Classic vs Skate Skiing: What's right for you?

This is an example of classic skiing. Classic skiing is done in the tracks with the skis running parallel to each other. This technique is called diagonal stride and it's one of the three or so major classic techniques. This is one skate or V2 and it's one of the four major skating techniques. In skate skiing the skis are worked in a V shape with the tips wider apart than the tails. Skate and classic skiing fall under the umbrella of competitive cross-country skiing and are done at Nordic ski areas where the trails are machine groomed and track set. Professional cross-country skiers compete in both styles but skate and classic require different equipment which makes it hard to get started in both at the same time. In this video I'll compare skate and classic so that if you need or want to choose between them you can make a more informed decision. I'll focus on the mechanics of how skate and classic skiing work and the physical demands and challenges of each style in terms of balance coordination and fitness. I'm a ski coach from the website nordicskilab.com where you can find many videos about cross-country skiing including demos drills and technique analysis. Before I start I should mention that not all Nordic ski areas provide grooming and trails for both skate and classic skiing. Before making any decisions check your local ski areas. The choice between classic and skate skiing may already have been made for you. This is the classic technique diagonal stride and this is the skate technique called one skate or V2 on this side. I'll work through these clips in slow motion focusing on how the legs and skis work and talking about what skate and classic demand in terms of balance coordination and fitness and then you can evaluate whether and how these differences might influence your choice. To be clear these are just two techniques. Other skate or classic techniques may work a little differently but these two are good representatives of their respective styles. In cross-country skiing the legs and skis work through different phases of action. Generally speaking a stride cycle starts with the glide phase when the ski first touches down onto the snow. So we'll look at that first over here on the classic side and we're watching this ski come in to touch down and you'll see how it works into this gliding motion and something similar happens over here in skate. Looking at this ski as it comes to land on the snow it also will start off with a glide phase and the glide phase in classic and skate are quite similar but eventually as the ski glides along it eventually will slow down and you need to add some push and we call the action of pushing with our legs and our skis a kick. So a classic kick and a skate kick work very differently. The classic ski has an area under the base under the foot on the base called the grip zone and it has some kind of a sticky material and when you push down against a classic ski that sticky material sticks to the snow and the ski comes to a stop and that's what we push against. So if you focus on the toe of the boot here you'll see that it's gliding for a period of time and then it stops right there and that tells you that the grip zone she's pushed down against the grip zone and she started the kick and the kick is this down and back action with the leg. That's what the kick looks like a classic kick is a down and back movement. In skate skiing it works differently. In skate skiing there is no grip zone and no sticky area under the foot and instead we roll the ski onto its inside edge and push in the sideways direction. So this is the start of the skate kick as the ski starts to tip on its side and she pushes outward. So that's what the skate kick looks like and at no point in time during the kick in skate skiing does the ski stop and that's part of the reason why skate skiing is overall a faster style of cross-country skiing than classic skiing. So that's the basic overview of how the legs work and now let's see what these differences mean in terms of the balance coordination and fitness demands of classic versus skate skiing and what you'll see is why classic skiing is widely considered easier and more accessible as a starting point but that it is possible to start with skate if that's your preference. So the first topic is balance and the first thing I want to highlight for you is how much time the skier spends on a single ski whether they're in classic or skate technique. So I'll just forward them through a stride cycle or two and what you should notice is how the majority of the time the skier is on one ski or the other. Now cross-country skis are very narrow and high and unstable and so balance is a really important part of cross-country skiing and that's true in skate or classic skiing but the big difference is or one of the big differences is that in classic skiing the skis are supported and held in place somewhat with the ski track so these ski tracks are giving you some lateral stability whereas in skate skiing you don't have a track to help stabilize the ski. So although both demand excellent balance, in classic skiing you get this extra support from the ski tracks and it's a little bit more forgiving. The second thing I want to mention about balance is that when you're getting started you won't spend most of your time on a single ski. You will naturally drop your ski, drop your other leg to increase and widen your base of support and that will work differently in classic and skate skiing. In classic skiing you'll drop the ski behind you so that both skis are in the track as you're gliding that will still hold the skis will still be close to the midline of the body because they are in the tracks and it's it's an easy position to be in whereas in skate skiing what happens is you will drop this outside ski onto the snow and it will be wide of the midline of your body and it'll be on its inside edge and normally when we're skiing on the flats like this we want the ski to be running flat so if you look over here at this gliding ski it's running flat but because you won't have it's flat because your body is over the ski but if you drop this outside ski wide of the midline and wide of your body it'll be on the inside edge and that is a bit of a stressful position and it can cause you to develop some discomfort in your feet and in your lower legs. So classic skiing, the tracks help you with your balance and even when you lose your balance the positioning is more comfortable and easier to be in than it is in skate skiing. So if you're someone who struggles with balance for any reason classic skiing will be more enjoyable and more accessible for you and if you do have problems with balance you should mention that when you go to buy equipment because there are choices you can make in your gear in your classic gear that will make it easier for you to balance on your skis. The second topic I want to discuss is how classic and skate skiing differ in terms of the coordination required to get started and of course coordination is related to balance but I want to talk about coordination in two other ways as well. The first is in terms of how we use our feet in classic versus skate skiing. So in classic skiing when we push down and back against the ski we're rolling our weight through the forefoot in a way that's very similar to what you're used to in walking and running and so the way that the pressure moves across the foot is going to be quite familiar to you and easy for you to learn how to do whereas in skate skiing you have to roll the pressure through the foot differently in order to make the ski roll onto its inside edge and push off into this sideways direction and if you revert in any way to that rolling through the forefoot action you'll just get into trouble because it'll start to cause the tip of the ski to dive down into the snow. So the coordination in terms of how we weight and push with our feet is easier in classic than in skate and the second aspect of coordination that I want to mention that is also easier in classic skiing is how we coordinate the action of the arms and legs. So this works differently in different skate and classic techniques but in the most basic and entry-level classic technique which is diagonal stride you're going to swing your arms and legs in opposition in a way that's very similar to what you're used to from walking and running whereas in skate skiing the timing and movement of the arms and legs is not familiar. These are novel movements for you to learn and so you're adding an extra layer of complication to what you have to learn in order to get started in skate skiing. Now personally I don't think this is a great reason not to start with skate skiing. In fact I think this is one of the biggest reasons why you should skate ski. I think it's fun to learn new skills and skate skiing feels as amazing as it looks. You will get a tremendous sense of accomplishment from learning how to skate ski. The final topic for comparison is the fitness demands of each style. Cross-country skiing is a highly technical sport and skate and classic skiing at an expert level both demand excellent balance and coordination but you pay a higher price for having the inefficient technique of a beginner in skate skiing than you do in classic and that's a big part of the reason why skate skiing typically feels more exhausting for beginners. As a beginner you'll be able to ski farther and for longer on classic skis than skate skis. Skate skiing at any level probably takes more muscular effort but both classic and skate skiing are a great workout and what you may lack in fitness now will come along with the more you ski. As you gain skill and efficiency eventually you'll be able to modulate your level of exertion and the gap between the work of skate and classic will narrow. So to summarize I compared the mechanics of skate and classic skiing and talked about the demands for balance coordination and fitness and I think it's fair to say that classic skiing is more accessible and more forgiving to beginners but the challenges of getting started in skate skiing are by no means insurmountable. Assuming that you have access to trails groomed for both skate and classic and assuming you don't have significant physical limitations related to balance coordination or fitness I would say choose whichever style appeals to you the most. Classic skiing is beautiful and has a very natural feeling and skate skiing is fast and fun and has a cool factor. In my opinion it's most fun to do both. There are crossover benefits to doing both and there are times when either skate or classic skiing is more fun because of the temperature grooming or snow conditions. Regardless of what you decide I would encourage you to learn the full suite of skate and classic techniques and pursue technical excellence like you've seen in the athletes in this video. Cross-country skiing is enjoyable at any skill level but skiing in this expert competition style is next level fun and more accessible than you might think. To learn more about skate and classic skiing visit nordicskilab.com. Nordic Ski Lab is a member supported website with a large collection of videos of drills, expert skiers demonstrating all skate and classic techniques and video technique analysis. The cost of a membership is very reasonable probably less than a single ski lesson so if you enjoy this video format for learning and studying ski technique I encourage you to visit us at nordicskilab.com to learn more.