We've got 4-5 inches of powder. I haven't been skiing since I was a kid and was wondering if this is enough snow to go out this weekend? What are the guidelines for snow depth? I can't find anything on this on the net, amazingly.
We've got 4-5 inches of powder. I haven't been skiing since I was a kid and was wondering if this is enough snow to go out this weekend? What are the guidelines for snow depth? I can't find anything on this on the net, amazingly.
If you are renting skis, then it is probably ok. I wouldn't use good skis on 4-5 inches though because you'll get chips in the bases that can't be fixed. I'd only use good skis on 8 inches or more of snow. Just an opinion. You might go to xcskworld.com and go on their forum. The author of the website, JD Downin is well-known as an instructor and author of training for skiing.
There are several dependencies. If you're skiing on grass, say a golf course, then a few inches is plenty to go out and kick around. If you're skiing trails with roots and rocks you'll probably need 6" or more. If you're skiing at commercial area, they'll roll the trails for skating, but won't be able to set tracks until they've received a foot or so.
With thin cover over rocks and such, there is the danger of snagging a rock and dinging the skis, but modern ski bases can take a lot of abuse. I worry less about damaging the skis due to hitting something than I worry about damaging myself from the resultant tumble. For recreational skiing, base damage won't slow you down all that much anyway. I recently retired a pair of "rock skis" that were literally missing a couple inches of the base. For me, finding days to ski is a lot more precious than babying my skis.
One caution. If the ground hasn't frozen yet, there's a strong possibility of the snow clumping on your skis. Maxi-Glide or similar product helps resist this on waxless skis and the floridated waxes help if you're waxing.
I'm getting rentals. Hopefully they will give them to me.