Nowhere in the world was the sport of biathlon, a combination of cross-country skiing and rifle marksmanship, taken more seriously than in the Soviet Union, and no other nation garnered greater success at international venues. From the introduction of modern biathlon in 1958 to the USSR's demise in 1991, athletes representing the Soviet Union won almost half of all possible medals awarded in world championship and Olympic competition. Yet more than sheer technical skill created Soviet superiority in biathlon. The sport embodied the Soviet Union's culture, educational system and historical experience and provided the perfect ideological platform to promote the state's socialist viewpoint and military might, imbuing the sport with a Cold War sensibility that transcended the government's primary quest for post-war success at the Olympics. William D. Frank's book is the first comprehensive analysis of how the Soviet government interpreted the sport of skiing as a cultural, ideological, political and social tool throughout the course of seven decades. In the beginning, the Soviet Union owned biathlon, and so the stories of both the state and the event are inseparable. Through the author's unique perspective on biathlon as a former nationally-ranked competitor and current professor of Soviet history, Everyone to Skis! will appeal to students and scholars of Russian and Soviet history as well as to general readers with an interest in skiing and the development of twentieth-century sport.

K. B. E. E. Eimeleus was ahead of his time with his advocacy of ski training in the Russian armed forces. Employing terminology never before used in Russian to describe movements with which few were familiar, Skis in the Art of War gives a breakdown of the latest techniques at the time from Scandinavia and Finland. Eimeleus's work is an early and brilliant example of knowledge transfer from Scandinavia to Russia within the context of sport. Nearly three decades after he published his book, the Finnish army, employing many of the ideas first proposed by Eimeleus, used mobile ski troops to hold the Soviet Union at bay during the Winter War of 1939–40, and in response, the Soviet government organized a massive ski mobilization effort prior to the German invasion in 1941. The Soviet counteroffensive against Nazi Germany during the winter of 1941–42 owed much of its success to the Red Army ski battalions that had formed as a result of the ski mobilization. In this lucid translation that includes most of the original illustrations, scholar and former biathlon competitor William D. Frank collaborates with E. John B. Allen, known world-wide for his work on ski history.

Almost as good as time on the hill, Breakthrough on the New Skis approaches expert-level skiing with a step-by-step process that anyone can master. Learn how to carve, link turns, and relax. The author's innovative instruction helps skiers gain both skill and self-confidence.

Achieve Your Skiing Potential! All it takes to be an expert skier are the correct movements and the right equipment. Join Harald Harb as he helps you learn these movements and to pick the equipment that's right for you. Anyone Can Be an Expert Skier 1features Harald Harb's truly innovative Primary Movements Teaching System (PMTS) that is a complete teaching system suitable for beginners and experts. Whatever your current ability level, you'll learn expert technique, and you'll learn to recognize and avoid the dead-end movements that keep you stalled at the intermediate level. With over 200 photos, tear-out "Pocket Instructor" cards you can take on the mountain, a bonus DVD,Anyone Can Be an Expert Skier 1is the most effective ski instruction system available no matter your skill level.

Climb every mountain—and ski and snowboard the world’s most amazing slopes, from Aspen to Zermatt. Includes color photos. Based on interviews with leading experts, Fifty Places to Ski and Snowboard Before You Die chronicles the rich history of these sports and the people who’ve mastered them, including Tommy Moe, Jonny Moseley, Billy Kidd, and Greg Harms, and takes you to the fabulous mountains you’ve visited—or have always wanted to visit. Explore the world’s most inspiring skiing and snowboarding destinations: Chugach Mountains (Alaska) * Aspen, Crested Butte, and Steamboat Springs (Colorado) * Tuckerman Ravine (New Hampshire) * Rusutsu (Japan) * Chamonix (France) * Portillo (Chile) * Whistler Blackcomb (British Columbia) * Mammoth Mountain and Squaw Valley (California) * Kashmir (India) * Taos (New Mexico) Jay Peak, Mad River Glen, Stowe (Vermont) * Jackson Hole (Wyoming) * and more! Chris Santella brings to life the gorgeous scenery, the glamorous ambience, and the always-thrilling experience of visiting mountains from the Alps to the Rockies, whether it’s après-ski in Cortina or helicopter rides into virgin Alaskan powder. If you’re jetting off on your next getaway or just armchair-traveling this season, this guide will inspire beginners and black-diamond experts alike.

This revised and updated first edition of Two Skis and a Rifle introduces the reader to biathlon, the Winter Olympic endeavor that simultaneously combines precision rifle marksmanship under the duress of cross-country (Nordic) skiing. With roots in Norwegian and global military history, the sport has blossomed from high latitude training exercises into a modern annual World Cup season. Novice and dedicated fans alike will discover technical details on and athlete accounts of travelling to and navigating around typical venues, physical requirements of training and competing, team and athlete race preparation, rifle construction and marksmanship, ski fabrication and technique, and the diversity of competitions and rules governing the sport, not least of which are efforts to control doping. There is a decidedly American slant to the writing which the author humbly hopes will generate wider interest and understanding of biathlon in the United States. In fact, the United States recently has had great success on the World Cup circuit, placing athletes in the medals at the yearly World Championships, the single most important event in the sport other than the Winter Olympic Games. There is no better time than now to become acquainted with this most popular European spectacle.

Offers ideas and concepts that provide improvements for skiers of all levels of ability.