Tour skating

Tour skating is recreational long distance ice skating on natural ice. It is particularly popular in the Netherlands and the Nordic countries. While Nordic skating usually involves tours over open ice on lakes or sea, in the Netherlands skaters follow marked routes on frozen canals and lakes. Consequently there are differences in equipment and skating styles between these two regions.

Nordic skating is a popular activity in Sweden but is also becoming more popular in Finland and Norway, where it is called långfärdsskridskoåkning (Swedish), retkiluistelu (Finnish) and turskøyting (Norwegian). In Canada and the United States this style is often called Nordic skating. Other names used are trip skating and wild skating.

Dutch skating is called toerschaatsen and is regarded by some as a sport in its own right.

Nordic skating originated during the 1900s in Sweden. It usually involves choosing your own tours over the open ice, sometimes in groups normally with safety equipment. Nordic skates differ significantly from the Dutch tour skates.

Nordic tour skates are fitted with a blade approximately 50 cm long and are attached with bindings to specialized boots similar to walking boots or cross country skiing boots, often with a free heel. Since tour skating often involves walking between lakes or around sections not suitable for skating, the fact that the blades can be easily removed from the boots is convenient.

In addition the following safety equipment is often recommended:

Knee and elbow pads and a helmet are also commonly used.

Touring skate with cross country ski bindings and boots

Touring skates with bindings for hiking boots

Ice claws

In late autumn/early winter the small lakes freeze first, sometimes as early as October. Next the somewhat larger lakes freeze and become skateable. Light snow does not necessarily prevent skating and in some places tracks are ploughed to keep them open.

In January–February parts of the archipelago in the Baltic sea often freeze. This is the time when long skating tours can be undertaken. Tours of 60–80 km in one day are not uncommon - some skate over 150 km.

Sweden's largest tour skating association is "The Stockholm Ice Skate Sailing and Touring Club" (SSSK). Finland's largest tour skating association is Finland's Tour Skaters. Several associations in Sweden, Finland, Norway, Netherlands, and U.S.A. are members of Skridskonätet. Through Skridskonätet, the members of the various associations share information on where ice suitable for skating can be found. Skridskonätet also maintains a list of tour skating clubs in mainly Sweden, Finland and the Netherlands.

...
Wikipedia