And yet another viewpoint... I had such good glide that I was
constantly passing people on the downhills. I also had to put on the
brakes numerous times to avoid running into people on the uphills
(mostly in the first half of the race). I would say that I passed
30-40 skiers on the lake and main street, mainly due to the fact that
I wasn't exhausted and my excellent glide (made for a very
comfortable yet fast V2 alternate stroke). I waxed with the
following layers: Swix CH7, LF7, HF6/8 mixed (HF7 was not available),
and pure fluoro Cera FC100 (cold solid) on top. Although the snow
was pretty deep in spots (especially on the uphills) I was able to
stay on top of it with a little effort. I'm also pretty light (120
lbs) and my skis are somewhat long (185 cm Fischer RCS). I talked
with numerous people from the waves around me (I started in wave 5)
and most said they skied 1 to 1.5 hours slower than normal! All my
friends (one in wave 2, two in wave 3, one in wave 4, several in wave
5) skied anywhere from 1/2 hour to 2 hours slower than normal. I'm
still not sure how I did it but I set a personal record for myself by
knocking over 20 minutes off my previous best time! Woo-hoo - looks
like I might be moving up to wave 4 next year!
The only downside for me is the nasty tendonitis I've developed in my
left arm, probably from all the poling...
General glide waxing tips:
1) Pick a "standard" set of waxes and learn the characteristics of
each and under which conditions each wax works well. By standard, I
don't necessarily mean just one brand (although that does simplify
things). For example, many Toko or Swix users I know also swear by
Start green under certain conditions. There is a wealth of wax
information online. Here's a few links to get you started:
<http://www.skifastwax.com/>
<http://www.swixsport.com/>
<http://www.tokowax.com/>
<http://www.ernordic.com/waxbook.htm>
2) Read the literature: Swix has a waxing manual available at local
ski shops which details how to wax for glide and grip. I believe
Toko has one online as well.
3) Keep in mind that most racing technicians consider the wax to be
one of the least important variables for a race. More important
variables are athletic conditioning, technique, ski flex, base
structure etc. I think most people concentrate on wax so much
because it's one of the easier variables to control (and maybe we
just like to analyze things to death - I'm as guilty of this as
everyone else). Structuring your ski bases is also fairly simple - I
use the Toko Stucturite tool and it works great.
4) Most important of all - don't take skiing too seriously, keep a
positive attitude and just get out and enjoy the scenery!
Cheers,
Craig
At 9:41 AM -0600 2/27/01, Scott Bachmeier wrote:
>Just to add to the discussion...my glide was great (I too had to really
>watch it coming off downhill runs, or else I'd come barreling into
>people as the downhill transitioned into another climb). I used an
>initial layer of low-budget Toko yellow World Loppet, then a layer of
>Toko grey Molybdenum Low Flouro, and finally a layer of Toko red
>High Flouro glide wax. No powders over the top.
>
>My great glide was the reason I could stand to double-pole the final
>5km or so (especially across Lake Hayward -- I must have passed about
>20-30 people on the lake, just double poling, which really surprised
>me). My arms didn't much care to speak with me the next day (especially
>when I had to help push 2 stuck minivans up the hilly driveway at
>the cabin).
>
>Greg Fangel wrote:
>>
>> Juli,
>>
>> It was a tough day for everyone. With the fresh snow and relatively warmer
>> temperatures, the best wax to use for glide was a hydro carbon glide wax
>> with flouro over the top of it. Swix blue is hydro carbon glide wax. Two
>> skiers that I know used Fast Wax tan with Flight over the top. Flight is a
>> flourocarbon powder. They both had good fast skis.
>>
>> I was experimental that day and used Cerax, knowing that it could be a
> > mistake. It worked good for a while, got slow towards the middle
>to 3/4 then
>> got fast again at the end. Cerax is a liquid, put on with an applicator and
>> dried with a hair dryer.
>>
>> Looking back, I would have used the Fast Wax tan with Flight over the top.
>> I've used the Flight powder before and it made my skis super fast. I had to
>> be careful of running into people going up the hills after I just came down
>> a hill before.
>>
>> Flourocarbon powder is difficult to work with and not for beginners. So the
>> best alternative would be to use a high flourocarbon glide wax. Toko and
>> Swix make these. Flouros work good in high moisture snow.
>>
>> The last waves do have more chopped up snow to ski through. The chutes going
>> down the hills are larger also. I believe that all waves had problems with
>> slugging through the snow. A friend of mine bailed out just after 00 and
>> he's a wave one skier.
>>
>> The best thing to do to learn about waxing is ask questions, go to wax
>> clinics, talk to people and try a few different scenarios with wax on your
>> skis.
>>
>
>--
>Scott Bachmeier University of Wisconsin - Madison / SSEC / CIMSS
>mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] | http://www.ssec.wisc.edu/~scottb
--
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