Prime Time Ski Club Column for Bethel Citizen 3/30/17
By Terri Messer
For further information contact:
Terri Messer at tmesser@aol.com or 207-671-0715
Quite a few Prime Time Ski Club members braved the cold wind this past week at Sunday River to enjoy great ski conditions and uncrowded slopes. A lodge break every few runs was enough to keep a small group of die-hards out on the slopes until early afternoon despite limited terrain due to lifts on wind-hold. More moderate temperatures are in the forecast so we might actually have spring skiing again. With snowmakers still supplementing Mother Nature, Sunday River should have plenty of skiing well into April.
As we near the end of another fun-filled ski season, it’s probably a good time to provide some tips on how to store your gear during the off-season, gathered from local ski shops. First of all, make sure that the bases of the skis are clean. Use a cloth or wet paper towels to remove the dirt and grime from spring conditions. After drying, cover the base and edges with wax. If you don’t want the bother of ironing on wax, there is a liquid wax with built-in applicator that works well. A year-end ski tuning is also a good idea so the ski shop can do the summer prep for you. Store your skis in a cool, dry place inside your house or condo away from sunlight, such as a closet. Avoid temperature extremes. Keep skis away from any surface that can emit moisture, such as concrete and some carpets. Separate your skis and stand them upright on their tips which are less likely to delaminate than the tails. A neutral position with no pressure on either camber or rocker is preferable, so do not hang skis by tips between two dowels or with the camber compressed by straps or ski brakes.
Make sure that the bindings are clean and don’t adjust the tension as was recommended in the 60s and 70s as manufacturers now design bindings to have continuous tension. And don’t forget your ski boots. Pull out the liners to make sure everything is completely dry, then buckle the boots snug enough to keep them in proper shape but not over-tightened as this can stretch the boot material. Store boots standing upright in a cool dry place and fill the boots with paper towels or crumpled plastic bags to prevent spiders, mice and dust from getting inside.
If you have heated boots or mittens and gloves, don’t forget to follow the directions that came with them to properly store the batteries during the off-season. For summer or long-term storage you usually charge the batteries overnight and then unplug them and store them without the recharger or heating element plugged in. Prior to use after long-term storage, perform a battery pack conditioning charge for 24 to 72 hours uninterrupted. Do not store battery packs at temperatures above 105° F and below freezing. Do not store recharger at temperatures below 14° F or above 149°F.
If you are looking for someone to ski with before you put your equipment away for the season, you can check out North Peak Lodge around 10:15 a.m. weekdays and, if that isn’t open, try Barker Lodge. Some club members also boot up in the Mahoosuc Room in South Ridge Lodge prior to 9 a.m. lift opening.
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