12.14.2022

Listen in for laughs, harrowing tales, and backcountry wisdom from Friend of WNDR and splitboarding boundary pusher Nick Russell.

10.27.2022

“We want to eliminate high-carbon emitting materials and align our moral, environmental and humanitarian interests to make sure we aren’t excessively polluting as a consequence of making skis.”

10.11.2022

"WNDR Alpine's widest ski is one that, unsurprisingly, really shines in deep conditions, but with a level of adaptability that is rare among ~120mm-wide skis."

10.10.2022

“Inbounds hot laps to long days in the bc, the Vital is an absolute quiver killer.” Our testers don’t bandy about that phrase lightly, but they were hard-pressed to find conditions in which the Reverse Camber Vital didn’t hold up.

07.29.2022

"I prefer to ski fast, on and off-piste, and in the backcountry. These skis excel at cutting through choppy crud with no chatter and float on powder with ease. I haven't been able to outski these skis in any conditions! As well as skiing phenomenally, the materials are high-quality, the graphics improve every season, and they put the environment first and foremost."

07.18.2022

Instead of going straight to the landfill, Spiral Plate binding inserts are incorporated into WNDR Alpine's all-new Intention 108 better binding retention strength.

07.18.2022

In short, they’re using waste from a previous ski to help build a part of a new one, with the goal of reducing the net waste created. It’s a pretty sweet concept, and it reportedly offers greater pull-out strength than the previous maple inserts.

07.18.2022

The SpiralMade materials show WNDR’s industry-standard commitment to both environmentally friendly manufacturing processes and top-notch engineering that creates some of the industry’s best products.

07.11.2022

By using their own materials derived from microalgae oil, WNDR Alpine demonstrates how biomanufactured materials, specifically designed for backcountry applications, can deliver improved performance.

05.22.2022

"I'd recommend this ski to anyone who cherishes the descent and is looking for a winter/spring daily driver, something that performs well in every single condition imaginable."

03.11.2022

There is no doubt a (false) belief that products made sustainably or ethically are inferior in quality and performance. WNDR Alpine was founded with a healthy awareness for this fact and they made it a goal to flat out disprove it.

01.28.2022

Legendary ski shaper Matt Sterbenz and biotech company Checkerspot have masterminded an AlgalTech material, which uses lab-grown microalgae to replace petroleum products in the ski. The result is an all-new, eco-friendly ski construction with remarkable strength-to-weight characteristics."

01.14.2022

"I'm fired up to be joining my teammate Pep Fujas as well as Alex Andrews to work together on innovative products designed for the mountains. Sky’s the limit!"

01.11.2022

"Well, there's two big pieces of news here. First off, sustainability-focused snowsports brand WNDR Alpine is now making snowboards. Secondly, Nick Russell has made the switch to become WNDR's first snowboard athlete – a perfect mix of shared intentions."

01.12.2022

"He has carved his own path in snowboarding, pushing the boundaries of what's possible while maintaining a balanced lifestyle. Nick is conscious about the products he uses and is constantly surfing the Earth in search of another adventure – an adventure in which he'll need quality products with purposeful materials."

01.04.2022

WNDR Alpine's new film is about more than skiing.

12.23.2021

"The Vital 100 works well on New England slopes: The all-mountain ski maneuvers quickly in tight situations, can hold an edge on long arcing turns, and has enough width to handle off-piste conditions."

11.23.2022

"A Utah-based company is reinventing how skis are made, substituting petroleum products in ski production with an algae-based bioplastic."

11.22.2021

"Something that could actually make a significant impact is the widespread adoption of algal oils, algal ingredients and algal materials across multiple industries ... with these skis, we're going to inch as close as we can to that, every year."

11.22.2021

"And not only does replacing petroleum with microalgae have benefits for the environment, the team at WNDR Alpine argues that it has benefits for ski quality, too. According to Marshland, petroleum gives ski manufacturers very little control over the structure and functionality of the finished product."

11.19.2021

"I love to ski no matter the conditions, and though I always choose steeper terrain above all else, I still love moguls, groomers, slushy spring days, and really any excuse to be on skis. I was impressed by the Vital's downhill performance... it provides a level of stability that inspires confidence, especially in unpredictable or firm backcountry conditions. It’s also a ski that I felt was really easy to maneuver and jump turn with, which is something I am looking for when picking a lightweight touring setup."

11.15.2021

"With the purchase of any pair of WNDR's 2022 skis, you have the option to choose to attend one of three sessions that WNDR hosts throughout the season. All the sessions are located in the finest Utah backcountry terrain in the Wasatch mountains."

11.09.2021

Thanks to its combo of maneuverability and reliable edge hold, the Vital 100 makes for a great 1-ski quiver that you'd use for everything from moderate pow days in tight trees to steep, technical spring lines.

08.16.2021

A pioneer in ski design, Sterbenz had been playing with ski geometry for years through his innovation as the founder of 4FRNT, but now he was eager to shake up the industry with different materials (which until then, had remained relatively unchanged).

07.09.2021

"If you think July is too early to be thinking about your winter setup, you'd be wrong."

07.08.2021

"On a personal level, my first order of business when I joined WNDR Alpine was to create a 120-mm waisted ski that I could take to Japan and bounce my way through the depths."

07.08.2021

"I skied the 120 and loved it. Very surfy and intuitive. Playful but not extremely light. It felt similar in suspension to the 110 but much looser and more surfy. I really liked that ski."

04.27.2021

The Vital 100 is clearly a step above when it comes to how well it smooths out the harsh vibration of rough, firm snow conditions.

02.17.2021

"When Checkerspot approached me with the ambition to develop modern polyurethane from algal-derived oil inputs, and that we could tune materials specific for the applications, I was like, 'I had no idea that was even possible.'"

07.09.2020

Checkerspot, Inc., a materials innovation company, announced today the launch of the Vital 100 ski by its outdoor consumer brand WNDR Alpine.

01.25.2021

The Vital 100 from WNDR Alpine shows what is possible in the ski industry of the future. The backcountry ski is not only light and stable, it also impresses with its very good edge grip.

12.16.2020

"In Berkeley, California, just a few hours from the snow-covered slopes of the many Lake Tahoe area ski and snowboard resorts, scientists with a company called Checkerspot are growing microalgae in stainless steel tanks - to make skis."

09.30.2020

Intention 110 ski is the winner of the Fast Company 2020 Innovation by Design Award in the Sports and Recreation category.

08.09.2020

Matt, Pe and Xan came to Crested Butte and sat down with us in Blister HQ to fill us in on WNDR Alpine’s new materials.

07.22.2020

The skis, bikes, bags, trailers, and more relied on during a 16-day, self-supported sufferfest in the Pacific Northwest.

07.15.2020

Checkerspot has unveiled the Vital 100 ski by its outdoor consumer brand WNDR Alpine featuring Checkerspot’s new Algal Cast and Algal Hard Foam polyurethane materials..

07.15.2020

Matt Sterbenz helped launch WNDR Alpine after nearly 20 years running4FRNT Skis, a first mover in the independent ski movement.

07.08.2020

WNDR Alpine marks first anniversary with enhanced Algal Tech and Vital 100.

07.08.2020

Introducing Algal Cast, Checkerspot’s next biomanufactured performance material.

02.15.2020

Matt Sterbenz, the founder of 4FRNT skis and WNDR Alpine, has broken new ground in the world of ski manufacturing.

02.12.2020

Algae composites make a lightweight ski from the future.

02.11.2020

Pep Fujas tells us about the evolution of his involvement with WNDR Alpine, his family trip to Bulgaria and this year’s Japan plans.

02.11.2020

Last summer, 4FRNT founder Matt Sterbenz flipped the ski manufacturing industry on its head when he announced that he was working on a new backcountry ski made with algae.

02.07.2020

Matt Sterbenz believes his company, WNDR Alpine, may have just made the best ski ever. It happens to be built with algae.

01.08.2020

This winter, you can carve the fresh powder of the backcountry on a pair of high-performance, eco-friendly skis designed by world-famous athletes and made from a material produced by microscopic algae.

12.20.2019

What if sustainably derived materials can not only compete with traditional, petroleum-based materials, but actually beat them out? That was the first question Checkerspot founders asked themselves.

08.26.2019

What does biotech have to do with backcountry skiing? And what does microalgae have to do with skis?

08.04.2019

Short answer: While there’s a lot of work to do, WNDR Alpine might well be bringing about a serious revolution in the snowsports industry.

08.30.2019

4FRNT Skis founder, Matt Sterbenz, recently launchedWNDR Alpine, a new company that’s incorporating biotech into skis.