We all know skiers who get in 100 days a year – and boast of this accomplishment. Inwardly we may seem a little resentful of them, but actually we envy the hell out of them. Few people can do this, and we’re jealous because they have the time to really become good skiers – and they do! They are what we really want to be – great skiers.
With this year’s ski season coming to a close, we’re looking forward to the long stretch of summer before us with no ski days in sight, and the prospect of maintaining ski fitness seems daunting.
It’s simple, they say. Just get in 100 days on the mountain… Yeah right! In today’s fast paced environment, it’s difficult to juggle work, family, social lives, and more… let alone ski days. No matter what level we are – we all want to be better and have more days in our boots. So how do we do this with our current lifestyles? Even with all my years in the ski industry, until recently I hadn’t figured it out.
At the Skier’s Edge, we started working on creating a better way for professional racers to more accurately and dynamically train in their ski boots. We wanted a device that would give the user, while wearing boots, the most realistic feeling of skiing and carving linked turns – for off mountain training. It was not our original intention to make this available to the recreational skier for home use. After all, who would really want to spend a few minutes putting on their ski boots just to go work out? Not me!
We developed a safe binding that would fit any size boot yet allow for a quick and safe exit. We added an easy-escape platform to allow the user to quickly step right off of the machine if necessary. We also added a safety balance bar to hold on to while testing boots. The angled footpads align you in the proper position over your boots to ingrain good technique. What we had now was a Skier’s Edge machine on steroids!
This was the most accurate simulation of skiing we had ever experienced.
What was meant to be a product aimed for the top skiers in the world quickly became our most popular model for the individual skier – the skier who wants to get in 100 days in their boots and achieve the skill level they’ve always wanted. Now with the BootMaster I get 30 minutes of skiing in every other day. When you think about it, that’s not much less than a full day of skiing on the mountain. Consequently, one run equals about 10 minutes of skiing and 20 minutes of riding lifts and standing in lift lines. I’ll get my 100 days this year. 100 days is now a piece of cake!