Seeley Classic
22k and 42k
January 14, 2012
Event Description – The Seeley Classic is a classic only race held on the Birkie Trail out of the “OO” Trail Head. The shorter distance event is an out and back heading South from the Trail Head on the Skate Trail. The longer marathon distance heads North on the Classic Trail to the Fire Tower Food Station and then U turns back to “OO” on the Skate Trail. It then joins and follows the course of the shorter event. As far as terrain, it’s the Birkie Trail. Start,up, down, up, down, etc( repeat about 100 times)… finish.
Event Groooming: The final grooming will take place after dark on Friday. It will be done before midnight and have 10 hours of time to set. The tracks will be predominantly firm new snow with very little abrasive old snow or ice. The track set should be very firm as the temps are going into single digits Friday night. The course should be very good for a classic race!
Weather –http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?map.x=224&map.y=211&site=dlh&zmx=1&zmy=1
Test Based/Forecast Based Recommendation: The testing was done on Friday the 12th at 2PM. The snow temp was 11F and air temp was 13-16F. New light snow had fallen and the conditions and temps are what is forecast for race time tomorrow.
Testing Discussion: 6 different race parrafins were tested with 4 pairs of matched test skis. The test was a feel test both in and out of the tracks. 3 different powders were tested using matched skate test skis and these were feel tested for speed and climbing.
TEST RESULTS
Kick
1.Holmenkol Blue (Best kick, least drag)
2. Guru Blue (Similar to 1, just a slight more drag)
3. Swix VR40 (Good kick, just a little too draggy)
4. Rode Blue (Draggy)
Note: Most Blue waxes kicked just fine. If a wax choice is too slick, then any of the draggy waxes applied under the toe box will help to enhance the kick. Start short and lengthen and thicken, before going warmer. The test skis had a layer of Toko Green Binder heated into the ski and 3 layers of test wax corked in. In ski prep for the event sand your kick zones and apply two layers of Toko Green Binder with heat before applying the final layers of kick. I recommend 3-5 layers of race kick wax depending on the event length.
Race Glide
- Holmenkol Matrix Green
- Toko HF Blue
- Holmenkol Matrix Blue
- Holmenkol Matrix Blue/Red 50/50 mix
- Holmenkol Speed Base Mid
- SkiGo HF Blue
Race Flouro Powders
- Holmenkol Cold
- SkiGo C105
- Toko Jet Stream Blue
Recommendation
We recommend the following:
Base Layer: SkiGo LF Graphite iron, scrape brush.
Race Paraffin: Holmenkol Matrix Green or SkiGo C380
Fluoro Powder: Holmenkol Cold.
Top Coat: Will test on Saturday morning.
Structure: Fine linear. 0.2mm recommended.
CONCLUSIONARY NOTES – BNS will have a table set up by the grooming building adjacent to the warming building and will be testing top coats and kick wax at the race venue Saturday morning. Come by to get our latest test results and recommendations.
Note: BNS imports Holmenkol and SkiGo waxes, and also sells waxes from Swix, Toko, Rode, Solda, Rex, Guru, Innovax, Magnar and others. We search for the fastest waxes for our customers and our testing is professional, objective and transparent. We make our best effort to test what we think is the best from each brand. However, given that we are testing more options from Holmenkol and SkiGo, there is a bias toward those brands. With this full disclosure, you can assess the legitimacy of our testing yourself. Visit http://swixracing.us/nordic/waxrec.php and http://tokous.com/racewaxtips.htm for their official recommendations. If you have any questions please contact us.
Wax Recommendations
The are two types of wax recommendations: testing-based and forecast-based. It is important to distinguish the difference between the two so you know when you can trust them explicitly or when you might want to verify the suggestions with your own testing.
TESTING-BASED RECOMMENDATIONS
Testing-based recommendation are made by putting skis on snow in conditions that best represent race conditions and comparing waxes or other variables directly. This is done using a speed trap and/or by ranking the skis by how they feel on the snow. This type of recommendation is the most reliable as it is supported by data gathered in race conditions. As long as the tester does a professional job using matched test skis, you can generally trust this type of recommendation and follow these suggestions with confidence.
FORECAST-BASED RECOMMENDATIONS
Forecast-based recommendations are made by analyzing current snow conditions and the weather forecast without actual on-site testing. While this type of recommendation is useful, there is more room for error and the quality of the recommendation depends more on the experience and knowledge of the person making the recommendation. Fortunately, there is a lot of easily accessible weather information out there nowadays and an experienced wax tech can make a highly educated guess. But you should be aware of the qualifications of the person making the recommendations and what they base their assumptions. It is always smart to back up this type of recommendation with your own on-site testing and one or two alternatives in case the prediction is way off.