BEN LOMOND BEACON, Jan. 4, 1979, Page 6 Its too cold. Too far. Too expensaid the non-skiand stalked off. Clearly he wasnt very receptive to the notion of trying his hand at skiing. Just as clear was the fact he had not really looked into the expenses and other aspects of skiing. sive and too risky, er In one sentence, he had captured what are known as skiings perceived negatives. But if he had investigated, he like thousands of new skiers each would have discovered how far year e his ideas were. Taking his objections one by one, a hasty defense of the sport might sound like this. off-bas- Ski fashion has Too cold? come a long way since the old days of bundling up in a couple of pairs of socks, wearing cold leather boots and as many sweaters or jackets as you felt necessary. New skiwear is lightweight and extrawarm, designed to battle any cold with a minimum of bulkiness; new knitting processes and other thermal ski advances have revolutionized fashions and provided comfortable, classy clothing. Too far? skiing can be as near or as far as you want, depending on you and your priorities. If you havent the time for travel, try one of the smaller slopes close to home (30 of rSK1CAN you FOR Bent-Kne- e PRE-SEASO- the over 400 ski areas in the East are within 90 minutes of a major metropolitan area); if youve more than a day or a weekend, you may want to invest more time in traveling to get to an area. Too expensive? again, it can be as expensive as you want. Theres no fashion code, so you can ski in jeans and a sweater just as easily as the latest in this seasons ski fashions hat, goggles, jacket, sweater, warmup pants or farmers fashions, gloves and whatever else you may be attracted to. And last years equipment, or two years agos probably will serve you just as nicely as a new set of skis and boots. Skiing, like just about everything else show biz, stock market, real estate, has its glamour set, no question etc. about it. But theres no written rule that says everyone has to drop a bundle on fashions or equipment. At the same time, when it comes to recreation costs, have you ever priced a complete scuba set? How about a sail boat? Even just a camping outfit? Or maybe a trail bike or a set of golf clubs? safety-conscio- The key element in skiing, of course, is you. Everything is up to you be as chic and fashionable or as casual and scruffy as you want; travel as much or as little as you wish; ski on equipment as new or as old as you want (as long as its safe); and ski as fast or as slow as your skill and attitude dictate. But try skiing. At least once, anyway. wwm Too risky? again, no question, skiing can be dangerous. So can walking on a street, swimming, driving a car, or according to the National Safe- - S3 wmiQiKBm DO IT CONDITIONING N ty Council just plain staying at home (where thousands are injured each year in household mishaps). But perhaps no as skiing: sport is as expert instruction is available at every area and all trails large or small are marked according to degree of difficulty; maintenance and grooming crews constantly pack and repack trails and ski patrol members rove each area to head off potential accidents and also provide first aid in case of trouble. Dangerous? What isnt? Skiing may be suffering from an image problem. The glamour and sizzle of fashion plus the creature comforts of modern resorts make many people mistakenly believe only the rich can in fact, most people who ski. Wrong ski are far from wealthy. Statics for Stronger Thighs Skiers have used the bent-kne- e static exercise for years to help strengthen thigh muscles Find a place where you can rest your back against a wall or tree, so that you are in a position similar to sitting in a chair Now squeeze a ball (volleyball, soccer ball, basketball) between your knees, holding this position for 25 seconds, working toward one minute This exercise will build stronger thigh muscles and at the same time develop the muscles on the outside of the upper and lower leg When skiing, the full range of the thigh muscle is used, so to use this exercise alone is a mistake. Skiers come from almost as many different walks of life as there are occupations and age groups. Young and old, students and housewives, corporate executives and the guy who runs the filling station, ski. Their incomes range from the affluent to the housewife who may set aside lift ticket money from her weekly allowance,! from studentsspraping lo-,gether enough tuition for next semester to retirees living on a fixed income. , ' There are two kinds of skiing pine and nordic. al- l, How do they differ? In a alpine skiing concerns downhill skiing while nordic deals with skiing on level ground. Nordic is often referred to as y skiing or ski touring. nut-shel- cross-countr- Nordic skiing is considered the quiet sport because of its more relaxed, approach to skiing. Youre not whizzing down a slope back-to-natu- re or trail; instead, ski tourers glide along the ground through old logging trails or specially cut XC trails through the woods, or over golf courses and hillsides. Basically, nordic skiing is simply straight forward walking and gliding on skis. The nordic ski is more narrow than alpine models and the binding allows the heel of the boot to rise in a natural walking movement; alpine bindings secure the boot to the ski. I fidence rose," says Hedgecock. Hes a racer now, the second most talented racer in the U.S. The Stratton victory might be just the boost he needed to score consistently. Steve is used to sharing top honors with his brother on the national level. In the U S. championships last season, Steve was second in the slalom, and Phil won. In the Spring Series races, Steve won the giant slalom, and Phil was second. Then Phil won the slalom, and Steve was second. Thats been going on since the Mahres first started to on their home slopes at White Pass, Wash. Steve doesnt like to travel, although he is beginning to relax a little more in Europe For a few years, he was not sure he wanted to be a ski racer. Now he is serious. He regards racing as his career and looks ahead to 1980 and beyond. To help Steve and his teammates, send your gift to: U.S. Ski Team Fund, Box 100 M, Park City, Ut. world-clas- s ski-rac- e 84060. Reprinted with permission from SKIING Magazine, March Copyright Publishing Company All rights reserved 1979 by s The simple fact is that it doesnt take a income to learn to ski. You can do it for under $100, in fact. And you can continue to ski after that for less than youd imagine. re Reprinted with permission of Ski Magazine Technical assistance provided by Professional Ski Instructors of America Skiing Is For Kids, Too Dont Leave The Kids Behind! Ski areas realize that provisions for nursery or babysitting services can be a key consideration in families trying to decide where to ski. The youngsters figure as much in most areas operations as mom and dad. Many ski areas have a nursery where children can be left for an hour or a day to free the parents for a few runs together. The nurseries, in turn, usually are more than just a babysitter as they some even provide outdoor activities as well as a warm have kiddie lessons lunch. Steve Mahres victory in the World Cup slalom at Stratton Mountain, Vt., last March was a classic moment Steves twin brother, Phil, had won the giant slalom at Stratton the day before, and was running a full second ahead of the other racers in the first seed of the slalom, midway through his first run. Then he fell. Steve was in the second seed. You could see the on Steve's determination face, says mens coach said to Tony Hedgecock. Its your turn, little him, brother, and he just nodded his head. Steve won his first heat of the slalom by a wide margin and then posted a strong second run to take first place. It was the first time he had scored on the World Cup circuit; it was the first time that two US. men had scored victories within the same season; and it was the first time that the U.S. had scored three consecutive wins on the World Cup. (Phil Mahre won the slalom in Chamonix just before the Stratton races ) After Steve won at Stratton, his con ,. fun always be presented with a approach along with other youngsters of the same age. Even the most apprehensive or hesitant young skiers welcome this form of initiation. With various climbing and sliding under the close supervision of games a ski instructor who is specially trained kids to work with young children soon take short slides for themselves, maybe aided by an outstretched hand or a rope around the waist. The biggest expense in learning to ski your time, not your dollars. Ski areas, large and small, offer a wide range of package plans aimed at the k new skier, from nighttime lessons to a week or more of consecutive daily instruction. is once-a-wee- The best way to learn is to be able to put in at least a week at one time. Five or six consecutive days means youre able to maintain your rhythm, keep up the momentum of instruction . . . and, most importantly, you truly can measure your improvement. Obviously, if you cant afford a week, a weekend k is the next or two days best alternative. back-to-bac- Most large resorts and many of the smaller areas have ample facilities and excellent junior programs. Its far more developed than the early days where a ski instructor would wind up babysitting a gang of toddlers in some corner room of the base lodge; areas are highly aware today of the need for professional, qualified nursery services. Learn-to-sprograms have shown the average youngster of 4 or 5 makes a n student. He or she fine, has good balance, can understand the instructor (younger kids may lack the language skills to understand instruction) and - perhaps most important they are usually big enough so rental equipment is available. Experience has shown a child feels confident on skis very quickly. With this security, the motivation to do better grows. Basically, kids want to have fun. They love to ride the lifts and try to get down the hill as fast as possible in order to ride right back up. And kids arent as uptight about falling as adults. ki quick-to-lear- At age 3 or 4 a child might rather sit and eat snow than ski on it, but give the child a chance. Children have a way of developing in their own good time, so dont push, just lead them to the snow. At an early age, a month, one way or the other, makes a great deal of difference in a childs muscle strength and body coordination. A childs introduction to the sport of skiing should - A GARDEN of winter delights this skier on his run down the troil. r