Ski wax Rettenbachgletscher — Sölden
The World Cup opener on the Rettenbach glacier, starting at around 3,000 m, is among the highest races on the calendar. October glacier snow under intense autumn sun means a wide spread between the shaded start slope and the sunlit finish — the snow temperature can change by several degrees over the course.
Calculated from current conditions — snow temperature, snow type and moisture for 2,675–3,250 m.
To the recommendation for Rettenbachgletscher (Sölden)Why snow temperature decides on the Rettenbachgletscher
Race waxes are specified for narrow snow-temperature windows — a few degrees decide whether a base runs or goes blunt. Snow temperature deviates systematically from air temperature: at night the slope radiates heat and cools below the air temperature, during the day sun position, exposure and slope angle warm the surface. raceday.ski computes this evolution with a 3-layer energy-balance model and, for Sölden, takes into account the terrain-derived horizon profile (shading) and the altitude of the calculation point — both validated against terrain models in a catalogue-wide quality assurance.
What this means for ski preparation
For race use, raceday.ski recommends a complete system of preparation, base wax, race wax, optional powder top layer and finish — tuned to snow temperature, snow type and moisture class at start time. The start time is an input of its own: a run at 10:00 runs on different snow than a floodlit slalom in the evening.
More World Cup slopes
Go deeper
- Methodology — how raceday.ski computes the snow temperature
- Wax temperature tables — all products from Swix, Toko, Holmenkol, HWK and Rex