It’s Spring Break and one of the busiest weeks at the Colorado ski resorts. As we kick off Spring, remember, hitting the slopes can be very different than early season skiing.
“It’s a little bit icier in the morning,” explains Rick Uhl with the Ski Shop, “then it gets slush in the afternoon. There’s typically a few hours when the snow is just prime.”
First, make sure you have the proper safety gear and that it’s all working correctly. You helmet should come just above your eyebrows. That helmet only has one good impact. This means after a big fall it’s done its job and it’s time to replace it.
Inspect your helmet frequently, especially in the Spring, because the snow is that much harder in the morning.
If you haven’t had your bindings checked – now is the time!
“Every year we gain weight, lose weight, increase our ability or sometimes the binding isn’t ready to be released in that snow,” continues Rick, “so bring them in to a certified technician.”
If your binding hasn’t been checked recently, it may be to adjust and re-calibrate. That way if you’re skiing and you fall the binding and boot release safely.
Once you know the weather on the mountain, it’s important to have you gear waxed!
“The wax is going to melt the snow, so that we’re gliding on it,” adds Rick. We can wax for arctic cold fronts, kind of cold in December and January, January to February, but right now with it looking like 70 degrees this week we want to wax a little warmer.”
If you’re hitting the slopes a couple days this week you may need to have your gear waxed accordingly.
“The real spring like conditions really rip that wax right off the base so sometimes you have to wax every 2-3 days of skiing,” adds Rick.
Finally – make sure your boots are secure.
“The ski boot is your only link to that binding, so we got to make sure the boots fitting you great,” adds Rick. “If the boot is too loose to your foot than your foot is going to move around inside and you have a serious chance of injuring your ankle.”
