Skating on Bones
Before people skied or biked, they skated on animal bones. And according to the January 2008 issue of Biological Journal of the Linnean Society of London, they probably did so first in Southern Finland, around 3000 BC.
The number of lakes within 100 square km here is the highest in the world. Cold weather and all those lakes make ideal conditions for pond hockey, but the Scandinavians weren't skating for play. They carved up the ice to get around quickly with less energy, the scientists hypothesized.
To test their theory, they had people tie on bones and skate around. Tests revealed people saved 10 percent more energy when skating instead of walking. Which would leave just enough juice for the Scandinavians to invent their second favorite on-ice pastime: Checking.
How interesting! And they probably used animal fat to wax their ski bones.
Posted by: Rhea | December 31, 2007 at 07:57 PM