Essential skiing movements include carving, gliding and floating on top of snow. Those who find it difficult to perform these movements may have either of two problems. Some issues are related to technique and alignment, but others result from malfunctioning equipment. Many skiers rush to the tuning shop when their skis display less than optimal performance. While there's nothing wrong with this, frequent tune-ups are expensive. Sometimes, your skis merely need an inexpensive wax job.
Function
Ski expert Kevin Palmer compares ski wax to a car's motor oil. Your car won't run with inadequate oil levels or inappropriate types of oil. Likewise, your skis will not glide without sufficient and temperature-appropriate wax.
Considerations
Suppose a skier spent the month of September at a South American ski resort. Temperatures were about 35 degrees Fahrenheit, and the slopes were sunny. She had her skis tuned and waxed on the last day of her ski vacation. Her next ski trip is in January. She visits Eastern Canada, where thermometer reads -20. Anxious to move quickly to generate some warmth, she points her skis down the fall line, expecting to generate some speed, but her boards move at a snail's pace. Here's what went wrong. The ski shop guys in South America probably waxed her skis with a warm weather appropriate red ski wax. Sub-zero temperatures require a teal ski wax.
Types of Snow
OntheSnow.com equipment editor Allen R. Smith explains that snow types influence ski wax choices. He describes six different types of snow. New snow is the fresh, untracked powder that falls overnight and keeps falling throughout the day. Fine grain is three-day old snow, whereas coarse-grained snow is older and rounder. Corn snow, typically experienced during spring conditions, is snow that has experienced two or more thawing and freezing cycles. Saturated snow, also found in the spring, is snow with a higher than average water composition. The artificial snow is the chemically treated, machine-made snow.
Effects
Smith explains that newly fallen snowflakes are shaped like sharp, six-sided prisms. Their sharpness requires a harder ski wax that prevents the snowflake edges from damaging your bases. As the snow experiences multiple thawing and freezing cycles, it becomes grainier and denser, requiring a softer ski wax. Snow type and temperature are not the only things to consider when choosing a ski wax. Humidity and wind speed are also important. Because the process is complicated, Smith suggests that skiers use Swix's Wax Wizard. If you are a recreational skier, who only visits the slopes a few times each year, the REI ski experts suggest using a universal ski wax, which suits all conditions.
Benefits
While increased speed is the most obvious benefit associated with ski waxing, wax also has an indirect influence on carving ability. People usually associate carving with edge sharpness, but during the brief transitions of a carved turn, both skis are flat on the snow. If your skis are not waxed, they will not glide during this phase of the turn, and your transition to the opposite edge may be sloppy. Ski wax also protects your bases from the nicks and burrs that occur on ungroomed, early and late-season slopes.
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