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#1
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Bad glide on classic skis
I am new to waxable classics this year and used them for the first
time at the Canadian Ski Marathon and the Keskinada. I seem to be able to wax well for a decent kick (at least I was able to get up the hills fairly well) but at the Keski my glide was poor after the first 10K or so. Previously, on the long downhills I found myself jumping out of the tracks when I used my waxless -- at fast speeds I lost my nerve. But this year the same tracks were never scary -- and I doubt that it was because I had finally become a dare-devil downhill skier. Ha! I simply never got to wicked speeds on the downhills this year. Comparing myself to others, in the first 10K I was keeping up well or passing on the downhills. After that, I continued to lose ground, though still did well climbing. I used Toko Dibloc red in the glide zones, and a mix of VR40 over VR30 on top of a binder in the kick zone. Temps got warm -- upper 20s Fahrenheit. Any suggestions? Perhaps I put too many layers of kick wax on and the skis dragged? The kick wax was too cold/warm? Sometimes it seemed like snow was balling up under the ski. I brushed them off once. There were a few white spots on the glide zones after the race, but that didn't seem too unusual for a long race on newer skis. Or is it? As for fit, the skis are new as of December and were fitted by a reputable shop. Thanks for input! Mary |
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#2
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Bad glide on classic skis
mmm. tough one, sounds like you had the kick wax selection. In my
option, diabloc red isn't really fast, but it shouldn't have been slow. Have you gotten alot of K on the skis since you bought them or have you gotten them ground from a local shop? Depending on the machine, it can take from 0-300Km before the skis are fast. Did you get your kick zone marked? Usually shops will draw a line on the ski telling you where to wax. how are your corking skills? After you corked, was the kick wax smooth or did it have ridges? byrnes-out On Feb 28, 12:00 pm, wrote: I am new to waxable classics this year and used them for the first time at the Canadian Ski Marathon and the Keskinada. I seem to be able to wax well for a decent kick (at least I was able to get up the hills fairly well) but at the Keski my glide was poor after the first 10K or so. Previously, on the long downhills I found myself jumping out of the tracks when I used my waxless -- at fast speeds I lost my nerve. But this year the same tracks were never scary -- and I doubt that it was because I had finally become a dare-devil downhill skier. Ha! I simply never got to wicked speeds on the downhills this year. Comparing myself to others, in the first 10K I was keeping up well or passing on the downhills. After that, I continued to lose ground, though still did well climbing. I used Toko Dibloc red in the glide zones, and a mix of VR40 over VR30 on top of a binder in the kick zone. Temps got warm -- upper 20s Fahrenheit. Any suggestions? Perhaps I put too many layers of kick wax on and the skis dragged? The kick wax was too cold/warm? Sometimes it seemed like snow was balling up under the ski. I brushed them off once. There were a few white spots on the glide zones after the race, but that didn't seem too unusual for a long race on newer skis. Or is it? As for fit, the skis are new as of December and were fitted by a reputable shop. Thanks for input! Mary |
#3
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Bad glide on classic skis
First thing that comes to mind is durability of your glide wax.
Normally, kick wax wears and so glide improves over time. What did you do to prepare glide zones? rm wrote: I am new to waxable classics this year and used them for the first time at the Canadian Ski Marathon and the Keskinada. I seem to be able to wax well for a decent kick (at least I was able to get up the hills fairly well) but at the Keski my glide was poor after the first 10K or so. |
#4
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Bad glide on classic skis
On Feb 28, 10:21 am, wrote:
First thing that comes to mind is durability of your glide wax. Normally, kick wax wears and so glide improves over time. What did you do to prepare glide zones? rm wrote: I am new to waxable classics this year and used them for the first time at the Canadian Ski Marathon and the Keskinada. I seem to be able to wax well for a decent kick (at least I was able to get up the hills fairly well) but at the Keski my glide was poor after the first 10K or so. - Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - What would change over time on striding skis is either the glide wax wears off or the kick wax wears off, or snow conditions change. In my humble experience, glide wax wearing might slow the skis down a little, but it's not something that would make a huge difference. As rm said, usually wearing kick wax results in decreased kick and better glide. But, I recently experienced decreased glide during a 30 K classic training ski. I think it was caused by cold temp kick wax wearing off down to the binder. I had prepped by: removing all kick wax (with solvent) roughing kick zone with sand paper heating in a thin layer of binder and corking after cooled applying 4-5 layers of wax of the day, which was in the green-blue range (pretty cold). I know from previous experience that 4-5 layers of kick wax won't last me 30 K - I had intended to only go 15 or so when I started. The skis worked really well for 12-20 k: good grip and excellent glide compared to the people I was skiing with. I am absolutely positive that my glide decreased as I wore through the cold temp kick wax and got down to the binder. I was doing fine with my partners going up hill, but my downhill glide decreased dramatically after about 20 km. I could see this when I looked at the skis afterwards. |
#5
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Bad glide on classic skis
Have you gotten alot of K on the skis since you bought them or have you gotten them ground from a local shop? Depending on the machine, it can take from 0-300Km before the skis are fast. Not a lot of time on them, since we haven't had much snow. I've been ironing in warm wax, but perhaps they simply need more. Did you get your kick zone marked? Usually shops will draw a line on the ski telling you where to wax. Yes, I'm marked for hard waxes and kllister how are your corking skills? After you corked, was the kick wax smooth or did it have ridges? I think I am corking ok, but perhaps putting on more than is necessary, so it takes a bit to get the wax smooth. Thanks for the reply. Perhaps I just need to get more warm wax ironed in, Mary |
#6
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Bad glide on classic skis
On Feb 28, 1:21 pm, wrote:
First thing that comes to mind is durability of your glide wax. Normally, kick wax wears and so glide improves over time. What did you do to prepare glide zones? I did what I do for skate skis -- ironed in a few layers of yellow when I got them and then just a couple of layers of wax appropriate for the day. As I noted to the last reply, perhaps I simply need to iron in more warm wax. Thanks for your response! |
#7
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Bad glide on classic skis
I am absolutely positive that my glide decreased as I wore through the cold temp kick wax and got down to the binder. I was doing fine with my partners going up hill, but my downhill glide decreased dramatically after about 20 km. This sounds like my experience. I could go uphill fine -- often passing others. But going down I was slow as molasses. Thanks for the reply. |
#8
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Bad glide on classic skis
No, you need to harden the base with some colder waxes for better wear
and durability, even for skiing in warmer temps. After cleaning them with yellow, work down the temp scale a couple of levels, letting them cool between each (overnight is best, but an hour or two will do). Scrape and brush each layer and then start with the wax(es) for the day. I didn't catch what the Keski temp range was, but lots of time people will start with an appropriate LF moly and/or graphite wax (Swix or Star MAP black or MAP200), then add the waxes of the day on top. The moly and graphite are primarily about durability over distance. rm wrote: On Feb 28, 1:21 pm, wrote: First thing that comes to mind is durability of your glide wax. Normally, kick wax wears and so glide improves over time. What did you do to prepare glide zones? I did what I do for skate skis -- ironed in a few layers of yellow when I got them and then just a couple of layers of wax appropriate for the day. As I noted to the last reply, perhaps I simply need to iron in more warm wax. Thanks for your response! |
#10
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Bad glide on classic skis
On Wed, 28 Feb 2007 21:18:35 -0600, wrote:
you need to harden the base with some colder waxes for better wear and durability, even for skiing in warmer temps. After cleaning them with yellow, work down the temp scale a couple of levels, letting them cool between each (overnight is best, but an hour or two will do). I find it very hard to believe there is any difference between waiting the time it takes for the ski to cool down to room temperature (15 minutes to an hour) and overnight. -- JT **************************** Remove "remove" to reply Visit http://www.jt10000.com **************************** |
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