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Summertime and the skiing is... great |
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Written by Paul Raymore
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Monday, 22 May 2006 |
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Summer’s here and it’s time to break out the wakeboards and waterskis, but die-hard ski bums don’t have to put away the skis and snowboards just yet.
While Squaw Valley will finally close for the season on May 28, Mammoth Mountain is planning to extend their season until July 4.
In addition, the deep Sierra snowpack in the higher elevations around Tahoe means that the backcountry skiing and riding will be good well into June, if not July even. And of course you can always travel to the Southern Hemisphere for another dose of winter.
Either way, putting in a little more late-season ski/snowboard training now might make the difference in your skills next season.
Chris Fellows, owner and head instructor for the North American Ski Training Center in Truckee said, “A lot of ski athletes look at this time of year as ‘active rest.’ So they’re giving their body some rest after a long season but they’re still staying active and keeping their aerobic level up. That’s why I think going into the backcountry or climbing Shasta or other stuff where you’re building your aerobic level and maintaining that are good ways to get going into the summer months.
“And then, looking toward August and September, you’re starting to ramp back up again. That’s why we offer late-August/early-September courses in South America. And that’s kind of the ramp-up for the upcoming season along with our dryland training camps. We try to keep stuff happening every month, whether it’s a spring ski trip, a South America trip or a dryland training thing.”
As to what kind of skiing people should be doing now that the season is winding down he said, “Equipment-wise, I always have my students go back to the short, shaped skis we started the season with to keep the movement patterns and the muscle memory firing. A lot of people during the season are skiing a lot of soft snow, so they’re skiing on big, fat, wide skis and making big GS turns. And that’s a blast and we all love it, but there’s a lot to be said for skiing firm snow with race skis or short, shaped skis. So it’s good to transition back to that to get your precision down before you hang them up for the year.”
Summer ski trips with the North American Ski Training Center
First, NASTC will return to Portillo, Chile for their 12th year on Aug. 18-28 to ski the deep powder, corn or groomed corduroy. Then join them inn their maiden voyage to the world-renowned Las Leñas, Argentina ski resort on Aug. 25-Sept. 4 for a great summer ski adventure.
Portillo, Chile has been South America’s premier destination ski resort for more than 50 years, famous for its majestic, Andean setting and deep powder snow. Untouched powder exists long after a storm. Ski down to glacier-blue Lake Inca or traverse into huge bowls amidst 15,000’ peaks. Aconcagua, the southern hemisphere’s highest peak, towers nearby. It is truly “a skier’s paradise” you’ll never want to leave.
Las Leñas, Argentina is world-renowned in skiers’ circles for its out-of-bounds skiing. The base is 2,240 meters and the peak is 3,430 meters. There are 13 lifts, 27 different slopes for different levels and a large area of off-piste. Three of the slopes combined have a nonstop skiing length of 7 kilometers, one of the longest in the world. At night, there are plenty of places to dance and gamble. In addition to over 40 miles of marked terrain, Las Leñas offers more than half a million acres of off-piste skiing.
Summer skiing in our backyard:
Would you like to Climb and Ski a 14’er in California? Join NASTC on June 2-4 to climb and ski the 14,162-foot peak of Mount Shasta. There is plenty of snow on Mount Shasta, so the skiing should be great in June. This will be a challenging and memorable experience.
“It’s a three-day trip designed to take people who are good skiers and boarders and are in relatively good shape but maybe don’t have the ice axe/climbing/skinning skills,” said Chris Fellows of NASTC.
On the three-day trip, participants spend day two learning the essential skills necessary to take on the summit attempt the next day. “It’s as much of a school as it is a guided ascent of Mount Shasta,” he said.
Get in touch:
The North America Ski Training Center is based out of Truckee, Calif.
Call them at (530) 582-4772 or see www.skiNASTC.com to book a trip or more information.
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