Kite-Ski Training Course Outline
There are 3 stages to the Polar Training:
• 6 days of inside & outside workshops
• 4 day mini expedition
• 3 day final expedition
One day before the course starts, you will need to travel from home to Ottawa and overnight in Ottawa .
Day 0
Flights depart in the morning from Ottawa on First Air or Canadian North. (Before booking your flight, check with NorthWinds for a special discount fare.) NorthWinds staff will meet you at the airport and transfer you to our home base.
• Lunch
• Welcome to Polar Training
• Introduce yourself and your polar dreams
• Introduction to NorthWinds, course review program, expectations
Day 1 – 6
The nature of the Winds will dictate this Kite-Ski Polar Training. The Workshops are listed as No Wind Days and Wind Days
Windy Days Kite Workshops:
Introduction to kites, ground school
• Safety
• Setting up kites
• Launching
• Maneuvering kite within the Wind Window
• Assisting another kiter
• Landing
• Untangling lines
• Wrapping up and putting kite away
Basic kiting with skis
• Getting started
• Turns
• Kiting across the wind
• Kiting down-wind
• Kiting up-wind
Continued Kite-skiing
• Practice efficiency in getting your kite launched
• Kiting with a destination, around the islands and back
• Learning how to increase and decrease your speed
• Try both Bar and Handle kites
• Try different size kites
Expedition Kiting
• Pulling Pulks
• Techniques to help group travel together, kite sizes, length of lines, changing weight in pulks
• Navigation while under way
No Wind Days Inside Workshops:
Introduction to Kite Skiing
• Kite design for expediton
• Handles vs. Bars
• Understanding Winds
• Learning Videos
Polar Clothing
• Traditional
• Moisture Management
• Vapor Barrier System (VBL)
• “The System”, layers
• Material, what is does or does not do
• Polar Modifications & Expedition repairs
Cold Weather Injuries
• Hypothermia
• Frostbite
• Other common trail injuries: chill blains, cuts, burns, blisters
• How the dominos line up for a disaster
• First Aid kits
Navigation
• Review of basic map reading
• Compass: magnetic variation, taking a bearing
• Navigation with watch and sun
• GPS
Introduction to Polar skis options:
• Back country skis, skins, bindings, boots & ski poles
• Downhill ski systems for kiting
Sleeping Warm
• Sleeping systems
• Down vs Fiberfill
• VBL's
• Sleeping pads
• Tricks to sleeping warm
Stoves, how to blow-up your tent
• Trouble shooting
• Rebuilding your stove
Public Relations
• Selling your soul to the media
• Getting sponsorship, fund raising
• Responsibility to sponsors
Photography in the cold
• Photography 101
• Keeping cameras operating in the cold
Travel Styles
• Travel by time vs. miles
• Breaks, how long how many
• Leading, route finding
• Equal weight of pulks?
Polar Bears
• Travel in Polar Bear Country
• Polar Bear protection options
Communications:
• Base support, roles and responsibilities
• Daily sched. calls
• Iridium phones
• Argos
• Personal Locator Beacon (PLB)
• Website updates
• Daily logs
• Solar recharging
• Working with electronics in the cold
Nutrition & Expedition Menus
• Protein complementing
• Calories to Weight
• Menu planning, food selection, packing
• Pack out Mini & Final Expedition food
No Wind Day Outside Workshops:
Introduction to classic back-country skiing on Frobisher Bay
• Ski efficiency on the flat, up hill and down hill
Set up tents
• Look at tent modifications needed for polar travel
• Learn about: dead-men, ice screws, snow bollards
Workshop Introduction to Polar travel with dog teams (Optional)
• The art of driving dogs: harnessing, running fan hitch, commands, steering & breaking the sled, maneuvering through pressure ice, care & feeding
• Norwegian method of driving dogs on skis
Ski with pulks
• Look at pulk designs & harnesses options
• Pulling techniques through pressure ice and sastrugi
MINI EXPEDITION
Day 7 – 10
Depart on Mini Expedition
On the 4 day expedition you will put the skills learned into an expedition format. On windless day we will ski pulling pulks with all our camping gear, food and kites. When the winds are good for kiting we launch the kites. Emphasis will be on kiting together, navigation while kiting and choosing the right kite for the winds. Length of days and distance traveled will depend on the skill of the group.
FINAL EXPEDITION
Day 11 - 13
On the Final Expedition, you travel back to Iqaluit on your own. Expedition members will be responsible for:
• Safety of your self and other group members
• Traveling as a group
• Navigation
• Setting up camp and Cooking
• Daily communication with Base
Day 13 last day of course
• Return to Iqaluit
• Clean, dry, repair and put away gear
• Course Wrap-up & Debrief
• Evaluation forms
• Drop off at your Hotel or B & B
• Or catch the First Air evening flight to Ottawa