February 19, 2009
Want to go Nordic skating like reporter Keagan Harsha did in his story "Destination Recreation: Nordic Skating?"
Jamie Hess is the Nordic skating guru in the United States. He owns and operates a Nordic skating shop in Norwich, Vt., called Nordic Skater, where you can purchase all the necessary equipment. Boots and skates cost about $250 a set. For more information check out the link below:
www.nordicskater.com
Want to try the sport out first before purchasing anything? No worries. Hess also operates a "rent to own" program where you can rent boots and skates for $100 a season.
A couple of area stores also rent skates out for the day -- the Hero's Welcome General Store in North Hero, Vt., and the Dartmouth Cross Country Ski Center in Hanover, N.H.
Hero's Welcome General Store charges $12 a day for skates, blades, and poles, $8 for a half-day rental. The Dartmouth Cross Country Ski Center charges $10 a day, $7 for a half day.
Check out the following links for information on how to contact those businesses:
www.heroswelcome.com/
www.dartmouth.edu/~doc/dxc/
There are numerous rivers and lakes that are ideal for Nordic skating. Jamie Hess maintains an free e-mail list and frequently sends out ice reports updating skating enthusiasts about conditions. He also organizes occasional skating tours for anyone interested. For more on where to skate, as well as information on future workshops for beginners click on this link:
www.nordicskating.org/
And if you want to learn how to Nordic skate for free this Saturday (February 20th), just head to City Bay in North Hero on Route 2, directly across from the Hero's Welcome General Store from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. Hess will provide gear free of charge. If you can't make it Saturday, check out the Nordic skating workshop on Lake Morey in Fairlee, Vt., on Sunday from 1-4 in the afternoon. Check out the following links for information on those two events.
www.nordicskating.org/workshop/index.html
www.nordicskater.com/grandisle.pdf
Last but definitely not least, there are several pieces of safety equipment you should carry with you out on the ice. For pertinent safety tips and gear click on the following:
www.nordicskater.com/safety.html
Related Story:
Destination Recreation: Nordic Skating
Click here to see more Destination Recreation stories.
