Hand held poles have traditionally been used for balance and propulsion in snow sports. The use of poles for other sports, mainly hiking, has increased.

Another, less common use of poles is for ‘roller skiing’ on pavement, either with specialized wheeled skis or inline skates. This primarily attracts small cadres of cross-country skiers for dryland training.

Rollerski Poles work well for pushing on pavement.  DON’T STICK YOUR POLES IN CRACKS; it can break your tip off and rip your shoulder. I have learned to pull up quickly when a pole tip accidentally goes in a crack.

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  The tips usually need about a ’10mm’  diameter on the end of the pole where the tip goes.  This is usually found on a ski touring or racing pole which taper down, vs just a continuous width.  So you may need to shop around some on line or retail shops. Nordic Skater is one outlet which sells roller ski poles. 

Or if you are in or near Albuquerque I can sell you some premium poles as pictured here–delivery or pickup. 

As far as length. mine are nose-high on skates. much below shoulder level you lose the physics of a long push.

Two key things to double your speed: Get really long poles, and keep your tips sharp. I use a diamond blade to sharpen them every few times.

Otherwise you’ll just be muddling along while your poles slip and you throw your shoulders out of joint.

Basic stroke is what you would think; right foot push combined with a left pole push, then vice versa, alternating. Your goal should be a long pole push starting beside your foot and extending back 4-5 feet.

Lessons on a gentle Albuquerque bikepath: $50 for an hour and a half lesson, $75 for two people. Basic strokes, avoiding falls, optimizing your workout.

Workouts

With a dozen or so stroke combinations, you can exercise most muscle groups and your core. For example, progressing from the basic stroke, you can move to double pole, bending at the waist. which builds abs, pects, delts, triceps and biceps, and the long muscles of the abdomen and back.

Safety

Number one is don’t put your pole down in front of your skates-or do it once because then you’ll never do it again. As with all skating, knee elbow wrist protection and a helmet. Padded pants such as those used for hockey are good too. Cars are the major problem so stick to bikepaths or empty roads.

Fun

Besides the all-around aerobic workout, the sport can be a rush and a real benefit for alpine ski training. I plan my routes to start with an uphill or upwind leg, so the return trip includes some exhilirating carving.
The sport also shares attributes of cross-country skate skiing, the difference–because of such a low-friction environment–your every efficiency is rewarded threefold compared to being on snow.

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