Despite the fact that skiing has become an extremely expensive sport, the ski resort lift lines are much longer than they were in the 1920s. Evolved ski equipment design might account for the sport's growing accessibility and popularity. Modern ski equipment is safer and more user-friendly than the older forms of ski gear. Skiers also have a greater equipment selection, with gear designed for their skill level, height, weight, gender and terrain preferences.
History
Historian Rune Flaten wrote an article in the "Journal of the 3rd FIS Ski History Congress," which described a Norwegian rock caving discovered at a 2001 excavation. The carving depicts a man on skis carrying a singular ski pole. The archaeologists believe that the carving is about 6,000 years old.
The International Ski Federation website has a skiing timeline, which shows the various uses for ski equipment throughout the centuries. Until the mid-1800s, skis, poles and ski boots were used for transportation or warfare.
Time Frame
Ski gear played a key role in the California and Colorado gold rushes of the 1800s. Because the chairlift had not yet been invented, the miners needed an efficient way to climb the mountains and reach the mines.
An exhibit at the Breckenridge, Colorado, Welcome Center shows the types of equipment the miner's used for transport. They climbed the mountain in Indian Feet, which resemble what we now call snowshoes. Then, they switched into their skis, which they actually called snowshoes, for their descent. The miners used only one pole, which they dragged along the snow to check their speed, or dragged between their legs in order to come to a full stop.
Function
Modern ski gear includes skis, bindings, boots and ski poles. Most instructors advise students that their boots are their most important purchase. Ski boots are like nerve endings that send messages to the brain.
The boots interprets your foot and ankle movements and sends the message to your skis, causing them to turn in a manner that is hopefully appropriate to the terrain. Skis either carve the snow, when placed on their edges, or glide through the snow, when placed flat on the terrain. An inappropriate boot will send the wrong message to your skis, which will create inappropriate or even dangerous movements.
Bindings connect your boots to your skis. They have release adjustments called DIN settings.
Modern ski poles, unlike their predecessors, are rarely used for speed control or stopping. Former Wolf Creek ski instructor Todd Murchison likens ski poles to a cat's whiskers. They sense the environment and enable skiers to make terrain-appropriate movements.
Benefits of Modern Ski Design
A company called Elan created the shaped or parabolic ski in the 1990s. These skis have a defined sidecut, which is the curve that runs from the tip to the tail of the ski. The narrowest part of a shaped ski is at its waist, which makes it east for novice skiers to place their skis on edge.
An article in the March, 2002 edition of "Illumin Magazine" describes the engineering challenge posed by parabolic ski design. Brent Nash explains that longer skis are more stable but less maneuverable. Shorter skis turn easily, but are unstable in steep terrain. Wider skis work best on powder, but narrow skis carve better on hardpack and groomed terrain.
Sidecut provided an answer to the dilemma. It creates a curve, which directs the pressure to the skis tips and tails, increasing its stability. A shaped ski with a deeper sidecut exerts more pressure along the entire ski length than a longer, straight ski with no sidecut. The shaped ski is thus lighter, shorter and versatile for all types of terrain.
Considerations
Beginner skis and ski boots are more flexible than the gear used by experts and racers. Beginners also use shorter skis, whose length is determined by their height and weight.
Ski shop technicians adjust DIN settings according to the skier's height, weight, skiing style, skill and terrain preferences. Beginners, who want their skis to release in the event of a fall, have a low release setting. Experts, who ski in powder or on steep terrain, have a higher DIN setting.
Women's ski gear is a relatively new development. The skis and boots are more flexible. The bindings are set in forward position, to accommodate a female skier's lower center of gravity, and the boot cuffs are shaped to fit a woman's shorter, larger calf muscles.
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