A lassoed elk struggles after Serik demonstrates the age-old technique of capturing game in deep snow.
Posted on 12/17/2013 11:20:30 AM PST by Theoria
An ancient culture in the Chinese Altay Mountains offers a glimpse of how skiing evolved.
The hunting party slowly glides into the Altay Mountains in search of elk. It is dead calm, minus 38°F. Just as their ancestors have for millennia, the five men traverse deep, feathery snow buoyed on handmade skis hewed from spruce, with strips of horsehide attached to the bottoms. In lieu of poles each man carries a single wooden staff. Since boyhood, they have learned to master their deceptively crude equipment with exquisite efficiency and grace—the grain of the horsehair providing traction to move uphill and a slick surface for rapid descents, the staff aiding balance. I follow on state-of-the-art telemark skis, using modern poles, but at times still struggle to match their pace. Their lungs and legs seem impervious to the thin alpine air as they stride up even the steepest inclines, exhaling barely discernible wisps of steam that quickly evaporate in the frigid air. Falling into a satisfying rhythm, we slice through the drifts along a copse of birch, then veer left into the shadows of a spruce forest. They don’t speak, the muffled swish of their furry skis as quiet as snowfall.
Each man has a knife tucked into his belt, a lariat of horse mane looped over his shoulders, and is pulling a goatskin sled with provisions: a horsehair blanket, a surplus Chinese army overcoat, and fried bread. The rest of the gear—two axes, a billycan, five chipped china bowls, a tin kettle, and a slab of horseflesh—is divided evenly. They don’t know how long we will be out. It is common to track elk for several days deep into the mountains.
(Excerpt) Read more at ngm.nationalgeographic.com ...
cool...
Those peeps are obviously in on the Fat Ski technology benefits in the deep pow.
My bad... I thought this was a story about the obams skiing on our dime.
The idea of actually lassoing an elk and being able to hold onto it is so incredible to me that at first I didn’t believe this was a photo—I thought it was a painting. Amazed.
Which came first? Skis or snowshoes.
Same meaning back in the day. See Snowshoe Thompson.
- Man stops a column of tanks in Tianamen Square by standing in their way.
- Miners survive a mine collapse by eating rocks, drinking their own urine and diggging out with their bare hands.
- Men in the Altay mountains hunt elk by roping them in -38 degree temperatures and deep snow.
There are some real bad-ass Chinese
There's possible performance difference based on poor flat-lander cardio-vascular training.
I think they smushed the tank guy.
Fascinating article, thank you.
Not that day.
Very interesting and well-written.
But ropes made from horses’ manes? Is that for real?
Why not? Violin bows are made of horses’ tails. It’s very strong, especially when many strands are bundled.
Thanks for the fascinating post.
Oh, I am not doubting that it is strong enough. But how many horses would have to contribute to make such a rope? Also, I am assuming that the rope I am seeing in the photo is it, and it just looks too perfect to have been homemade. But what do I know?
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