CAT SKIING
Cross country skiing on a trail in summer.
This revolutionary device makes it happen By Greg Marr
The sun was shining brightly in the late afternoon as we classic skied down a narrow trail of mixed hardwoods and pines. The trail made gentle twists and turns with an occasional small hill. We skied and chatted for about 45 minutes before returning to the car, feeling good from the short workout. That sounds like a pretty typical description of what many of us do all winter, right? Well, this was a spring afternoon with temperatures in the 60s and not a glimmer of snow to be seen anywhere. Yet we were skiing not roller skiing thanks to Dale Niggeman's latest creation, the CAT Ski (Classic All Terrain Ski). For Niggeman, the CAT Ski has been a 10 year labor of love, at times
more frustrating than successful."He's like a mad scientist," says Greg Greene, a top Midwest skier who's hooked on the CAT Ski. "We laughed and said he's crazy. He's gone through many generations and improvements over the years." How long has the CAT Ski
been in development? "A long time," Niggeman says, drawing out the word "long."
"This one is a combination of different prototypes, probably 15 different prototypes. They all worked but the problem was that you had to have perfect technique. The toughest part was how to make the thing work right for everyone." It's not surprising to anyone who knows him that Niggeman
would hammer away on this until he got it dialed in. After all, this isn't his first innovative product. Armed with a degree in mechanical engineering and a background as an elite skier, Niggeman started the SISU Co. in 1991 when he developed the SISU 2000 roller ski, the first with truly functional braking systems and relatively inexpensive inline skate wheels. ext came the enduro Roller Ski, taking the best features of the SISU
2000 but adding an integrate binding and inline skate boot. "I wanted to match the stability of cross country skiing on snow. I felt using the traditional binding and boots systems used on cross country skis was less stable than real cross country skiing, resulting in bad habits and unstable technique. Both roller ski models can be modified to obtain
virtually any speed between slow snow and super fast icy conditions. This is done by using slow wheels by themselves or in combination with fast inline skate wheels." All the while he was refining his roller skis, Niggeman kept tinkering with the CAT Ski. And who wouldn't think Niggeman was a little off center as he pursued his dream of making a ski that would go across grass,
sand, asphalt, gravel virtually any surface at all? Make no doubt about it, his is a ski, but it's not a ski in any conventional sense. And the darn thing really works.
"I have to tell you it was an unbelievable, revolutionary experience," says Greene, who did nearly all his training, right into and through the winter, on the CAT Ski. "The only races I did were the Noqueman, where I was 19th, 13th at the Traverse City Vasa and I had my strongest Birkie
ever, with half the skiing I've ever done, where I was 62nd."
Talking about training on the CAT Ski is one thing; describing the CAT Ski is much more difficult, but I'll give it a shot.
Niggeman describes it as a "hybrid between a ski and a roller ski." There's a bottom ski think of it as a platform topped by what Niggeman calls a "mini roller ski" that slides along rails on the platform. The bottom
of the skis have "grippers" that keep them from sliding. The glide for the CAT skier is that of the mini roller ski rolling along the top of the bottom ski.
After the "glide" along the bottom ski, you shift your weight to the other ski just as you would on the snow and this weight shift allows the other ski to shoot forward via a bungee cord, and the cycle is repeated. Basically, you glide the length of the platform with one leg while the
platform is being pulled forward with a bungee on the other side, and being set up for the next glide phase.
Right now, I'm thinking, "Does this make any sense at all to anyone out there?" which was pretty much my reaction when Niggeman called and tried to describe it to me. "You gotta see it," he said, finally. And that led to a visit to www.planetxc.com, the Web site for Niggeman's all things XC business, and eventually to a visit to the SISU Co. world
headquarters in Wisconsin Rapids.
I dropped in on the Web site first, at Niggemann's suggestion, because he has some illustrations of a CAT Ski in action. That helped but I knew I had to see it for myself.
First, Niggeman explained the variables of the ski as we stared down on an actual CAT Ski lying on his work bench. There are two sets of bungee cords, one light and one heavier, that provide more or less
resistance. There are also ratcheted front and rear wheels in front of the toe and behind the heel. With both wheels ratcheted, they roll only when the mini roller ski is going forward and then grab, like wax, to prevent slipping back. It helps the skier to push off the entire foot.
Skiers with more advanced technique might want to deratchet the front wheel done simply with an Allen wrench and regular wrench. By deracheting the front wheel, you have to push more from the heel and
use the upper body to prevent slipping.
Finally, Niggeman has a "secret" sticky spray for the platform that helps to keep the ski from slipping while learning.
Niggeman says the idea from the CAT Ski actually began to gel for him with a Silent Sports cover photo.
"I went out on other classic roller skis and I just hated them. Everyone was falling, they're too fast and it's more like double poling than classic
skiing. There was this picture of a guy classic skiing and he had his foot up like this," Niggeman says, demonstrating a classic skier with one foot weighted and the other back and raised. "This guy had his foot released from the ground, so I got the idea that if you could have something to glide on that would shoot forward when the foot is released from the ground, it might work."
"I had to figure out how to ratchet and deratchet for various techniques
and make it with variable resistance. At first I thought different length skis but I realized all you really need is about 6 inches of glide. We had to go with bearings there are 20 bearings per set. A lot of little lucky things happened. I realized I didn't have to make a ski that's 5 feet long, that I could keep it under 4 feet. I had to decide how heavy I could make it and still have it feel comfortable. At 5 to 6 pounds, it's lighter
than most all terrain skis out there. It's assembled with a screw system for replacement. There were just tons and tons of little things."
Niggeman knew he was onto something with his first prototype.
"I did the Snekkevick (a classic race) and I was on the very end of the lead pack, just hanging on. Three weeks later, I went from hanging on to the back of the pack to second at Badger State Games. My conditioning didn't change, I didn't have any coaching, I just trained
exclusively on that prototype. What I found out was that it was teaching me to ski better."
And that little surprise had Niggeman even more determined to create a CAT Ski for the masses.
"Whatever you do on roller skis, good or bad, directly translates to snow," he says. "The problem on snow is that there are a ton of variables. On snow, most people shuffle when they classic ski, whereas
with these, each time you have to completely transfer your weight or they won't shoot forward. The first big step in classic is weight transfer. On classic roller skis, I'd say 90 percent of people shuffle. This simply won't let you shuffle."
"I can take someone who's never classic skied and in two to three weeks, his body has figured out how to use these, and once he's figured out to use them it directly translates to snow. A coach can tell you
everything, tape you. Everyone tells you to do this and that but do you do it? With this, the first thing is you can't shuffle. It teaches you to push straight down, not to shuffle and bring your leg through. It also teaches you, and this is important, to relax the hamstrings."
If you're not skiing relaxed, getting a push down and bringing your leg through properly, the CAT Ski tells by the pull of the bungee slapping the ski forward and banging at the heel.
"Kids get it right away and beginners are the best. Skiers who have skied a lot (shuffled a lot) have a little problem with the transition to the CAT Ski. But your body will learn it. That's automatic."
Automatic, eh? Well, we'll see about that, I thought as I followed Niggeman to a trail on the edge of Wisconsin Rapids. I seldom classic ski, and I figured I was a classic shuffler. Niggeman and the CAT Ski would be a challenge.
The first thing we did was put on one ski just to get the feel for what would be going on. Shuffling along with one ski, I was eager to get started. As we headed down an alternating grassy, sandy, leaf covered trail, the first thing I noticed was a distinct "slap, slap" as the ski banged forward.
"Get your hips back and relax your hamstrings," Niggeman suggested.
After a few minutes, my left leg was getting it but not my right. I was
having some distinct balance issues on my right side. But I was skiing, really skiing, down a trail without snow. As I skied on, I noticed little things happening that I was getting some bounce to my step and that I was getting a much better weight transfer, and there was less of that slapping going. I was also getting a workout. Because of the resistance, it's like skiing uphill all the time. Not a steep uphill, but a gradual one.
Resistance adjustments can make it a steep uphill if you want it.
"It's a smooth, rhythmic motion," Greene points out. "And with the different resistance bands, you could adjust it for a more severe angle, like skiing up a mountain pass."
That I didn't need just yet, although I did find the small uphills on the trail relatively easy to take.
"It's concentrated quality," Greene adds. "You don't go fast but you get
a great workout in a short time. I can't say enough about them. It gives me the aerobic workout I needed in a short time, 50 to 55 minutes per session. All my friends were complaining and I was getting fitter and fitter by the day last winter. Call me crazy but when we got snow to rock ski, I couldn't get the same quality of workout. It's been a great experience."
Greene also noticed a side benefit from CAT skiing.
"It's helped my skating tremendously. By not skating during the week, but still getting a great workout, my legs felt light and springy. It gave me the confidence to go into those marathons very strong and fit."
As Niggeman and I skied and chatted, he asked if I noticed how much smoother I was skiing. Without even thinking about it my body was making the CAT Ski adjustments and I was, indeed, skiing more smoothly.
"Each time you use them, your body will remember and you'll get smoother and smoother," Niggeman said. Even for a skier of Greene's caliber, "it took me a second time to start getting comfortable."
"One beauty is the fact that in roller skiing," adds Greene, "you sometimes have to slam the poles in hard, and they'll still skip. With these, the pole plant is the same, nice and smooth, not jarring. It's a smooth, rhythmic motion."
From the start, I was curious about the ski's durability. Greene lives a block from a golf course and heads right from his garage door, down the road, through a ditch and onto the grass of the golf course to ski. Although Niggeman bills them as all terrain, I wonder how they would handle and how beat up they'd get.
We skied on asphalt, gravel, grass, hard packed dirt and loose sand and they performed well on all surfaces. The asphalt was louder but the
smoothness of the surface didn't really seem to matter. Niggeman says they can even be used on hard packed snow and sheer ice by installing studs. As for durability, it depends on how you use them. Ski a lot on asphalt, and you might have to replace the grippers after 100 or so miles. Stay on trails and grass, and you'll replace roller ski wheels a lot more often.
Bottom line, I arrived a skeptic but left a true believer. Niggeman sent
me home with a pair to demo so now I'll get to see if the muscle memory is really there, if I see some great improvement in technique, not to mention fitness. Niggeman and Greene assure me I will. On my own a second time out, it did seem like my technique had improved at least, it didn't regress.
Finally, should you decide to become a CAT skier, be forewarned about one thing. Some people you meet on the trails will stare in jaw
dropping astonishment, others will laugh, chuckle or smile, and some will ask "just what the heck are those things?" You will not pass anyone unnoticed.
Skiing on trails in summer I think I'm going to like this.
DEMO A CAT SKI: CLINICS OFFERED
If this has you interested in seeing what a CAT Ski is all about, Niggeman has set up a number of Classic All Terrain Ski/Enduro Ski Clinics in May.
May 3: 10 a.m. 3 p.m. Classic All Terrain and Skate roller ski clinic, Rock Cut State Park, Rockford, IL; 800/380 8412 or Chuck at 815/398 3235; www.planetxc.com.
May 4: 9:30 a.m. 3.p.m. Classic All Terrain and Skate roller ski clinic, Bicycle Doctor, Milwaukee, WI; 800/380 8412 or Bicycle Doctor
262/965 4144; www.planetxc.com.
May 10: 10 a.m. 3 p.m. Classic All Terrain and Skate roller ski clinic, Nine Mile Ski Area, Wausau, WI; 800/380 8412; www.planetxc.com.
May 11: 10 a.m. 3 p.m. Classic All Terrain and Skate roller ski clinic, Wisconsin Rapids, WI; 800/380 8412 or www.planetxc.com.
May 24: 10 a.m. 3 p.m. Classic All Terrain and Skate roller ski clinic, Cumberland, WI; 800/380 8412; www.planetxc.com.
SISU Co./Planetxc.com, 120 Shorewood Terrace, Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494; 715/421 0605; sales@planetxc.com; www.planetxc.com.
| |
