Pond Skimming: A How To Guide

Technical information provided by Dennis Nazari aka Dnaz

Pond Skim Backstory

Pond skimming is a fun activity that takes hold of skiers and snowboarders attention all across the world. It started back in the late 1920’s as a way for skiers to continually find fun on the hill even with a lack of snow towards the end of the season. As both sports have continued to grow and popularize, so has pond skimming. Its gone from simple skims that formed in small ponds of water somewhere on the mountain to now being one of the biggest days of the year with resorts full sanctioned man-made ponds with plastic lining, fencing, judges, and lifeguards! The early days of resort pond skim events had many people “making it” across with ease, so in recent years the ponds have grown in length, often include a drop-off to the water, and some have incorporated jibs, jumps, and obstacles to increase the challenge and number of spectacular wipeouts.

On the last day, many show up with funny costumes or themes, but at resort-sponsored pond skim events, most require you to show up in costume, which often plays into the judging if there are prizes or bragging rights at stake.

Thinking up an out-of-the box crazy costume makes it just that much more fun; add a good attitude, and it will always create a fun day in the sun and slush filled with hoots and hollers for anyone making it across or taking the hard slam, and being surrounded by good people can make pond skimming events one of the best days of the year!

How To Pond Skim

Pond Skimming is not nearly as hard as it seems, although the repercussions of wet boots and cold water can prevent most from even trying the key is to be prepared. Here’s a couple of tips for natural ponds and man made ponds to get your pond skimming career started,

1. Use the right board; watch anyone that didn’t make it, and you will notice the board did not float well or started to sway side to side once it hit the water, which in turn slows the board and reduces speed and makes the dreaded slow sink inevitable as you try to figure out how to get your bindings off without drowning. If you don’t have a snowboard specifically designed for pond skimming, it’s always best to use the same board you would use on a foot plus powder day; a longer directional board is best, and if it has rocker geometry, it’s even better. Use something longer with a longer drawn-out nose for float, and having a swallowtail will be the secret weapon allowing the board to stay flat and prevent side sway when you hit the water. Using a Libtech bird-man swallowtail, I have experienced acceleration upon hitting the water due to the geometry and shape of the swallowtail. The last thing you want to be on is your blunt-nosed park board, unless you just want to get wet.
2. Relax and have fun with it, when your coming in hot during the approach be aware of others, in the water trying to get out or retrieve lost gear or others coming in hot side by side hitting it to the closest bank so you live to skim another day, or at least don’t have to spend the rest of the day in wet boots. If you have an unobstructed run-in and the pool all to yourself, relax and think “float.” It will lighten your mind and let you fly further across the water with ease rather than if your minds clouded with fear and “what if’s,”  so relax that sphincter and skim the pond like it was any old snow groomer, and you will come out of it saying that was easy!
3. Speed, when it comes to pond skimming, speed is your best friend. If you’ve ever surfed or been on a wakeboard, you understand that it takes speed to stay on top of the water and keep moving forward to the other side of the pond, whether it’s 10 feet or 300 feet. It’s always better to have too much speed than not enough. With a traditional camber board geometry, the water creates more friction with your board or requires more weight on the back foot to eliminate side sway and keep the nose up, which can also slow you down. With that in mind, you want to be going into the pond skim with the idea that you WILL slow down, so keep that speed up if you want to stay dry.
4. To wax or not to wax? Spring snow and slush can be awesome unless you experience the “sticky factor” of slow grabby corn snow. There are cures for this, but it takes some education and awareness of the snow temps and conditions that create the grabby snow in the first place. But when it shows its ugly head, it’s a day ender for most. In a pond skim, having the brakes applied without your consent in the last 50 feet before hitting the water is a sure way to increase the chances of getting wet or deciding to abort the attempt, so being prepared with some go juice is imperative for having fun in spring corn snow. A lot of people say no wax and go with it, but having some warm temp wax or floro powder on hand can make all the difference in the world when it comes to keeping your board moving fast in the sticky stuff. At Salty Peaks, we sell a wide range of spring waxes and non-waxes; the one-ball jay trick wax is a consistent winner as well, as is the one-ball jay slush wax. Tap some floro powder on top of a fresh hot wax or a quick rub on wax and nothing will stop you, and you won’t be the one going home early because of sticky slush. Salty Peaks still has a stash of pre-ban fluoridated waxes and floro powder on hand since new production has been banned. (But you won’t find it on a shelf; you need to know the secret handshake and be a local in Salt Lake to crack the safe it’s stored in.) The use of nanotechnology is making headway into the p-tex to snow wax industry. Salty Peaks was the first snowboard shop to start applying the “Phantom waxless glide system” to boards. Even in the early days, there were failures of the product due to the application process, but with the new Phantom UV light-box cure station, the system works flawlessly. You just have to remember the base is wax-free, not maintenance-free, and still needs to be hydrated when it gets dry. That’s why it works so well in warm wet snow; it’s one of the best treatments for your board in the spring conditions because of the water content in the snow. A new, less expensive option is the Ghost Dynamic Wax, touting a patented nano-tech spray on wax. I’m not normally a fan of spray on waxes, but this stuff works great for a temporary afternoon of stick-free glide when things get slow.
5. Keep your base as flat as possible. When riding over water, it is vital to keep the base and edges as flat as possible. Catching and edge on water is the same as snow, but during a pond skim when your focused on the other side of the pond it catches you off guard and feels more like doing a drunk belly flop off a cliff dive, but in this case you don’t see it coming and you have less time to react, resulting in more pain and an underwater yard sale when you smack the water and explode in grand fashion. Staying low and pointing it straight with an eye focus on the landing ramp (the out) can help keep the board flat, straight, and moving fast. Stay relaxed and smooth; don’t overthink it.
6. Nose up, stay flat, and be powerful! As if it were the deepest powder day of your life. Keep that sucker running flat and fast into the water, and next thing you know, you will be back to sliding on snow on the other side in a matter of seconds! There’s usually an exit bump from the pond back to snow; when approaching the exit, stay loose and get ready to absorb it, or just keep the foot on the gas and launch some air, or throw a front flip for the extra crowed pleaser!
7. Weather is also a factor; it’s no big deal to be wet when it’s sunny and 70 degrees on the hill. But if it’s cloudy cold or the temperature is forecast to drop, getting wet in cold conditions can create its own dangers, so plan ahead and be in the know.
8. Be prepared. Whether you know you’re going to be pond skimming on the last day or it’s that time of year that natural ponds are forming and you might get guilt-ed into pond skimming by your brothers, being prepared is vital when it comes to pond skimming. Outside of the obvious, if you take a dip and your kits are done for the day, everything is soaked, and now your phone won’t work and your car won’t unlock because your fob key got submerged in water for an extended amount of time, not to mention the gushy feeling of riding around in wet boots. What’s the moral of the story? If your going to try pond skimming, have the mental focus to visualize making it and stick to it! But be prepared with an extra pair of boots, socks, zip-lock bags for electronics and fob keys, a towel, and a change of clothes. That’s always a good call, or at least something to throw on for the drive home in case you get soaked or bring extra snow gear to keep riding! Plan for the worst, visualize, and expect the best!

copyright dnaz2024

Big Pond Skimming Events in the US

Many resort’s across the US now have annual pond skim events in the spring time near closing day,

Some of the most popular are:

Solitude Ski Resort, UT

Brighton Resort, UT

Park City Resort, UT

Vail Resort, CO

Mammoth Mountain, CA

Spring Fest, Stevens Pass, WA

Slush Cup, Mt Baker, OR

The Cushing’s Crossing, Palisades Tahoe, CA

There are natural pond skims that form up as the snow melts out some of the most consistent and longer natural ponds that show up at resorts every year are:

Anderson’s Pond, Snowbird, UT

Lake Reveal, Arapahoe Basin, CO (pictured below)

Photo credits Dnaz

Never know what you’ll find in this water!

Dnaz clearing the long way consistently on the lib tech “birdman” swallowtail.

This is Salty Peaks founder Dennis Nazari ripping A-Basin’s Lake Reveal in June of 2024. If you watch, you’ll see that when he hits the water he stays calm, maintaining a flat base as well as his speed. His weight is evenly dispersed over his backfoot, just like on a powder day. He even threw in a toe-side minislash for some extra points.

For more than 35 seasons, Dennis has been an end-of-season fixture at Brighton, Solitude, Snowbird, Mammoth, and A-Basin as the snow melts out and resorts start to close in the never-ending chase for slush, which is as addictive as a deep powder day or snowboarding itself.

Wherever there is snow on a mountain, there will be ponds to catch the melting snow. Timing is key to finding the accessibility, snow that still goes to the edge of the water, and sufficient water to make the skim fun and challenging.

You always want to think about safety first, as pond skimming can be dangerous. The snow can hide rocks and other hazards just below the surface on the run in or in the water. Rocks, trees, and other debris in the water can be a hazard, and the landing/eexit ramp is always better when it has snow!

Always plan to get wet and prepare for that possibility by being mindful of what you have on your electronics, like your phone. Earbuds can be costly if they get wet or lost, but even things like sunglasses, hats, and other items can easily sink to the bottom, never to be found again if you take a dip. Use of zip-lock bags or other water-proof containers for electronics is always a good idea, or just empty your pockets for a friend.

Weather is also a factor; it’s no big deal to be wet when it’s sunny and 70 degrees on the hill. But if it’s cloudy cold or the temperature is forecast to drop, getting wet in cold conditions can create its own dangers, so plan ahead and be in the know.

Pond Skimming Videos

Pond skims are done all over the world, and most are not sanctioned events; therefore, there’s a lot of awesome footage displaying some crazy skims. Here’s a video of some summer fun. Find your spot and make a day of it!

Here’s a video of some of the Mervin crew claiming the longest pond skim “in the world” we might have to break out the tape measure on this one!

Additional Info

Pond skimming doesn’t stop there. As you may have seen on the internet, some get a little carried away with the pond skim and add in obstacles. Those obstacles range anywhere from little kickers at the end of a pond to throwing a trick; others throw in entire rails, so you’re almost guaranteed to fall in if you can’t finish the rail. At the end of the day, it’s a party trick and an excuse to hang with the homies in the sun!

Tech info provided by Dennis Nazari, shop guru, pond skim aficionado and north shore slush surfers founder.