More Snow

“We had our second Saturday night snow storm. The first one, 29 November, ate my Jeep and the second one was just beautiful.

Louise and I just lay in Sunday morning and she offered to buy me brunch at the local. As I was getting out of the shower, she had just shovelled a path to the car to get her purse. Mike and Johanne, who work at the pub drove by as she was shovelling.

We walked up to the pub and I had eggs benedictine and she had the same thing, but on seafood rather than ham. Starters were a mixed fruit plate with cottage cheese. White wine, Louise had cider (scrumpy) and orange juice. Desert was bread pudding with Crème anglaise, whatever that is in English.

I wanted to pay becausae Mike had already teased me about seeing my girlfriend shovelling at my place and when Louise paid the place went wild. Life in the country can be a blast.

We walked back to my place and shovelled out the cars, then we drove over to a friend's where his wife showed Louise the watercolour she had painted for me for the caribou I gave them last Christmas. She was president of the Canadian Watercolourists' Society until last year and a caribou is a year's supply of red meat for two people.

We weent back to my place and I got our skis scraped and waxed and we started opening up the trail that will eventually be about 8 km long with a branch to the pub.

In spite of ups and downs, life is good.

God bless.”

“She painted a dead caribou?”

“Sounds like a perfect day, gremlin.

Glad to hear that snowstorm #2 was way better than snowstorm #1.”

“Yo Doug,

I bought some waxable wood skis and cannot find wax in the Baltimore area.

May I have a connection, please?”

“grem, that sounds like the best way to enjoy the snow.
Sat I had to work, but did not have to go to school, so i headed home and played in the snow with my children. then came in and napped. then played some more then napped. then got a tad tippsy (scorch fault LOL)

had a great time in the snow. I love it. but not into shovling the snow anymore.”

“Tom-

Tell me what you need and I can get in here in NH for ya. Oh yeah...no state sales tax, either.

Don't you have to do some other treatment involving a torch and some sort of tar/sap thing each season to prepare the bottoms for wax?”

“Yeah ski, some kinda sanding and tarring.

I've never done it but heard about.

I have no wax or any of that $h!t.

heeeeellllpppp!”

“Hey Gremlin, that sounds wonderful!

By the way, Creme Anglaise is a soft custard most often used as a sauce.”

“Tom-

You just have to let me know what you want. I should be able to pick it up around here and send it off to you.

Or, you could do a search on the web for cross-country ski wax and see what you get. I think the two most prominent brands are Swix and Toko.”

“Woo hoo! Looks like Tues thru Friday they'll finally get some decent snow in the Yosemite area! Snow level down to 5000 feet!”

“Tom, I'll get back to you on tarring and waxing skis at about 10:30.”

“Tom, Before you do anything to your skis, scrape off the old wax with the scraper that comes with the wax kit, then clean the skis with Coleman fuel and a rag. Lay the skis parallel on a smooth floor with a sheet of writing paper under the bindings. You'll need someone to help you here. If your friend cannot pull the paper out easily, the skis won't work for you. If the paper moves easily get your friend to slide the paper up and down under the skis and mark where the paper can no longer be slid both fron and back on the top of the skis with a marker pen. This is your kick area.

Wooden skis need a pine tar treatment to waterproof the wood base (and stop them from delaminating) and to offer a surface that will hold the wax.

We used to tar our skis at the beginning of each season as a group with a lot of red wine, but it's not really necessary as the tar will last several seasons. The tarred parts of the ski will be black, the skis will be lighter where the tar has worn out.

We used to use a propane torch to remove the old tar, but this is not necessary either. I don't know where you would find pine tar to-day, but if you find some, rub it on the lighter potions of the soles of the skis and wave the torch over it until it boils, then rub it in with a rag. When you've done both skis, rub the bases with a warm (nylon setting), non-steam iron - I got mine at a garage sale. Leave the skis overnight.

Next you need to crayon glide wax on the bases - this is called 'polar' wax and is white. Use the iron to melt and spread the crayonned wax and then rub the wax into the skis with the cork that comes with the wax kit. I do at least two coats of glide wax, in fact, I did it Sunday. Now you're alnmost ready to ski.

When the snow arrives you will need to wax the kicker area of your skis according to the temperature. This is a lot easier than it's made to sound, but it does require a little practice - like knowing what wine to drink -it's impossible to remember everything, but damnably easy once you've done it for a while.

I use blue, special blue and green almost exclusively. this gives me a range of about -3° to about -15° - all temperatures are Celsius. The temperature range will be marked on the wax tube and a good outdoor thermometre is a great help here. Wax the underside of the ski between the hash marks on top with the appropriate wax then iron it on with the same nylon setting as you used before, then rub it in with the cork.

If you start out early in the day, once your skis will no longer 'kick' it's because the temperature has risen and you can rub on a warmer wax then rub it in with the cork - it will not be as nice and smooth as the indoor job, but no mind. Ski a bit before you adjust your waxing as the wax won't grab for a while.

If the temperature drops, remember you can't put harder (colder) wax over softer - you will have to scrape as best you can then add colder wax and rub. Some wax kits come with a 'correction' wax that you can rub over softer wax for some glide.

What is the 'real world' wax test? Easy, if you're waxed too hard you won't get a kick and if your waxed too soft, you won't glide and snow will stick to the soles of your skis.

Well waxed skis are a joy that everyone ought to experience. Waxless skis just don't come close. I haven't used wooden skis in thirty years, but you've made me feel quite nostalgic. Tell me how it turns out.”

“Storm's a comin'....”

“Thanks, guys!

gremlin, I got some Norwegian wood skis from e-bay for $43(US).
L.L.Bean had the same skis in the '70s.

What have I gotten myself into!

Some friends from the Vermont days swore by the wood skis.....gotta try it.”

“They used to say they were the best glide ever, but who knows? it's been so long for me. The stuff I wrote before can be done in an evening - with a bottle of red, of course.”

“With all of this new snow I felt the need to get outside and play. So last night when I got home from work, I strapped on my snowshoes and set out for the power lines in back of the house. The temperature was in the mid 20’s, perfect for snowshoeing. As I cut through the woods I came upon a set of tracks leading from my neighbors house; he must have been out hunting on Sunday. After negotiating around downed trees I finally made it to the power lines. The sky was cloudless and there was a faint smell of balsam in the air. Off in the distains I could hear gunshots coming from the target range from the local rod and gun club. So off I set breaking trail up and down the small rolling hills toward the Kayaderosseras Creek. During my short jaunt I cross about ten sets of deer tracks in the soft powder snow. The going was a bit rough due to the lack of a base layer of snow. My snowshoes became entwined in the brush several times, which slowed progress. I finally reached the creek. The high amount of rain this fall left the Kayadeross swollen. As I approached the bank I heard the cracking of ice underneath my feet. The next thing I knew my left foot was sinking fast into cold muck and water. I immediately turned around. The water made the snow stick to my snowshoes, making them gain about ten pounds each. I stopped a few times the to try and knock out the snow that was caked on the bottom of my snowshoes. All and all it wasn’t a bad trip out. I can't wait to go out again.”

“I hate it when that happens. I'll do just about anything to avoid the possibility of my snowshoes or skis icing up.

I taught my Yorkshire buddy, Mick, to ski - both downhill and X-country (BTW, sliding isn't natural for a Brit - they wear cleats and crampons whereas we Canadians are born with skates, tobbogans, skis, et c. grafted to various body parts). We often skied into Grassy Pond and Debar Mountain, but I always avoided ski-ing on a lake or pond. One time some others were ahead of us and their tracks led over the pond and I couldn't say no to Mick. When we got back to the car he told me that one of the reasons he had accepted a job offer in Canada was that he had always dreamed about ski-ing across a pond. I felt a little guilty, but I still avoid those situations.”

“Thanks Unca.

I found some ski wax kits on the internet.......$100...yikes!

This may be the winter that I have a go at the Norski-skis.”

“100$? I don't believe it. I'll be in Montreal on the 18th and I'll look around for you.”

“OK

It was some kinda wax kit with all the stuff needed.”

“Tom, All you really need is a cork, a scraper and a couple of waxes. You can probably get pine tar at a hardware store.

I'm guessing, but I think the waxes you'd want are, white for glide and blue, blue special. Outside of that, maybe purple for snow aroung freezing and green for Pa. and the southern Dacks.

As far as I'm concerned, life is too short to ski when you need red or red klister. You sometimes, but rarely need blue klister for icy tracks at a X-country ski centre.

A 100$ wax kit with every conceivable wax is insane, IMO.”

“I agree with Gremlin. You really don't need to get fancy. In PA., I ski on blue and green wax all winter. Mostly blue and only the green for very cold weather.”

“we're sposed to get 6" tonight. my buddy will be calling me to see if i want to do some X-country. it's pretty fun. i don't think he waxes them though.”

“The waxless skis don't need the kick wax, but some glide wax on the tips and tails helps get a better glide. A little silicone spray on the waxless fish scales will keep snow from sticking to the ski, which can be a big problem in certain conditions.”

“I'm dying. Look at the ski trails that were 5 minutes from my house in Fairbanks.

”

“Another Nor'easter on its way. They are predicting 18 to 24 inches by Monday afternoon in my area.


WINTER STORM WARNING
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY
900 PM EST SAT DEC 13 2003

...ANOTHER MAJOR WINTER STORM WILL AFFECT EASTERN NEW YORK AND
WESTERN NEW ENGLAND SUNDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH MONDAY AFTERNOON...

.LOW PRESSURE WILL FORM ALONG THE CAROLINA COAST OVERNIGHT THEN
INTENSIFY AS IT HEADS NORTHEAST. THE LOW IS FORECAST TO PASS OVER
LONG ISLAND SUNDAY NIGHT THEN HEAD UP ALONG THE NEW ENGLAND COASTLINE
MONDAY.


MAZ001-NYZ032-033-038>043-047>054-082>084-VTZ013>015-141100-
BENNINGTON VT-EASTERN ALBANY NY-EASTERN RENSSELAER NY-
EASTERN SCHENECTADY NY-EASTERN WINDHAM VT-HAMILTON NY-MONTGOMERY NY-
NORTHERN BERKSHIRE MA-NORTHERN FULTON NY-NORTHERN HERKIMER NY-
NORTHERN SARATOGA NY-NORTHERN WARREN NY-NORTHERN WASHINGTON NY-
SCHOHARIE NY-SOUTHEAST WARREN NY-SOUTHERN FULTON NY-
SOUTHERN HERKIMER NY-SOUTHERN SARATOGA NY-SOUTHERN WASHINGTON NY-
WESTERN ALBANY NY-WESTERN RENSSELAER NY-WESTERN SCHENECTADY NY-
WESTERN WINDHAM VT-
900 PM EST SAT DEC 13 2003

...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON SUNDAY UNTIL NOON
MONDAY...

SNOW WILL OVERSPREAD THE ADIRONDACKS...THE MOHAWK VALLEY...THE
GREATER CAPITAL DISTRICT...SOUTHERN VERMONT AND THE NORTHERN
BERKSHIRES SUNDAY AFTERNOON. AS THE STORM MOVES NORTHWARD AND
STRENGTHENS...SNOW WILL FALL HEAVY AT TIMES DURING THE EVENING AND
OVERNIGHT HOURS. TOTAL SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS WILL RANGE FROM 18 TO
24 INCHES ACROSS THIS REGION.

A SLIGHT CHANGE IN THE PATH OF THE STORM COULD GREATLY AFFECT THE
AMOUNT OF SNOW THAT FALLS.

$$”

“Lunberzac, Yo're lucky all we are going to get is 2-3" of snow then RAIN!”

“Yep,.. we're supposed to get 4-6 inches and then sleety/rain stuff.”

“we're supposed to get 8-12" tonight then 8-14" tomorrow (mixed with sleet and freezing rain both times) then rain later on in the week.”

“Had about 8" as of an hour ago. Things are supposed to slow down around midnight.”

“It's still snowing here...don't know how much we've got, cause I haven't been outside yet - the office is closed, wahoo!

o(=D”

“It's 37 here and the sun is shining.


I guess snow is completely out of the question.”

“We got 2-3 inches Satuday night and it rained/drizzled all day Sunday.

Go ahead, chili!”

“We got about 6" before it changed to (hard) rain. If it had all been snow, my back would be sore from shoveling.

It got cold again last night so we had a nice coating of freezing rain. It took me about 15 minutes to open my car this morning.”

“god is punishing you.”

“When I left for work this morning, they said on the news that Speculator (South Central ADK’s) had 15 inches. There was about 12 to 13 at my house and it was still coming down.”

“"god is punishing you."
lyra
10:01:35 AM

Like, totally!”

“you too, mister! ;-P”

“You’d think that dewd from Arkansas would be plague enough.”

“Ya mean chili?”

“I just shovelled and there's 10" in my front yard. It's still snowing though. Don't know why we didn't have work today, but who cares!

o(=D”

“yesterday we had rain/freezing rain, flood watch and high wind advisory...today I get up to see it snowing again, wahoo!
There are worms in my driveway getting snowed on, poor worms.

but it's snowing!
o(=D”

“We got about 12" Sunday night-Monday morning. Wednesday, we had a lot of freezing rain and the roads were a mess. I woke up to about 3" of white stuff this morning. On top of the ice from the rain yesterday, the roads are a complete mess. I'm sick of this big snow/rain a few days later cycle. I'm ready for the big snow, big snow a few days later and another big snow a few days later then that....all winter long.”

“LOL...I'm with you ski! Shovelling snow only to watch it be washed away a day later sucks!”

“About the same here. We didn't loose all of the snow. What's left should make a fairly good base for snowshoes, assuming things freeze up.”

“plus the river's gonna flood...”

“If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break,
If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break,
When The Levee Breaks I'll have no place to stay.

Mean old levee taught me to weep and moan,
Mean old levee taught me to weep and moan,
Got what it takes to make a mountain man leave his home,
Oh, well, oh, well, oh, well.

Don't it make you feel bad
When you're tryin' to find your way home,
You don't know which way to go?
If you're goin' down South
They go no work to do,
If you don't know about Chicago.

Cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do you no good,
Now, cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do you no good,
When the levee breaks, mama, you got to move.

All last night sat on the levee and moaned,
All last night sat on the levee and moaned,
Thinkin' about me baby and my happy home.
Going, going to Chicago... Going to Chicago... Sorry but I can't take you...
Going down... going down now... going down....”

“We didn't loose all of the snow, either. There is still over a foot in the woods. It will definitely be a white Christmas around here. There is a lot of flooding around creeks and rivers and streets are flooded that don't have storm drains cleaned out. Groomers at ski areas cannot get out to groom until the water leeches through the snow or it freezes solid.”