Any luck using kick wax at freezing with damp freas snow?

One of my club-mates, Frank Feist, sent along his report about how he
survived (2nd place for M2) at Bolton:

I think there are two very important rules to waxing in tricky
conditions:

1. Ski for 10 min before you judge your wax, no matter how bad it seems
at first
I first put two layers of Swix XF40 (0 to -1 C, fluorinated).
Initially there was absolutely no kick - especially right outside the
building where everyone was frantically testing and the track had iced
over as a result. After a few minutes and skiing away from the start,
kick started to develop and I was quite satisfied. I've never quite
worked out the physics behind this phenomenon but it is always the same
in these conditions. (ie. kick developing after a few minutes,
regardless of track conditions)

2. Set the right expectations
Even if you wax perfectly, skis will ice and slip a certain % of the
race. Even when the kick is good, it will never be as good as when it
is colder or warmer. Therefore it is important to ski classic and wax
skis in training in those conditions to develop the proper benchmark
feeling and not get discouraged from bad kick or occasional icing.

I ended up putting on a very thin layer of Swix XF50 (0 to +1C,
fluorinated) on top of the two layers of XF40, and covered that with
another layer of XF40. Skis were as good as conditions allowed for
about 90% of the course, with 5% slippery, and 5% icing, so I was quite
happy with that. It was a tough race - and a good way to end the
season in mid-winter conditions.


--- Zachary Caldwell wrote:
Hi Doug - I saw you skiing around up at Bolton, though I wouldn't
have known
it was you unless Mike Wynn had pointed you out. Sorry the wax didn't
work
out well for you.

I think one of the errors that we all make in these very difficult
conditions is that we tend to head straight for the newest, greatest,
fanciest wax. Yesterday Swix special red was as close to perfection
as
anything out there. The other error we all make on a day like
yesterday is
going for perfect kick. The best bet is to avoid icing and be tough.



=====
Rob Bradlee
Java, C++, Perl, XML, OOAD, Linux, and Unix Training

Hairies. The best thing is to have an abrader. I've got a couple of really
old ones made by sandvik, but I haven't found a source for one recently.
Swix might have sold one at one point. Might still - I don't know. I've got
their catalogue in my truck, I'll have to look.

The abrader is just a piece of metal with really short, sharp little spikes
on it, kind of spread out. as if they'd been dusted on with a salt shaker.
It works nicely.

Most of the time I can't figure out where I stashed the things after last
time, so I end up using 50 grit sandpaper. You really have to go to town on
the base material. It's more than just sand from tip to tail a few times. I
usually end up going in little circles, about the size of a quarter. It kind
of hard to sand up the hairs without sanding them right off - but you get
the hang of it.

For the record, I'd like to point out that I stopped to stock up on 50 grit
sandpaper on the way up to Bolton (because I can't remember where I stashed
the abraders after last time) because the forecast sounding potentially
hairy. We ALMOST used them.

To toughen the hairies up and make them a bit more aggressive a good trick
is to burn them with a propane torch. This scortches the little hairs back
until they're kind of stubby and short and stiff. Perhaps a little more
prone to icing, but longer lasting and more aggressive.

Finally, try some liquid fluorocarbon to keep them free. People always used
to use maxiglide, and I've seen people carry a spray can of silicone too.
But most recently I've just been dosing them with a shot of Helx, or Star
F100L or Swix FC200L. It definitely helps to avoid icing. You can buff the
stuff in lightly, but be careful not to cork the hairies flat!

And yes, metal scrape to restore. It can be a job to take them all the way
out, but it's probably not totally necessary. Take the grabby bits off, and
you've got a nicely abraded kick zone. Waxing and unwaxing a few times will
mellow the hairies right out.

Zach


"Jeff Potter" wrote in message
...
Zach, you just keep paying us for those ads, doncha? : ) Well, I for one
appreciate it! The wax-fever shines thru and it's great that you share it.

Nowax skis sound like they might be just dandy for citizen racers in these
tricky conditions. Aren't they getting lots better lately? Nowaxes won the
last
goofy-condition classic race I did. Seems like they might be smart
back-ups.

About hairies: are they easy to do and to restore from? I'm guessing you
just
dry kickzone with cleaner then sand tip to tail a few times? Then metal
scrape
to restore? The icing sounds annoying. Real nowaxes don't do that, right?

Nice to read about Rossi doing good work with the nowaxes.

--

Jeff Potter
****
*Out Your Backdoor * http://www.outyourbackdoor.com
publisher of do-it-yourself culture ... bikes, skis, boats & more! ...
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Zach,

Thanks for more excellent information. I've been on the right track.
I've been using 80 grit paper rather than 50 grit, but getting plenty
of grip so I think that's Ok. I've got some liquid Toko wax that I'll
try out to reduce icing.

Cheers,
Brian


In article , Zachary Caldwell wrote:
Lots of great information on making hairies