Gear Essentials: Fischer Cross-Country Skin Skis
- Posted on
- By Aidan Raynor
All the fun without getting the the wax out.
Cross-Country Skiing has a lot of barriers being in the cold and exposed to the elements don't let waxing take away from the enjoyment. Traditionally classic skis have needed grip wax to grip to the snow, applied with a cork and rubbed into the base of the skis but in recent years classic skis have adopted a skin technology imbedded into the grip zone of the base.
We have seen a huge demand increase for skin skis as they make skiing so much easier by taking the hassle out of grip waxing every time you go out. The skins work just like the skins used in alpine touring where it is made of little hairs facing towards the back of the ski. This is so that the skin has the chance to grab the snow when the ski is in an engaged position ready to push off the snow but since they are angled back it allows the ski to glide across the snow easily without much resistance as you would see in a normal cross-country ski. This technology has been used in cross-country for about a decade now but the they have exploded during the last three years when people were looking for an easy option to go out a ski without any hassle of waxing.
With the skins there is a little bit of care to be done as well. These skis do ski have a glide zone like any other cross-country ski where you should apply a glide wax to keep the ski gliding as it should as well to keep the base from drying out. For the skin specifically you will need to use a skin cleaner and repair about every 4-5 times like the Toko skin cleaner that we use here in our shop to get any debris out of the skin that can reduce the glide and ruin the skin. After cleaning use the the Swix Skin Impregnation that helps stop the build up of ice when the temperature is hoovering right around zero.
If you're looking for something just to get out and enjoy the many groomed trails around the West-Island or taking a day trip up to the Laurentian's for a ski day come by the shop and we'll help you get set up on a pair today.