Tag: WebSkis

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a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/fischer-xelerator1-792442.JPG”img style=”float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/fischer-xelerator1-792438.JPG” alt=”” border=”0″ //abr /br /How often is “new and improved” just marketing hype? I love it when people are thinking and actually improving a product. That is my sense of the revised Rottefella Xelerator NIS binding. It was tested and approved all winter on the World Cup and at the Olympic Winter Games. You will see the binding branded with Rottefella, Madshus, Fischer etc, but it is the same binding with a different label.br /br /First, the mechanism that holds the boot to the ski is simplified, stronger and lighter. It is a lever/hook system that contains no moving parts, cams or springs. Two hooks engage the bar on the sole of the boot at the edges of that bar. this provides a more secure grip than the old NNN system. It also “punches through” any snow that might build up on the boot sole. The hooks are the back end of a front throw lever that is simply pushed down on a slot on the binding plate. Easy to close and open.br /br /Second, the new binding fits all your old boots with NNN soles. No need to change out the boots that fit the R3 or R4 NIS bindings. It also fits on the same NIS plates that have been on the skis for a couple seasons now. The NIS plate is unchanged and the new Xelerator bindings slide right on and off those plates. You retain the same binding movement flexibility as always and can swap the bindings between those favorite skis.br /br /Third, these bindings are light. Lighter than the NNN R4, or R3 or any SNS binding. Couple these with a new Fischer Hole ski or the new Madshus Nanosonic skis and you can be flying light.br /br /I know that all sounds like a sales pitch, but those are the facts. Pretty cool bindings that work.br /br /Have a good spring. Stop in Bend, OR if you can and enjoy the fantastic spring skiing.br /br /Bertbr /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/dani+bert-above-Todd-LK-773078.JPG”img style=”float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/dani+bert-above-Todd-LK-772378.JPG” alt=”” border=”0″ //adiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-4484945836693310241?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

I was skiing this morning at 7. My back was a little stiff from the 2.5 hours of trail riding on my cross bike on Sunday and the trail run I did last night. But the snow was perfect and the temperature about 30 with a light snow falling. At first I struggled to find balance and rhythm with the stiff back and the early hour, but as I warmed up things began to come together. This not being a race, and with nobody else around (I had the entire Mt Bachelor Nordic trail system to myself) I noticed and enjoyed the woods, the trail’s turns and twists, ups and downs. I was able to tune into the terrain and sense adaptations I needed to make to ski efficiently. I have heard people talk about how difficult this area, and other areas are to ski because they don‘t have any “rhythm”. But I believe that they have a rhythm and as a user of the trail I have an opportunity to find it and apply the technique needed for that time and place. br /br /There are certainly lots of ups and downs at Mt Bachelor, not a lot of flat to rolling terrain. So that means that the skier has to switch gears, just like driving a stick shift on a mountain road. Shifting smoothly and with the right timing lets the car and driver adapt to the layout of the road. I think of V1 as first gear, V2 as second gear, V2-Alternate as third gear, Open field skate as high gear. The tuck is overdrive. So, as I come down a long hill and approach the flat and transition at the bottom I sense the speed of the skis slowing down and it is time to shift to V2-Alternate (third gear). This allows me to keep the momentum generated by gravity and keep the speed and glide going. When I feel the speed again slow a bit as the terrain starts up the next hill I shift to V2, again seeking to capture the forward momentum from the flat. Now the uphill slope increases and it is time to shift again to V1 before I have bogged down trying to V2 up the steeper slope. I can do either a long strong V1 or if the slope increases and is not too long, pick it up with a quicker hop-step V1. Now as the crest of the hill approaches and I feel the speed picking up, it is a shift to the long-strong V1 and then up to V2 to cruise along the gentle grade.br /br /I am tuning into the terrain change and my speed change and sensing when to shift. Like any mountain road with turns and ups and downs, I cannot drive the whole thing in one gear. I watch the tachometer, the speed, the radius of the turns, take into consideration the road surface and shift into the right gear to do the job. It is the rhythm of the road I feel. br /br /By skiing this way this morning I felt better and better. I noticed little terrain changes and opportunities to shift smoothly. I learned the terrain just a little better than before, even though I have skied these trails dozens of times. br /Maybe I should ski by myself more often. br /br /Have a good one,br /Bertdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-8223788105103526901?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

At Mt Bachelor at the moment, it is 22F, snowing and there are 112 inches of snow on the ground. The skiing is going to be good for another month. But the days are lighter and the daffodils are up. The bike business is picking up and we had our first kayak slalom race in Bend last weekend. Team WebSkis was well represented at this rite of spring. Aaron Tarnow completed his first ever whitewater race. Kerie Raymond, again off the couch, jumped in to have a couple good runs. I was both race organizer and competitor. That is not the way to have the best performance. But my main masters level rival and I teamed up in the K2 (two paddler kayak)and had a great run beating the local favorites.br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/keri@gate8-riverhouse-2010-785583.JPG”img style=”display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/keri@gate8-riverhouse-2010-785501.JPG” alt=”” border=”0″ //a Kerie Raymond exiting gate 8.br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/k2-riverhouse-2010-768426.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/k2-riverhouse-2010-768380.JPG” border=”0″ alt=”” //a Dave Johnson and me at the end of our winning run.br /br /There is one more xc ski race, the Great Nordeen at Mt Bachelor coming up this weekend. There is also a big group ride supported by WebCyclery. Too much to do. Think I will try some new Madshus skis on Thursday, ride on Sunday and more paddling next week. Hope my body holds up.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-8288111594214252379?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

All over the world those who wax skis for both nordic and alpine racing are familiar with Solda HP05. National teams buy it and use it for cold, transformed snow in conditions of high humidity. br /br /There are many other Solda waxes that may be less well known, but no less effective. Locals in Bend who come into our shop are always asking about a good wax for training and recreational skiing that is not too expensive. The answer is easy. The Performance World Cup series comes in three flavors. Green for cold snow, Red for most snow, Yellow for the warm days. You don’t need snow thermometers or barometers to figure out which to use. The temperature ranges overlap at the upper and lower ends. You can go outside, or to the website of your skiing destination and see what the weather looks like. There are temperature ranges on the packages (the same is true for all other Solda waxes). Here in the shop we use the Solda Perfromance Red for nearly all of our wax service business because it has a wide range and runs well in most all snow conditions. br /br /The other go-to wax for us is Solda UF7. It is a Universal low Flouro wax with a wide range too. I have used it as a race wax before and won my age group. As I prep skis for race day, I usually start with at base of a mix of Perfromance Red and UF7 50/50. I scrape and brush this and then apply the race wax over the top. These waxes saturate the bases well and provide the hydrocarbon/fluorocarbon mix that the more highly fluorinated waxes can bond to. br /br /Waxing skis for fun and glide does not have to be complicated. Check the website for glide wax to see these and other wax options. br /br /I hope you have some good spring skiing ahead of you.br /br /Bertdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-8819384086590834330?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

One of the great things about my job is that I get to hang out with and correspond with a group of active people who really add spice to life. Here are a few examples of what members of the WebSkis Team have been up to recently.br /br /Pat Lanin br /br /I took an hiatus from the Birke, and did the Korteloppet (a measley 23 km) classic. I did the same event two years ago under similar conditions, and was 6 minutes faster this year. Two years ago I won my age group, this year Marty Hall showed up and gave me a ski lesson, beating me by ten minutes!br /This is the first time that Marty has beaten me. br /br /On the glide I had Violet F15, covered with Power Jet 2, and a top coat of S-20. On the kick I had Swix VG 35 binder, covered with a very thin layer of Rex Power Grip Blue, and 4 layers of Rode Special Blue over. The kick was great, except for some of the South facing slopes in the last 2 km…even then not bad. I think the glide may have been compromised a bit, by a slight over kill on the kick. None the less, I still had great glide, and was out running about 80% of those around me. The temp was +10 F at the start and +21 F at the finish, a bit over an hour and a half later. The track and the snow was pristine. A fantastic day, all in all, Mr. Hall notwithstanding.br /br /Byron Roebr /Wendy and I were up at the Olympics where there was no skiing-OK, not withinbr /2 hours anyways. But we do have some cool stories and images though….br /br /Aaron Tarnowbr /Par for the Course II at Mt Bachelorbr /br /Skied on UF7, F40 Red, PJ1 Skies where a bit slow first lap, I think do to too much structure in base. By second lap skis where very fast on the up hill. I think good overall wax choice, wrong ski choice.br /br /Dave Knoopbr /Another year another Birkie. br / Skis were dang fast, could take a break for water or gels and easily pull my group back in a tuck down the next hill. br / Conditions were cold and blue! Probably about 5f air temp at the start warming to about 20f by the end. br /Hard track, old snow and little humidity. Pretty sure that snow never warmed up. br / br /Wax Used:br /A base layer of black carbon for durability on old abrasive snow. br /Then Solda F15 Blue. A layer of Solda S20 then another layer of Solda S30 to harden the base. br / Put Solda HP05-S30 50/50 on as top layer. br /Grind was a cold fine grind with a little structure in it, i.e. Nordic Ultratune 615b grind. br /Ski’s: an old pair of Rossi’s circa 2006 yet they had plenty of attitude or stiff flex. br / br /Result: 113th overall, 3rd in old guys division. br / br /Post race beer was Beck’s. br /br /Mark Nienstaedtbr / I skied well from start to finish in the Birkie Classic yesterday on good skis. For the third year running, I’ve made it into the top five of the 55-59 age group (187 strong this year) with a fourth place, 99th of 1,429 overall. Very fast conditions. 2:28:39.4 for the winner and 3:07:56.6 for yours truly, a half hour faster than last year. Ironically, the sting of missing an age group trophy by a place was reduced considerably by the fact that the 3rd place spot when to my good friend, training, and travel partner Jim Agre, a serious guy who flew out of the Twin Cities for Sweden hours after his finish headed for the original Vasaloppet. br / My skis were good (you have the technical wax description already) but I’m always ready to learn more. I spoke to some Stevens Point, WI, skate skiers after the race (they saw my SOLDA/Webskis vest) who enthused about having used warm Fluor 100 successfully. I also know a good master skate skier who I race compatibly with who turned in a 2:31 skate race on a SWIX pure warm powdered fluor pair of skis. He had tested both a cold fluor and the warm fluor pair of skis pre-race and picked the warm fluor skis as fastest. This despite that the announcers noted the air temperature was minus 3 degrees as we lined up for our 8 a.m. start (just about as forecast). The snow was a bit squeaky and definitely abrasive. What else have you heard? What accounts for warm fluor success?br / Thanks for your support. I ski a local “Lakeland Loppet” 25km skate at Minocqua, WI, Winterpark next Saturday and then the Great Bear Chase 50km skate on the 13th. And I’m always looking for the edge.br / br /Dan Packman skied in the Masters World Cup races in Sweden and on the Vasa Loppett course.br /Today I endured a new dimension of the nordic ski experience. 90k on the legendary vasa trail with new slow snow. I started wave 4 and passed about 4000 people the first 5k. I got in good small group and we motored along. After 65k someone said in Swedish, fertun, femtun, sixtun – 14, 15, 16, then in english – top 20! The group was down to a few guys the last 10k. I went with a fast move with 7k to go and we hammered hard, yet I had to let it go with 5k to go and paid dearly the last 2 k. Only the 2 guys I just dropped caught me, but man the last k was Painful.br /5:55, good for 16th place. Folks said the best times today were 30-40 mins slower than typical. skis were great, 6 layers of blue hardwax over binder, f40 red glide wax with power jet 2. The long trip home is tomorrow.br /br /Packman on MWCbr /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/mwcmedals-falun-2010-750857.JPG”img style=”float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/mwcmedals-falun-2010-750630.JPG” border=”0″ alt=”” //abr /Fun relay today. 5k is definitely not my thing but it was a beautiful day.br /-12 C snow, sunny and slightly warmer than past few days. Jan Spurkland (ppp winner a few yrs ago, Jan and I did the Sapporo marathon in 2005) started strong putting us in 2nd after leg 1 behind the Italians. JD (US team director from Bend) pulled 5k worth of mojo out of his ‘I haven’t raced in ages but I ski everyday and can get on it’. I held 3rd, no one around me for 2 mins ahead or behind, so I just cruised it and Dennis from Missoula brought it home with a minute to spare over the German team, so we ended up with bronze. M5 USA team also 3rd. Now it is time to focus on the 45k Friday skate race. Still cold here, below 0 F in the morn, warming slightly the next few days with snowstorm predicted by the weekend.br /br /There you have just a few of the good stuff being done by WebSkis Team members.br /br /Have a good one too,br /br /Bertdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-1869993730666340219?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

Those who have been in Hayward and Cable, Wisconsin, have told me that the snow is abrasive and dirty. It snowed a little today, a very fine snow coming off the lake. The forecast from NOAA:divbr //divdivspan class=”Apple-style-span” style=”font-family: Arial, Helvetica, ‘San Serif’; font-size: 12px; “bTonight: /bScattered snow showers, mainly before midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around -6. Calm wind. Chance of precipitation is 30%.br /br /bWednesday: /bMostly sunny, with a high near 17. Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph.br /br /bWednesday Night: /bMostly clear, with a low around -12. Calm wind.br /br /bThursday: /bSunny, with a high near 25. Calm wind becoming northeast around 5 mph.br /br /bThursday Night: /bMostly clear, with a low around -7. Calm wind.br /br /bFriday: /bSunny, with a high near 31.br /br /bFriday Night: /bPartly cloudy, with a low around 4.br /br /bSaturday: /bMostly sunny, with a high near 33. /span/divdivspan class=”Apple-style-span” style=”font-family:Arial, Helvetica, ‘San Serif’;font-size:100%;”span class=”Apple-style-span” style=”font-size: 12px;”br //span/span/divdivspan class=”Apple-style-span” style=”font-family:Arial, Helvetica, ‘San Serif’;font-size:100%;”span class=”Apple-style-span” style=”font-size: 12px;”So it looks to me like the snow will be cold and abrasive. If you want to start prepping skis do a hot scrape and clean the bases. I would pick a cold base ski with a fine grind and start with Solda FC27. Crayon on the FC27 and drip on Solda Performance Green, Iron, scrape and brush. I would then apply a couple of layers of Solda F15 Blue and wait to watch the weather. For those of you interested there will be some people at the Birkie testing wax. Walter Knight, from Boulder Nordic Sports will be testing lots of waxes. He will have a BNS shop set up in Cable. Chris Wheaton will also be testing Solda waxes. Look for Chris in the Red Solda suit. I will post the wax as the Solda Team sees it on the Solda Wax Blog. Top right on the WebSkis home page. /span/span/divdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-6538688705273124532?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

span class=”Apple-style-span” style=” -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 5px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 5px; font-family:Times;font-size:medium;”preWebSkis and WebCyclery uber endurance athlete Dan Packman /prepreis in Falun Sweden for Masters World Cup This is hot off /prepree-mail: /prepreReport from World Masters- the 30k started well. I /prepreskied in the 2nd group of 4 the first lap. 1 guy out /preprefront, a group of 4 in sight and 1 guy between us. /prepreThe pace was hard and I wisely decided to ski with /prepremeasured panache; not smart going over the LT with/prepre 20k to go on a tough course with very cold /prepreconditions, 8 F and windy. Slipped a few places /prepreyet finished respectably in the red group, top 15./prepre The field is stacked with fast euro’s. This was a /prepregood result but not super. My skis were/prepregood, xc01 very cold grind with Solda F40 green and/prepre Solda HP05-S30 50/50. Downhills were very few, /prepreless than 1 minute the entire race of relaxed tuck /preprewhere you could take a few breaths.I had to work for /prepreit all, pushing the entire way. Milan from /prepreTraverse City, MI took the bronze in M5, just a few /prepremins faster than me today. 10k classic tomorrow, /preprethe beatings will continue. /prepreMorale is high and I am stoked to perform my best in the 45k /preprefri. — Mr. Dan Packman/preprebr //prepreGo Mr. Dan./pre/spandiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-1895457430909741843?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

I received a note from Luciano, the owner of SOLDA Wax. He was at the Marcialonga Marathon in Italy helping to wax skis for the Italian Teams. They also provided wax to other teams. Turns out that both the women’s and men’s winners, Oskar Svärd amp; Jenny Hansson had their skis waxed with SOLDA HP05. These Swedish team athletes had fast skis from beginning to end.br /br /Other HP05 applications were fast at the Boulder Mountain Tour in Sun Valley. I was waxed with Solda F40 Red and HP05. I heard a rumor that some of the podium finishers were on Solda F31 Violet and HP05. I will try to confirm this and post more later. My skis were good at the start and in the last 10km of a 32 km race they were faster than most of the others around me.br /br /At the Badger State games in Wisconsin HP05 – S30 mix was fast for the whole race. Mark Nienstaedt skied a strong race winning the men over 50 class and 4th overall.br /br /Again, in cold transformed snow HP05 comes through as always.br /br /Have a good next chapter. br /prebr //prediv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-8249625551394385111?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

I met Dan Bulkley when he was 53 years old. I was dating his daughter and we were both teaching skiing at Mt Ashland in southern Oregon. Dan was the track and cross country running coach at Southern Oregon College and he was director of the PE ski program at the college. One day in May he said he was going for a run and did I want to go along. I was 23. In a short 5 mile run he pounded me into the pavement and I came limping home long after he did.br /br /I married his daughter, Dani and then really got to know Dan. Now, at age 92 he is my assistant when I go to West Yellowstone Ski Festival to represent SOLDA ski wax. He skis for a while then mans my table so that I can get in some skiing.br /br /Check out this article in the Ashland Daily Tidings from this year. There isn’t much snow around the Ashland area so Dan is out rollerskiing to stay ready for the next race.br /br /http://www.dailytidings.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100120/SPORTS/1200312br /br /Make the most of living if you’re not prepared to die.br /br /Bertdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-5670406519266805745?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

I have been following the qualification for the US Team for the Winter Olympic Games. I also have the good fortune to know some of these athletes. Some I don’t know, but hope to meet at some future date. Having known a few for many years and watching them along with my general interest in sports, I believe we have a team of winners.br /br /They may perform well enough to come away with medals. But that is not why I am referring to them as winners. I saw a note to Johnny Spillane on a facebook page this morning. Johnny is skiing in his 4th Olympic Games. He was World Champion in the sprint event in the 2003 Nordic Combined Worlds. He is at his home in Steamboat Springs, CO to finish his final preparation for the Vancouver games. In the lodge at Howelson Hill he was hanging out with the little kids. He helped tie the laces of jumping boots. One little girl said that he was the best lace tier and she decided to go out and try the 25 meter jump. She said she nailed her tele landings and that Johnny had given her the good luck. br /br /Kikkan Randall and Holly Brooks are spending time supporting a “Fast and Female” program to encourage girls to get involved in skiing. They both are serving as excellent role models for all of us as we look for descent role models in sports. Kikkan has overcome significant health issues, recovered and gone on to become faster than ever. She could have used the health issues to stop skiing. Holly came late to nordic skiing from Seattle. She knew what she loved and focused and is now on the Olympic Team. She also spends time coaching in three different programs run by APU in Alaska.br /br /Kris Freeman continues to seek excellence despite the fact that he is diabetic. Kris has had to deal with that and compartment syndrome and has twice undergone surgery. His getting smarter and faster even with the obstacles that have been thrown at him. Kris works at summer camps for kids with diabetes. Who knows which of these kids is touched by his story and goes on to fight the good fight.br /br /Bill Demong recently attended a local race in Park City as he preps for the Olympics. Bill is a World Champion in Nordic Combined and recently on the podium in world cups in Europe. Bill takes the time to hang out with the little kids. He has been this way for years.br /br /Torin Koos helps to coach a summer track program in his home town of Leavenworth, WA.br /br /My guess is that other nordic skiers on the US Olympic Team exhibit similar personality characteristics. They may or may not be on the podium in Vancouver, but in my book, they are winners.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-1887267342488676681?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

Last weekend I had a lesson. Luciano at Solda had sent me some super new wax to try. It’s not on the market yet. Weather forecast was for new snow, 28F . So I waxed up my favorite pair of old soft Fischer RCS skis with the new wax. Dani’s skis needed wax so I grabbed a small cube of Solda F31 Pink and put that on her RCRs. We went to Mt Bachelor and set out to recreate. My skis were good, but not great. Dani, on the other hand, shot past me on every downhill. “What’s up with that” I thought. Turns out the new wax is not for new snow. The F31 Pink is the best in new snow. I knew it was for new snow, but this was a clear reminder to read the directions on the box.br /br /The other thing I know and need reminding now and then, if you are the ski waxer in your household, it is always a good idea to take good care of your partner’s skis. It makes them very happy and a lot more likely to go out to play in the snow.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-4835539072097026670?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

This is a 30 km classic race in Jackson NH. The NOAA forecast is :br /br /bThis Afternoon: /bSunny, with a high near 31. North wind around 10 mph.br /br /bTonight: /bMostly clear, with a low around -6. Northwest wind between 3 and 9 mph.br /br /bSaturday: /bSunny, with a high near 28. Wind chill values as low as -12. Light northwest wind.br /br /Looks like transformed snow. I would prep a pair of cold base skis with medium to soft flex. If the track is glazed you might want to consider klister skis.br /br /SOLDA Glide wax: On the glide zone crayon on a layer of FC28 and start with a layer of Performance Green scraped and brushed. If is stays cold, then go with a layer or two of F15 Blue. Finish with the HP05 S/30 mix. If it looks like it will be warmer at the start (22F) go with F15 or F31 Violet instead of F15 Blue and cover with HP05 S30 mix.br /br /Kick wax: I am not there. Sounds like it could be cold on a glazed track. That could be an ice klister. Could also be a klister binder covered with a hard wax. In any case the snow is abrasive and will need a binder. The Swix VG 35 could work for aggressive snow. Testing today and tomorrow is a must.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-2589254796154966176?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

Skiing has always and will always have weather as a variable in racing.br /Last weekend at the Methow Super Tour it was magnified. To begin with, thebr /Methow Valley in north central Washington state has received very littlebr /snow this year. Talking with the locals, seems it hasn’t been this badbr /since the mid 1970s. Secondly, along with little snow and warm temps, itbr /has rained a lot. Last weekend a group of 11 Webskis adventurers traveledbr /up the road to Winthrop for the Super Tour. It was mild and cloudy andbr /sprinkling on the way up on Thursday. On Friday we went out to ski thebr /sprint course and found dozens of volunteers feverishly shoveling everybr /last transformed snow crystal they could find onto the 1.3km course. Theybr /did a great job.br /br /So, I had skied the course, found snow temps to be about -.5C and thebr /forecast was for 34F and chance of rain. I waxed for that condition onlybr /to awake Saturday morning to find it 19F and sunny. As always, I hadbr /hedged my bets and waxed three pairs of skis, one soft pair with F40br /yellow and Flour 100, one medium pair with F40 Red and F40 Yellow mixedbr /50/50 topped with Fluor 100, and one stiffer pair with F40 Red and Fluorbr /100. At race time the stiff F40 Red skis were the best; they were good.br /Another SOLDA athlete was on F31 orange with HP04 and it was running well.br /br /br /On Saturday morning we sprinted ( and I have never been a sprinter) in thebr /sun on frozen snow. It was fun to see the really fast skiers going reallybr /fast.br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-fast-guys2010-776394.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-fast-guys2010-776240.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”” //aFast Skiers at Methow Super Tourdivbr /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-bert-start2010-785796.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 292px; height: 320px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-bert-start2010-785367.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”” //aBert at start of qualifier.divbr //divdivbr /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-cyn-2010-700810.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 317px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-cyn-2010-700646.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”” //aCynthia Engel at start./divdivbr /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-aaron-start2010-788016.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 294px; height: 320px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/sprint-aaron-start2010-787856.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”” //aAaron Tarnow in qualifier./divdivbr /br /br /After the race I went up to the trails at Loup Loup Ski Bowlbr /(because there was not enough snow in Winthrop for the 15km classic) tobr /ski the long classic course. By the end of the day it was 28F and snowing.br /Good, back to winter I thought. I went home, checked the weather oncebr /more. It was forecast for overnight low of 26, 100% chance of snow andbr /high near 30 the next day. Great.br /When we arrived at Loup Loup it was already 34 and raining. Raining on 3br /inches of new snow. It was one of those nightmares for kick waxing andbr /nothing I tried seemed to work. Even Rex Powergrip was failing me. Zerobr /skis were the choice if you had a pair. Some Crown skis were working. Ibr /tried making “hairies” on my soft cold skis and they worked for a while,br /but after a few kms I was herringboning every hill./divdivbr /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/methow-bert-fin2010-769227.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 285px;” src=”http://www.webskis.com/uploaded_images/methow-bert-fin2010-769051.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”” //aGlad the finish is in sight./divdivbr /What did I learn? Not much. We all know how weather can change and howbr /unpredictable it can be in the mountains. If you have the time and placebr /to work, it is always best to glide wax when you are pretty sure of thebr /snow conditions. I know one guy who gets up about 4:00 to check thebr /weather and snow and rewax if necessary. On the World Cup the wax techbr /guys get up at 5 or so on race day to do the last prep over a good base.br /They also go with more than one combination and test to see what runsbr /best.br /Hope you have good racing and are up for the intellectual andbr /organizational challenge of waxing skis.br /br /Bertbr //div/divdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-2185357950050088080?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

I am headed up to the Methow tomorrow. I checked on the snow up there today. It has good coverage and is wet. The forecast is fairly warm and wet. I am prepping skis tonight with SOLDA UF7. My guess is that the glide will be similar to last week at the Patagoina Pursuit. I had A+ glide on my classic skis with SOLDA F40 Red and F40 Yellow mixed 50/50 and topped with SLODA Fluor 100. This is my guess at this point on Wednesday. I am prepping both skate and classic skis in that fashion.br /br /Kick wax? Wait and see. If it rains and then gets cold, probably a klister. If there is new snow I will probabley sticky up the kick zone under foot with a soft wax and cover with a colder wax. I will have to wait and see.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-8104485782561890674?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

Here is my gut.br /br /Best Glide: Base of SOLDA UF7 scraped and brushed. Mix SOLDA F40 Red and F40 Yellow 50/50. Scrape and brush. Finish with SOLDA Fluor 100 powder or spray.br /br /Good glide: Solda UF7 base with F15 Orange and F15 Yellow mixed 50/50.br /br /Budget glide wax: Solda UF7br /br /Kick Wax: Still going with one pair with Rode Rossa klister and one pair with Rode Silver Klister. If it is snowing I will be ready to cover with hard wax.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-4666155182281980457?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

The race is a 15km skate race at Hanson Hills trail system near Grayling, MI.br /The NOAA forecast for that region is:br /br /Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 18. Wind chill values as low as -3. Northwest wind around 5 mph.br /br /Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 6. West wind around 5 mph.br /br /Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 26. West wind between 5 and 10 mph.br /br /br /If you have a choice, pick a pair of medium flex cold base skis with a fine grind. Start by applying a base layer of SOLDA Perfromance Green, scraped and brushed. Then go with a layer of SOLDA F31 or F40 Violet and if you have it, finish with Solda HP05.br /br /For the budget wax I would go with base of SOLDA Perfromance Green and finish with SOLDA UF7.br /br /Have a great race.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-6685177577871295558?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

MICHIGAN CUP RELAYSbr /Saturday January 9br /NOAA weather forecast:br /br /Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 1. Wind chill values as low as -6. North wind around 5 mph.br /Saturday: Scattered flurries. Partly cloudy, with a high near 17. Wind chill values as low as -6. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph.br /Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 6. West wind between 5 and 10 mph.br /Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 25.br /br /Solda Glide wax for Saturday: Pick a pair of skis with medium flex, cold bases and a fine grind. Start with rubbing on a layer of SOLDA HC28. Cover this by dripping and ironing a layer of SOLDA F15 Blue. Scrape and brush. It wouldn’t hurt to apply a second layer to harden the bases more. Finish with SOLDA HP05/S30 mix 50/50. This is ironed in once with a hot (130C) iron taking about 8 seconds to pass the whole ski. Follow by corking by hand or with a roto cork and polish with a felt pad. Set the skis aside to cool. Finish by brushing the cool skis with a horse hair or soft nylon polishing brush.br /br /Another choice for finishing could be to cover the F15 Blue with Powerjet 4 corked, polished and brushed.br /br /Kick wax for Michigan Cup Relaybr /For this short race you may not need a binder. You could apply a binder of Swix VG30 or Toko Green Base. Iron it in, let it cool and then cork smooth. Let it cool and apply 4-6 thin layers of your favorite cold kick wax. Could be Swix V20 or VR30. Maybe Rode Green Special or Green. Carry a wax that is one temp range warmer. If your skis are a bit stiff or have a high wax pocket, try the warmer wax under foot to just in front of the binding.br /br /br /NENSA BOG BURN, POMFRET, VTbr /br /br /This is and old style classic race at the farm. 13km of narrow up and down in the Vermont woods. Weather forecast is as follows:br /br /Friday: Snow likely, mainly after 1pm. Cloudy, with a high near 20. North wind around 6 mph becoming calm. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.br /br /Friday Night: A slight chance of snow showers. Cloudy, with a low around 9. North wind around 6 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.br /br /Saturday: Cloudy through mid morning, then gradual clearing, with a high near 15. North wind between 5 and 7 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.br /br /SOLDA GLIDE WAXbr /Pick a soft to medium flex classic ski with a cold base. Cover the kick zone with wide masking tape. On the glide zone apply a base layer of SOLDA Performance Green or Techno Green. Scrape and brush. Next apply a layer of F31 or F40 Violet. Finish with SOLDA HP05.br /br /br /Economy wax could be Performance Green and F15 Violet.br /br /Kick wax: Swix, start with a thin binder layer of VG30 ironed in. Let it cool and cork smooth. Then apply 7-10 layers of VR40. Make each two layers shorter than the previous layers to achieve a “pyramid” of kick wax. Keep Some VR45 to apply under foot if you need more kick.br /br /Rode: Try Rode Green -4 to -10 applied the same as above. Then have some Rode Fast Blue Special or Blue Super if more kick needed.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-4787043554380089647?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div

I am holding off for right now on a complete wax recommendation because the weather forecast is changing every hour on the hour. I am pretty sure it will be warm and wet. The question is rain or snow and when. Currently the forecast is:br /br /Friday Night: Snow and freezing rain likely. Cloudy, with a low around 28. South southwest wind between 8 and 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Little or no ice accumulation expected. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.br /br /Saturday: A 50 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 34. Southwest wind around 11 mph. br /br /Just an hour ago there was no frozen precip in the forecast.br /br /This is a pursuit or relay with the first leg 6km of classic and then 6km of skate. br /br /Glide wax should not be too hard. I am planning on klister skis with probably a red or silver klister covered with a 0 to -2C hard wax if we get some new snow. For skate I would chose some fairly soft plus base skis. Then prep with a layer of SOLDA UF7 on clean bases. If new snow then go with SOLDA F31 Pink and cover with Fluor 100 either powder or spray. Could use SOLDA Powerjet 1. If it doesn’t snow could use SOLDA F31 Orange or F40 Red and cover with Fluor 100. Economy wax would be just UF7. Finish the skis with the coarse structure using the Toko Structurerite Tool, interupted for the skate skis and linear for the classic skis. Brush well after pressing in the rill. This rill is best applied after waxing and prior to Fluoros. Also remember to let the skis cool after ironing and corking the fluoro before you brushbr /br /Kick wax is the current mystery. I am going to wait until tomorrow and hope the weather picture becomes more clear. br /br /Have fun,br /br /Bertdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6589659500745667109-6137522444974408597?l=www.webskis.com%2Fwebskisblog.html’ alt=” //div