Glide tests for grip wax?

Anybody have testing results about gliding of kick wax?
It's obvious but i did not see it in i-net
How it could look? E.g. like:
***
Have a wooden bar about 5cm x 5cm x 30cm (2"-2"-12") with rounded edges
put on 4 sides different waxes
(e.g. for -5C) Swix -1-7, Rode -1-3, Toko -2-4, Start -1-3
Do some small_downhills for each side
***
Sounds easy. Anybody seen something like this?
thnx

I guess that pure glide tests for kickers might be neat to do, but Bert
(?) over at Eagle River Nordic (http://www.ernordic.com/) has been
testing both gliders and kickers for a long time. I believe he has a
good glide quotient column for kicker testing, maybe even for both
uphill and downhill (that's how he does glide). The website info only
gives wax picks, tho. The book shows all the ratings for the various
kinds of performance. Anyone here know the parameters tested for
kickers? --JP

Aren't Bert's tests optimal or theoretical relative to each ski? He
also has recommendations based on the limited products he tests under
the wax book link: http://www.ernordic.com/waxbook.htm. In practice, I
would think that choice of kick wax brand and specific choice would
depend entirely on the conditions and the skier's preferences for
relative amounts of kick and glide; i.e., there isn't a best except for
that day and skier, and often that changes during the course of a race
or ski.

Gene

wrote:

I guess that pure glide tests for kickers might be neat to do, but Bert
(?) over at Eagle River Nordic (http://www.ernordic.com/) has been
testing both gliders and kickers for a long time. I believe he has a
good glide quotient column for kicker testing, maybe even for both
uphill and downhill (that's how he does glide). The website info only
gives wax picks, tho. The book shows all the ratings for the various
kinds of performance. Anyone here know the parameters tested for
kickers? --JP

alexmal wrote:
Anybody have testing results about gliding of kick wax?
It's obvious but i did not see it in i-net
How it could look? E.g. like:
***
Have a wooden bar about 5cm x 5cm x 30cm (2"-2"-12") with rounded edges
put on 4 sides different waxes
(e.g. for -5C) Swix -1-7, Rode -1-3, Toko -2-4, Start -1-3
Do some small_downhills for each side
***
Sounds easy. Anybody seen something like this?
thnx
Interestingly, I wound up doing some emperical testing last night at Elm
Creek (Minnesota).
Conditions: 34-35F (Not real accurate - swix thermometer outside chalet)
Track - glazed in most spots, 50%manmade, 50% natural
Kick wax - klister.
I started with a fairly short kick zone w/Rex Silver klister - NO kick
at all. None, zip, nada. Did a lap anyway, thinking it might be better
the 2nd half in the woods. Nope. Still, turned an 18:34 without ever
getting out of Level 2 HR.
2nd lap - added a little longer layer of Swix Universal, just corked in
A little kick in the natural (woods). Time 19:15
3rd lap - added another layer of silver. Good kick, noticable drag if I
didn't rock back, much more striding, less DP. Time 20:10.

Now the correlation is pretty sketchy - I know I didn't push as hard the
3rd lap - I didn't have to. Also, kick/glide was markedly different
depending on the daytime shadow placement. Darker was faster, and areas
where people had been gliding and glazed the snow more were noticably
slicker. (Well, duh).

Also interesting that my wax pocket (scribed on the board by a pretty
decent tech) was actually further forward than scribed, based upon where
the wax was gone/remained.

Marsh Jones

If I'm comparing the relative glide of two different grip waxes to see which glides more free... ...wax a pair of skis (not skis from different pairs, but a matched pair) with the 2 grip waxes that you're comparing. Then on a skating lane with a gradual downhill, do an easy no-poles skate on the descent (on your classic skis), and try to get long glides on a single leg with each skate. Typically if one gripwax is more "free" than the other, the difference in glide will be noticeable. Skating easily downhill on classic skis will press the grip zone down into the snow, so it will really cause more than normal drag than you'd get while striding or while gliding on both legs evenly (half-weight).

The assumption here is that you've got 2 grip waxes with adequate grip, and the difference in glide isn't super-obvious. More often than not, one grip wax will have very superior grip, or very superior glide, and the choice isn't too hard.

As for "test results", I'd say that the glide properties of grip waxes are very very dependent on snow/weather conditions. One day your Rode might run free, the next day it might be your Toko/Swix/Rex/Start... ...the test results that matter are the results from your test on your skis on race day.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by alexmal

Anybody have testing results about gliding of kick wax?
It's obvious but i did not see it in i-net
How it could look? E.g. like:
***
Have a wooden bar about 5cm x 5cm x 30cm (2"-2"-12") with rounded edges
put on 4 sides different waxes
(e.g. for -5C) Swix -1-7, Rode -1-3, Toko -2-4, Start -1-3
Do some small_downhills for each side
***
Sounds easy. Anybody seen something like this?
thnx