My father began taking me cross-country skiing with him when I was quite young, probably about eight years old. I didn't much care for it. I thought it was boring and cold and really hard work. Hey, I was eight years old, give me a break. Last winter, I went cross-country skiing again for the first time in years, and it was a totally different experience. I enjoyed the fresh air, the peace and quiet and the wonderful vistas. However, there was one thing that had not changed. If, while cross-country skiing, you fall over into the deep snow that is usually to the side of the beaten trail, you have a hard time getting back up again. In such a situation, there just isn't anything to push against, because your arms just sink into the snow up to your armpits. Fortunately, I remembered a trick my father had taught me: if you cross your ski poles and push against those instead of the snow, your weight is distributed over the snow and you can lever yourself back up. All hail the cross-country ski pole, savior of the fallen.

In all seriousness, and aside from being used as aids for the fallen, ski poles play a very important part in the activity of cross-country skiing. While the novice may think that downhill ski poles can be used for cross-country purposes, this is in fact far from the case. Downhill ski poles have rather small baskets, which are the discs around the ends of the poles. Cross-country poles, on the other hand, have baskets that are several inches in diameter. The size of the baskets prevents cross-country poles from sinking very far into unpacked snow. Such snow, as previously explained, is a common challenge on cross-country trails, making the importance of actual cross-country skis all the more important.

The act of cross-country skiing is like a combination of skating and running, except that you're holding and using poles. In essence, one ski is slid along the ground and when it reaches its apex, the pole in the opposite hand is planted into the ground. That pole is then used to maintain position and balance while the next ski is slid along, and so on. Hence, poles that do not sink into the snow beyond their baskets are instrumental in allowing the cross-country skier to create and maintain good momentum.

An individual will use longer poles for cross-country skiing than for downhill. As a general rule, cross-country ski poles should come about to a skier's armpit. The additional length of these poles helps the skier in gaining distance with each sliding step. All ski poles, both downhill and cross-country, have straps on the ends of their grips. These may seem rather perfunctory, but they can actually be quite helpful while cross-country skiing. When a pole is planted and then pushed against to gain forward momentum, a strap around the wrist helps the skier maintain his or her trip on the pole with less effort.

Cross-country skiing is an exhilarating and addicting pastime and a wonderful way to get exercise outdoors. Much to my father's joy, I fully plan to teach my children how to participate in this winter hobby.