The skiers of the Finnish ski team have had a secret weapon at the World Cup in Falun this weekend – a Finnish innovation that may revolutionize the traditional way of ski lubrication.
It is a ski with grip soles, which does not use any creams in the grip area.
– Someone has asked what has been done to them, so I said that the third trick, the CEO of the company CustomSki responsible for the innovation of skis, has been inserted there Esa Vironen told Urheilu and answered the “how does the invention work” question with a laugh:
– It works exceptionally well! It’s about some kind of grip.
Vironen does not want to expose the invention any more, because a patent was applied for it more than a month ago. In the beginning of March Ilta-Sanom in his interview, Vironen agreed to say that it is a new type of treatment of the holding area. At that time, the ski does not need to be lubricated, but there is also no hair on it.
The product has been developed for a year, and initially it was aimed at fitness skiers, as the market is larger in that area.
– We were thinking about how we can get something new, because nothing has happened in the skiing world for 15 years and since the arrival of karvasus.
“We skied for the awards”
Competitive skiers tested the new traction sole a year ago in water sports. At that time it was found to be working. In this year’s Finlandia skiing, the guardian of the Finnish national team and Iivo Niskanen responsible for skis Niko Nättinen skied fourth with the new product. Ilta-Sanom the grip of the skis was downright excellent, but the glide remained just as good.
– We have a bit of a problem that we have made these skis a little bit that hurt, because we have thought about it more from the point of view of a fitness enthusiast. Now we made Niko’s first versions for proper racing skis. We found them to be good. Since then, even national team skiers have been interested in them, Vironen said.
In the World Cup in Falun, the Finnish team had the opportunity to ski with skis fitted in this new way. According to Vironen, skis were already used on Friday in the sprint and on Saturday in the 10 km race. Who used these skis? Let it remain a secret for now.
– We skied for the awards, Vironen said.
It is a good result already because the holding area was not necessarily treated with the first pairs of athletes.
Rescue in difficult weather?
According to Vironen, this new holding area treatment works well in humid conditions. For competitive skiers, the best results are currently especially in water weather, but the more difficult the weather, the better. Especially in the wet weather of new snow, when new snow falls, the new grip skis are at their best.
– We were crossing our fingers that the weather would have been even more difficult on Saturday, Vironen stated.
– It works in humid weather and down to freezing temperatures, as long as the humidity is high enough. We’re trying to come up with a universal grip for that system with small changes, because a fitness enthusiast isn’t just looking for water skis.
After a year of information about the new invention to the media and skiing people, Vironen’s phone has been ringing at a steady rate. There have also been international contacts.
The Lahtai company is now waiting for the approval of the patent application, as nothing is known about the continuation yet.
Will this innovation blow the bank?
– At least it wouldn’t hurt, Vironen laughed.
Also Urheilu’s expert Aino-Kaisa Saarinen is excited about this new invention, even though he hasn’t gotten to try it yet. Saarinen said that he had only heard wild rumors from many directions.
– Everywhere you hear that it will dramatically change lubrication and traditional skiing. This way we get a new dimension: an unlubricated ski. It is a truly revolutionary invention.
Lubrication Manager: Can be tough
There has been enough mystique surrounding the method, and no one from Finland’s maintenance service really wanted to comment on it. Lubrication Manager Heikki Tonteri agreed to quickly flash the grip skis to the camera at Urheilu’s request.
– This is such a new thing that both the manufacturer and, of course, we have to be careful. A patent has been applied for, and this is a competitive advantage. We will also try to preserve one, Tonteri reasoned.
According to Tonter, the grip sole skis treated with the method worked well in Friday and Saturday’s race. He reminded that there were also normal grip sole skis in use.
– There was a rush here. Skis were taken a bit randomly, and we couldn’t get them made for all the athletes. If we can get ahead of this thing and get this done on the right skis, then it can be a really tough thing, Tonteri admitted.
In his opinion, this new handling method of the holding area is an incredible innovation, especially for the fitness side. It can revolutionize traditional skiing in the same way that the bitters used to.
– When this method can still be developed, I believe that it will be a tough thing also on the racing side.
Update at 11:39: Added Heikki Tonter’s comments.