'Without the specific nature of rollerskiing, a skier's body simply
cannot be adequately prepared for the demands of ski racing.'

This quote is from a recent article in a leading cross-country ski
magazine (the link is below) and shows just how important a part of
the training mix rollerskiing is - especially for us Brits, with such
limited time on snow.

Winter is fast approaching, and so now really is the time to get in
the rollerski preparation for skiing and racing on snow. This is the
time when cross-country skiers the world over shift their training
from general fitness and strength, to more ski-specific training.

On this newsletter we have details of our courses, but also various
ideas for rollerski training, so you can get onto snow with better
technique, balance, fitness and stength. I'd like to welcome the new
rollerskiers who joined us in Dorney last month, and also the large
group of novices who started in Hyde Park earlier in September.


THIS SUNDAY AT DORNEY LAKE

Our first Dorney session of the autumn will be a quiet one - we
haven't so many bookings for this one (probably due to other courses /
races taking place) so if you would like to be in a smaller group,
this will be a good one to come to. Instructors include Ekaterina
Rachel and me.

Full day - www.rollerski.co.uk/events3.html
2-hr session only - www.rollerski.co.uk/class.html


AUTUMN 6-WEEK HYDE PARK COURSE

This starts on Saturday 3rd October, with 3 weeks classic, followed by
3 weeks skating. You can sign up for just the classic or the skating
parts, and if you miss a session you can make it up by doing another
session at a later date.

See www.rollerski.co.uk/events7.html


ROLLERSKI CLUB

Our autumn programme is now online, see www.rollerski.co.uk/clubprog.html


TRAINING IDEAS:

RICHMOND PARK TRAINING AFTER DARK

The nights are drawing in, and so now is the time to start
'after-dark' training. If you are reasonably competent at
rollerskiing, have a head torch and flashing bike light on your back,
Richmond Park in South West London is an excellent place to train.
With 10k+ of tarmac trails - which are all shut to traffic when the
park closes - it is rollerski nirvana. Caution is advised on the
downhills - it is probably worth taking rollerskis off and walking
down - and you may want to cycle the circuit first to become familar
with the terrain.

See http://www.rollerski.co.uk/gallery19.html for pictures of the
route, taken on a recent traffic-free day rollerski tour. We will do
more of this training, on the first Sunday of the month.


ROLLERSKI RACING

Rollerski racing is a great way to experience something similar to
cross-country ski racing on snow. A relatively new race on the
rollerski circuit is the Wessex Sprints at Castle Combe, a race
organised by the England's only civilian biathlon (skiing and
shooting) club and now in its second year.

The race is on Sunday 26th October, and offers skiers a choice of 3k /
6k / 9k indvidual distances, and team relay races. This race is the
concluding fixture of the GB Rollerski Race Series, and is the only
race to be supported by the British Army which, until recent years,
was the dominant force in British cross-country skiing and
rollerskiing. Everyone is welcome, whether you have raced or not.

If you would like to join our team for the races, go to
http://www.rollerski.co.uk/nr061.html

You can see results from other recent rollerski races here -
http://www.rollerski.co.uk/ns033.html


MAKE SURE YOU ROLLERSKI

An article from 'The Master Skier' on the importance of rollerskiing -
http://www.masterskier.com/article.asp?aid=351


SKI GANGING

Not all the training you do should be on rollerskis. Cross-country
skiers also do a mix of 'dryland' strength and imitation exercises.
Throughout the summer we have been doing circuit training - essential
for building up good core and limb strength. Now our focus shifts
slightly to 'ski ganging' which is running with ski poles up various
different gradients.

Here is an article on ski bounding -
http://www.masterskier.com/article.asp?aid=166


WINTER CHALLENGES

It's always great to hear about different folks' winter challenges.
Interestingly, we are helping people from two competing teams training
for the Amundsen South Pole race!

This is a 600km race over 20 days, with 3,000m of climb - see
www.amundsenomega3southpolerace.com/

Other challenges some our skiers are preparing for include the Engadin
Ski Marathon, Vasaloppet, Birkebeinerrennet and the Ganghoferlauf
(which we are doing ourselves - see www.rollerski.co.uk/cross.html )

There's nothing like a ski race to focus your training, and the ski
marathons are good fun and very accessible to new skiers. See
www.rollerski.co.uk/nf003.html for ski marathon ideas (this will be
updated for 2009 in the next few weeks).


GENERAL TRAINING

As cross-country skiing is a power-endurance sport, any exercise that
builds up stength and power is well recommended. I have been doing a
lot of mountain biking this summer which really helps with
cross-country skiing. Swimming, rowing and general circuit training
are also well recommended - but don't forget the ski specific training
too!


OTHER IDEAS

I think this is enough for now, but if you would like more ideas, I
would recommend taking a look at the 'PRE-SEASON 2008' articles on the
MasterSkier website.

These articles are written by respected US ski coaches, and include
information on such topics as ice baths, balance, rollerski safety,
diet and tyre dragging. See - http://www.masterskier.com/articles.asp


Best regards,
Iain