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Most everyone is now very close to their peak of competition for the season – the races that count the most are upon us all. Whether it is VT state championships, Junior Olympics, US Nationals (Whiteface, NY), FIS finals (Nakiska, CAN), or NCAA championships (Dartmouth, NH), everyone wants to reach their peak for the season in the next 30 days.

Your effort, hard work, dedication, training, and the efforts of your program & coaches have all gotten you to this point. Paying attention to the details can help to turn a good result into a great one. At Holmenkol, we believe that the skis preparation is worth 5% of the total time. 95% is all you. The other 5% can be worth 6.5 seconds over a 1:30 downhill course!

Here’s a checklist of things to look over right now, while the last period of training is underway.

• Look closely at each pair of skis you race or train on. Check your base & side edge angles the whole length of the ski. Inspect for base wear (using a true bar) to be sure that all of your

With spring’s arrival comes corn snow, sunshine, and lots of great racing. You are most likely deep into your most intense period of racing right now, with Championships and Spring Series events to attend. If you’ve been following along most of the season, your skis should be in good repair and it should only take you moments daily to keep them good for training, and a little longer for racing prep.

One aspect we have not discussed yet is the use of the BBQ brush. Often thought of as a spring only tool, it is often used year round. Many people approach the use of a BBQ brush as being only for the most skilled technicians, yet its proper use is within everyone’s realm.

In reality, you should have at your disposal 3 options(stiffest to softest) for BBQ’ing your skis: the traditional BBQ brush, the Home Depot Wooster Steel brush, and your everyday oval steel brush.

What exactly does a BBQ brush do? I like to think of it as a structure enhancer – it does not re-structure your skis, but rather

After two long weeks away at industry trade shows, I returned home and headed off to an Eastern Cup FIS speed series in Sugarloaf, ME. The series was men & women, and consisted of two DH’s & a SG on a well prepared course, familiar to many of our readers.

I’ve had a few readers request a complete run-down of what happens to make a ski “race ready”, so I’ll tackle it here. But first, a few thoughts to remember: there is more than 1 way to get to the same result, and the real race is usually always won by the fastest skier that day!

The first two training days offered warm, sunny speed training – not much different than a great day in Colorado, except this was northern Maine. The result was a track that packed down and hardened up nicely when the inevitable deep freeze rolled back in, along with 75mph summits winds and occasional snow squalls. The course offered a relatively mild start, allowing the athletes build into a nice turning rhythm before being sent in the steeper headwall section,

Looking at the snow you are trying to wax for is as important as taking it’s temperature. Snow is as diverse as the all the areas around the world where it falls, yet we can group its shape & structure into a few main categories.

New snow has the sharp edged, crystalline form that is familiar to all. The size of the crystal can vary widely, though all are very delicate. The shape begins to transform almost immediately due to skiers, wind, and being compacted under its own weight. The crystal is harder at low temperatures and softer at warmer snow temperatures. Crystal size can be from 1mm to over 10mm. Generally, there is little friction in new snow, unless it has been compacted (from wind), which will increase its suction effect to the ski base.

New snow “transforms” into fine corn snow as a result of environmental factors, such as skiers, grooming equipment, wind, air temperature change, etc. When this happens, the fine crystal structure breaks off and the crystal becomes more rounded.

Even if you are not a National Team athlete, the right fit can be just around the corner for you. I caught up with Thor Verdonk, the Rossignol Alpine Technical Product Manager to get the low down how you can achieve your best results this season AND get the best boot fit possible.

Let’s start with the big concepts – your goal as an athlete is have your boots fit in the same way that an F1 driver has his seat fit. An F1 seat is designed for a driver pulling well over 4g’s in all directions (and over 20g when they crash), so comfort, performance, and safety are critical. No one wants to be sliding around in their seat when they drive at over 300kph, and you don’t want to be moving around in your boots as you hurtle down the course at 120kph. The secret to the concept lies in creating an equally minimal distance between you and the plastic of the boot, with a dash of padding thrown in for good measure.

One of the methods boot brands use to help get you started on the right foot is to create

The season is upon us and El Nino has returned, promising to inundate the Sierra with snow. The anticipation of snow and the first turn is growing into a reality. After a long summer with a daily routine of 50 one legged squats (or 12 oz. curls in the lazy boy) you're body is ready for the slopes. But before we get too carried away, you should know that the first day or two on the slopes can be the best time for you to improve your technique and make the rest of the season even more enjoyable.

The first few runs can produce some of the clumsiest sensations you will feel during the entire season. You're rusty, that's natural. Believe it or not, that rust can also work to your advantage because it makes you more open to improving your technique. Old, bad habits are also rusty, and are easier to change. Now is the time to get rid of them before they return. So let's look at the very foundation of your skiing, the stance, and work towards perfecting it.

The stance is critical because all other

Additional authoring by Thor Verdonk.

Have you ever wondered what the inside of your favorite athlete’s boots look like? If not, I am certain that you have wondered if you have access to the same work and workmanship that a top National Team athlete has. To find out more, I spent a day with Thor Verdonk, of Rossignol.

First, a little history. To most everyone involved in alpine ski racing in the US, Thor has been Rossignol Racing for as long as most can remember. Earlier this summer, Thor was name to a new position within Rossignol – technical alpine product manager. This position will allow the inherent technical skills he has honed over 13+ years as a racing service person to affect the entire product line up at Rossignol.

I got together with Thor about 1 week before the women’s World Cup speed group headed to Chile. Thor needed to build a backup boot for Lindsay Kildow, however, she was still at home in Minnesota. Thor pulled out his notes – culled from many years of working with Lindsay,