Measure how much you wish to shorten your poles before you remove the grips. Wrap your grip (if it is cork) in a plastic bag or saran wrap. Place handle into pot of boiling water for about 1 minute. Without burning your hands, twist grip off. If it is not coming off give it more time in heated water. Measure how many CM you wish to shorten pole by and mark on pole. Wrap that location with tape to prevent carbon from splintering mark again. Measure and mark on tape again. Cut with fine hack saw. Get heat sensitive pole glue and apply it to the top of pole shaft. Heat it with low temp heat gun. Twist grip on all the way and make sure it faces proper direction relative to the basket tip.
What is the Recommended Pole Height?
Start recommends skier’s body height in cm, less 20 cm for skate, and less 30 cm for classic as our Norm for most Recreational Racers. In most cases, this will, for adults, result in classic poles that reach the center of the shoulder bone. For skate the pole will reach around your mouth. This is measured with normal shoes on.
Do advanced skiers use taller poles than beginners?
For shorter races such as sprint; definitely yes. World Cup skiers can use 5-7.5 cm longer poles than recommended above. We have also seen a trend that World Cup skiers in general have increased their pole lengths the last decade. The reason is most likely the much stronger upper bodies for professional skiers these days, and shorter (sprint) tracks with fewer long sustained climbs. There are of course individual differences, but in general World Cup skiers use 2.5 cm longer poles than determined by the Norm above. But if you are a weekend warrior classical skiing long sustained climbs like at the Birkie be careful about chasing what World Cup skiers use in length. The norm is good.
Does technical ability change this?
Not really, but skiing with longer poles than recommended requires good technique.
Why do classical skiers use shorter poles than skaters?
In skating, bigger movements, greater speed, and always using two poles simultaneously allows you to use longer poles.
How is a ski pole length measured?
For most pole brands the length is measured from the tip (spike) of the pole to the top of the grip (not including any building height of the locking cap/wedge).
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