SNOWBASIN — The day was custom designed for skiing.
Fresh powder, short lift lines and blue skies welcomed our little group of test subjects to Snowbasin last Wednesday, where we sampled skis from three Utah ski companies.
Two are fairly new businesses — Viice Skis and Bluehouse Skis — while the third — Goode Ski Technologies — has been in business for three decades, but until 2001 sold mostly ski accessories and water skis.
Deseret News design director Heidi Perry, photographer Tom Smart and myself each chose which skis we'd test. We all have different backgrounds — and dare I say — relationships with skiing. Heidi is a former All-American ski racer and teacher; Tom is a lifetime enthusiast; and I am a dabbler.
Heidi skied Viice, and recruited her husband Gord to ski on a pair of Goode skis. Tom skied on Bluehouse; and I skied on a pair of Goode's backcountry skis. The story idea sprung from a conversation among the Deseret News staff about the amazing number of ski companies and outdoors businesses in Utah. Probably the most well-known is Black Diamond (the company from which I rented my boots and that also made my skins). Utah was also home to Evolution Ski Company, until its founder, Steve Eccles Denkers, sold it after the 2002 Winter Games.
Dave Goode moved his company from Michigan to Ogden because it is so winter-sport friendly. Scott Berry and Anthony Walker started Viice Ski Company a year-and-a-half ago after growing up on the slopes of Snowbird. And Dan Nebeker, Jared Richards, Adam Hepworth, Shane Larsen and Jordan Azner all grew up in Utah and were college roommates at BYU who, despite earning college degrees, just wanted to make a living in the ski industry.
For all of them, living so close to the world's best testing facility (the Wasatch mountains) is key in developing their products. They've taken their passion for skiing and developed ways to very literally share it with others.
Walker summed it up best for me when we discussed the freedom that comes from skiing. There are certainly a lot of emotions that the sport elicits, but peace has to be one of the most sought after.
"All you can hear is the wind in the trees," said Walker. "Those moments are amazing."
BLUEHOUSE SKI COMPANY
Nebeker, Hepworth and Richards started designing their dream ski when they were living in a blue house in college. The BYU graduates were learning about the ski-building process when they found a manufacturer in China who made other U.S. skis.
"That's when we developed the model," Nebeker said. "We could design the skis, build them in China, and sell them on the Internet for half of what they cost in the stores. It's a factory-direct model."
The company's website — www.bluehouseskis.com — offers six types of skis, bindings and apparel.
"It's our passion," said Nebeker. "We wanted to work in the ski industry, but we didn't want to work for other people."
These are well-educated men — among them there is a law degree, two masters degrees and others in various stages of post-graduate work — who don't mind working all night if it means they can ski all day.
"Skiing," said Nebeker. "You can go out and be on the top of one mountain, and with resorts, you can be on another peak 20 minutes later. You can be moving 60 miles per hour or enjoy the solitude …There are so many millions of people who ski, that have that passion. We share it with them. We don't claim to own it."
Working for themselves allows them the freedom to customize their lives around their desire to ski.
"I love being in the mountains," he said. "I love winter. I love the snow. I love the rush, the excitement, the challenge and the fitness."
While working for themselves gives them the ability to enjoy a powder day, it also means a lot of late nights.
"It's a love/hate relationship for sure," he said. "Some nights we don't go to bed because it feels like the business owns us. I have loved the opportunity though. We all do. We wouldn't trade it for anything."
The three-year-old company is very plugged into its target audience.
"We participate in online gear chats," he said. "We listen to the feedback of our customers. We find out where there is a niche, where there is a market that's not served, whether it's camber profile, flex, width, whatever, we'll build a ski for that niche."
Nebeker gave Tom Smart a pair of Maestro skis to try out, which are the company's most popular style.
TOM SMART'S EXPERIENCE
The ultimate test for any recreational ski should simply be the fun meter, and on the Bluehouse Maestro 189 skis that I tested, I would rate them at an F — for totally FUN.
I'm not the kind of skier who has to have the latest ski and boot setup. Between backcountry, snowboarding and skiing I find myself replacing gear about every five years. I'm not into what holds its edge on an icy slope; I am totally a powder snob and at 57 years old I am into whatever makes me feel 18.
A quick survey of three of the former racers we skied with, all were veterans having overcome multiple knee surgeries — forget that I just want to have fun!
As we arrived at Snowbasin Resort we were graced as the clouds dissipated and left about 10 inches of snow and blue skies (a rarity for a scheduled photo shoot). Watching the mountain of mostly untracked snow I made an executive decision and left the crew to tweak their binding adjustments, meet ski reps and PR types while my wife, Heidi and I, went straight to the Jean-Paul lift. Totally selfish — like they say, "No friends on a powder day."
Although I had never skied a shape like Bluehouse's Maestro ski (it looks more like a water ski) and it was our first ski day of the year, the skis took no time to get used to. In fact, they were brainless.
We headed straight into the pristine snow and didn't stop until close to the bottom, where Heidi paused and questioned, "Aren't your thighs burning?" Dang, I hate that part about being truthful to your spouse.
I should have told the truth and said that the newer, wider shape of the skis were making me ski like a teenager again, but then I might be on the hook for buying new skis. Instead I skirted the question and said, "We need to hurry and meet up with the group" and headed back into the powder.
As the day progressed, the powder devolved to crud and finally to pack snow, and the Bluehouse skis were effortless. Perhaps on an icy racecourse I wouldn't have enjoyed the skis as much, but frankly, I don't have much desire to ski those conditions. In truth, all skiing on good equipment had a spectacular day, and being able to click in and ski unconscious all day deserves a total F.
VIICE SKI COMPANY
Anthony Walker and Scott Berry were just two little boys on a ski racing team when they shared one of those little-boy wishes with each other.
"Wouldn't it be cool to have your own pro model," Berry remembers. And then he laughs because 20 years later, the two men are now living that wish.
Viice (because skiing is an addiction, a vice) is a custom ski operation. If a skier wants skis nobody else has, Viice will build them. Whether it's the look or construction of the ski, they make them exactly as a skier requests.
Berry raced until he was 19. He got a job with another Utah original, Evolution Ski Company, which is where he learned to build skis. He moved to Jackson Hole to build skis and then back to Orem, to build for Revolution Skis.
While he was learning to build, Walker was racing (until age 24) and then studying art at Art Center College of Design in California.
"Scott has become a master craftsman at building skis," Walker said. "And all of the training camps I was going to, I was testing what my sponsors offered. I was learning what makes a ski do what it does."
Those two different paths led them to the perfect fusion of expertise.
They design the skis together and then Berry builds them.
"We've been friends for 25 years," said Walker. "It seems second nature to wake up and talk about skis and ski concepts with him … You don't connect with people like that very often."
The artistry is all Walker, and these are no random designs.
He took a Doppler radar screen and used it as a design because of what it symbolizes.
"Looking at radar screens for the storms that are coming in, it becomes symbolic, after so many years of skiing, of what a great ski day is going to look like," he said of the digitized pattern. "That design is actually a re-creation of a Doppler radar storm that hit Utah and produced 60 inches in five of six days."
Walker loves duality in his designs and all of them have meaning.
Even while they were racing, they appreciated all that skiing offers.
"We were the ones who would ditch ski training on a powder day," Walker laughs.
All of the skis cost the same amount, as they are custom — $860 plus tax.
Information is available at www.viiceskis.com.
HEIDI PERRY'S EXPERIENCE
Note: Perry is a former four-time All American ski racer and national champion.
Even though I was a former ski racer, I wanted a ski not only for performance but for the graphics, gimmicks and trends. I want a ski that I can ski the powder and crud in and then jump on the hard pack groomers at high speeds without hesitation.
When Scott Berry handed me the Gas Pedal 1 Quiver skis in the parking lot, I loved the graphics instantly. They were modern, crazy and colorful, and so me.
It had just snowed about 10 inches overnight so it was the perfect test day at Snowbasin. We started out traversing to find some untracked powder. When we found some, I headed down the shoulder in what seemed about a foot of new snow. With a wider base under my foot than I was used to, I felt like I was floating on air.
These skis made it so easy for me to ski the powder! I was instantly hooked.
At 5 feet tall and 100 pounds it is harder for me to get through the crud and powder. These skis, however, made it effortless. After a few untracked powder runs, I decided to see if they would hold up at high speeds.
I did some big, round giant slalom turns pushing them. They were stable under my feet and the bases were fast.
I tried some short, small slalom turns and they were quick off the edge but not squirly.
This ski was truly created to cover a wide range of ski terrain and snow conditions. You'll never think about changing skis at lunchtime, ever again!
GOODE SKI TECHNOLOGIES
It all started with a racer spacer.
Dave Goode left ski racing at 19 and started making all the things skiers needed to take care of their skis. The first thing was a racer spacer, which predated the brakes on skis and basically held a pair of skis together without dinging up the base and edges.
About five years later, a rental company asked Dave if he could make a more durable ski pole.
"I thought long and hard about how to do it," he said. "I created and patented an aluminum pole filled with polyurethane foam. They wouldn't break, they'd just bend."
Then he created a device that would straighten the pole should a renter bend it.
"It was that goal, that search for a better material that led me to composites, and in particular carbon fiber," Goode said. Without the aid of the Internet, he called suppliers, scoured the library, and went to trade shows.
"Carbon is a very powerful material," he said. "It's a raw material, very lightweight but very powerful. It's a great building block."
In 1987 he started trying to build a carbon fiber pole. It took two years, but in January of 1990, he started selling Goode ski poles.
"Sales took off tremendously," he said. "The carbon has flex (more durable) but it was also lightweight … The strength-to-weight ratio is many times an advantage."
At about the same time, Goode discovered competitive water skiing. There was only one drawback to the sport.
"The skis they were building were not that good," he said. "Six weeks and the performance would be gone. And then they couldn't get you on identical skis. I'd fallen in love with the carbon we were putting in the ski poles, so I decided to build some water skis."
Immediately, friends started asking for them. He obliged and world records were set on the skis.
"Now it just dominates all the tournaments," he said of carbon skis.
In 1995-96, he decided to bring carbon to snow skis. Unfortunately that was the same time skis started to change shape. The money invested in the endeavor seemed wasted as each mold cost $20,000, and all of a sudden they were obsolete.
"We decided to wait for our next opportunity," he said.
That came in 2001 when Volant Ski Company closed a nearby plant and Goode bought the equipment. He started producing snow skis 2001 and hasn't looked back.
When I told him I wanted to try the backcountry skis, we discussed why Carbon is so much better in that venue.
"Every pound on your foot is like 15 pounds on your back," he said. "Weight is very critical, especially when it's on your feet."
Kirk Langford, VP of sales and marketing, said the trend in backcountry skiing is to combine a day of skinning (hiking up the mountain) with downhill.
"It's become more and more popular," said Langford.
In 2005, Goode moved his company to Ogden, which has become an outdoor sports haven in the last decade. Information about the company and products is available at www.goode.com.
GORD PERRY'S EXPERIENCE
Note: Perry is a former All-American ski racer, national champion and Canadian National Team member.
OK, let's get something straight. I have a ski racer mentality, speed, stability and performance is what I look for in a ski. Graphics, gimmicks and trends are not for me. So when my wife asked me to take part in this article about local ski manufactures I must admit my expectations were pretty tame. When I got to Snowbasin I was given a pair of Goode Beyond carbon fiber construction/wood core skis with Rocker Technology that when I picked them up felt about as heavy as my sunglasses.
Again, I'm about carving with a beefy ski that holds on ice, is stable at 40-plus mph, and comes around just right when I stand on it. So I'm thinking how are these light skis, which look awesome by the way, do what I want them to?
We proceeded up the Needles Gondola in search of some untracked powder from the 10 inches of snowfall from the night before. So for the first few minutes we were skiing on a relatively flat run as we crossed the mountain to a favorite stash of powder in the trees. I worked the ski across the flat and was very pleased with its turn shape and its response. Next, I chased my wife through a meadow of untracked powder that felt even deeper than the 10 inches with my super-light Goodes.
So far, so Goode!
This routine continues on for a few runs and I was constantly surprised with how versatile this ski was for me. Powder, crud, soft-packed, it was all working very well. But I still felt I hadn't pushed this ski to the limits that I demand. So when I found myself at the top of the mountain bidding adieu to my group, I went to work.
This run would be my test.
I take off, make a few big giant slalom turns, and drop into a tuck. Wow. Pretty stable but hey, it's packed powder. I then approach a series of nice pitches that allow me to open it up a little more, and to my surprise the ski actually seems to me more stable the faster I go.
Finally, I scream into City Hill as fast as I dare take this 46-year-old frame and I rip some great turns (if I say so myself). The turns require a ski that will remain stable at high speeds while holding an edge and going where demanded.
Wow! As Larry David would say, "Pretty ... pretty ... pretty Goode!
AMY DONALDSON'S EXPERIENCE
My smile got bigger with each step I took.
When I was getting instructions on binding operation and skin application earlier that morning from Goodes' Kirk Langford, my friends kept asking if I was sure I wanted to go to all of that trouble.
All Goode Skis are carbon fiber. They weigh about half of what a typical lightweight fiberglass ski weighs, and when you're talking backcountry skis, that's critical.
"If you're schlepping all of that weight while your skinning, you're dead meat," said Langford.
As I climbed that mountainside, alone and surrounded by what looked like flocked Christmas trees, I was filled with joy. I even giggled a little.
Admittedly, I was huffing and puffing. The hill was steep, and the powder was deep.
But as often as I wanted, I could turn around and take in the Ogden Valley. And believe me, that is worth the work.
I hiked up Porky's, which wasn't open yet (except to a few ambitious snowboarders who joined me on the first part of my hike). After about 25 minutes, I popped out of my skis, took off the skins, sort of rolled them up (note to Black Diamond: a nylon or stretchy bag or fanny pack would be awesome for cold hands rolling cold skins), clicked in my boots and enjoyed a powder-licious run.
I really felt like a little kid. I didn't actually scream "Whee!!" But I definitely thought it!
Unlike the others, I never raced. Actually, I'm barely a skier.
I've had some awful ski experiences — including my first trip when I was in high school. My friends took me to Alyeska in Anchorage, Alaska, and I borrowed skis and wore my blue jeans. I fell so much, my friends left me — actually they lapped me, which they later said was on purpose to make sure I was alive — and after countless tumbles on the slope, which turned my jeans to ice, I just made my way downhill on my rear end. And I am not exaggerating — entirely on my backside, crying and near hypothermia.
It did not start out as my favorite activity. Eventually, skiing and I became friendly. I bought my own skis and managed to make time for about a half dozen runs a year. In recent years, I've opted to rent because I don't ski enough to make it worth the investment.
I have tried a lot of skis and in 25 years, I've never been tempted to buy a pair. I want the Goode BC -95. I want them so badly, that while I normally spend all of my extra money on race entry fees, I might run fewer races next year so I can have these skis. (Incidentally, I also loved the Black Diamond backcountry boots I rented. They were significantly more comfortable than other downhill boots I've used.)
The BC-95s were so light, which made hiking easier, and yet wider, so skiing in the powder was easy and enjoyable.
Contrary to fears that it might be too much work, it was almost effortless. In fact, I skied all day and still felt hungry for more.
Please, Santa, slip a pair under my tree! I've been a (mostly) Goode girl!
e-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com