Back country Skijoring With Waxable Skis
by Mike Callahan
I often skijor on the network of roads and trails on National Forest land. Ski touring with dogs is my idea of fun. Snow covered roads make good skijoring routes, because the grades are not too steep. The dogs can spend more time at higher speeds. If your dogs are fit, a three dog team can cover quite a bit of ground . The team is your ticket to quietly go to lookouts and other pristine places.
Ski touring without dog power is only slightly more popular than skijoring in this day and age. Many backcountry skiers are just trying to get to the top of the chute, so they can strip off their climbing skins and carve up the downhill. Climbing skins allow you to go up steep slopes on your skis. It is more like snow shoeing with skis, because with every step or kick in skins you get little or no glide. If you like your dogs to run, the steep grades you'd negotiate with skins don't make good skijoring routes. Backcountry skiers who use skins, also usually use a single camber ski, similar to the downhill ski.
Ski touring skis, most useful for backcountry skijoring, are double camber skis. The second camber forms the wax pocket under the skier's foot. The wax pocket is engaged when the skier throws her weight on the ski when kicking forward. In a waxless ski, the wax pocket has a scale pattern to provide a kicker. Ski touring, as a sport, lost a lot of its momentum with the advent of waxless skis. Performance with the waxless system is always a compromise. For climbing, the kick or grip you get from the waxless surface is not as good as a waxable ski. They drag on the descents. If the snow is icy, waxless skis have an annoying vibration and buzzing sound that can disturb the dogs. The base of a waxless ski has scales that can never be tuned. When the scales get scored from trail debris or the occasional rock, the efficiency of the surface is compromised. They become expensive disposable goods.
Waxable touring skis require a little more work and technical preparation but the performance is well worth it. They get a much better kick for climbing and for scooting along on the flats. There is also a much more rewarding glide for every kick. The bases can be tuned season after season, for a ski that always works like new.
Ski Tour Waxing Demystified
I will be the first to admit skiers on waxless skis have passed me while I was on the trailside changing my wax. You have to enjoy a little challenge to learn to wax for every condition. When the wax is working though and with a good dog team it doesn't get any better.
You need glide wax for the tips and tails of touring skis. For the wax pocket, you need kick wax. Glide wax is the same wax used by skate skiers. There is a temperature range and corresponding color for a wide selection of waxes. I usually put a base layer of glide wax on the entire ski base. Be sure you use a glide wax that your kick wax will adhere to. Some of the newer fluorocarbon glide waxes behave like Teflon and not much will stick to them.
Before you start waxing you should scrape off all the old wax with a plastic scraper and clean your skis with wax remover. A brass brush is a good tool for removing old glide wax and exposing the base. Bases should be smooth from tip to tail. Gouges may need professional help from a ski shop but minor scratches can be removed by sandpaper, or a metal cabinet scraper.
The Metal Scraper
Preparing a ski base involves peeling the base with a metal cabinet scraper. I will bet a scraper can also do a fine job on sled runners. Metal scrapers dull quickly and sharpening them requires a series of stones and a vise. Grinding stones are up to a thousand grit and for polishing stones you can go up to six thousand grit. First flatten the scraper on the stone on both sides. Next, square the edge using
a file that is embedded on edge in a slot in a hardwood block
. With the scraper flat on the block you can grind the edge square against the file. Once you have filed the edge square you will need to polish the edge on a series of stones. Hold the
scraper edge square to the stone with a hardwood block
at least an inch thick. With the scraper now flat and squared you need to put a burr on the edge. The burr will allow you to peel a very fine layer off the base, leaving a superior smoothness that can't be attained with sandpaper. To burr the edge you need to clamp the scraper in a vise between the hardwood blocks with the edge protruding a half-inch or so. Using the shaft of a large screwdriver or wrench or a burnishing tool, bear down on the edge of the scraper at a slight angle that is about three degrees off perpendicular and draw the tool across the edge. The object is to slightly curl over the sharp edge creating a burr. Draw the tool on both sides of the edge. Test the burr by scraping your fingernail. There are burnishing tools at woodworking shops that make the burr a little easier and consistently.
A sharp burred scraper will easily peel a fine layer without much pressure. Because you can do a lot of damage very quickly to your good skis I would strongly suggest you practice with an old pair of skis first. Draw the scraper from tip to tail of the ski with light strokes. The oxidized base material will have a faded appearance and the clean base material will have a cleaner, brighter appearance As the scraper dulls you will have to apply more pressure. You can usually re- burr your scraper a few times before going back to the grinding stones.
The Waxing Board
When I buy a new pair of skis I make a custom portable waxing board. The waxing board provides a firm base for working on your skis. To make a waxing board you will need to trace the profile of the top of your skis onto a 2x6. Cut out the profile with a saber saw and finish with a belt sander. Your ski should nest nicely on the board base up. Glue and screw a 1x6 to the bottom of the board to give a clamp purchase. To keep the tips and tails from slipping, I like a strip of thin carpet pad or other rubberized material glued to the tip and tail of the board. Two pairs of hardwood blocks tip and tail of the board that rotate on a bolt and wing nut provide a light clamp to prevent the ski from slipping off.
Waxing
Now you are ready to wax. The layer of glide wax is ironed on with a waxing iron or an off the shelf clothes iron with no holes or steam function. Holes build up wax that is hard to clean out and will leave a residue of old dirty wax. Be extra careful that you don't have the iron on too high or you can melt and ruin the bases of your skis. You can test the heat of the iron by pressing the bar of wax you are using on the iron. If the wax melts slowly and evenly then the temperature is about right. If the wax sizzles, then that is way too high. If the iron barely causes the wax to drip, then it's a bit low. Hard waxes for colder snow will need a hotter iron to melt.
To save wax that is often very expensive, I like to apply it in layers by "crayoning" it on and ironing it in light layers. The opulent option is to drip a layer by holding the iron on the bar of wax and dripping a line of wax on the base before ironing it in. The wax is scraped in the next step and if you use the drip method most of the wax ends up on the floor and not in your bases.
Scraping
Next you need to scrape your skis. Use a plastic scraper that you can buy at ski shops. I sharpen my plastic scraper with my metal scraper by first honing the flat sides of the edges with a few passes while the plastic scraper is in a vise. Then I will draw the metal scraper firmly on the edge of the plastic scraper to put a clean edge on the plastic. I sometimes take the plastic scraper to the slotted block and file to square the edge. There is no need to try and put a burr on a plastic scraper but the edge should be sharp.
Scraping with a plastic scraper is the usually final step for the skate skier. The objective is to scrape off the lumps and polish the bases with light strokes. You may want to wax and scrape several times if the skis are new or if you have a race. Some world class skiers claim to feel a difference between a ski that was waxed and scraped ten times and one with twenty wax and scrape cycles. If the snow is wet, you may consider some base structure to reduce suction from water. Riling tools add structure by forming grooves in the base.
Applying Kick Wax
Now that you see how technical skate skiers get, what is a little more? It is very easy to apply kick wax. No need for vises or sharpening stones or irons. The wax is applied by crayoning it on in light layers and rubbing it in with a cork, synthetic cork or the palm of your hand. The "kicker" or wax pocket that is centered at the ball of your foot can be one to two feet long. You can adjust the performance of a kick wax by putting on more layers or varying the length of the waxed surface. Be careful that you don't apply too much kick wax at once or you will get lumps. Lumps will cause ice to build up on your skis, especially on fresh snow. Lumps are a huge drag and you will find yourself trudging instead of skiing. To avoid a lumpy surface I will apply a light layer and rub the cork on the surface firmly until the wax is transparent. I will continue to apply layers until I can barely detect the color of the wax that is applied. If you are putting on red wax and your base looks really red then you probably have too much wax.
Of coarse this not being a perfect world, some waxes will be hard to apply without lumps. The soft warm waxes may need to be spread with a plastic scraper a little because they refuse to be crayoned on. I will lightly dab the warm wax on and cork it in.
In the northern latitudes it is easier to use waxable skis because the snow is not as changeable. You can use blue kick wax most of the time. In the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, ski shops don't even carry waxable touring skis. They only sell waxless. It is a challenge to wax for ski touring because snow conditions often change dramatically through the day. Your kick wax may not work so well in the sun but will do fine in the shade. The snow may be abrasive and scour off your wax quickly. Don't give up though. Mitigate unfavorable conditions by skiing at night when the sun doesn't affect the snow, or by going out when the sky is overcast. Mix up your skiing a little. When the conditions are difficult in the backcountry then you might go somewhere you can use your skate skis to skijor.
The best conditions for a back country skijor are overcast weather fresh snow and temps between 20 and 30 degrees F. The best touring routes climb and descend gently like most logging roads. If you are lucky then some other skiers or a snow machine have broken trail for you.
Your dog team will allow you to leave behind the crowds of lollygaging snow shoers and skiers near the trailhead. Carry a small wax kit with an assortment of kick waxes, a scraper and a cork. Be prepared for the backcountry by dressing properly and bringing food and dog snacks. Know your limits and prepare accordingly. I will always bring matches or a lighter for an emergency fire.
I hope to see a resurgence of waxable touring skis when skiers discover the improved performance. Like the sled dog being replaced by the snow machine, the waxable ski was replaced by the waxless. There is a wonderful sport of ski touring and skijoring with wax that is begging to be rediscovered. Once you feel that kick and glide on a blue wax day, you may never go waxless again.