Ski

Passively? Let's get you hooked up Think!

I wasn't trying to be a jerk...though I can faintly hear ThinkSnow picking up a big stick to hit me in the head with...

Oh yeah? I just called the Chad's Ford store and had the following conversation: Me: "Hey, if you buy a set of skis from The Ski Bum, I heard that if you skied three days and weren't happy, you could return them and you'll put the purchase price toward a different set. Is that true?" The Ski Bum: "I've never heard of that. Hold on and I'll go double-check." The Ski Bum: "Hello? No, sorry, we don't do that. Maybe what you heard is that we'll guarantee the fit on any new boot." Me: "Really? You mean anyone that told me you'd take skis back and replace them with new one's if I wasn't happy is full of it?" The Ski Bum: "Ha, well, yes." Me: "Thanks anyway. I don't know how these rumors get started."

I have my skis ready and my Jeep is filled with gas. I can't imagine them ready for tomorrow, but I'm set just in case.

Chicago? Chicago?

Their website is updated only slightly better than Montage's...I imagine they are making snow right now.

It's in the same class of all-mountain ski, but my bud chose it because he's more comfortable laying over the narrower waist 6 star. And there isn't a whole lot of powder days around here...are there any? And it's a shame they dumbed them down trying to appeal to weaker skiers. But that also allows buyers to get amazing deals. I have four sets of GS:11's and not one is the latest model; I choose a ski that's best for me, not just what's newest. If anyone is considering moving up to an expert ski, then it's more important than ever to demo. The higher end the ski, the more unique it will ski; the more personality it will have. But living down here, demoing can be next to impossible for many people. The Ski Mag Buyers Guide is a great starting point. And unlike 20 years ago, it's hard to buy a bad ski these days. You just try to match up the type of ski to your ability and the conditions you usually ski. And I have to tell you, I've owned at least 50 sets of skis in my life and I've yet to break a set. Why would I want to pay an extra $150 to buy from a shop to guarantee against something that's never happened? I can see rails and other hits beating the crap out of skis, but do shops guarantee skis that you abuse on rails? Eh, I don't know...how about not selling skis that fall apart? ******* Other options? How about Atomic? Maybe the Supercross B5. Here's a new set for $299: http://cgi.ebay.com/Atomic-SX-B5-supercros...1QQcmdZViewItem There are a bunch of other sets for under $350. Bindings run another $110. ***** How about the Atomic SX:11? Here's one in 170cm. For $469.99 it'll be delivered to your door: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-2005-Atomic-SX-11-...1QQcmdZViewItem The SX:11 is an amazing ski. My friend is a NASTAR pacesetter and USSA coach and it's his favorite all around ski. Heck, here's a NEW set of Atomic Neox 412 bindings for $109.99 (including shipping!): http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Atomic-Neox-412-Bi...1QQcmdZViewItem $579.98 will get you an amazing set-up delivered to your door. I just called my local shop and they are getting $725.00 plus $43.50 tax for that set-up ($768.50!!!)

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24 days to camp!

A little more like it:

"Montage Projected Opening: 12/26/04" Jeez, Montage even gets the projected opening date for last year wrong (12/22/04)

The K2's nice, but Ski Mag reviews had one comment that made me leary: "Not especially comfortable at high speeds." Not ski at high speed? Maybe that's the fairly wide waist? A friend of mine skis and loves a similar ski, with a narrower waist and slightly narrower tail...the Volkl Supersport 6 Star. They are running about $150 cheaper (they come with the integrated Motion binding) than the K2's on eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/2005-Volkl-SuperSport-...1QQcmdZViewItem

Without wax, base material will will dry out and flake off pretty fast. Factory wax is the bare minimum. Most recreational skis are okay to take right to the slopes for skiing around the greens and blues, but you should probably get a good hot wax in the first few days. At the very least, skis turn better and are easier to use when they are properly waxed. Why cool outside? A few minutes after you're done ironing, the majority of absorbtion is done. Cooling outside isn't for race skis, it's a quick method for everyday skiing. Yes, for sure. But most people buying new skis wait until mid-season before bothering...usually when CB or wherever sets up a quick outdoor $5 wax station.

I'm not from Lackawanna County.

Oh, yeah, why hasn't 'Dude equipped your house with a nice big hot box?

I bet your owners would come up with a great ticket price...they treat our ASRA racers great. They bend over backwards to keep us happy.

Yeah, especially if it's really cold. And when you bring them back in, let them warm to room temp. and wipe down any condensation.

The 90+ times is just when the skis are brand new. It's meant to completely saturate the base with wax. You don't need to leave them overnight for parks and freeskiing, though. Just as soon as they are cool; usually a few hours at room temp, or much less if you can stick them in a cold spot. And USSA racers will cork on fresh wax/fluoro between runs... That'd be great. And I'll grab some pics when I tune my new skis later this week.

We went up around 4pm to pick up our passes and the front came through with a little wet snow...Here's the view from the top of the Phoebe Snow lift:

Lib's right...but I'm just planning to check the place out, is all...

I store them horizontally, strapped together. I just wouldn't hang them from the tips for extended periods and you also have to be careful not to damage the tails on concrete floors, if you store them standing. The most important consideration is to avoid dampness and extreme temps.

Doug: wipe on waxes and non-waxes (and bathroom soap) are okay for a quick fix, but don't last more than one run or so. Bases are porous and need time to soak in wax. Consider that wax techs scrape off and brush out as much wax as possible, what good does a little wipe on do? Not much. Waxing 101: Set your ski, base up, in a vice or something to hold it steady. You can wax using two chairs, it's just that a vice makes it easier. Gently wipe down the surface with a soft cloth. Take a medium hot iron (preferably one without the steam holes) and hold your wax to it and drip the melted wax on the base, holding it about six inches from the base. You can't use too much wax, but you can use too little. Drip on enough so that when you lay the iron flat on the ski, it'll disperse wax over the entire base. Don't stop moving your iron. If it takes too many passes to uniformly melt the wax, then your iron isn't hot enough. If the wax smokes, it's too hot. The wax should spread out evenly with two or three strokes of the iron. When both skis are coated, you can cheat by setting them outside to cool. Generally three hours is enough; race skis should cool overnight. Before scraping, take a look at your scraper. One corner should have a 90 degree piece cut out. This is to scrape your edges first. Just run it along the metal edge. And is your scraper new? They get dull pretty quickly and if you don't have a sharpener, buy a new one each season. Most people prefer to scrape while the ski is in a vice. But some people like to lean their ski and scrape down onto newspaper. Either way, scrape until you can't scrape any more. Want fast skis right away? Then your next stop is to brush with a nylon brush. Small white wax particles will come out. Switch to a softer, finer horsehair brush and even more particles will come out. The more you brush, the faster you'll go. Still not fast enough? Sprinkle on some fluoro (I prefer PTFE, which is actually Teflon). Use a cork to rub it in (a moving cork creates heat through friction). Then brush the fluoro out with just the horsehair brush. Don't want to bother with hot waxing? You can keep a stick of wax in your pocket, along with a cork and scraper. Just "draw", or crayon, on the wax directly to the ski base, using loops and circles. Then rub the base with the cork until the wax is rubbed in. Then just scrape it off. This method isn't as good as a hot wax, but much better than rub on waxes. What type of wax should you use? Unless you race, you'll want a hydrocarbon wax. Swix donates these as CH waxes. Pick a range from 18 to 28 degrees (purple), then another wax that's good for 25 to 34 degrees (red) and you're set for most days. For this area, the yellow (32 to 50) degrees is pretty all purpose, I suppose. The higher the wax temperature rating, the softer and easier to use is the wax. Want a fast wax? Then you step into the low fluorocarbon (LF) and high fluorocarbon waxes. LF waxes are 3x the price of CH, while HF's are 10x the price. But they are mandatory for racing. You use these the same way as regular waxes, btw. How often should you wax? Every single time you ski. How often are a set of World Cup skis waxes before the first time they are used? 90+ times. What if you skip a day of waxing? You'll leave tiny bits of your base on the snow.

Probably between 550 and 600. The hill is 650 and most of the vertical looked like it was mid-mountain. We went over without looking at a trail map first, so I wasn't 100% certain what we hiked. I was bummed at how rocky the terrain was (too rocky for grass skis). I'm definitely hitting it as soon as "skier's right" opens.

I thought you had some pretty awesome hikes, Sib...a regular hike is a great conditioner.