This is a question that many skiers ask themselves. When should I re-wax my skis? There is no set rule here for most of us in TRAINING mode, because it all depends. Most of us do not have service technicians to work on our skis, before every ski.
Has there been new snow, frost snow, snow pellets?
Has the % of humidity changed?
Has the snow been dirty?
Is there leafs and grit in your wax pocket?
Has the snow been icy or wet? Time to re-wax both kick and glide if new snow has fallen.
Did you go for a long ski?
Are you using hydro carbon or flouro waxes? Add 3 layers of the right kick wax with hydro carbon OR, 2 layers of the right kick wax with flouro kick waxes as a very basic guideline.
Has the temperature dropped or increased dramatically? Skis might ice up if a very warm wax comes through a colder wax. Otherwise a lot of times you can put a colder wax over a harder wax.
Waxes are a lot more forgiving then they were 25 years ago.
How thick are the layers of wax? I have serviced skis that I was able to get a golf size wax ball, off of one pair of skis.
Are you getting the grip you need? After you have finished waxing you still need to go out and ski. Lower the temperature of the ski by skiing on it for perhaps a km or so.
Will the course you will be skiing on have big climbs, flat or rolling hills, as this also will determine your wax choice?
Try skiing a slight hill with no poles. Re-wax again if needed, and ONLY YOU can tell if the ski has the grip, you want. Stop and rub the snow off the tops of the skis after the skis are at snow temperature. You paid top dollar for light skis, so take the time to get the snow off the tops of the skis. If you get sore shins this will help.
This is also a good time to re-tighten your shoe laces too, as your foot should now have seated into the ski boot.
Have fun, go SKI!
Thanks Roy.
ReplyDeleteMy wonderment is related to glide wax. Any tips on frequency and what to look for?
Any time the snow has been wet, and then the snow cools, it is time to do your glide wax again. In the days when the sintered bases were white, it was very evident when the bases were dirty, because you could see the dirt inside the pores of the ski.
ReplyDeleteNow you may see whiteness on the base of your skis, and most of the time that is ski grunge. It is dirt, and old wax left from other skiers. You can brush it out with a horsehair brush, if you want.
Certainly I would suggest redoing your glide wax every 10 to 15 hours of training or so, but that depends on the abrasiveness, and changing variability of the snow conditions.
If racing, I would always clean the ski and re-wax.