Optiwax Shows Its Ambitions By Putting Black UHF Tape On Market

If you’re a skier who never tried Optiwax glide tapes thus far – you really don’t have an excuse this upcoming season, as far as we’re concerned.

What is a glide tape? It is a highly fluorinated glide wax attached to a paper backing, which makes it extremely simple to apply. And economical too, if you remember how much high flouro waxes tend to cost.

For the upcoming season the Finnish racing wax producer is expanding its ” tapes line” with a new – and the most fancy – addition:

Here’s Black UHF tape

Says Jari Joutsen, founder & CEO of MJ Optima-Sport Oy:

“Last winter we wanted test out how hard wax material we can apply to the
tape with our methods and we also wanted see the limits how hard wax can be
that it can be get it in the ski. Glide tape UHF was the result of the
prototypes what we made. Product itself surpised us in how good it was on the
high speed – and the durability was even better than with our older tape
versions. After we delivered tapes to our partner teams it was immediately put to use
in races. Black UHF tape together with Optiwax Fluor Blocks bring it
podiums on the very wide range from disciplines Alpine, Ski Jumping and
XC-skiing, even on the highest level like World Champpionships,FIS World Cup races and Ski
Classic races.

Optiwax Glide tape concept offers waxing which have very wide working range and extreme
durability, that’s why it´s perfect waxing for marathon races. Weather and
snow conditions can change during the race and it can effect lot on the
glide if waxing have narrow working range. Marathon races are also long, so
most important thing is that function of the waxing is optimal at last
kilometers, sue durability is very important.

The last real test of the season was Nordenskioldloppet, where several skiers skied the whole 220km race with the tape. After the race their skis looked as they have hardly skied a few kilometers!”

things worth adding here:

– When Mr.Joutsen talks about racing – you better believe him. He run almost 50 FIS World CUP races in his skiing career, before getting a diploma in biomechanics and sport sciences from the University of Jyväskylä. These days Joutsen, 39 is one of the top “weekend racers” in Finland ( it’s hard to call a racer of this caliber “an amateur”)

– In keeping with unofficial but stronger than steel tradition in cross country skiing, professional teams and elite racers get the newest trinkets at least a season ahead of hobby racers and general amateurs. We don’t know whether it’s right, in other sports that time gap is often much shorter – but at least there are reviews and feedback from very strong testers.

– Optiwax chief tester last season was Emilia Lindstedt from all-female Team SkiProAm It looks like the relationship between Ms Lindstedt and the Finnish wax producer will be more formal/obvious this year

– The creators declare a whopping broad temperature range for the Black tape: +1…-20°C! That needs to be tried to be believed. What’s clear, as you could see from this chart, is that the UHF Black slots in nicely between the existing Glide Tape 1 and Glide Tape 2 on temperature chart

Unless you got a personal wax truck and a team of pro-waxers, you really ought to give new glide tape wax a try – the Optiwax company motto is very to the point: “Less time for waxing is more time for skiing “

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Have you tried Optiwax glide tapes and ready to share your opinion?