GUIDED BY GOODLAD
The Ski Club’s Alpine Safety Advisor Bruce Goodlad on how to prep
your kit – and your body – for an exciting winter ahead
PHOTO bruce goodlad
I’m writing this in Zermatt, about to start some summer guiding work. The hills above me look the snowiest I have seen late summer for about 20 years so, despite global warming, I can’t help but get excited about the snowy season.
Looking ahead to winter, I can feel the pent-up enthusiasm radiating from every Ski Club Member desperate to clip into their skis and enjoy some time in the mountains. Many of you will have missed two seasons because of the pandemic, so you’ll want to maximise your time in the mountains and ensure every turn counts.
When planning and preparing for next winter there are a few things that you want to think about. First, can you remember where you put all your kit?! Once you do dig out your clothes, check that they haven’t been eaten by moths or mice.
You may think I’m joking but having once had an expensive boot liner turned into a mouse’s nest, I now store everything in mouse-proof plastic boxes. Next, we’ll look at the different things to check before you head for the mountains.
Taking the time to do these simple checks will make a huge difference to your first trip back to the snow. Not only will you be safer, you’ll benefit from peace of mind as you set off on that first run, knowing that you and your kit are prepared for the next adventure.
KIT CHECK
Clothing
It sounds daft but it’s important to check your clothing is functional (notwithstanding mouse and moth damage), particularly the zips. Zips are prone to corrosion, particularly if kit isn’t stored completely dry or if you ended the last season skiing near salt water.
If your outer layers are a bit old, treat them to some reproofing. There are some great wash-in products out there. My favourites are from Nikwax, but all brands seem to work pretty well and easily add a season to the life of your kit.
AVALANCHE SAFETY KIT
Transceiver
Hopefully you remembered to take your batteries out of your transceiver when you put it away. If not, find it and do it now!
Unfortunately, batteries do leak and, if they have, you’ll need to go shopping, as anything that can affect the working of your transceiver means you need to retire it and get a new one.
The next thing is to check when your unit was last serviced. All transceivers should be serviced every three years and replaced after 10. I can hear sharp intakes of breath, but just think how often you replace your mobile phone, which is significantly more expensive – why scrimp on lifesaving equipment?
Shovel
Check your shovel for signs of corrosion, especially around the welds. Also make sure the handle slides easily in and out – use WD40 to ensure the sprung locking pin that holds the handle in place moves super smoothly.
Probe
Get your probe out and deploy it a few times to make sure there’s no corrosion, and to remind yourself how to do so quickly and efficiently.
All too often on avalanche courses, the avalanche probe proves to be the forgotten upgrade in people’s kit. A probe should be a minimum of 240cm long and the cord in the middle that locks it solid should be made of wire or dyneema fibre so it doesn’t stretch.
The probe should lock out easily in one movement and have no screw-in end caps. If made of carbon fibre, it should have a thick cross section as the thin race-style models get deflected by lumps when probing in avalanche debris.
Remember: every second counts in avalanche rescue so we shouldn’t be burning time putting our probe together.
ABS bag
Airbag packs should be thoroughly inspected. I suggest deploying the bag – a refill cylinder isn’t very expensive and the practice could prove to be an invaluable reminder. Once deployed, inspect all the attachment points, ensuring the crotch strap is securely attached to the bag.
Skis
I’m sure you all remembered to wax your skis at the end of last season… If you didn’t, it’s not too late – I just iron on a thick layer of mid-temperature wax, which keeps the bases from drying out and protects the edges from corrosion. All you need to do is remember to scrape them before you head for the mountains, or at least have a scraper with you in case you forget. I have scraped a summer’s coat of wax off plenty of pairs of skis in car parks at the bottom of lifts before heading for the first turns of the season.
If you didn’t service your skis at the end of the season, now is the time – do it before heading for the mountains!
If you service them yourself, fill any holes with P-Tex, scrape them smooth, do your edges and then give them a wax. If you don’t have the kit or don’t know what you're doing, get someone to show you – it’s really easy and saves loads of money.
If you aren’t comfortable servicing your own skis, find a local shop to give them an edge and wax. Personally, I never have my skis machine serviced or belt ground unless they are in a total state, as sanding the bases takes too much out of the life of the ski. In the words of the Ski Club’s Andy Jerram: “Never trust a Frenchman with a belt sander.”
Bindings
Bindings are arguably one of the most important, and undervalued, pieces of your ski kit. When badly adjusted, they could cost you a damaged leg (I speak from experience) or just waste valuable ski time sorting them out.
In a perfect world you will have unwound the DIN setting screw for summer hibernation, in which case don’t forget to tighten it back up. I forgot at the start of one season and ended up in the netting on a tight turn. Apparently it was quite impressive as both skis parted company with my boots as I pushed hard into a turn.
Check all the mounting screws. If any of them are loose, remove them, drop in some epoxy glue (Araldite) and screw them back in again. Not only will this hold the screws in place, it stops any moisture getting into the ski. Check all the other screws on the binding and, if any are loose, a drop of Loctite will keep them in place. Then grease all the moving parts – most manufacturers clearly detail how to do this on their website.
If you’ve bought new ski boots, make sure they fit your bindings. It sounds obvious but I recall two occasions where new, smaller boots were purchased by clients and, while they sort of fitted, the bindings failed every time pressure was applied. On one of those occasions it finished a day before it even got started, but on the other it was during a hut tour and cost us two days, because the ski kept falling off and we eventually had to descend to a valley to get the bindings re-drilled.
Skins
During the season, I waterproof my skins at the end of every week to help prevent them from absorbing water and freezing or balling up. I would advise giving yours a pre-season coat now. While you’re prepping them, check the glue is still working. If it isn’t, maybe give it a top up or, if it’s lost too much of its stick, pay a shop to replace it.
Some people find it easy to replace the glue, but I always end up with a mess so I’m happy to pay someone to do it! Also check the tip and tail attachments.
If they’re made of rubber, check if they’re perished as they’re guaranteed to fail at the most awkward time possible. If there are any nicks or small cuts, it’s time to replace those parts and avoid any disasters on the hill.
If you’ve bought new skis with different dimensions to your old ones, you will almost certainly have to buy new skins. When the skin is fitted to the skis, you should just be able to see the metal edges, with about 2mm of ski showing on either side of the skins (about the width of the edge). If there is too much edge showing, the ski may slide out from under you on firm snow when you try to grip with your edges.
Poles
It’s a minor thing but check your poles for damage and make sure the baskets are well attached. If the straps annoyed you last time you skied with them, change them now rather than waiting until you want to go skiing.
Boots
Inspect your boots for cracks or damage and then make sure all the screws are tight. I usually unscrew and Loctite everything that can be undone. Stick your hand inside the liner and check for wear and rough patches, which can signal the start of terminal wear.
PRE-SEASON TRAINING
Your body
Anyone who knows me will find the idea of pre-season training a bit of a joke, but I’ll let you into a dirty little secret: I use a personal trainer to get strong for the season (he is very reasonable and I share him). The pain and suffering inflicted while doing squat jumps carrying a bar bell that weighs about the same as my daughter definitely pays dividends when I clip in ready for the first turns of the season.
You don’t actually need a sadistic Frenchman to get you ready for the season, although it does double as some kind of French lesson… All you really need is to do some form of leg exercise. Biking and running are great, but more targeted ski-focused programs – like those you can find at befitapps.com/skifit/ – can make a huge difference. Not only will you enjoy your skiing more, you’re also much less likely to get injured if your muscles are trained and ready.
Avalanche Rescue
Don’t wait until it’s hosing with snow and the avalanche forecast is high before reminding yourself how to use your rescue kit.
Instead, familiarise yourself with all your kit in the garden – hiding transceivers under leaves might be a poor substitute for on-snow training but it’s a good way of reminding yourself how to use the kit and checking it all works. And a bit of pre-departure training will make your practice when you do get to the snow slicker and quicker. Just make sure you don’t get over excited at the first sight of snow and skip your rescue practice.
NEW KIT
The reality of skiing in this Covid age is that you'll most likely need a face mask to get on ski buses, queue and ride the lifts, and access restaurants. Most ski areas will accept community masks, so getting a shaped neck warmer that uses appropriate fabric makes this easy. Effectively it’s a neck buff with a face mask woven into it, so you can just pull it up when needed.
All photographs accompanying this feature were taken by Bruce Goodlad during the winter of 2020/21, in areas located within a short drive from his home in the French Alps.