Every fall it hits me. That urge. Probably inspired by the colorful foliage. I just have to pull on a blaze orange jacket and tromp around the woods or a day-glo vest and roll around the roads.

When I retired from ski racing, I vowed to put away my roller skis for good. There are too many other fun activities like mountain biking, trail running or road riding to spend my time on roller skis. But somehow, every fall, I find myself pulling them out. It’s the only way I can scratch the itch to ski when the season is so close. The sound of carbide tips pounding into cold asphalt is like a metronome marching toward winter. If you haven’t pulled out your roller skis in a while, it’s never too late in the season.

With the time change on November 6, it’s going to get darker even earlier, making that post-work roll even more challenging. Fortunately, headlamps are getting stronger and lighter, so it’s easy to roller ski after dark. Also, bike paths and roller ski trails make it possible to cruise at dusk without the added risk of cars. Some small roads are also closed to cars in the fall. My favorite places to roller ski after dark are places like Fish Hatchery Road in Hayward or Wirth Park’s Butler Garden Road, which closes to cars in the fall. Both roads have small hills with long run outs so you can do workouts like specific strength to help build upper body strength heading into the winter. Parking lots are also a great place to play on skis or set up an obstacle course under the floodlights. All of these options are great alternatives to the long distances at low heart rates that we often do to put in training hours on roller skis. In the late fall when it gets dark, try leaving those longer workouts for running or biking and spend a little more time getting comfortable on roller skis with agility and strength as we head into winter. Just remember your headlamp and day-glo vest.

And those colors! Last week, I traveled to Planica, Slovenia to meet up with our trip leaders and put the finishing touches on the Lumi trip to the 2023 Nordic World Championships. I was really excited to bring my skis (yes, my snow skis) and go skiing in the Planica Ski Tunnel. But alas, the weather was waay too nice to go inside and ski around a parking garage. That’s a perfect activity for the days when the clouds get stuck in the valley and dump rain for days. But when a high pressure system brings blue skies, heading out for a trail run or hike is my favorite option, even with a brand new pair of skis scraped and ready to go in the car. It was fun to see the snowfarming operations in full swing in Planica, moving snow from the ski tunnel and spreading it on the ski jump landing hill for morning training.

Winter is almost here. No matter how you prepare in the fall, rest assured, you’ll be on snow soon. Tick, tick, tick…

If you want to experience skiing in Slovenia and Italy for yourself this winter, we still have a couple of spots available on the Lumi Experiences 2023 Nordic World Champs trip, benefitting the National Nordic Foundation. Reach out by October 31 to secure your spot and save $200: info@lumiexperiences.com

See you on the road… or trail,

Garrott
Founder & Olympian