How to easily avoid pole slips

Ola Pettersson
2026-04-13T19:46:58+02:00

Stop slipping on the asphalt! Pole slips are the roller skier's equivalent to "bakhalt" (slippery wax). Here we show you how to easily sharpen your pole tips with a diamond file to get a perfect grip and increased safety on the road.

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Guide to sharp roller ski tips

No one likes pole slip. Not only is it frustrating – it can actually make you fall or damage your poles if they suddenly catch again.

The solution? A proper diamond file that combines the cutting power of a file with the precision of a diamond sharpener.

Sharpen your ski poles now

In the video below, I show how to fix the problem quickly and restore perfect grip on asphalt.

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Why do roller ski tips get dull?

The tips are extremely hard to withstand thousands of impacts against asphalt – which is both good and necessary. The downside is that they are also very resistant to sharpening, which makes it easy to get lazy and only sharpen near the very tip.

The result is that the angle becomes more rounded over time, and eventually the tip loses its grip on asphalt.

To solve this, I use our double-sided diamond file. One side is coarse for fast material removal, and the other is a 300 grit diamond sharpener for finishing and stability where the file tends to “bounce”. By following the original angle until the surfaces meet, the tips become like new again – over and over.

Pro tips for longer durability:

Sharpen often and lightly: It’s much faster and you’ll never have to deal with completely dull tips.

Maintain the angle: Let the file rest flat against the original bevel.

Use both sides: The coarse side removes material, the fine side finishes the edge without making it too aggressive.

Sharpen your ski poles now