Have you heard of what is going on over at Verispellis Skis? I don’t want to completely let the cat out of the bag just yet, but, stick around because this is going to blow your mind!
I know that’s a big statement to make, but I’m completely confident you’ll see that I’m not dreaming by the time you finish reading what we have to share with you here.
Regardless of if your a ripper and your thing is carving after a decent dump, or if you’re a freerider who’s excited by being off-piste, or if you’re more at home on the bunny slopes looking to find your feet.
Hint: they’re at the end of your legs.
This is going to be great news for you.
The Age Old Problem: Skiing Logistics
Skiing is something that many of us love, that, and snowboarding. But it’s not always easy, particularly when you have to consider the logistics behind things.
Have you ever needed to travel with your skis? I don’t mean just packing them on the roof racks and hitting the road for the mountains. What I mean is catching a flight to get to where the better slopes are.
So here’s a challenge for you… If you had to narrow your ski quiver down so you could hit the mountain in any conditions, could you get it down to just one?
Is it even possible to just have one ski that fits the bill as being a ‘single-do-everything-ski’?
You’re going to say this is a fantasy; and any experienced Skier would understandably agree with that. And you know what? Until recently, I would be in complete agreeance too; but we have since found the Holy Grail!
The Sacrifices of the Past
Many have said that there are a number of trade-offs that need to be made when you are narrowing down your ski selection. What makes it tough is when you are more than likely to encounter varying conditions.
That alone can bring your quiver straight back up to two as a minimum, so *buzzer sounds* “BAHHHH!” you’re out. Sorry. You can only pick one.
And that’s what we’ve had to live with for years. Sure, designs have improved, and materials have become more versatile.
However, there is still that one hurdle that seemingly can’t be cleared; managing varying conditions in the snow.
Let’s be real about this, you’ve got no control over the weather and subsequent snow conditions, so you have to respond appropriately.
But that can really be tough when you are boarding a flight or taking a long drive, only to find out that your ski selection is not going to be quite what you needed to on the day.
As we all know, snow can change quickly enough from one time of the day to the next in some places.
Problem Solved: Verispellis Skis
What would you say to bringing some hi-tech innovation to an industry that hasn’t really seen anything this disruptive since the 1980s’?
That’s exactly what Verispellis Skis have done. In a single word, you could sum it up as… Who am I kidding, this can’t be summed up in a single word.
There’s no ‘single’ word that could do this justice. Except maybe ‘Nitinol’… What the heck is ‘Nitinol’?
You know how memory foam works, right? Well, Nitinol is a bit like that, but it’s also nothing like that at all. Nickle Titanium, also known as Nitinol, is a metal alloy that is roughly equal parts of nickel and titanium.
Nitinol has a memory that allows it to resume its ‘programmed’ shape, or form, when it is heated. Through a cleverly designed system using Nitinol, Verispellis Skis have created a product that is able to respond to conditions based on your instruction.
It’s a simple as using the app, and voila! You’ve gone from a quiver that is suitable for powder, to crud, crust, slush, or even a rare encounter by comparison with icy compacted snow!
When the Nitinol is activated by the heating pads, the characteristics of the ski change from being flexible to more rigid, to create a whole new skiing experience.
So now you have your ‘single-do-everything-ski’ courtesy of Verispellis Skis. You can go from a buttery soft ski right through to a hard ski just by activating the Nitinol components within the ski.
Now you can take your quiver down to one ski quite comfortably!
Check out Verispellis Skis on their Kickstarter page and you will find all the information you need about this revolutionary product. Once the word gets out about these you can bet your last dollar that they are going to move quickly.
See also “The Best G-Shocks for Hiking” which pair nicely from a tech perspective with these amazing skis