Style Magazine_El Dorado County and Foothills_December 2018

Cross-country and downhill skiing photos courtesy of The Abbi Agency. Showshoeing photo by Jeff Dow, courtesy of Barton Health.
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CROSS-COUNTRY
SKIING
BENEFITS/CALORIES BURNED: Alpenglow
Sports staffer Janice Pilkington says crosscountry
skiing (also known as Nordic skiing)
is one of the best aerobic activities you can
do. It’s an endurance sport that’s good for
the heart and lungs, similar to running or
cycling. It can burn 500-1,000 calories per
hour, depending on whether the trail is flat
or uphill.
TRY IT: Tahoe Cross-Country Ski Area (925
Country Club Drive, Tahoe City, 530-583-5475,
tahoexc.org); Royal Gorge Cross-Country Ski
Resort (9411 Pahatsi Road, Soda Springs, 530-
426-3871, royalgorge.com)
BEGINNER TIP: “Even if you’re an avid downhill
skier, don’t expect to be a great cross-country
skier. Soft boots and edgeless skis provide
a challenge for all first-timers. When in
doubt, hire an instructor,” says Sean Kristl,
director of sales and marketing at Alpenglow
Expeditions.
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DOWNHILL
SKIING
BENEFITS/CALORIES BURNED: Skiing
improves your strength and balance,
Pilkington says. “When you do longer runs
without stopping, you’ll also notice that you’re
a bit out of breath,” she says. “If you choose to
be really adventurous and go backcountry
skiing—where you put climbing skins on
your skis and go uphill outside the resorts
under your own power—you’ll get a great
aerobic workout.” Kristl adds that downhill
skiing builds leg muscles and core strength,
and you can burn 300-500 calories in an hour,
depending on the intensity. “Powder-skiing
will burn more calories; groomed skiing will
burn less,” he says.
TRY IT: Sierra-at-Tahoe (1111 Sierra-at-
Tahoe Road, Twin Bridges, 530-659-7453,
sierraattahoe.com); Sugar Bowl Resort (629
Sugar Bowl Road, Norden, 530-426-9000,
sugarbowl.com); Northstar California (5001
Northstar Drive, Truckee, 530-562-2267,
northstarcalifornia.com); Squaw Valley-
Alpine Meadows (1960 Squaw Valley Road,
Olympic Valley, 800-403-0206, squawalpine.
com); Heavenly Mountain Resort (4080 Lake
Tahoe Boulevard, South Lake Tahoe, 775-586-
7000, skiheavenly.com); Kirkwood Mountain
Resort (1501 Kirkwood Meadows Drive,
Kirkwood, 209-258-6000, kirkwood.com)
BEGINNER TIP: Pilkington recommends,
newcomers take advantage of [a resort's]
packages that [typically] include lift tickets
with rentals and lessons. “The resorts offer
them at discounts because they want you to
come back and know your experience will
be better if you take a lesson and have good
equipment.”
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SNOWSHOEING
BENEFITS/CALORIES BURNED: “Similar to
hiking or running, snowshoeing is
a fantastic cardiovascular
workout. Deeper snow
makes it more difficult
and a harder workout,
while sturdy snow
underfoot makes it
drastically easier,”
Kristl says. Depending
on pace and snow type,
a snowshoer can burn
between 500-1,000 calories per hour.
TRY IT: California Sno-Parks, including Donner
Summit (near Truckee off I-80), Blackwood
Canyon (near Tahoe City off Highway 89),
Carson Pass (off Highway 88), Echo Lake (off
Highway 50), Iron Mountain (off Highway
88 near Kirkwood ski area), Lake Alpine (off
Highway 4), Meiss Meadow (off Highway
88 near Carson Pass), Spicer Reservoir (off
Highway 4), Taylor Creek (off Highway 89 near
Fallen Leaf Lake), and Yuba Pass (off Highway
49)
BEGINNER TIP: “Hiking boots with a pair of
warm wool socks work well for footwear.
Snowshoes come in a variety of sizes and
materials. The bigger you are, the bigger
the surface area you need to keep you from
sinking. Also, deeper/softer snow requires a
bigger snowshoe,” Pilkington says. “Going out
in deep, untracked snow is very physically
demanding. Most people try to find a trail
that’s been groomed at a Nordic skiing center
or a packed snowmobile trail.”
5 SNOWBOARDING
BENEFITS/CALORIES BURNED: Nadia
Guerriero, vice president and general
manager at Northstar California, says
snowboarding, like skiing, is a full-body
activity, which means doing it requires
feeling the position of different body
parts and having an awareness of the
effort that goes into moving those parts.
It can burn between 300-600 calories an
hour, depending on how hard you work.
TRY IT: Sierra-at-Tahoe (1111 Sierra-At-
Tahoe Road, Twin Bridges, 530-659-7453,
sierraattahoe.com); Sugar Bowl Resort (629
Sugar Bowl Road, Norden, 530-426-9000,
sugarbowl.com); Northstar California (5001
Northstar Drive, Truckee, 530-562-2267,
northstarcalifornia.com); Squaw Valley-
DECEMBER 2018 // styleedc.com 19