Toko: US XC Nationals Classic Sprint Report

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Although the overnight low was far higher than forecasted, once the day got going, the weathermen proved to be pretty much spot on.  In the early morning, the low was around 22f. The air temperature rose to a high of 36f during the day.  Snow temps went from 23f to 32f.  It snowed for much of the earlier part of the morning but then stopped just before the qualifying rounds which made for conditions that were easier than I had anticipated. The same was true for the heats – the conditions could have made for much more difficult waxing if it had continued snowing at 36f.  There was a front with lots of snow on it stuck in the mountains just west of Soldier Hollow, but it never broke through.

So, the waxing wax actually pretty straight forward when all was said and done.  For glide, our best solution was JetStream Yellow covered by HelX Yellow.  Of course the test results proved this, but this was a “no-brainer” knowing the waxes and the conditions.  For kick for the qualifying rounds, Nordic Gripwax Red was really good (free and with decent kick all the way up).  We applied it extra short to allow for the necessary speed from the top of the course to the finish line which was almost all downhill and flat.  For kick in the heats, we applied Nordic Gripwax Yellow covered by a thin layer of Red the same way as glide on the downhill and flats was paramount.

It’s been a great week!  Thanks for the organizing committee and the many volunteers for making the week run so smoothly and positively!