Messages posted by : smirnoff_skier
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AB, I only wish that I had the opportunities that TJ has had from a young age. Its great that it looks as if he could make it all the way, so best of luck with everything.
I only started racing when I got to uni (3 years ago) but absolutely love it now, and am off to the british uni champs in Alp d'Huez in march. I go to uni with a guy who was in the same boat as Sam Wyer, he is also from Norwich and used to be in the England setup but couldnt find enough sponsorship to make it full time. He is now doing a Snowsports Engineering PHD which is being sponsored by Atomic and TOKO, based on different chemical waxing techniques and base structures. Its pretty crazy stuff, he has developed a self-waxing system where a reseviour sits inside a raceplate on a set of skis and as the ski flexes, it forces a thin layer of liquid wax out of tubes at the front of the ski which provides constant waxing. He pretty much spends all his time taking to chemical engineers about the moleculur properties of wax and base material and ordering different bases from a manufacturer in china. If TJ sticks with Atomic for a few more years then I am pretty sure that he will be using these self-waxing ssystems in a few years. He has been promised a job in the race-dept at Atomic when he finishes and the financial backing is substantial so hopefully the these can be intergrated more into the bases of skis. We are off to test some new wax today at the qualifiers for the university indoor champs at castleford snowdome (apparently it has some strange freezing curves and hydrophobic properties?!?!) If anyone is interested, the link below is to some of the research from last year about race-waxing for snowdomes. An Investigation Comparing the Efficacy of Different Lubricants for Skis on Artificial Snow: http://research.shu.ac.uk/aces/enquiry/index.php/enquiry/article/view/10/16 Tom |
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Sometimes you can get good bundles of wax off eBay.
For blue, green and red diamond files, go on building trade websites. If you buy a ski specific one its about £23, if you buy a building trade one (exactly the same) they are about £12 each. |
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Student answer: small sharp kitchen knife, a steady hand and a good eye! |
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It is fairly easy once you have edged and waxed a few times.
You dont really need a fancy/expensive bench/vice stand for edging, just lean the skis against the wall and do them there. For waxing, you certainly dont need a £40 wax iron, just use an old iron or buy a cheap one from argos. As long as you dont put any water in it and set it on the lowest heat setting, it will do the job fine. Its mostly down to learning the best ways yourself. I'm sure my methods will differ from everyone elses and there's again will be different, just practice and try to find cheaper alternatives to the expensive branded stuff. Tom |
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That was definately half an hour well speant.
Amazing avalanche footage, these guys have got balls. |
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Walk in the peaks this afternoon, watching the rugby later (she is from Cardif so lots of rivalry) and dinner in a small mediterranean place down the road tonight.
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Yes, when I managed to get the uni pay £400 of my 2 week holiday to Alp d'Huez this year, con!
Whats the best skiing holiday ever?! |
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Its a lot of money!
Have you ever been on a night out where you were'nt going to drink because you have an interview the next day but end up getting wasted?!?!? |
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