Jimmy Krupka here, reporting live! I’m a former U.S. Ski Team athlete, racing Europa Cups (at least one World Cup and hopefully more) all season with my new team, World Racing Academy. While I certainly don’t pretend to know everything, I have spent the past six years on the U.S. Team, gathering intel from various industry insiders and World Cup technicians.

In August, I had a quiver full of new skis and a couple of pairs I’d skied on earlier in the summer. New Zealand delivered solid training. Unfortunately, it felt like I was learning to ski GS all over again. As I later discovered, as in this case, the skis are often the problem. Other times—and this has also happened to me—you’re the problem. The worst part is not knowing what is to blame. So, to rule out the former problem this winter, let’s get our equipment ship-shape to start the year, shall we?

Step One: Are the skis new?

Remember that race skis come unprepared. The sidewall must be pulled back, tips and tails must be shaped, and the side edge must be tuned. Some ski clubs, ski shops, and academies offer these services, but you can also tackle this yourself. You can check out a previous TOKO Wax Room article to get you started: New Ski Preparation: Shaping and Sidewall Preparation. This is important; skis will only carve correctly with proper preparation.

Are the skis old, but you haven’t pulled second-edge? Remember that most race skis require consistent use of the sidewall planer (Toko Sidewall Planer World Cup) to peel back the metal layer directly above the edge. If you don’t, the second edge will dull and clog your file (or tuning machine). Worse, if it’s never maintained, it could slowly turn your 3-degree side edge into a 2-degree. That is a terrible thing, especially if you’re skiing on ice.

Click on image to enlarge

Step Two: You probably need a base grind.

If you’ve skied on a pair for at least a year without a grind, your base bevel is probably much bigger than where it started. Base concavity may have increased as well. If the skis are new, they’re probably fine—but if you don’t mind paying, there’s no harm in getting a grind after a few days on snow (the time on snow will allow the ski to break its glue, bend and settle into its final shape).

Typically, race ski base bevels come around 0.3-0.6 degrees from the factory. 0.3 is about as aggressive as World Cup slalom skiers will go; 0.5 is typical for GS. 0.5-0.7 is a good mid-range for a typical racer. 1.0 degrees is more typical for speed skiers or skiers on styrofoam-ey Colorado snow. Anything above 1.5 degrees for a high-level racer is much too high.

Measuring your base bevel is very tricky. Try to find someone who knows what they’re doing. A true bar (bring it flush to the base edge and eyeball the angle) is an okay place to get a rough estimate. A guide to base grinds can be found here: TOKO Wax Room: do you need a stone grind?

Step Three: What’s your setup?

Because of my setup, there are far too many training camps and race series I wish I could take back—including part of my aforementioned New Zealand camp. The biggest problem is simply making sure that everything matches. That is, all your skis this season match those from last season— same bindings, binding position, toe height, heel height, plate, ski model, base bevel, side edge bevel, etc.

Sometimes, you can’t control the equipment you buy or receive and it will vary. But measuring and writing down every detail will ensure you know what’s up. Are you suddenly slow in slalom? There’s a chance you should have worked out more over the summer. But there’s also a good chance that your bindings are mounted one hole forward from last year and it’s messing with your feeling.

Step Four: Wax ‘em up!

Give your skis a good tune and wax, and if they’re new, it’s worth giving them a proper wax prep: Initial Waxing of New or Freshly Ground Skis. And don’t forget that keeping your skis in great shape involves constant vigilance and care.

Of course, the fifth step is to go out there and rip some arcs. Yewwww!

• Jimmy