Musings on Metal

By Sean Horner, FOW
Alpine touring, Backcountry skis, WNDR Alpine, algae, backcountry, microalgae, biomanufacturing, freeride, freetouring, skiing, bcorp, bcorporation, algaltech, biobased, skitouring, ski touring, freeskiing, mountaineering, outdoors, mountains, nature, natural, sustainable, freeride skis, Split Boarding, splitboarding, splitboard, Backcountry Snowboarding, Snowboarding, Snowboards, Ski Kit, Ski Package, Best freeride ski, freeride ski, alpine touring, ski for alpine touring, mountaineering skis, ski mountaineering skis, ski touring, skitouring, local ski brand

Sean Horner plunges into the deep. Taos, NM. Photo: Jonah Sutton (@joney_hawk)

Picture this. You buy or are sponsored to get skis each season and are never on a ski longer than 1 year. Each season you get 4-6 new pairs of skis, all of which are excellent designs getting slight tweaks and new topsheets, and at the end of the season you either sell them to other athletes or they go in the trash. 

I did this for the latter half of my ski racing career with no perspective on why I needed new skis or if it was necessary – I just thought that since everyone else did it then it must be the standard within the ski industry. Ski racing enabled strong skiing technique and an aptitude for speed that lasts to this day, but also left me looking to other mediums of skiing and nowadays a ski that won’t break.

So, to “metal” or “not to metal” - that is the question. After 14 years of ski racing and rubbing elbows with some of the best in the world I was under the impression that a fast ski and good ski construction required metal. By and large, “good” and “stiff” skis have been synonymous with having one or multiple sheets of titanal amongst the layers of a ski. Although I’m done ski racing, I’m not done going fast and certainly not done laying my hip on the ground every chance I get. This simultaneously meant breaking 2-4 skis per season — metal laminate skis at that. I was not sponsored, simply skiing for the love of it. This left me at my wits end buying skis over and over only to break them the next weekend skiing West Basin in Taos, NM or “trying” to keep up with the Freaks! in Aspen, CO. 

Alpine touring, Backcountry skis, WNDR Alpine, algae, backcountry, microalgae, biomanufacturing, freeride, freetouring, skiing, bcorp, bcorporation, algaltech, biobased, skitouring, ski touring, freeskiing, mountaineering, outdoors, mountains, nature, natural, sustainable, freeride skis, Split Boarding, splitboarding, splitboard, Backcountry Snowboarding, Snowboarding, Snowboards, Ski Kit, Ski Package, Best freeride ski, freeride ski, alpine touring, ski for alpine touring, mountaineering skis, ski mountaineering skis, ski touring, skitouring, local ski brand

Sean lays the Vitals over. Taos, NM. Photo: Jonah Sutton (@joney_hawk)

You may ask how an arc-loving, former ski racer came to love a ski designed by a few of the most notable freeskiers in the modern age. It turns out we are not so different in wanting a ski capable of all mediums of skiing. After the 4th broken ski of my season in spring 2018, I often discussed the concept of “planned obsolescence” within manufacturing only to stumble upon WNDR Alpine designing skis in virtually the same way I had envisioned. Minimized material waste, fortified sidewall and edge support, progressive shape that enables all skiing styles, and something that can take an absolute beating. As skiing 2x4’s through gates evolved to bringing touring skis up massive AK spine lines, I knew the tools for the job needed to evolve a little more.
Alpine touring, Backcountry skis, WNDR Alpine, algae, backcountry, microalgae, biomanufacturing, freeride, freetouring, skiing, bcorp, bcorporation, algaltech, biobased, skitouring, ski touring, freeskiing, mountaineering, outdoors, mountains, nature, natural, sustainable, freeride skis, Split Boarding, splitboarding, splitboard, Backcountry Snowboarding, Snowboarding, Snowboards, Ski Kit, Ski Package, Best freeride ski, freeride ski, alpine touring, ski for alpine touring, mountaineering skis, ski mountaineering skis, ski touring, skitouring, local ski brand

From piste to pow. Taos, NM. FOW: Sean Horner // Photo: Amos Hockmeyer (@amos__h)

And that’s where WNDR Alpine came into my life. At the first flex, I could tell there was no compromise in quality, no compromise in modern and creative ski shape, and certainly no compromise in durability. What felt like an absurdly light alpine ski is redefining my vision of what was possible skiing and I now find myself able to walk out of the front door with the same ski for a long back country day as for a hard-charging resort day. I rarely worry about breaking the ski or if the ski will perform in a certain condition. Admittedly, this was the first ski that I have felt capable of being light, nimble, stable, and predictable in all conditions by taking the assertive feel of a front side carving ski and marrying it to something playful and dampened - two words I often struggle to use in the same sentence for any ski. The Intention 108 is the ski to test the entire ski industry’s claims to durability, weight, strength, and playfulness. 

Alpine touring, Backcountry skis, WNDR Alpine, algae, backcountry, microalgae, biomanufacturing, freeride, freetouring, skiing, bcorp, bcorporation, algaltech, biobased, skitouring, ski touring, freeskiing, mountaineering, outdoors, mountains, nature, natural, sustainable, freeride skis, Split Boarding, splitboarding, splitboard, Backcountry Snowboarding, Snowboarding, Snowboards, Ski Kit, Ski Package, Best freeride ski, freeride ski, alpine touring, ski for alpine touring, mountaineering skis, ski mountaineering skis, ski touring, skitouring, local ski brand

Taos isn't particularly kind to skis. FOW: Sean Horner // Photo: Quinn Connell (@huck_quinn)

When WNDR Alpine released its initial batch of skis I was admittedly skeptical given my upbringing on metal laminate based ski construction. After all, titanal is used in most racing skis I grew up with and many ski manufacturers tout its resilience. So why is AlgalTech® a necessary progression in materials for the ski industry? After a couple seasons of WNDR Intention 110 use, here are my musings of why we don’t need metal in our skis: 

  1. Cast polyurethane sidewalls via Algal Wall - 138% greater damping compared to industry standard ABS sidewall. And more anecdotally, not a single ski broken all of last ski season.
  2. WNDR Alpine has successfully repaired a compressed sidewall back to new ski status. Cast sidewall material replacements are becoming a thing!
  3. Personalized skis via a diversity of length and camber variations enable skiers of all styles and abilities to enjoy the capabilities of AlgalTech® and SpiralMade™ materials.
  4. Other brands are now using Checkerspot’s materials - algae-based ski engineering is now the electric car of the ski industry!
Alpine touring, Backcountry skis, WNDR Alpine, algae, backcountry, microalgae, biomanufacturing, freeride, freetouring, skiing, bcorp, bcorporation, algaltech, biobased, skitouring, ski touring, freeskiing, mountaineering, outdoors, mountains, nature, natural, sustainable, freeride skis, Split Boarding, splitboarding, splitboard, Backcountry Snowboarding, Snowboarding, Snowboards, Ski Kit, Ski Package, Best freeride ski, freeride ski, alpine touring, ski for alpine touring, mountaineering skis, ski mountaineering skis, ski touring, skitouring, local ski brand

One of the many approaches one can take to testing materials. Taos, NM. FOW: Sean Horner // Photo: Brett Hills (@brett_hills)

I’ll leave you with this thought. Checkerspot and WNDR Alpine have made some of the first material innovations in ski manufacturing in nearly 2 decades by creating desirable traits to enable skiing performance in all conditions and ability levels. I am of the opinion that if everyone in the ski industry is truly behind the Protect Our Winters mission statement, then we can set aside the need to get a fresh pair of skis every season, get in the skin track a little more often, and embrace materials innovation that can enable the same skiing experience through use of AlgalTech® and SpiralMade™ materials while avoiding compromise in modern shape and performance.

Sean's Stats
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 175 lbs

Skiing style: Recovering ski racer that likes to drag his hip in most turns. Slowly learning the art of "style". If you saw me ski, I'd think we could say it's a freeride/racer/mountaineering blend. 

Setups:

  • Backcountry/touring: 192cm Intention 110 Camber, Salomon Shift binding, Tecnica Zero G Pro Tour with ZipFit GFT liner and a Booster strap (old habits die hard)
  • Resort daily driver: 188cm Intention 108 Camber, Tyrolia Attack 16 binding, Head Raptor 140 with ZipFit Corso liner (again, hard to leave all ski racing habits behind)

Ironically, after having 4-6 pairs of skis per season for ski racing, I have become a huge fan of the one-ski-quiver for each discipline (two skis technically). Simple and straight to business of skiing fast and skiing creative lines. Call me old school but I've been minus 2-3cm from the recommended mount point of the Intention 110. That has generally been a good balance for me of maneuverability or "slash-ability" and being able to arc 5 turns down a massive face.

 

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