SKOAL TO THE WAX HOUND

This article was written for the Crimson by Norwood Cox, Ski Professional at the Coop.

Many beginners are under the illusion that waxing is just for experts who want their skis to glide exceptionally fast and that they can learn much better on slow skis. This is wrong as one has much better control over a fast gliding ski and besides a ski that is not properly waxed will run unevenly in jerks, which makes it much harder to maintain one's balance. A good waxing job, while gliding smoothly downhill, will "bite" on walking uphill, thus preventing to some extent back-sliding and saving considerable energy.

Waxing is an art, and like skiing itself, though there are fundamental principles which should be followed, it can only be fully mastered by much experience. Among the first rate skiers almost each individual has his own method of waxing.

The two important functions of waxing are first, putting on the base, and second the surface wax.

The base serves various purposes; it keeps the water from soaking into the wood, it fills in scratches and dents, thus giving the ski a smooth running surface, and the surface wax will adhere much better to a base than it will to the raw wood.

A very fine coating of shellac makes an excellent base. This should be put on the skis with a cloth (not a brush) in order to obtain an absolutely smooth surface.

Some skiers prefer a wax base. The best waxes for this purpose are Ostbye "Klister" or "Skaresmoring." A fine coating should be applied which must be rubbed into the wood with the hand and then rubbed smooth with a cloth. If should be allowed to cool and harden before applying the surface wax.

There are innumerable varieties or surface waxes on the market; the ones that I have found the most suitable are the following:

For dry snow (temperatures below freezing): Ostbye "Mix."

For damp snow (temperatures just above freezing): Ostbye "Medium."

For wet spring snow (having melted over a considerable period of time): Ostbye "Klister."

For hard frozen crust (having melted and re-frozen): Ostbye "Skaresmoring."

For jumping or short, fast downhill running: Hansen's "Record."

Keep the skis and wax for some time in a warm room before waxing. Rub on a rough coating over the running surface of the skis, and smooth it down with the palm of the hand, rubbing it in one direction only; that is, from point to back of the ski.

On very cold dry snow, the waxing surface should be extremely smooth; while on wet snow it should be comparatively rough, as a smooth surface will "suck" on wet snow causing very slow running.

It is always a good thing to carry a piece of paraffin along on a tour, as the snow texture is liable to change unexpectedly at any time; thus if you have waxed for dry snow (mix and very smooth surface) and you run into wet snow, by rubbing a rough coating of paraffin over the other wax it will enable the skis to glide freely.

The real art of waxing comes in combining various forms of waxes. For instance, on a long tour the snow at the starting point is fairly wet, but a few hundred feet above it is freezing. For this one can put on an original coating of medium," allow it to cool, and cover it with a very thin coating of "mix." The "mix" will glide well over the dry snow at the beginning of the run down, and will wear off soon after reaching the wet snow, then the under coating of medium will serve its purpose.

Care of the Skis

It takes but a slight defect in a ski to make skiing much more difficult than it should be. For this reason it is most important to examine a pair of skis thoroughly before taking them out of the shop. Then when one has selected a pair that meet the requirements of a good ski, it is equally important to keep them in good condition. A new ski should be well treated with linseed oil and allowed to dry about ten days before using. The linseed oil should be applied warm and rubbed on both sides of the ski with the hand for about fifteen minutes daily for at least a week before being set aside to dry.

This linseed oil treatment makes the ski more flexible, thus less likely to break; and also keeps them from soaking; up water thus preventing warping. When skis are out of use for any considerable length of time they should be kept in a press. This consists of clamps at each end, holding the skis together a block in the middle which keeps the how in shape and a piece of wood or metal fastened to the points, pushing them apart.