J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by Jan I Stenmark

Ok, well as time is of the essence and according to my understanding of the rules as described if I am the first to name an item (and no one can be more specific) I get the points, I’d like to claim:

1. A single “Tyrolia Megadrive” ski estimated at 190cm [@~62% of picture width from left margin]
2. A single Salomon 502 Front binding (DIN setting @ ~ 9 I think) hanging to the right of the “Tyrolia Megadrive” [@~66% of picture width from left margin] Note: these had a slight tendancy to pre-release in Moguls or on icy race pistes!
3. A poster for Smugglers’ Notch, Vermont (any extra points for saying it’s in portrait format?) [from ~56% to 85% of picture width at extreme top of picture -on roof]
4. A “left”, 2006 Fischer RX9 180cm ski standing vertically [@~41.5% of picture width from left margin]
5. (Unusually a pair) of Salomon 9000 Monocoque skis without bindings (the 9000 comes from the Dupont company who developed the polymer known as Zytel which has a flex modulus of 9000 MNm-2)

I hope this will count towards my required number of “solutions”!

Pavel: If a “find” is wrong will you say so? Otherwise confusion may reign !

Regards

Jan

Wil, I think you have a single question to ask yourself - Do I want a ski holiday? or do I want to take my kids on a ski holiday? If you don't plan on using resort childcare you won't be able to take you attention away from the kids for a second. You may find this quite frustrating if you don't come to terms with it before you arrive in resort. Having said that, being with your kids on the mountain and having fun in the snow is great fun so long as you don't find yourself looking up the hill and wishing you were hitting the slopes yourself.

It's probably fair to say that your kids won't want to ski all day, so recognize the signs of boredom and change the activity quickly, possibly even leaving them wanting more, rather than overdose them.

Personally, I would use some of the resorts childcare facilities if only to give the kids a change of delivery style!

Good luck,

Jan

Well here in the Wildschönau Valley we saw a large number of aggressive wasps earlier in the summer and the local legend says that this heralds a great winter! Anyone else heard similar?

Jan

freezywater wrote:Skiing: I do not participate in any sport with ambulances at the bottom of the hill?

Skiing combines outdoor fun with knocking down trees with your face.

Skiing: the art of catching cold and going broke while rapidly heading nowhere at great personal risk

Snowboarding is an activity that is very popular with people who do not feel that regular skiing is lethal enough.

Cross country skiing is great if you live in a small country.

Any/all of these made me laugh out loud! Freezywater - you win the prize, please name your charity!

Jan

pavelski wrote:17. Zipper front flap well over zipper with Velcro closure

I'm not sure if Pavel means what I think (as English is about his 5th language) but for me the very first thing I look for in all/any jackets is: Is there a quality cover for the internal part of the zip on the top of the neck. How often have I tried on an $800+ jacket and when the zip is fully closed I find the skin below my lip and above my chin pressed against cold steel? I swear that some designers should be made to wear their kit at -20 and then see how kewl they look!!! (rant over)

On the other hand a favourite adage says: - There's no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing!

Stay cool (sic),

Jan

Ok, I?m sorry, I can?t help it ? I just kinda knew I would be the first to put his hand up in class and look daft ? It must be part of my personality. I apologise to everyone else for slowing up the class, I just can?t get past this bit.

So according to our Hungarian friend there is a QFL at the surface boundary of ice. Whilst I accept this I am struggling to apply this information to my tuning. I am probably the only one in this class who has this particular issue but in general I tend not to ski exclusively on ice. For most of my skiing day I think I am skiing on snow, compressed snow, granulated snow, granulated ice, melting snow, ice or combinations of all the above. Even on the worst days I rarely ski on a smooth sheet of flat ice, there is usually a dusting of snow on the surface.

So make your point, Jan!

Well, if the QFL works because the hydrogen atoms at the surface vibrate at three times those of the atoms within the ice, what happens in a snow crystal (I am so stupid that I don?t even know if a snow crystal is made of ice!) I suspect that the hexagonal structure of the snow crystal is very sharp and that if a QFL existed how would the crystalline structure of the snow interact with the flat surface of the ski? Is the QFL so slippery that even the sharp tip of a snow flake can generate the slipperiness we desire?

The problem is that if I don?t understand this point I can only really use trail and error (or those of the manufactures) to make my waxing choices. Without truly understanding the SCIENCE of the QFL I think I am reduced to the ART of waxing.

Pavel, I am sorry to ask this but I think between us all we should seek the answers!

I look forward to many interesting QFL discussions ?

Jan

Well, better is a relative term, so answering your question isn?t really possible.

Making some assumptions could lead to some helpful answers.

1. You are an 8 yr old child who is likely to want to: make snowballs, eat chocolate bars, drink from fruit cartons, pick your nose, make snowballs etc. Your hand coverings will be on and off constantly. You are likely to put your hand coverings on with snow, ice, water, juice etc on your hands. Mittens will allow your hands to warm up most quickly as each finger can aid its neighbour in retaining warmth. Mittens can be worn when all fingers are stuck together with sugary drink. Gloves will be unmanageable, the fingers will turn inside out after the first time you remove them and by the end of your first toilet break you will have given up wearing them! You will wear Dad?s gloves until you lose one of them and them Mum?s will be Ok but not a good colour!

2. You are a serious powder hound. You travel in the back country, often navigating by GPS, map and sense of smell alone. You probably ski high and cold, in some of the world?s most extreme conditions. Taking your gloves off could prove highly dangerous, dexterity is paramount. Gloves are the only option.

3. You ski at Southampton Ski Slope and the management insist you wear gloves on a sweltering September afternoon. You choose Marigolds (Pink by preference). Mittens would be a last choice!

4. You are summer skiing on a glacier, your hands melt with mittens; you choose summer gloves or cycling / motocross gloves and enjoy the scenery!

Further to previous answers: Any good hand covering will be better than any poor hand covering!

Jan

Ok,

We have all seen each others ones now lets see who really has the best!

I would like to propose a competition to last until I get board (or the admin runs out of disk space!)

I will donate the equivalent of EUR 20.00 to the charity of the winner?s choice!

Oh yeah the comp :D

So what have we all seen of each others? Well the tag lines at the end of the posts of course ... Some truly inspired like (ahem) "skiing is not a sport it is a way of life!" or the exquisite ?putting you hand in the snow as you go round a corner is fun!? and then again some less so like "skiin? roks" ...

Some rules:

1. I pick the winner
2. Nothing antisocial, racist, boardist, etc, etc you know the drill
3. You can quote other peoples but may lose marks
4. Creative, thought provoking, cleaver and witty will be good! (ok at least witty!)

Think that?s quite enough rules!

Good luck and let?s see some truly great tags.

Oh and remember:

?Ski fast and leave narrow tracks!?
"Pain is temporary pride is forever"
?Second place is First Loser?

Or the granddaddy of ?em all

?Never eat yellow snow??