How to Wax Wooden Cross Country Skis
For the last several decades, skis have been made from increasingly advanced technical plastics. But old, reliable wooden skis do have their fans, and in some circles, they're making a comeback---especially among cross-country skiiers. If you want to maintain this tradition, it's still possible to find accessories and maintenance products for wooden skis. You must take care to wax your skis the right way. Cross country skis need both a glide layer, to allow your skis to glide over the snow, and a special area of rougher kick wax just under your boot, to allow the ski to grip and push off.
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Instructions
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Use a cold kick wax to build the glide layer for wooden skis. Any wax described as "polar" or "green" will work well.
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Apply a thin layer of wax the entire length of the ski, rubbing the wax stick onto the base, but taking care not to wax the groove that runs down the center of the ski base.
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Rub a wax cork over the layer you have just applied to smooth it down and make a uniform surface.
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Repeat with a second layer of wax, and again use the wax cork to smooth it down.
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Choose a kick wax depending on the conditions on the day you're skiing. Waxes are formulated to work best in specific temperatures, so it's good to have a range of waxes on hand for different days.
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Apply the kick wax you've chosen on the ski base from a point level with your boot heel, to about 8 inches past your toe.
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Rub and blend with a wax cork, and repeat the application.
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Apply klister (a grip wax) on top of the kick wax, using streaks of wax in a chevron pattern. Smooth down with your fingers.
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References
- Photo Credit cross country skier image by eichnersmith from Fotolia.com
