Skiing, whether on water or snow, is a fun, adrenaline-filled activity. To fully enjoy it, you need various gear, including skiing jackets, helmets, socks, and eyewear. Oftentimes, people overlook the ski gloves and pick whatever they find on sale. Well, albeit being a small accessory, they are crucial in making skiing easier and more comfortable. This is because they keep the hands warm and dry, impacting the skiing experience. In this article, we will discuss the five most common issues with ski gloves and how you can address them.
Table of Contents
1. Infiltration of Moisture
Moisture is unavoidable when it comes to skiing. It comes in various forms and sometimes infiltrates your gloves. After a few hours of skiing, your gloves will get damp and retain moisture. Even if they do not feel soaked, you must ensure they are completely dry.
One of the best ways to eliminate moisture is by air-drying the ski gloves. However, if you do not have time to air dry them, you can use boot dryers to remove the moisture. If you have been doing this and they still infiltrate moisture, it may be time to waterproof them.
You can restore their waterproofing ability by using water seals after conditioning them. This ensures that the conditioning oils are replenished before sealing them. Other options include using wax such as beeswax. While doing all this, you must follow the manufacturer’s instructions, as the gloves are made from different materials.
2. Poor Fit
There is nothing as stressful as wearing the wrong fit of ski gloves. Unlike pants and jackets, most people forget to measure and get the correct glove size. The wrong fit will make the skiing experience uncomfortable. To avoid this, you must ensure that you get the correct size.
Today, ecommerce stores have made information more accessible to you. As such, you get to know the material of the gloves you are about to purchase as well as the sizing. You can always use the size chart to find the correct fit.
If the gloves are too small, you can discard them and purchase a new pair from Snow + Rock. However, if they are big and have an allowance, you can use adjustment straps on the wrist so they can give a good fit.
3. Inadequate Dexterity
According to recent research, the most common skiing injury is on the thumb ligament. It happens when the skiing pole stresses the thumb in the event of a fall. This makes it more critical for you to get the right pair of gloves. One common reason you may miscalculate the pole grip is when your gloves lack adequate dexterity.
By definition, dexterity refers to the ease with which you can accomplish a task with your hands. While it is mostly a secondary consideration, you must be careful as it spells the difference between comfort and discomfort in your skiing experience.
If the gloves you get lack dexterity, they expose your hands and fingers to more risks. To avoid this, you need to go for gloves with articulated fingers or extensions. They are often made from high-quality material to offer more stability during skiing.
4. Cold Gloves
Do your gloves have enough insulation? There are different types of insulation when it comes to ski gloves. Most are insulated using wool, cotton, goose down, or fibre piles. While they are effective at first, they may begin to wear off after some time, making your hands feel cold during the activity.
To protect your hands from this, you need to insulate the ski gloves men and women options. Depending on your preference, you can use synthetic insulation as it is less expensive than down. It also insulates the gloves when wet and dries much faster. This makes the synthetic insulation a great option for snowboard and ski gloves men, kids and women categories.
If you do this and still feel cold, you can layer the gloves on the inside with a liner. This keeps your hands warm throughout while still absorbing any moisture.
5. Smelly Gloves
Ski gloves smell bad for different reasons. The most common one is that the sweat mixes with bacteria, making them smell terrible. This often happens when you do not have enough time to air them after your ski runs.
It also happens if they are not breathable or lack moisture-wicking capabilities. The best way to go around this is by giving them a deep clean from time to time. Depending on the material and manufacturer’s instructions, you can hand or machine wash them. Simply fill them with warm water and give them a technical wash for hand washing. You can also use a warm and damp sponge to gently scrub the dirt off.
For the machine wash, ensure you do not turn them inside out as it may damage the waterproofing abilities. Don’t forget to use odour-reducing sprays to keep them fresh.
Conclusion
As you can see, ski gloves are an instrumental part of the gear. The right pair will promote comfort and give you a fun and safe skiing experience. We have highlighted some of the most common issues you can encounter alongside ways to mitigate them quickly. With this, nothing can stop your skiing run!
