<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=35Wujv_17fZ4eGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=35Wujv_17fZ4eGZ00" width="1200" height="600" >HUNTINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Flakes are falling, and people are sliding on snow. This time of year is Josh Burns’ Super Bowl.“I’ve geared my whole life to be on snow as much as physically possible,” he laughed, standing inside his old Huntington barn.On weekends, Burns is a bit of a backcountry thrill seeker. But during the work week, he’s an environmental scientist with a major focus on PFAS.“[There] have been studies that show that there’s PFAS chemicals found directly in the snowpack and in the soils at ski resorts,” he explained.PFAS — or forever chemicals — have been linked to serious health and environmental concerns. And oftentimes, they’re found in ski wax. Burns wanted to change that.“It’s an easy fix. We use 100% plant-based ski and snowboard waxes that also remove petroleum products,” Burns said. “There’s just no reason for that to be there.”Burns founded Sluff Wax to keep skiers and snowboarders moving with minimal environmental harm. From cold winter powder days to springtime slush, Sluff Wax is made for a variety of conditions.“Ski bases are really hard. So they’re meant to be really durable,” he said. “So if you don’t have wax on there, you’ll come to like a screeching halt.”There’s even a wax for skins if you’re going uphill.“If you’re doing multiple laps or just sometimes in like spring slush, your skin wax or your skins will get really wet and saturated. And so this will give you that little bit of extra water repellency,” Burns explained.Depending on how much you use each time, Burns says each block could last you for several years. Every kind starts with Vermont-grown sunflower seeds.“I wanted to find the right formulation to make our supplies as close to our shop as physically possible,” he said.Burns grows some sunflowers in his backyard and gets others from farmers in Huntington and Richmond. The seeds are pressed into an oil, winterized and solidified into a wax, ready to be melted onto your skis or board.Now in its third season, Sluff Wax has come a long way. “First season was giving it to friends, trying not to ruin their ski days,” he laughed. “And also just kind of out of the trunk of the car in Bolton Valley.”Nowadays, they’re in retail shops, ski service centers and available online.“There was a lot of R&amp;D, but good thing I love to get out on snow as much as physically possible,” said Burns.Just a stone’s throw from the backcountry on Camel’s Hump, Burns has tested Sluff Wax time and time again. But now, it won’t leave a trace.“We’re just kind of making a better world for the snow sports industry and for our surrounding communities,” he said.</div></body>

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HUNTINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Flakes are falling, and people are sliding on snow. This time of year is Josh Burns’ Super Bowl. “I’ve geared my whole life to be on snow as much as physically possible,” he laughed, standing inside his old Huntington barn. On weekends, Burns...

Made in Vermont: Sluff Wax

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HUNTINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Flakes are falling, and people are sliding on snow. This time of year is Josh Burns’ Super Bowl. “I’ve geared my whole life to be 

Made in Vermont: Sluff Wax

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