I can't tell a Telemark from a Telletubby!

My ignorance in the field of winter sports is fairly enormous, so thank goodness I have Alastair in Ballymena to let me know that there is no such thing as long-distance skis( as mentioned in my Going Native posting). Here's what he says:

I have owned an extensive collection of skis over the years: Alpine skis, randonnée skis, Telemark skis, backcountry skis and cross-country skis among
them. Sometimes they are known by different names, for example
randonnée is also known as Alpine touring and Telemark is often called
freeheel skiing or even cross-country downhill but as yet I have never
come across long distance (or even long-distance) skis.

So now you know! I should of course referred to Kai's cross-country skis!

Incidentally, Alastair like me is a bit of a collector. Along with about 200 pairs of skis he has about 500 different guitars. His idea of bliss is to be zooming down a ski slope on his Telemarks, knocking out a few high-speed jazz riffs on his Telecaster.

Do feel free to comment on any factual innacuracies or anything else you find in my blog! That should keep you busy!