Rich and I met puzzled stares from passersby with strained smiles as we carried the heavier-than-usual snowboard down the Snowmass Mall towards Fanny Hill. As we walked, I wondered exactly how much less a newer titanium version would weigh.
Before we reached the snow, D saw us and jumped up to say hi. She’s super cute –full of enthusiasm and excitement — and she couldn’t wait to ride. We spent a few minutes visiting with D before getting her set up on the rig and taking off down towards the Village Express.
Rich and his brother spent months independently developing this piece of equipment for D, and it’s truly the only snowboard of its kind. Two vertical masts anchored to aluminum plates, which are mounted directly on top of the snowboard. An adjustable handlebar for the rider to hold spans across the top of the masts, and another set of handlebars is mounted on the back mast for an instructor to use for guiding. The rider straps into regular snowboard bindings and also wears a climbing harness which is suspended between the uprights. Additionally, each mast is equipped with a spring and a gas shock.
The setup looked rather awkward without a rider, but it all made sense to me once D was hooked in. The poles and harness are designed to provide a rider with limited leg stability and strength with enough support to stand while still allowing them to swing their hips and initiate turns. The rider’s handle bar helps them stabilize their upper body if necessary, and the springs and shocks provide the damping necessary for a more gentle ride. As we went down, Rich skied right behind D, holding onto the rear handlebars and guiding her through turns. He lets her lead the way and make her own turns, but he’s there to catch her if she leans too far or gets out of control. Watching Rich and D make graceful s-turns down the mountain was awesome, to say the least.
Later that afternoon, as Rich and I discussed the board’s performance, it occurred to me that his invention could quite possibly pave the way for the next breakthrough in adaptive snow sport technology. But, for the moment, he and D are just taking it one run at a time.
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Greg Coffin is taking a year-off from the University of Virginia where he is pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is one of Challenge Aspen’s 2013-2014 winter interns.
