The invention of skiing
dates back
several thousand years, and a lot has changed about our beloved sport over the years. Winter sports technology has progressed by leaps and bounds in the past century alone, as has skiing fashion! Today’s skiers and snowboarders ski in luxury with heated seats and state-of-the-art ski equipment, but it wasn’t always like that. Do you remember the days of strappy bindings and bright neon one-piece ski suits? We do too! How many of these skiing history gems were a hallmark of your early days on the slopes?
The bright neon ski suits of the 70’s and 80’s are iconic. Did you have one? Do you still ski in one? They were made in the most bizarre patterns and they never matched – leopard print against fluorescent colours – but damned if they weren’t the height of style.
These still exist, but they’re being phased out one by one. They were so uncomfortable and soooo slow, especially in gales of wind when they swayed and swayed and took an interminably long time to get to the top. Today’s modern chairlifts have heated seats and plastic bubbles for when the snow is really coming down. But there’s something so quaint about the old double chairlifts... will you miss them?
Remember the days when your lift pass came with a clip and a string that you could attach it to your jacket with. Every time you got to the lift you had to pull out the card and insert it into the groove to check in. Thankfully, today’s lift passes can be safely stored in the pocket of your ski jacket, with no need for such complicated antics.
We’ve come a long way from the times when people used to ski on those long skinny wooden skis with straps for bindings. The invention of cambered carving skis, innovations in bindings and the addition of different materials like aluminum and carbon have greatly improved the skiing experience overall. And let’s not even talk about the ski boots...
Remember those stylish side flaps that you would attach to your sunglasses to help keep the wind out of your face while skiing? Or the gigantic big black ski goggles that you could wear over your glasses?
Skiing went through a brief phase where it was incredibly hip to wear a long, pointed hat that reached all the way down to your waist, made of knitted wool or fleece. Fortunately, this trend didn’t stick around very long.
Many of us are still guilty of this one: skiing with just a beanie or a headband. Gone are the days when you could ruthlessly tease the chumps in the helmets, now it’s the other way around and helmets are mandatory in many ski resorts. Probably a good thing, too...
The invention of the rear-entry ski boot in the 1970’s revolutionised the skiing industry. The easy-to-get-on boot was hugely popular with recreational skiers, but for some reason the fad died out in the 1990’s, ostensibly because today’s ski boots are easier to put on. But if you’re unhappy with your ski boots, try to find some of these babies in a secondhand shop and maybe you’ll be pleasantly surprised!
Gaiters were frequently used by skiers in the past to keep the snow out of your (primitive) ski boots. You could buy them separately, but some ski suits came with them already attached. This was the same era when it was fashionable to wear tight neoprene ski suits with suspenders and a bib that came up to just under the chest. Not particularly charming.
Despite all the advances in skiing, the arrival of the snowboard caused one of the biggest upheavals ever in the winter sports world. This new way to slide down the mountain, and the fact that it was pioneered by a bunch of rowdy punk skateboarders, helped not only with the democratisation of the ski hills but also meant the beginning of freestyle skiing in snow parks.
How many of these do you remember? Do you have any more retro skiing memories? Leave us a comment!
The invention of skiing
dates back
several thousand years, and a lot has changed about our beloved sport over the years. Winter sports technology has progressed by leaps and bounds in the past century alone, as has skiing fashion! Today’s skiers and snowboarders ski in luxury with heated seats and state-of-the-art ski equipment, but it wasn’t always like that. Do you remember the days of strappy bindings and bright neon one-piece ski suits? We do too! How many of these skiing history gems were a hallmark of your early days on the slopes?
The bright neon ski suits of the 70’s and 80’s are iconic. Did you have one? Do you still ski in one? They were made in the most bizarre patterns and they never matched – leopard print against fluorescent colours – but damned if they weren’t the height of style.
These still exist, but they’re being phased out one by one. They were so uncomfortable and soooo slow, especially in gales of wind when they swayed and swayed and took an interminably long time to get to the top. Today’s modern chairlifts have heated seats and plastic bubbles for when the snow is really coming down. But there’s something so quaint about the old double chairlifts... will you miss them?
Remember the days when your lift pass came with a clip and a string that you could attach it to your jacket with. Every time you got to the lift you had to pull out the card and insert it into the groove to check in. Thankfully, today’s lift passes can be safely stored in the pocket of your ski jacket, with no need for such complicated antics.
We’ve come a long way from the times when people used to ski on those long skinny wooden skis with straps for bindings. The invention of cambered carving skis, innovations in bindings and the addition of different materials like aluminum and carbon have greatly improved the skiing experience overall. And let’s not even talk about the ski boots...
Remember those stylish side flaps that you would attach to your sunglasses to help keep the wind out of your face while skiing? Or the gigantic big black ski goggles that you could wear over your glasses?
Skiing went through a brief phase where it was incredibly hip to wear a long, pointed hat that reached all the way down to your waist, made of knitted wool or fleece. Fortunately, this trend didn’t stick around very long.
Many of us are still guilty of this one: skiing with just a beanie or a headband. Gone are the days when you could ruthlessly tease the chumps in the helmets, now it’s the other way around and helmets are mandatory in many ski resorts. Probably a good thing, too...
The invention of the rear-entry ski boot in the 1970’s revolutionised the skiing industry. The easy-to-get-on boot was hugely popular with recreational skiers, but for some reason the fad died out in the 1990’s, ostensibly because today’s ski boots are easier to put on. But if you’re unhappy with your ski boots, try to find some of these babies in a secondhand shop and maybe you’ll be pleasantly surprised!
Gaiters were frequently used by skiers in the past to keep the snow out of your (primitive) ski boots. You could buy them separately, but some ski suits came with them already attached. This was the same era when it was fashionable to wear tight neoprene ski suits with suspenders and a bib that came up to just under the chest. Not particularly charming.
Despite all the advances in skiing, the arrival of the snowboard caused one of the biggest upheavals ever in the winter sports world. This new way to slide down the mountain, and the fact that it was pioneered by a bunch of rowdy punk skateboarders, helped not only with the democratisation of the ski hills but also meant the beginning of freestyle skiing in snow parks.
How many of these do you remember? Do you have any more retro skiing memories? Leave us a comment!
Born and raised in the ski paradise of Vancouver, Canada, I learned to ski before I can remember, balancing precariously on my parents’ skis as they sailed down the hill. I started snowboarding in my teens and am now delighted to be exploring everything Europe’s ski scene has to offer!
