OhSki The Worst Idea From SIA 2015

Every year at SIA (Snowsports Industry of America) show there’s always one item that sticks out as the what the hell is this thing and why does it exist? While thinking outside the box is great and sometimes results in a product that revolutionizes what we love, you also get the flip side of this does nothing for snowboarding. Over the years there’s been many ideas that have been presented as the future of snowboarding, sadly they were left in the past.

While crawling from the bowels of the trade show and entering into the area where the old white people lurked I came upon an invention so mind bending I still can’t wrap my mind around it. What does it do? How does it actually help your snowboarding? Why would someone make it? These are the questions that I still have zero answers for.Their website is of little help as well. I can only guess that it’s really for skiing and somehow they thought it could cross over to snowboarding.

I present to you the Ohski. An invention created by a thirty five year veteran of the aircraft industry. It’s like an even worse version of the Manic Snowboard Binding.

The one common theme over the years for bad ideas like the Ohski is that the inventor is so out of touch with snow sports. Case in point is this direct quote off their website:

A trend that is affecting the snow sports industry are the terrain parks being built on the ski slopes. These terrain parks are widening the appeal of the snow sports industry to the youth. Freestyle skis jumped 70 percent, while freestyle snowboards jumped 23 percent. This shows that new ways to use the ski slopes is the fastest growing part of the industry and Ohski is a new way to use the slopes. Contact your local sporting good shop for more details.

Is this 2002? Parks have been around over 20 years now and clearly aren’t going anywhere.

But OhSki’s founders not to be pigeon holed by one bad quote have outdone themselves with this quote:

Industry Analysis Summary

The technological advancements in equipment and attention to what people want out of ski areas has had a major positive impact on the ski industry. New terrain parks, opening up the back country to more people, and having both well groomed slopes and ungroomed slopes has attracted more people.

OHSKI can be used in all of these areas .

OHSKI is just what new snow sports enthusiasts and ski areas are looking for. Have more fun Please contact your local sporting goods store to order your Ohski advanced shock system.

I’m sure people are just flocking to their sporting goods store to get these. I can see line of customers at Dicks, Sports Authority, or Cabella’s just standing at the service desk asking for this product. “Yeah so I need me some of that buckshot for my shotgun, and you got any of that there duck piss scent, oh and how could I forget some of those OhSki suspension thingies for my snowboard. Family and I are going on a big ole trip to Seven Springs next month. Kids are going to get radical in that there stunt park! I’m going to venture out into that there backcountry too!” Said no one ever.

While the patent for the Ohski goes all the way back to 2005, I would have to say Yobeat beat them to the punch with the bouncy board.

Now with any bad idea we mock there’s going to be that one person that says we need to try it. I leave that in your hands anonymous Internet commenter. While you test it out, we’ll just wrap our head around why this even exists.