Snowboard season is almost here again! I'm so stoked! I can't wait...
One of the really surprising statistics that I've heard floating around, is a statistic that says that about 90% of all snowboarders don't bother to wax their snowboards. In my eyes, that's pretty close to sheer insanity.
Why?! Because waxing your snowboard makes snowboarding a lot more fun. It definitely makes your life easier. It's also a hell of a lot safer. Well, if you could be safer, make your life easier, and have more fun doing it... why wouldn't ya...?!
The big misconception out there is that waxing your snowboard is expensive, messy, and difficult to do. And sure: It can be. But that doesn't necessarily mean that it has to be.
Snowboards are waxed using two methods. One, is the "hot-waxing" method. This one can be expensive, messy, and time-consuming. I know, because I hot-wax my boards several times a year. But, the one thing that it is not, is "hard to do". Indeed, there's literally hundreds of articles out there that'll show you how to hot wax a snowboard. Hot-waxing does result, though, in a much deeper base cleaning (the heat draws out old wax, and embedded impurities), and longer-lasting wax (due to creating a better bond between the base, and the wax).
But there's also a second way to wax a snowboard. And that's the "rub on" method. That one, is super-easy to do. Here's the quick tutorial:
The stuff you'll need (clockwise from top left): Base cleaner (Simple Green works great, it's available at any hardware store for about $5), "Scotch-Brite" (I use "Spontex", it's less abrasive... about $3 from your local grocery store); Wax (Hertel Hotsauce, in this case... $13 for a 5-oz bar that'll last you most of the season); A rag (terry cloth, $3 at the grocery); And, a scraper (Burton, at your local snowboard shop, about $6).
That's about $30, but it's gonna last you the better part of the season. It's money well spent.
Here's a quickie tutorial on how to "properly" wax a board using the rub-on method. Cleaning the board and scraping off wax build-up aren't usually emphasized, but they're definitely important.
I get asked several questions every year about waxing snowboards. They include:
How much does wax cost, and how long does it last?
I usually buy 180-gram bars, just because I wax my boards so often. A 180-gram bar costs no more than thirty bucks, and usually lasts me a whole season. Sometimes, even longer than that.
Hertel offers 3/4 lb. (340 gram!) "bricks" of Hot Sauce for $21, for those of us that really like to go nutty with the shit.
How many sessions do you get out of a wax job?
A good hot-wax might last a few sessions... but, that depends. Snow conditions are the biggest variable when it comes to how long a wax will last. Here in the midwest, we have a lot of man-made snow and ice. That stuff is pretty abrasive, and scrapes wax off very quickly.
How often do you [personally] wax your board?
I wax my boards religiously after every session... mostly because of the snow conditions that I experience here in Indiana. Sometimes, I'll even do a quick rub-on after I have lunch, midway through a session. I keep a small block on me at all times, because the snow here is so harsh that you can literally feel the board getting slower as the day progresses. And man, do I hate going slow...
How long does it take to wax a board?
Rubbing it on? A couple of minutes, tops. Hot-waxing? Maybe half an hour. It's not as bad as it seems. And it's actually kind of fun, too, once you get it all figured out.
Do you do your own board-tunes, as well?
Yeah, I tune my board up every time I hot wax. Again, it's pretty easy to figure out.
You must save hella money on maintenance...!
Yeah, I do. A wax at a snowboard shop can easily run between ten to twenty bucks. A full-board tune can be up to forty. The savings of doing it yourself add up real quick.
This much longer tutorial (by the guys at Hertel) demonstrates good hot-waxing techniques. The overall principles are still the same: Clean, apply, scrape, and buff. Hot waxing results in a deeper-penetrating wax that lasts longer, and more thoroughly conditions the base. On the minus: It's messy, it involves hot irons (that can ruin a base if not used properly), and it's not exactly "convenient" (you need a power source, a dedicated work area, etc).
Most snowboarders do both. Hot wax when they have the time and they're at home, and rub-on when they don't have the time, or they're on the road.
The most important question of them all, though, is "Why bother waxing in the first place...?!" Truthfully...? There's a few really good reasons why waxing your board is a super-smart idea.
First of all, it helps your board feel newer, longer. Whether you realize it or not, all snowboards come from the factory, waxed. Take my new Lib Tech Skunk Ape, for example. Right on the bottom, there's a sticker that says, "Factory waxed with One Ball Jay". It not only tells you that it's waxed, but even tells you which wax they used on it. Some snowboards come with a similar sticker... but, all of them come waxed.
Wax helps to protect your base from the elements. Not just snow and water, but also the particulates that are always present in the snowpack. Dust, dirt, sand, pollen... this is all "grime" that can easily become embedded in your base, without wax. All of these things will slow your ass down.
Wax also helps protect your board from much larger objects that might be hidden in the snowpack. Tree limbs and trunks, large rocks, twigs... these things can all gouge your base, which could lead to some pretty hefty repair bills. Wax, being a lubricant, helps your board easily glide over these types of "foreign objects", minimizing (or even eliminating) the damage they can do to your board.
Mostly, though, wax is used to increase the performance of the board. The obvious thing that wax does, is help you go faster. This has clear advantages to all sorts of snowboarders. Pipe riders, of course, can get much bigger air if they're going faster. Jumps are easier to clear, if you're going faster. Since wax is a lubricant, sliding around on jibs, boxes, and rails also becomes a hell of a lot easier. In the backcountry, wax helps you sail through the flats that might ordinarily stop you dead, and require you to de-strap and hike to the next hill. Wax also helps you keep your speed up in deep powder. This can all filed under "having more fun", and maybe even "smoking your buddies".
This Hertel ad illustrates why waxing your board is such a good idea. It's a fact that it takes approximately 28 lbs. of force to move an unwaxed snowboard through snow. If I'm not mistaken, this assumes a 180 lb. snowboarder, on snow between 0 and 34 degrees f.
The top line represents this 28 lbs. of force. Now: Note the other three lines. Obviously, Hertel uses this ad to show that their waxes are superior to everybody else's. But, here's the conclusion that I get out of it: Even the "worst" wax in the world cuts that resistance by at least a third, while Hertel's waxes cut it by around 60%. That, is a huge reduction.
Imagine your board being [at least] 30% faster. Or, 30% easier to turn, and stop. Imagine riding 30% longer, or feeling 30% less tired at the end of the day. How about, 30% bigger airs? Those are the kinds of numbers that you can expect, from a well-waxed snowboard.
Besides increasing straight-line speed, wax also cuts resistance to turning, which makes it far easier to maneuver the board. This reduces the amount of effort you need to physically move the board around, which also goes a long way to reducing fatigue (leg-burn), and can even go a long way to minimizing- even eliminating- common injuries. This can all be filed under "making snowboarding less of a pain in the ass".
Making the board easier to turn, also does something that actually seems counter-intuitive to most snowboarders: It helps you stop the board faster, too. Which has it's own advantages in those do-or-die situations that snowboarders find themselves in from time to time (the good ones, at least). Trees, boulders, cliffs, steeps, booger-headed bastard little skier poofs... their bastard, clueless, inattentive frickin' parents... all of these things are "natural obstacles" that you might need to avoid at some time or another. Wax helps you reel that board in, and make quick-acting decisions on the fly. This can all be filed under "making snowboarding safer for everyone, even those dumb fucking skiers".
More fun. Less pain-in-the-ass. Safer for clueless idiots. Fairly inexpensive, and fast. If waxing does so much good, for so little, then why isn't everyone doing it...!?
Answer is: Everyone should.
