by Mr.
Klister
Wax Kits
How do you decide which waxes to take with you when you
go skiing? The answer is relatively simple. Let the weather
and your experience be your guides.
These days weather forecasting has become good enough
that it can generally predict: 1) the high for the day;
2) the temperature range; 3) about what the temperature
will be at a given time of the day; and 4) the relative
humidity. Armed with this information, you can decide
which wax or waxes to take along if you do nothing more
than include the waxes whose temperature ranges match
those of the weather forecast. Which waxes these are is
easy to determine because on each wax container there
is printed the temperature range in which it works best.
For sure take along the one whose median temperature is
closest to the temperature that is forecast for the time
of day you intend to be skiing. This is your primary wax.
You may also wish to include waxes that are one step "warmer"
and one step "colder" than the primary wax.
Other meteorological factors that may influence your
choice of waxes are the humidity and the age of snow.
Wetter snow acts like warmer snow, so on very humid days
you may wish to include waxes in your wax kit that are
one step warmer than what you would normally use . Very
old snow also acts like warmer snow. If snow has repeatedly
melted and re-frozen (read: icy) your best bet may be
a klister type wax. Klisters are color coded for temperature,
too; but, for convenience you may prefer to just use a
universal klister, which should handle most conditions
reasonably well.
The other important factor to consider in selecting waxes
is your experience. Just like shoes, different waxes work
better for different persons. Stick with one brand of
wax and learn how the individual color waxes work for
you. Maybe you will find that you always need to wax one
step (color) warmer than the manufacturer's recommended
wax. Maybe you will find that certain color waxes do not
work well for you at all, or that two colors are essentially
equal in performance for you. Then, make life easier:
eliminate the ones that don't work.
Another useful suggestion is to buy relatively cheap
wax until you think you can tell performance differences
between waxes. There is no use buying expensive wax (some
fluoro-carbon waxes cost close to $100 for 2 grams) until
you can ski well enough to take advantage of it. Until
then, spend your money on lessons instead.
What happens if, in spite of all this excellent advice,
you still manage not to bring the right wax with you?
The answer is: adjust your skiing technique. If you are
slipping, shorten your glide and set your wax more aggressively.
For example, stamp your foot down when going uphill. On
the other hand, if your skis have too much grip, shorten
your grip wax zone simply by scraping some of the unnecessary
grip wax off.
In addition to the waxes of the day, don't forget to
take along a plastic scraper and a styrofoam cork. If
you carry klister, put it in a plastic, zip-lock bag and
carry it close to your body to keep it warm, but, not
where you can fall or sit on it and make a colossal mess.
