Curious how many of you have successfully learnt to ski or skate in Finland as an adult? If you're an absolute rookie, what's easier to start with? Downhill skiing seems too scary to me, but I'd love to learn how to ice skate or go cross country skiing!

by FinnishAlien

7 comments

  1. I learned to cross country ski in Finland as an adult and have only ever been on the bunny hills for downhill skiing. I haven’t taken the time to go downhill skiing as my family enjoys cross country skiing more.

    At the start, it was a bit tricky to learn to ski with your foot locked into the front of the plate on the blade but overall I don’t think it’s that hard with the right coaching.

    I already knew how to ice skate (forwards) but learned how to ice skate somewhat backwards and how to do the sudden stop when going fast. I would say ice skating is also faster learned with decent skates and a good friend teaching you who has patience. You can probably find some decent skates from a secondhand shop if you don’t want to invest heavily.

  2. Downhill skiing is not really possible unless you have a good economical capital to go to Lup north and play on the little hills that they have.

  3. I’ve been downhill skiing since before I could read, but Finland has given me the opportunity to skate and cross country ski and both have been good for getting me outside and active while I’ve been in the country. It’s tempting to just stay inside but this gives me something nice to do that isn’t a spin on being productive

  4. I unsuccessfully attempted cross country skiing.

    Downhill skiing is on my list to try but I don’t hold out hope 😅

    You have lots of places to rent gear and try in Finland so nothing stopping you from finding a lesson or giving it a go.

  5. Ice skating is a bit easier to learn but the inevitable falls during learning are more painful. Wear a helmet if there’s something valuable inside your head. But classic cross-country skiing is not that hard either, just find a flat short loop to practice on. You can definitely learn downhill skiing and skate-style cross country skiing too but they are a bit harder.

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