Not feeling up to the challenge of racing downhill? Just starting out? Cross country skiing burns more calories per hour than any other sport. It’s also a low-risk, low-impact form of aerobic exercise. However, it can be modified to be more challenging. For example, Ski orienteering (SkiO) is a cross-country skiing endurance winter racing sport where participants must navigate and make the best route choices while skiing at a high speed.

Rather than being a leisure pursuit, skiing started off as being a crucial means of transport thousands of years before it became popular. Of course, back then skis were made of wood, not the plastic and metal of today. Skiing became a popular sport in America from the 1930s onwards, probably as a result of people being inspired by Winter Olympics.

1. Carradan Skis is the company selling the most expensive skis in the world. The Diamondback and Envy models go for $12,000 a pair, and the Mamba and Lust models go for $19,000 a pair. Carradan Skis touts their FLEX:2 system that absorbs impact, the CRYO:2 process that strengthens the skis, and the Carradan Coriolis Core that reduces warping. Available for rent? We doubt it.
2. Skiing might be safer than you think, but it's still risky. According to the National Ski Areas Association, during the past 10 years about 40.6 people have died skiing/snowboarding per year on average. During the 2009/10 season, 38 fatalities occurred out of the 59.8 million skier/snowboarder days reported for the season. Twenty-five of the fatalities were skiers and 13 of the fatalities were snowboarders. Among the fatalities, 19 of those involved were reported as wearing a helmet at the time of the incident.
3. Ullr is a name that many avid skiers throw around. Who or what is an Ullr? Ullr is said to be the Norse God of Winter (the God of Snow known from the Viking era). When there is a lack of snow, skiers might be overheard praying to Ullr. Then, when it starts dumping snow, everyone claims that Ullr must be happy.
4. A “yard sale” is the common phrase used when a skier loses all of his or her ski equipment during a fall, spreading it all over the slope. We imagine this is used in the same fashion as golfers who must shout “fore!”
5. Snowboarding wasn't inspired by skiing like you'd first assume, but inspired by surfing and skateboarding in the United States during the 1960s. It eventually became a Winter Olympic sport in 1998. The first modern snowboard is the “snurfer” (a blend of snow and surfer) and was designed by Sherman Poppen for his children in 1965 in Muskegon, Michigan.
6. Early on, snowboarders were at first stereotyped as rebel young men because when the sport first started out, it was young men who were making the boards in their shop classes or in their garages. It took young men who were daring and dedicated to make the sport as recognizable and popular as it is today.

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This article was written by by Julie McManus of Island Times Magazine.