Posted by andyb on August 14, 2007 at 13:37:49 from 194.80.183.1 user beardbiter.
Where is Peter H when we need him?
Will someone please start a thread about anything other than domestic architecture?
Has Prof N's boat sunk yet?
Hasn't Jock got some jolly drinking anecdotes of steaming along the Thames
Hasn't , no we won't go down that one...
Anyway, during the 'off-season' I came across a link to 'Nordic skates'which sound like a modern version of the strap on skates of the ploar explorers in WH. The following is pasted from http://www.nordicskater.com/ice/faq.html:
Nordic Skates are convenient. Easy to put on and take off. You can walk or drive to the ice in your own warm, comfortable boots that don't pinch your feet or freeze your toes.
The blades clip on and off in 10 seconds
Nordic Skates glide twice as far as conventional skates. That's because they glide
on top of the ice, instead of digging in. Your weight's more distributed on a longer blade,
and you have more stability. So you can skate on bumpier ice on Nordic Skates,
without tripping and stumbling the way you would on hockey skates,
or on figure skates with their dangerous "toe picks".
Hockey and figure blades leave deep gouges in the ice. Nordic Skate tracks are almost invisible! So you can skate a lot farther (or faster) without getting tired.
Nordic blades have long, curved tips just like skis, so they don't trip you up on rough ice the way hockey and figure skates do. You can even skate through up to 5 inches of snow on top of the ice"
Sounds just the job!
I also found the following links to real life polar explorers skating
http://www.icetrek.com/index.php?id=688
wrong pole but right idea!
http://www.nordicskater.com/cards/index.html