Nordic Ski

Clothing and Gear

Clothing for Comfort and Safety

Cross-country skiing is a highly aerobic sport that generates a lot of body heat, so no matter how cold it is, you will sweat! For your comfort and safety, you should have clothes that protect you from the elements, but are breathable, allow you to move easily and won't cause you to overheat.

Required Gear List

Skiers must bring all items on the gear list to each practice, unless it's listed as optional.

TCGIS Nordic Ski Team Gear List

Being that we live in Minnesota, you most likely already own much of what you need for the cross-country ski season. If you need to buy something, it doesn't necessarily have to be specific to cross-country skiing or purchased at an expensive sporting goods store. Plenty of TCGIS skiers have worn the track team's warmup pants layered with a pair or two of long underwear or have found great deals on long underwear and wool socks at Target and Costco. If you're looking for ski-specific gear like ski pants or bags, ski swaps sell used gear along with equipment.

Skier Responsibility: Skiers, packing and remembering to bring your equipment and gear is your responsibly, not your parents'.

A note about winter coats and snow pants: These are generally too bulky and warm for cross-country skiing and I generally discourage wearing them for practice. However, for younger skiers who are likely to get cold more easily or those who are just learning to ski and won't be moving as much, you may find thick winter coats and snow pants to be necessary. You know your body best!

How to Dress for Skiing

Dress in layers! Wearing several lightweight layers allows you to remove or add layers as needed and they provide more warmth than a single bulky layer. How many layers you need depends upon not only the air temperature, but also other factors like windchill, whether it's sunny or cloudy, and how hard you're going to ski. A good place to start is with a moisture-wicking base layer, an insulating middle layer and a wind-resistant (if possible) outer layer.

Base layer (moisture-wicking layer)
- - Long underwear tops and bottoms made of polypropylene or lightweight wool wick sweat off skin
  - Avoid cotton and cotton-blends!
Mid-layer (insulating/warmth layer)
- - Retains body heat to protect from the cold
  - Options: a second set of long underwear, long-sleeve (non-cotton) t-shirt or a lightweight fleece
Outer layer (shell layer)
- - Shields from wind and snow
  - Options: heavy fleece or jacket on top and joggers, sweatpants or leggings made of fleece or other non-cotton material
  - No snow pants or winter coats!

Cotton is Rotten

Avoid cotton or cotton-blends at all costs. Cotton clothing can leave you miserably cold on the ski trail. Clothing keeps you warm by trapping warm air near your skin. No matter how cold it is when you ski, you will perspire, and cotton absorbs moisture. When cotton gets wet, all of the air pockets in the fabric fill up with water and cease to insulate you. If the air is colder than your body temperature, you’ll feel cold because your cotton clothing is saturated and no longer providing any insulation. In addition, wet cotton does not wick water away from your skin. Wicking fabrics move moisture from the surface of your skin to the outer layers of your shirt leaving the part of the fabric touching your skin dry. When you layer your clothing, wicking fabrics move water away from your skin and up through your layers one after another, enabling the fabric near your skin to trap insulating air and retain your body’s warmth.

Tips for Staying Warm

Tips for preparing for the weather and staying warm in extreme temperatures (also known as a normal Minnesota winter).

Know the weather report:
- - Check a detailed weather report (do not use the weather app on your phone) so you show up to ski in appropriate clothing.
Pack a gear bag:
- - You should bring everything on the gear list to every practice or race. If you get cold, you can't add layers you didn't bring with you.
Wear multiple lightweight layers:
- - Several light layers provide more warmth than a single bulky layer. For example, wear a lightweight and a midweight base layer instead of a single heavyweight layer. This creates more “dead air” space between layers to retain warmth.
Eat a snack before practice:
- - Your body produces heat when it metabolizes food and that can raise your body temperature. In general, foods high in healthy fats, proteins and carbohydrates take longer to digest and make you feel warmer.
Stay hydrated:
- - It sounds counterintuitive that drinking water keeps you warmer when you're cold, especially if you don't think you're very thirsty, but water helps regulate your internal temperature (in addition to keeping your body functioning properly). Dehydration causes your core temperature to drop, which may lead to hypothermia. Stay hydrated by drinking fluids throughout the day.
For cold hands and feet:
- - Disposable hand and foot warmers are affordable and work well in most cases. Activate them head of time so you're putting warm hands and feet into warm gloves and boots.
  - Change into ski socks right before skiing so that they're clean and dry. If you wore the socks to school, you've sweat in them.
  - Store boots indoors instead of in the car so that you're not putting on cold boots. Put boots on indoors or in a warm car.
  - Wear a medium-weight sock instead of a lightweight sock. Circulation is what keeps your feet warm, so your socks shouldn't be too thick. If you choose too thick of a sock you risk not having enough volume in your boot and reducing circulation. Do not double up on socks.
  - Wear mittens instead of gloves.
  - Invest in quality gloves specific to cross-country skiing, such as "lobster claw" or "split mittens."
  - Use an "overboot," which zips over your regular ski boots.
Cover your neck and head:
- - Make sure your ears down to the earlobes are covered using either a big enough hat, a hat and headband worn together or a neck gaiter and hat.
  - Use a neck gaiter to cover your neck, the sides of your face and your ears by pulling it over the back of your head and keeping it in place with a hat.

More Clothing Resources

Videos

REI video (discussion of clothing starts at 4:38)
Crested Butte Nordic video

Suggestions

Wool Socks

In my opinion, you can never have enough wool socks. Lightweight or medium weight, and crew or mid-calf height are best for Nordic skiing.

Favorite brands:

Long Underwear

When buying long underwear, double-check the tag to make sure the set you're buying doesn't have cotton or isn't a cotton-blend.

Favorite brands:

Target
REI Co-op brand - available in lightweight and midweight tops and bottoms

Gloves and Mittens

Split mittens or “lobster claw” gloves are expensive, but I’ve found them to be a worthwhile investment.

Disposable hand and foot warmers

Hothands brand

Drink Belts

Nathan Hydration Waist Pack - Fits small waists/kids under 80 lbs.
Pioneer Midwest Drink Belt - insulated

Lightweight Gloves

Fleece running gloves work well for skiing in warmer temps.

Favorite brands:

HEAD
REI

Neck Gaiters

A lightweight Buff or neck gaiter is a must-have

Buff brand

Lightweight Hats

Skiers need hats with different warmth levels. A lightweight hat can generally be worn in warmer weather and a thicker hat with a fleece lining can be worn on really cold days or after a workout.

Headbands

Headbands protect your ears on days when it's too warm to wear a hat, or so cold that your hat doesn't provide enough ear protection on its own.

Favorite brands:

Even if it's bitter cold, an extra layer, a thicker hat and a neck gaiter are often all you need.

The end of the season with warmer temps and a stronger sun sometimes means skiing in t-shirts!

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