Those fun & funky little Finnish thingies

City on the Seven Seas

XIV

Still thirst fresh draughts of wine compels
To cool the cutlets’ seething grease,
When the sonorous Breguet tells
Of the commencement of the piece.
A critic of the stage malicious,
A slave of actresses capricious,
Oneguine was a citizen
Of the domains of the side-scene.
To the theatre he repairs
Where each young critic ready stands,
Capers applauds with clap of hands,
With hisses Cleopatra scares,
Moina recalls for this alone
That all may hear his voice’s tone.

Among all the winter activities, one of my favorites was a sport which uses a device that I have never seen in Canada. I have been looking for this ever since coming here and never found it – until yesterday when I was researching for this blog!

As usual, the main problem when looking for something I knew in Russia, is how to translate it. In this case, our name for the unit was “Finn – kee”. That’s it. Roughly translated, that word would mean “little Finnish thingies”. So-called because they were invented in Finland and no one knew what the heck else to call them.

The device is like two skis linked together, with a raised seat mounted in the center, with a way for a rider to stand at the back, with a foot on one ski or the other, and the other foot free for pushing, and handles at the top of the seat back that the person standing can hold onto. The closest thing you could relate it to would be a dogsled, if you even have an idea what that looks like.

Anyway, the Finn-kee were the most wonderful contraptions to use. They glide through the snow with ease. They are a lot of fun and great exercise. One or two people can ride at a time. They go very fast down slopes so you need to avoid steep hills. They are steered by dragging a foot, like you might steer a toboggan. It works, but there are limitations!

Where I grew up, when the river was one of the main transportation routes in winter and there weren’t many people with cars, Finn-kee were a popular means of transportation in winter. You could carry stuff on them, you could bring a passenger – they were great.

And, finally, I found out what they are called in English! …Kick-sleds!

And, there is a company in Montreal that imports them from Finland. The company is called: Go Slide.

And this is what a kick-sled looks like:

Riding a kick-sled

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