Historically
skiing has been used as a more efficient method for traversing
long distances across snow. One of the main aspects of the sport
by which this is achieved is the snowshoe effect. If you
were to to walk through the snow with your normal shoes, you
would most likely sink all the way down. Any sort of travel
under these conditions would be very difficult, however a person
wearing skis will stand at the surface. This is because a
skier's body weight is dispersed over a wider area, and
prevents them from sinking into the snow. This allows the skier
to glide freely over the surface of the snow without needing to
waste energy on trying to push through it.
Now that you can
stand on top of the snow, how do you move? In cross country
skiing, there are two main methods, classic and skate.
home, classic, skate,
down hill, sources