Ski equipment was first depicted on rock drawings in Norway some 4,500 to 5,000 years ago. Fortunately, the equipment has evolved from the primitive wooden planks with leather straps into the easy and comfortable skis and boots we have today.
Over the years, some of the innovations that transformed ski equipment were important and are still in wide use. But as we look back at some of what were once considered revolutionary changes we can only ask, if they were so ground-breaking at the time, where are they now?
Ski brakes were introduced in the 1970s and helped stop runaway skis. They also separated the ski from the skier, unlike the former runaway straps. Brakes kept the ski from “pinwheeling” and whacking skiers like me in the head or leg (requiring stitches).
When ski brakes first came out, they were optional, and they were greeted with skepticism. Ski area operators were afraid the bindings would release while skiers were riding chairlifts and fall onto skiers below. In fact, I remember a sign at Mt. Snow, Vt. that read something like this: “No ski brakes can be used without runaway straps.” All bindings now come with brakes.
Shaped skis revolutionized skiing by making it easier for anyone to carve a turn. Elan produced the first parabolic-shaped skis in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They had a narrow waist, but the ski’s tip and tail were much wider than those previously used on any other skis. The shapes have since been toned down a bit, but virtually every ski now has an exaggerated sidecut.
These transforming innovations have stood the test of time and seem like to be as embedded in the sport as step-in bindings. It’s more fun to remember, if you can, the questionable features that were considered so effective and even necessary at the time…but aren’t around today.
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In 2001, this statement appeared in the New York Times announcing a revolutionary new ski boot: “Seven years in the making, this winter Lange introduced its V9 boot for men and V9L for women, with its Rear Release System. Lange says on-hill tests and experiments with cadavers confirmed the rear releasing system could significantly reduce the strain on the A.C.L.”
The boots had a big metal hinge on the back that broke away when the legs pressured them enough. They were very heavy and expensive, so skiers took their chances with other boots. Besides, where did Lange find “skiing cadavers”?
In 1984 the Dynastar Ski Company introduced its “Contact System,” a red egg-shaped plastic thing set into a cutout in the tip of the ski. We called them “Blood Donor Tips” because they looked like the pins you get for giving blood. They were supposed to dampen vibration, but a good number of them fell out, leaving gaping holes.
The Blizzard Quattro Ski was created in 1982. The innards of the ski were split down the middle with one half of the ski being stiffer than the other. That way, we could switch skis and have two different experiences with the same pair. After a dispute with the carmaker Audi, the Quattro became the Multi-Matic.
Until 1989, skis were rectangular with separate sidewalls and top surfaces. Then Solomon and Elan introduced a one-piece cap over the top and sides. The “cap” or “monocoque” design was said to give better edge pressure. Racing skis never dropped the vertical sidewall. In fact, many high-end recreational skis are going back to it.
Piezoelectric modules were part of K2 skis starting in 1995. When the ski was caused to vibrate, the energy from the vibration caused a little light to come on. The piezo was implanted in about a third of the models of K2’s skis.
Some bindings have come and gone. Remember Spademan’s amazing “toeless wonder”? It was a binding that released from the sides. It had no toe or heel. A part had to be drilled into the boot and another into the ski. It was popular with rental shops because boot size didn’t matter. But getting the things caked up with snow did.
The “revolutionary” Burt binding was a two-piece plate affair featuring retractable cables that separated the boot and the ski during a mishap. If you could recover and not hit the ground, the ski and boot would click back into place. There were lots of broken cables, and snow got between the two plates.
A popular version of the early step-in bindings was the Marker Rotomat. The Rotomat had a spring release system in the heel and could rotate for a smooth release in the heel and toe in a fall. Problem was, when I had a forward fall, the springs would break away from the rest of the heel and I had the task of putting the pieces back together with mittens on. That’s why we called the Rotomat the Explodomat!
Marker’s SC (Selective Control) had a three-position switch in the toepiece that adjusted the ski’s flex with movement from heel to toe. Lots of times I would kick myself at the bottom of a run for forgetting to set the thing to what I wanted at the top.
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One of the latest developments is rocker. The tips and sometimes the tails of skis are bent upwards. The technology comes from snowboards and was carried over to make skiing powdery snow easier on wide skis. It has worked so well that K2 has incorporated rocker throughout its line.
Tecnica has an air bladder in some of its boots that give a custom fit to the front or back. It has been well received and more of the company’s boots should have the system next year.
We will have to wait and see, as companies roll out their revolutionary new ideas, which ones are really meaningful technical innovation and which could be called marketing gimmicks.
Meantime, be on the lookout for skiing cadavers.
