How fast is snowshoeing

Add the element of soft snow, which is kind to your joints but cuts your speed, and your pace will be slower. In addition, breaking trail is slower and requires for more energy that snowshoeing on a packed route. Unless you are a runner, a 6 or 7 mile tour could easily take the better part of a day.

When you are ready for your first snowshoe outing, plan to go with at least one other person or in a group. Snowshoeing is an individual yet a very sociable activity, not just for companionship, but also for safety. One day you may have a fast packed trail where you might be able to snowshoe at a speed of four miles an hour walking fast or eight miles an hour or faster if you are running.

The next day, after a inch powdery snowfall, your speed might be cut to under one mile in an hour on the same route while expending great effort to break trail. Snow conditions can also change dramatically during the day. After all, the sport provides a great cold-weather endurance workout in the same mountainous settings enjoyed by other winter sports enthusiasts. In the months after my initial conversation with Goins, I have become a faster and more efficient snowshoer.

Lambert has represented the United States at the World Championships three times, and in she won a bronze medal on the Dachstein Glacier in Austria. When I encountered Lambert for the first time at the EFXC lodge, she was enveloped in the usual hustle and bustle of people and dogs that frequent such places, but she took the time to meet everyone who had made the trek to Red River. Then she stuffed us full of homemade breakfast burritos and white-chocolate cranberry cookies and launched into Snowshoeing Thankfully Lambert agreed to let me share her words of wisdom with Outside readers.

Read on for more about what to expect, how to choose the right shoes, what to wear, and how to get better, faster. Anybody who can walk can snowshoe, and anyone who can run can race in snowshoes. The enjoyment factor, however, skyrockets if you already have a high aerobic capacity.

Even the same course can vary from year to year. If possible, find an open, flat area for your first snowshoe experience golf courses and athletic fields are always good. Take a slow warm-up lap, and concentrate on maintaining normal running form and breathing. In addition to snow, Bucek notes that other factors, such as snowshoe weight and cold, contribute to the difficulty of snowshoe running. Snowshoes are pretty simple contraptions, but you should know a few terms before heading over to your local sporting goods store or attempting to purchase a pair online.

Binding: The device that attaches your shoe to the snowshoe. Bindings are usually rubber, fabric, or velcro straps, and should be tight for maximum energy transfer. Crampons: Also referred to as cleats, these are the jagged traction devices found under the toe, ball of the foot, or heel, and are designed to grip steep or slippery slopes. Decking: The flat surface of the snowshoe that attaches to the frame and provides floatation.

Decking allows you to walk on top of the snow by spreading your weight across a greater surface area. Usually made from a plastic or synthetic material, although the original snowshoes used rawhide lacing. Direct Mount: These step-in bindings allow you to attach your running shoe directly to the snowshoe. Usually this is accomplished by bolting the sole of the running shoe to the toe bed or by inserting special rods into the sole of the running shoe, which allows the shoe to easily clip in and out of the snowshoe.

Many racers opt for direct mount bindings to reduce weight. Tail : The back of the snowshoe behind your heel. A V-tail is a frame design where the tail thins into a V shape and helps with tracking.

Unlike mountaineering or backcountry snowshoes, which come in various sizes that correspond to your weight and snow conditions, all running snowshoes are fairly similar. If possible, try on snowshoes before making a purchase.

Snowshoeing strengthens muscles in the legs and hips. From golf courses to city and county parks, from national forests to your own backyard, practically anywhere with snow on the ground is a good place to snowshoe. We just saved you a ton of money. Now go buy some Redfeather Snowshoes.

Depending upon what kind of snowshoeing you might like to do, how much gear you will be carrying, and how tall you are, there is a Redfeather Snowshoe made just for you.