Pollen?

FWIW, I have numerous friends and acquaintances that never wax, use Zardoz or Rain-X, etc and have lots of fun.

It's awesome to know that Zardoz NOTwax is still on the market.  R.I.P. Paul Ramer:

www.zardoznotwax.com/what-is-notwax/the-history.php

My brother Carl knew Ramer and he told me NOTwax was derived from a lubricant used for computer disk drives.

Ramer really was a mad scientist skier.

...any idea what this black goop is? picked it up on my skis Saturday doing a few quick laps at Stevens Pass. I ended up using Tarminator (automotive bug and tar remover - it's what I had available in my garage) and it worked. But I've never seen anything like this on my skis before. I didn't see any unusual patches of anything that looked like this, just the usual dirty spring snow.

Blizz, if you were skiing on the runs groomed during the season, it is likely a combination of hydraulic fluids and fuel that fall on the snow all winter. In the spring this crap starts rising up to the surface and bingo, yuck!

If is off the groomed runs then it be pollen and can become epic.

In both cases, a good rain storm helps clean the snow.

Narrower skis seem better in these conditions.

Keep scrapers handy...

Andy , those gloves are contaminated with bar oil ! The lab coat is a nice touch ! Mad scientist at work.

Andy , those gloves are contaminated with bar oil ! The lab coat is a nice touch ! Mad scientist at work.

Nope, those wonderfully comfortable Stihl soft leather gloves with breathable tops are dedicated waxing gloves that serve to keep skin oils off ski bases and edges [and to protect my hands; I have a different pair for running the chainsaw]; I use disposable nitrile gloves for quick edge work.  The white coat mildewed when I left it in my shop and has been replaced with a dark gray technicians short-sleeved shirt for hot days and a heavy mechanics shop coat for cold days

BTW, Stihl makes a lightly armored mechanic's glove I use for dirt & gravel biking.  I've started using Kobalt mechanics glove with armored fingers and lightly padded palms for splitting firewood and kindling.  I really like goatskin gloves but have yet to find a pair that would last a season of handling firewood.  While working on my motorcycle, I decided it was unwise to subject my hands to solvents, gas, oil, etc. so I use heavy duty rubber gloves for working on the bicycles and the chainsaw and a different lighter pair for extended use in the shop on skis.

Andy, I love how you plunge yourself into your craft. Very inspiring. Definitely one of my retirement projects. Thanks for the stoke.