Fred Factor

Cross Country Skiing with G has been a blast. At home when he's not playing with trains, hot wheels or just being wild, he watches The Mickey Mouse Club House. On the show is Mistletoe Mountain where Santa lives. Driving to Mt. Hood he relates to going to Mistletoe Mtn. so thus it has become.

He's gotten pretty good with his own skis too. Not that much is expected. Mostly I just like that he looks forward to the adventure.

A big draw for these day trips is that XC Skiing is the one sport other than the bike that I truly enjoy. Yet I have put very little effort into it. I first tried it 18 years ago in Boulder, CO after being advised to by Andy Hampsten. His pearls of wisdom were practical and effective. My first pair of skis were a used 3-pin set that I only recently upgraded from. I think those classic skis were faster than my touring skis now, but it doesn't really matter since I'm pulling 45 lbs of kid and sled and snacks. The sled is by far the most opulent non bike item I've ever owned besides a leather couch. It's been worth every cent since G likes our trips and it allows me another way to knock out an escape on a weekend without being wet, cold and arthritic on a bike.

All the bike racers I've seen skiing so far, I know. They are easy to spot with their winter cycling kit sans bike. I've been dressing the same but am considering a heavier outer layer. When I stop to help G sort out whatever he has misplaced or lost I lose heat pretty quick. That said, I warm up equally quick again just pulling him along. But the more we stop, the longer it takes to warm back up each time.

I'm considering going to the Camelback hydration set up instead of the classic, bottle in the jersey pocket. While I can take off leg warmers, booties and what have you on a bike, I can't seem to grab a bottle while shuffling through the snow without tripping over myself. Who wants their kid to see that?

In terms of geeking out, I keep reminding myself to bring a pedometer but never remember till we're well out of town. Not too sure if it'll work, but having some sort of gauge of accomplishment would be useful until I have more frame of reference on our trail loops. As it is, I know good skate skiers can cruise 50 miles at about 10 mph and stay aerobic. I'm on much slower touring skis and pulling a one-diaper day care at 3.5 mph at the same heart rate. G and I did 3:45 on our last trip, 10-miles with 800 ft of climbing. Of course I only knew the time we were out for until I checked our route on mapmyrun.com after we got home.

To be honest, the best way I can tell how long we've been out is by my feet. Under 2 hours my feet feel fine. 2-2.5 hours they get hot spots. Over 3 hours I get blisters.

Hours on the left, minutes on the right.

At least next weekend I'll have some history to compare to. But the conditions will be sure to have changed as well. Of course, by the time I get the hang of this and feel confident that I know what I'm doing, it will be time to start putting long rides in on the boat bike.