WAXFAX Podcast — WhiteGold™: The Olympic Wax That Made the Establishment Nervous
WAXFAX PODCAST
WhiteGold™ — The Olympic Wax That Made the Establishment Nervous
Welcome to WAXFAX…
where skiing, science, speed, and controversy collide.
Today we are talking about the product that changed everything for Hertel Ski Wax — and made the ski establishment so uncomfortable that Terry Hertel was told, directly and without ambiguity, to leave the industry.
WhiteGold™.
Where It Came From
WhiteGold™ was developed as part of Hertel's All Temperature® system — the same foundational chemistry that powers Super HotSauce™ and every other product in the Hertel lineup.
The All Temperature® system was built on a single insight: snow conditions change constantly throughout the ski day, and a wax formula that manages friction and water film across the full range of those conditions — without requiring temperature selection or product switching — will outperform any temperature-specific system on a real mountain.
WhiteGold™ was the expression of that insight at the highest level of competitive winter sports.
The Burton Connection
In the late 1980s, Burton Snowboards was the most influential force in competitive snowboarding. Its team of elite riders was defining what the sport looked like at the World Cup and Olympic level.
Craig Kelly. Mike Jacoby. Nora Brandon. Jeff Brushie. Jonny Mosley.
These were the riders who were setting the standard for competitive snowboarding — and they were doing it on WhiteGold™.
According to Terry Hertel, Burton's team adopted WhiteGold™ because it delivered something their previous waxes could not: consistent, reliable glide across the variable conditions of competitive snowboard events. The all-temperature formula meant technicians did not have to guess at conditions or carry multiple products. WhiteGold™ handled whatever the mountain delivered.
The results on the competition circuit were impossible to ignore.
Calgary 1988
The 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics were a defining moment for snowboarding as a competitive sport — and for Hertel Ski Wax.
WhiteGold™ was part of the performance equation for athletes competing at the Olympic level. The results — gold medal performances — put Hertel on the map at the highest level of international winter sports competition.
For an independent American wax company operating outside the established European ski industry supply chain, that kind of Olympic validation was extraordinary.
The establishment noticed.
Lillehammer 1994
Six years later, at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics, the story continued.
WhiteGold™ was again part of the performance equation at the Olympic level. Two Olympics. Gold medal performances. The same independent American formula, validated twice on the world's biggest stage.
By this point, the friction between Hertel and the established ski industry had become significant. An independent American company was outperforming the established European wax supply chain at the Olympic level — and the established players were paying attention.
The Moment Everything Changed
According to Terry Hertel, the pushback came directly and without subtlety.
After major racing successes connected to WhiteGold™ technology, Terry Hertel was told by leadership tied to the ski establishment to “get the fuck out of the industry.”
Not a legal threat. Not a formal complaint. A direct, personal message from people with the power to make life very difficult for an independent manufacturer — telling him that his success was not welcome.
That is what happens when an outsider disrupts a deeply entrenched industry from the inside. Not with inferior products. With products that are too good.
The Suppression That Followed
For years after the Olympic successes, WhiteGold™ and other Hertel products were largely invisible in mainstream ski media, retail channels, and race room conversations.
Not because they stopped performing. Because the established industry had the power to control what skiers heard about — and an independent American company that had just embarrassed the European wax establishment at two Olympics was not going to get favorable coverage in the publications and channels those companies controlled.
The product survived because the skiers and technicians who used it knew what it did on snow. Word of mouth kept it alive through decades of industry suppression.
The Full Story
The complete WhiteGold™ story — the Olympic victories, the Burton connection, the industry pushback, and the decades of suppression that followed — is documented in the WAXFAX book, available as a free PDF download from our website.
It is one of the most remarkable stories in ski industry history. And it has never been told anywhere else.
WhiteGold™ Today
WhiteGold™ is still available today — the same formula, the same All Temperature® chemistry, the same performance that won Olympic gold medals and made the ski establishment tell Terry Hertel to leave the industry.
You can put it on your skis or snowboard today. The establishment cannot stop you.
This has been WAXFAX. The stories behind the speed.
The Olympic wax. Now available to everyone. Shop WhiteGold™ — 1988 & 1994 Olympic Gold Medal Wax, Made in USA →
The current flagship: Shop Super HotSauce™ — #1 Amazon Bestseller, Same All Temperature® Chemistry →
📚 Read the full story: Download the FREE WAXFAX Book — The Complete WhiteGold™ Story →
🎧 More WAXFAX Podcast episodes:
WAXFAX Podcast — Introduction →
WAXFAX Podcast — Super HotSauce™ →
WAXFAX Podcast — SpringSolution™ →