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Philpug

Philpug

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I am compiling some of these ideas for "Future products we would like to see. Vol II, The Spademan Cometh". ;)
 
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Philpug

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I claim foul here... ;)
Technically, you depress the red latch to release this binding... :huh:
I don't think he is saying that it does what the Tyrolia heel does but that he would want to see a Rotomat return.
 

Bill Talbot

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I don't think he is saying that it does what the Tyrolia heel does but that he would want to see a Rotomat return.

Well if THAT is what he's thinking, I'd go THIS route...

Marker FDR

Marker FDR.JPG


I believe these were the last two versions Marker offered (4th and 5th generation?)

Marker Rotamat timeline 01.jpg
 
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Dave Petersen

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wish-list-pugski-petersen-slider-jpg.53336




All I have to say is: That's some really fine penmanship there, Phil. Or is that Dave's work too?

That's my hand and timeshare. :)
 

silverback

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MRR's were my go-to. No pressure on the springs. I like the weight, turn-table, easy click out, easy to get on in powder (you don't need support from soft snow), and they look steezy!
 
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Philpug

Philpug

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MRR's were my go-to. No pressure on the springs. I like the weight, turn-table, easy click out, easy to get on in powder (you don't need support from soft snow), and they look steezy!
Plus they made the back half of the ski look really long in the lifeline. ;)

I too skied them for a decade...until I learned to appreciate elasticity in a toe piece and went to the 957.
 

Muleski

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I'm with Phil in terms of the last generation of the MRR, the "step in" really not doing it for me. I understand why they designed them, but they just were not the same. I had the MRR on a lot of skis. Loved that binding. Our son has a couple of pairs of old vintage race skis that were mine that have them mounted and they still work.

Got me to thinking that "back in the day", which as an athlete/coach slowed down a lot in the mid-eighties, things were so different in that even those athletes who were fully comp'd {fully sponsored] for skis and boots were rarely locked into binding deals with a specific binding company. Some were, but not many.

When I first had a coach who was a real tyrant, and demanded a certain set-up, also paying huge attention to canting and alignment, his "demand" was Solly toes and Rotomat heels. 1970 or so. And I mean demand. I recall my dad grumbling as we stripped a half dozen or more pairs of bindings off my skis. Many people can't believe that one now.....a toe and heel from different manufacturers. Before those days my older brother used a Look Nevada toe with a Marker long thong turntable heel, as he felt the Nevada heel design was too flimsy. Not like you were really releasing with that 6' long thong wrapped around your boot. That was a pretty common setup.

By the time I was an older teen, in college, and beyond, very few companies forced a binding on you. One was Dynamic, as I recall. I was lucky enough to have a few pairs passed on to me by a USST athlete, and they had to be mounted with Look/Nevada. My first pair of red Nevada race bindings were on a pair of 1971 VR17 GS skis. 212cm, engraved sidewalls, clear bases. At about the same time, I had Rossis, Head, and Yamaha race skis and I don't think anybody forced me to use a binding. I don't think there were binding alliances. In the late 80's, I began a relationship with K2, and got some great deals over the next half decade. The skis were always shipped with a set of Marker MRR's. But I never got the order to use them. I did anyways. And then I was in a deal with Volkl for quite a while. They shipped with Markers.

My go-to became the Solly all metal race bindings in the late 1990's. Can't tell you how many of those I skied and went through. Around 2001, our son became one of the first comp'd skiers in the USA on Elan. That was a good deal. For those years, they came with Solly bindings, 916's and 920's. Many were the silver and black color, with matched the Elan ski graphics better. The race rep was a good guy, and he was also trying to get the skis under more people who would do well. If I called him and said we needed a pair of 916's, it would not be unusual to have four pairs delivered. And every late summer and fall, he'd get his skis and as many pairs of new bindings, plus a couple more. The rep would ask me if I needed any, or my wife. Then about the time that he moved off Elan {the rep was back in Europe, BTW}, they struck the deal with Tyrolia. A number of leftover, unused Solly's made their way to us. Son was then on Fischer for a couple of years, before their deal with Tyrolia, and used the Solly bindings.

Meanwhile his younger sister was on Rossi, and Look had to be used. Only binding that fit the plates. FKS 155's and 185's. Nice. Then she moved to Volkl, who were among the first to use the Piston Plate, so all Marker. She was on Volkl for maybe 7 years? Son was on Nordica, also with Marker, then with Head....and the Head branded Tyrolia.

But the bindings that stuck in the non race stable and on the shelf were the 916's and 920's. we still have some in use.

SO.....very long winded way of my looking at MRR's, getting nostalgic, thinking "old school" and realizing just how much buying or being given race product has changed. There was also a time when you would buy the best SL ski, the best GS ski, and the best speed skis for you, and it could well be three different companies. I think one of our kids was one of the last fairly high level athletes on that program. I recall reps being astounded when I said we were going to buy, and source it all. Much in Europe. Then they all basically said, quietly, "smart move." The best SL ski at that age and size was a lot better, and their GS ski was a dog. The best GS ski for her had a terrible SL "mate." And speed skis at that point for her size were a very elusive animal to track down. Europe.

I recall some mean kids who, truth be told sucked, who's parents were paying full price, for lousy equipment, bragging {lying} about being sponsored. Some things have not changed! Our daughter would not engage. "Yep, that's cool." And when they would say "well, YOU'RE not sponsored" she would say "nope." Knowing that the goal was to be fast. And to be able to grow as a skier. Her skis ripped. The lesson that many parents even then never got was that getting deals on crappy skis is not fast.

Funny to think back on all of this stuff.....sparked by the MRR pics. Great Iconic binding!
 
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Philpug

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This thread and some of the specific designs have reached litterally thousands of people on Facebook. We would like to welcome all the new eyes and we hope that you will stay. We enjoy projects like this and will be doing more in the future.
 

Pete in Idaho

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MRR's were my go-to. No pressure on the springs. I like the weight, turn-table, easy click out, easy to get on in powder (you don't need support from soft snow), and they look steezy!

Rode the MRR for years and always worked well.

4ster, would be interesting 80-100 conventional camber

I have a NEW not even mounted pairs of 200 Rossi Slalom 9S skis in my garage and one of these days before I disappear think I would like to ski them
 

Choucas

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Most of the suggestions in this thread are rehashes of old ideas, designs and cosmetics. There's a lot if institutional history here but not much forward thinking. It demonstrates how difficult it is to step back and find new areas than need to be addressed, problems that need to be solved with true innovative thinking. Most large steps in ski equipment and apparel design have come from outside the core of the business. From people with a different vantage point. It's easy to say, make a ski that looks like at VR17 or some other 50 year old product. It's really hard to take the blinders off and distil things down to the point where you can attack the root of a need that will make skiing easier, more fun, more affordable, more attractive, more available. I like this thread and hope that it can evolve from reminiscences of MRR's and other antiques to boot/binding/ski concepts that will actually drive things forward.
The ski equipment landscape looks a bit different than it did 10 years ago (even 20 years ago) but not that much has really changed. What will it look like 10 years from now?
It's an aging, shrinking market in most parts of the world. It's under siege from climate change.
Can technology be used to create bespoke products that are tailored to each individual? Can I input my physical stats into my computer, and select, fabric, insulation, style, fit, features, and color and have clothing/gloves/helmets/goggles delivered to my door in a matter of days? Can I download an app that will allow me to scan my feet and have that info sent to a boot maker that will create a liner (I'll have options of picking the desired closeness of fit, flex, warmth levels, shell color, hardware styles and colors) that will mesh perfectly with my foot and the shell and have that delivered to me in short order. The supplier, rep, retailer system of distribution has to be junked. A more viable method of serving the customer has to be put in place that makes it attractive for investors to make significant commitments to the category. If there's $ to be made, then there are reasons to invest and prospects for growth. Otherwise, things will just bump along as they are with no real upside in sight. Maybe China is the answer for growth and innovation.
 

Seldomski

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I would love to see new products that enhance safety and provide more accountability on the slopes. I am thinking specifically about hit and run collisions or other bad/reckless behavior. Long term, this is the primary reason I would quit the sport. I know many others that feel the same way or have quit because of the risk of injury from collisions. There needs to be a stronger deterrent for reckless skiing/boarding. I think there are many ways to do this. I would also choose a resort that enforced such policies over any other for my vacations.

On a lighter note, a nice to have thing would be a ski pole or wristband with buttons for controlling a go pro or other camera. This way I can have a camera mounted to my helmet or whatever and be able to take still pictures, start/stop recording, and know status of the camera without taking my helmet off or trying to see small LEDs on the camera. I have used a go pro in the past, but the nuisance of turning it on/off led me to have it on most of the time. The problem was then the limited battery life and the amount of editing required afterward. If I can instead have easier control on/off (while wearing gloves), I can edit by simply not taking as much video.
 
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Philpug

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I would love to see new products that enhance safety and provide more accountability on the slopes. I am thinking specifically about hit and run collisions or other bad/reckless behavior. Long term, this is the primary reason I would quit the sport. I know many others that feel the same way or have quit because of the risk of injury from collisions. There needs to be a stronger deterrent for reckless skiing/boarding. I think there are many ways to do this. I would also choose a resort that enforced such policies over any other for my vacations.
Some resorts do a better job of this than others and some just don't know have no clue. What is a safe speed and what is an unsafe speed? How do you keep people from over terraining themselves and becoming dangerous to skiers/riders who have the ablity to be on those trails? It is very gray. I am sure there are many ways to do it but for every way, there are five to ten ways around it or "yeah, buts..."

On a lighter note, a nice to have thing would be a ski pole or wristband with buttons for controlling a go pro or other camera. This way I can have a camera mounted to my helmet or whatever and be able to take still pictures, start/stop recording, and know status of the camera without taking my helmet off or trying to see small LEDs on the camera. I have used a go pro in the past, but the nuisance of turning it on/off led me to have it on most of the time. The problem was then the limited battery life and the amount of editing required afterward. If I can instead have easier control on/off (while wearing gloves), I can edit by simply not taking as much video.
Not for poles, but Beartek gloves have the ability to control your GoPro.
 

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