
I wasn't gripping as much, as that the tight strap was strapping me to it. I
noticed that Elite's on tv got into their straps easier than I do, but
thought my grips just weren't any good. Lesson learned.
I'm affraid that the local club is not going to have proper fitting boots
for me, so I'll first have to get boots and my own good rollerski's and then
sign up for lessons. I hope they have a rookie class...