– Devon Kershaw and Ivan Babikov from Canada’s national ski team –
By 5:30 this afternoon when I ventured out to do some skiing, Frozen Thunder had received about 4 cm of new snow. The real stuff that falls from the sky! It made for a very enjoyable ski on my new zero skis which were made for these conditions.
My new zero skis worked perfectly in the fresh, moist snow
Skiing is a lot more fun when you have the right equipment for the conditions, and I’m now the proud owner of a pair of new Fischer zero skis from Lifesport. They are also known as hairys, at least that’s what Devon Kershaw called them when I stopped him and Ivan Babikov to take their picture. I think it’s pretty cool to be on Frozen Thunder with two of the best skiers in the world. We’ll be watching Kershaw and Babikov racing for gold medals in less than two months at the FIS Cross-country World Cup race which is coming to Canmore Dec 13 – 16.
There were still a lot of skiers on the trail at 6 pm
Zero skis are best in difficult wax conditions where it’s 0°C and warmer. I would consider it a luxury to have a pair of these. They glide a little better than my waxless fish scale skis in the soft snow, and they’re just a little bit easier to handle. Mine are last year’s model, so I got a good deal on them. Lifesport has skis for all conditions and the staff will give you good advice on what works for you. I think you could probably get a good deal right now on last year’s stock.
Maja from Camrose was getting adequate grip with red Toko hard wax
As for skiers using wax, I talked to Maja from Camrose who was having adequate success with red Toko. She reported occasional icing which had to be kicked off. The classic tracks were washed out for the most part, but it wasn’t anything to complain about.
I was surprised to see so many skiers making the rounds this late in the day. I’d guess there to be at least 40 of us still going strong at 6 pm.
Future world-cup skier Kaya and her parents were having fun on Frozen thunder
As I write this at 8 pm, it’s already -4 in Canmore, so I would expect Frozen Thunder will be in its best ever condition tomorrow morning after grooming and tracksetting occurs. The weatherman predicts a low of -8°C tonight and a high of -1°C tomorrow, so it may be possible to use my waxable skis for the first time this year.
Frozen thunder is open to the public for the entire day on Saturdays and Sundays. It’s reserved for training Mon – Fri from 9 – noon.
You can read more about the amazing Frozen thunder on the website of the Canmore Nordic Centre.
Skiers on Frozen thunder at the Canmore Nordic Centre
