ski waxing and gear

Question
I bought a new pair of downhill ski's last year.
I hear people talking about waxing their ski's.
Should I do this too and how much is it? I went skiing 4 times last year, I am an O.K. at skiing.

What kind of socks to you wear? Do you know of any glove inserts that are good for skiing.

THANKS

JASON

Answer
The answer is a resounding yes. The performance of your skis can be significantly improved (or at the very least the original performance of the equipment maintained) with very regular maintenance. If you are skiing on snow that has a high component of man-made particles my experience is that after about 6 hours of repeated skiing time the base is depleted of wax (what technicians refer to as dry) particularly right by the edges. Here is where the pressure and friction that occurs on the ski base from edging and then arcing is greatest. This roughly the equivalent of 2 to 3 days on the snow at most on soft snow. In effect what wax does is protect the base, encourage the base to slide over the wax particles faster and enhance the smooth interaction of the skis with the snow.  If you are not going to learn to wax yourself (which is a bit of a process) get a season's wax pass from a local ski shop so that you can actually do what's ideal for your equipment. In Canada Sport Chek uses a very acceptable buff wax process to allow the consumer an unlimited number of waxes on one pair of skis while you wait in store. That is, wax every day. This is what all skiers seeking maximum performance will do.

For your socks use a modern ski sock with a moisture wicking property (made from Thermax, polypropylene, etc.)or heat retention property (made from Outlast). Whatever you do don't use cotton socks. These will thin out from friction trap moisture next to the foot and provide generally poor insulating properties. Too high a wool content will also often trap too much heat. Get a few pair at a time so you can change them daily or even half way through the day when sking if you go on a trip. Ski socks are also designed for the sport in that they are thin where they should be (along the top of the foot so as to prevent the restriction of blood flow and prevent nerves from being pinched) and thicker along the bottom, around the toes and heels so that there is insulation and shock absorption. This assists with a better, more comfortable  fit in the boots.

As far as the glove inserts go there was a product made by Gordini of a silver reflective weave that reflected heat back to the hand. They were called the X-31 (?) glove liner. I have not seen them for some time so you may need to ask around.

Glenn