Yellow Snow Conditions (Wet, Slushy, Old Snow, +20°C to 0°C)
Yellow conditions occur when old snow is thoroughly saturated with water. It's slushy; it's wet; it's warm; it's old and usually coarse-grained and dirty. The temperature range for these conditions is 0C to... the warmest it can be with snow on the ground! 'Yellow' snow is heavily transformed. It has been through a melt/freeze cycle or two and has become corny or coarse-grained. Because the snow transformed, it tends to drain better than 'Pink' snow since the space between the individual ice crystals allows water to drain away. You're still dealing with a lot of water either way, so your main waxing consideration will be to get rid of water from the ski base! The big difference between pink and yellow conditions is the amount of dirt deposited on top of the snowpack. Choosing a wax with compounds to limit the effects of dirt is also key when waxing for yellow conditions.
-
Friction Characteristics
Physically, the wet snow crystal structure has the most rounded edges. This means kinetic friction is very low. The main source of friction in this snow type is suction friction from the vast amounts of liquid water between the ski base and the snowpack. The top priority for glide waxing for these conditions is getting rid of water from the bottom of the ski base. Waxes for this temperature range used to be physically softer (soft waxes are more hydrophobic than harder ones), but in recent years, glide waxes for this temperature range have become much harder to help keep ski bases free of dirt. Fluoro compounds are massively hydrophobic, so anything with fluorination will likely be an excellent choice. Adding aggressive structure to your ski base with a rill tool will have the biggest benefit to glide as the grooves and channels will give water an escape route. Often waxes with dirt-repellent compounds have a leg up on others since dirt builds upon the surface of the snow as it melts. Waxes with molybdenum or graphite tend to stay fast in yellow conditions over long distances.
-
Kick Waxing
Snow crystals in yellow conditions have melted into round, wet blobs. This makes finding a grip wax that is able to stick to snow crystals very tricky. The water surrounding the snow crystals acts as a lubricant, which is the equivalent of having oil on your brake pads. This means in order to find a kick wax that gets grip in this kind of snow; you'll have to get something as soft and sticky as possible: hence, klister! Hard wax is a no-go when the snow gets this wet, but rub skis (hairys or zeros), skin skis, and fish scales tend to work quite well if Klister isn't your thing. Again, a klister with Fluoros or other dirt and water-repelling compounds will help your grip wax glide.
Products for Yellow Snow Conditions
-
Guru Red Klister | 55g (5C/15C)
Regular price $39.95 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $39.95 CAD -
Swix Nordic Easy Liquid Glide
Regular price $27.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $27.96 CAD -
Save $7.49
Optiwax Eco Glide Tape (5C/-20C)
Regular price $22.50 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$29.99 CADSale price $22.50 CADSale -
Vauhti PRO LDR Liquid Glide | 80ml (5C/-10C)
Regular price $89.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $89.96 CAD -
Swix F4 Universal Liquid Wax
Regular price $29.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $29.96 CAD -
Swix Base Prep BP88 Melt Wax
Regular price From $34.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price From $34.96 CAD -
Swix PS10 Yellow, Melt Glider 0°C/+10°C
Regular price From $17.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price From $17.96 CAD -
Rode Silver Klister K50 | 60g (5C/1C)
Regular price $23.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $23.96 CAD -
MasterWax RACING FLUORFREE Wet | 20g (0C/-3C)
Regular price $149.95 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $149.95 CAD -
Vauhti RACE RED Klister | 60g (10C/-1C)
Regular price $45.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $45.96 CAD -
Vauhti RACE OLD SNOW LDR Liquid Glide | 80ml (5C/-10C)
Regular price $163.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $163.96 CAD -
Swix TS8 Liquid Red, -4°C/+4°C
Regular price $159.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $159.96 CAD -
STAR NEXT WARM Fluoro-Free Racing Melt Wax (0C/-5C)
Regular price From $45.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price From $45.96 CAD -
Ski*Go XC Yellow Hardwax | 45g (5C/-1C)
Regular price $13.99 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $13.99 CAD -
Rode SKIN SKI WAX SPRAY | 100ml (20C/-30C)
Regular price $39.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $39.96 CAD -
Vauhti RACE WET Liquid Glide Discontinued Version From 2021 Or Earlier | 80ml (10C/-1C)
Regular price $93.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$118.00 CADSale price $93.96 CADSale -
Swix HS10 Yellow, Melt Glider 0°C/+10°C
Regular price From $44.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price From $44.96 CAD -
Rex Wax NF11 Yellow Block Glider (10C/-2C)
Regular price From $104.00 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price From $104.00 CAD -
Rex TK-2251 World Cup Klister | 55mL
Regular price $45.00 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $45.00 CAD -
Vauhti Clean & Glide Liquid For Crown & Zero Skis | 80ml (10C/-1C)
Regular price $27.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $27.96 CAD -
Rode SKIN SKI CLEANER SPRAY | 100ml (20C/-30C)
Regular price $23.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $23.96 CAD -
Guru Silver (Red) Klister | 55g (5C/15C)
Regular price $44.95 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$0.00 CADSale price $44.95 CAD -
Gallium GIGA SPEED Maxfluor SUPER WET Liquid Glide 30mL (10C/-1C)
Regular price $228.00 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$285.00 CADSale price $228.00 CADSale -
Vauhti PRO WET Liquid Glide Discontinued Version From 2021 Or Earlier | 80ml (10C/-1C)
Regular price $69.96 CADRegular priceUnit price / per$89.96 CADSale price $69.96 CADSale