Skis, Poles, Boots

In Nordic Skiing, there are two types of techniques that skiers will need to learn and race in: skate and classic. Before you ask, no, you can’t race just one or the other. Both are pretty different from the other, but overall it is not difficult to get very good at both during the regular season, provided we have good snow conditions.

The two techniques also require different kinds of equipment. Overall, each set of ski gear consists of boots, skis, bindings, and poles. Below are brief explanations of each set of gear and what makes them distinct from each other:

Classic skis are used in the parallel tracks you see in postcards, movies, or in your local golf course’s ski trails. They have slippery glide wax on the tips and tails of the ski and sticky kick wax in the middle section. Classic skis must be fit to a skier's weight so that they can flatten the ski enough to get the kick wax to stick to the snow when kicking down on them and allow the wax to lift off the snow when gliding. This mechanic is what gives a skier traction in the parallel classic tracks. Due to their fitting requirements, it is highly recommended to have skis personally fit to an athlete at a specialist ski shop, rather than simply buying skis from a store that are “the right height.” Ski fitting is a little more complicated than that!

Classic poles should just barely peak over your shoulder when you’re standing with good posture, wearing shoes. If you’re a numbers person, official rules dictate that poles can be no longer than 83% of your overall height.

Skate skis are generally shorter than the classic skis and are built to have the entire base waxed with slippery glide wax and absolutely no kick wax applied to them! Seriously, kick wax and skate skis don’t like each other, so don’t force it. Instead, keep them slippery and free of kick wax, and let low-friction gliding across the snow do the rest of the work!

Skate poles should stand between your chin and the bridge of your nose when you’re standing with good posture, wearing shoes. For those who are numerically inclined, skate poles are generally 90% of your overall height.

Skis and poles can be rented from the team if needed, but they are old, very used, and not the best quality after their long years of service. Priority for rentals will be given to new skiers who are in their first season. Aspiring racers and experienced team members are encouraged to buy better equipment that is professionally fitted to them.

Ski boots are typically not provided by the schools since they wear out quicker than skis and it's hard to keep a good variety of sizes. Plus they smell. So even if skiers rent skis, they should buy their own boots. Boots should have the NNN/Prolink style binding with two narrow grooves down the sole. Older style SNS boots have one wide slot down the sole but those style bindings are no longer made so don't get that kind. Again, NNN/Prolink boots are good, SNS-style boots are BAD! You can buy skate/classic specific boots or you can purcahse combi boots, which have features to work with either skiing technique. Most high school athletes go with one pair of combi boots. 

All skiers must have a ski bag for their skis, even those who rent. Skis get lost and broken when thrown loose into the trailer. Ski ties are also a must to keep the skis from getting beat up, even when in the ski bag. Skis are very expensive, so take good care of them!