# Do young guys know how to wax?



## Mut (Dec 2, 2004)

I know way too much about waxing alpine skis. Is that what you are looking for or are you talking nordic.


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## basil (Nov 20, 2005)

Nordic.


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## Mut (Dec 2, 2004)

ehh. no lifts involved. Too much work.

Go to the swix website. they have all sorts of good videos teaching you how to tune alpine skis. I have to imagine it they have some for nordic too.

I do know that the correct was can be the difference between having fun and suffering. And that waxing noridc skis is absolutley not a thing of the past.


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## freexbiker (Jul 18, 2005)

I am a big fan of waxing skis for the SE wyo meadow skipping and approaches. But i was on the nordic team in high school and i think waxing is coded into a tele skiers genes. But i usually am the only one in my group cruising with wax while everybody fiddles with their skins. I carry a scraper and a cork when i plan on waxing. Between those tools and a tube of red, blue and purple wax will usually get me where im going without too much trouble.


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## wyosam (May 31, 2006)

freexbiker said:


> I am a big fan of waxing skis for the SE wyo meadow skipping and approaches. But i was on the nordic team in high school and i think waxing is coded into a tele skiers genes. But i usually am the only one in my group cruising with wax while everybody fiddles with their skins. I carry a scraper and a cork when i plan on waxing. Between those tools and a tube of red, blue and purple wax will usually get me where im going without too much trouble.


Yeah, about the only place up there that skins alone get it done is Centennial Ridge, I always either waxed or skied Guides in the SR.


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## kengore (May 29, 2008)

A properly waxed ski will out perform any climbing skin or no-wax base. There is no maybe. The perfomance difference is significant. If fish scales and climbing skins work so well how come they aren't used for racing? Even at the Middle School level you won't see any serious racer on anything but a waxable base. 

Next time a sales person says wax is obsolete, ask them if they have ever actually tried it. No one that has actually used a no-wax and waxable ski side by side could ever believe such nonsense.

As a nordic instructor I am often shocked at the lack of knowledge in the retail shops. I'ts not just the young guys at Bent Gate, the same confusion exists at REI, Sports Authority, Christy's and all of the big box outlets. Every year I find it harder to find someone that even sells a waxable ski or a decent selection of kick waxes.

Fortunatly there is Boulder Nordic Sport. They are a dedicated high performance shop that caters to the nordic folks. They have an outstanding collection of waxes and lots of expert knowledge. 

Last time I looked they sold a complete line of waxes from Toko, Swix, Rohde, Start and several others. They also are the very best place for getting nordic skis stone ground and tuned.

https://www.bouldernordicsport.com/shop/c-72-kick-wax.aspx


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## soylent green (Jul 8, 2004)

kengore said:


> A properly waxed ski will out perform any climbing skin or no-wax base. There is no maybe. The perfomance difference is significant.
> 
> https://www.bouldernordicsport.com/shop/c-72-kick-wax.aspx


That is an absolutely false statement. Wax will never equal skins on a modern backcountry skintrack. Skins will never equal wax for glide. We're talking about 2 different kinds of days.


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## climbdenali (Apr 2, 2006)

soylent green said:


> Wax will never equal skins on a modern backcountry skintrack.


It's true, that wax won't climb as steeply as a lot of the "San Juan Skin Tracks." But, the OP was talking about Nordic.

Furthermore, and I know this is off topic and is probably going to get me flamed, but I happen to think that laying in the steepest skin track your 150 underfoot, full coverage skins will climb is poor etiquette. It leads to more tracks getting laid in by skis that can't (or don't want to) climb so steeply. To me it's just as rude as the gaper who cuts in a track all the way back and forth across a big fresh line, rather than climbing to the side of the run. Preserve the freshies- lay in a track that is a balance between the "modern" skin track and a nordic waxless track- something that a moderate BC setup can climb.


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## Dave Frank (Oct 14, 2003)

I've heard a lot of good talk about waxing for AT climbs. I've tried it a little and always come up short on hold. I've used narrow skins on wide skis, and while it makes gliding a little more efficient, the time lost when switching to the full width for the steeper climb negated any earlier gain. Seems the only time either of these will be helpful is on a loong mellow approach.


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## co_bjread (Oct 26, 2004)

I have never tried waxing, I just stick to my skins, but it always amazes me when I do see waxers up there in the same places. I don't see them often, but I think I recall seeing them on zimmerman lake for sure, and either monty bowl, or butler gulch, maybe both.

Props to the waxers, I don't have those skills.


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## PARKER (Apr 21, 2004)

I was hoping this was going to be about the famous South America Waxing...


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## gbmaz (Oct 7, 2007)

basil said:


> I was at Bent Gate in Golden and the sales people knew nothing about waxing skis. They just said "use skins" and waxless skis make waxing obsolete.
> 
> Are these views common amoung young people?


Does Bentgate even have a double camber ski in the shop?

When I worked there we a great selection of tele and AT gear, but no classic or skate nordic gear. If it is still like that then criticizing their staff for lack of knowledge about waxing is like dogging the folks at a nordic center for not knowing which Dynafit binding has the highest DIN setting. 

In 2 years of working there I never had any questions about waxing (other than glide waxing), but perhaps I missed them and the former nordic ski racers on the staff at the time answered them.


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## BCxp (Jun 3, 2012)

Ditto Swix. Ditto skins for some situations. You might also see if you can befriend a Nordic coach at one of the colleges. Some of them probably know a lot about waxing besides just for racing. HTH


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