Here is a tip from someone who didn't know that being too eager to ski can be damaging to the trails.
There is a reason groomers ask us to STAY OFF trails that have been freshly packed and groomed - trails need to "set up." We've all heard (or read) about it before in the blog but last night I experienced it for myself. Wanting badly to get out and ski, I headed for Big Creek around 7:30 knowing full well that Tom and/or Kevin had intended to groom sometime that evening. My first thought was typically self centered, "I'll be the first to skate that sweet, freshly groomed snow." When I got there the guys were still at it.
Here is what I found out about skating on a freshly packed and groomed (not set up) trail. Pole plants would not stick and gouged the trail, and every attempt to push off "sliced" a long divot into the trail. The trail was simply too soft. Bottom line, all I was doing was damaging the trail so I packed up and headed home.
My experience is that xc skiers are akin to mountain bikers, eager to chat, offer a smile, share experiences and trade tips. We can also learn a thing or two from them with regard to managing our trails. They don't ride on wet trails because they know it causes damage and they are thinking about the good of the sport not themselves. Likewise, we shouldn't ski (or run our dogs) on our trails when we know we'll cause damage.
