@banmojo: Why don't you just start exercising before the ski season begins? There's only ONE exercise you need to do. The wall sit. And maybe some sit ups. Then you're a skiier. Whoopadeedoo.

Pope John Peeps II

@Pope John Peeps II: yeah, the alps rock. especially the Dolomites, imo. as for this device, I see it as a perfect way to ease into the ski season without risking injury. kind of like wrapping your knee before playing b-ball early in the season. later on you take it off earlier and earlier each day, till you no longer put it on.

either that or have one of those ridiculous ski machines in your house (my bro has one and it's cool but takes a lot of space and is kind of annoying to use for longer than 2 minutes).

banmojo

@sjansa: Everyone in europe is just a rental car or a ferry ride away from the Alps. And everyone's been.

P.S. It's AMAZING skiing. Ridiculous.

Pope John Peeps II

Nothing against the brits, but does anybody else find it a little, I don't know, "appropriate" that people from an island with no ski areas (Yes, I am a purist, and no, I don't count the indoor slopes) would design something like this?

Also, in their videos, nobody is using what you would call good "ski posture".

sjansa

My insurance covers knee braces. I wonder if this would fit in that realm. Hmmm.

Tek Elements

@Pope John Peeps II: Holly crap that does sound cool.... much better than scotth0's idea!

dambo29

@scotth0: good thinking my man!

dambo29

They should make something where you can sit on it while sliding down a slope...kinda like a sled. Wait...

RainyDayInterns

@Pope John Peeps II: Yes! Now you're thinking!

92BuickLeSabre

@92BuickLeSabre: Actually you're right. That sounds AMAZING. The field would be 1 kilometer long, and each suit would have a tiny motion-tracking radar to track the incoming ROCKET KICK. The goaltender would leap 25 feet into the air, and deploy some sort of gliding wing to get him to the ball.

Fucking woz. Busy playing Segway polo while there's gundam soccer to invent?

Pope John Peeps II

This needs a wireless remote button on your ski poles labelled "Launch" that you could press just as you go off a jump....

scotth0

@Pope John Peeps II:

playing soccer in a robotic suit that does all the work for you

Okay, you do realize how awesome that actually sounds right?

92BuickLeSabre

@Pope John Peeps II:

Doesn't that depend on the person seeing skiing as a sport? Don't many people see it more as a hobby type thing that they enjoy?

I guess the difference is in whether you enjoy skiing as a physical activity or a physical experience.

Full disclosure: I've never been skiing in my life.

nagumi

Great support for people with prosthetic legs.

dysthymia

@Pope John Peeps II: I wish more people would retort their own bitchy comments. Thank you.

Spyrojoe

As a longtime skiier, why would you want to ski faster or longer than your body will allow? It's stupid, and you're just cheating yourself of the pleasure of getting better, and getting stronger. The editor from the Times is totally right. What's the point in playing a sport if you buy yourself aids like this? It's like playing soccer in a robotic suit that does all the work for you.

On the other hand, I would LOVE to get a set of these for each of my elderly parents, to let them really enjoy themselves on the slopes again. They have bad knees and bad backs, and this could only help.

Pope John Peeps II

Purists are a-holes.

MrHellpop

strap some hydraulic pumps onto this puppy, and mod it to let me jump tall buildings in a single bound, and I'm in...

prodigal_son

i bet that's what forest gump would look like if he tried to ski

Weihovah

"Heated chairlift seats"?? what a freakin awesome idea!

This whole "purist" mentality is just people who are mad that these inventions weren't common in use when they were coming up. it's just bitterness.

kaneshadow

It's rediculous how people inject all kinds of macho and egotistical supposed virtue into whatever it is they do.
POPE JOHN PEEPS: Ther isn't any universal moral law that says how people should approach Skiing. Many people don't ski to get stronger or better at it. The develop strength and skill so they can Ski. Work to live, don't live to work. So if this device let's them enjoy Skiing longer or easier then good for them.
In fact, a Skiing 'purist' should love Skiing for the pure joy of it and a real purist wouldn't let ego contaminate and hinder the persuit of that joy.
When skiing Gravity does most of the work, skill and some strength just add the finishing touches. Who cares if you can help the strength or even put gyroscopes in your boots.
As for heated skii lifts. So what. Only a retard would demand the heater was turned off while they froze their butt off on the way up just so they can claim to be macho.

Poita

It looks like they'd be a pain on the lifts, though. You would either have to hold your legs straight the whole time, or have that pad just below and behind your knee pushing on your legs the whole time. No thanks. $600 would buy me some way better boots (not that I need to replace them, but it's a better option than $600 for this crap)

Munch

All we need now is Wii interface... so we play in the buff and avoid the snow thingy altogether.

:)

aec007

I love skiing, and my legs can take skiing all day, but I really don't think I'd mind the extra safety factor of keeping my knees from getting tired. An avoided late day blown knee and this thing would have well paid for itself. That said, I still don't think I'd stop doing pre-season conditioning.

adamp

Robot soccer suits would be great. It would get rid of the drug cheats and make the cheating visible to all!

Maxwells_Nylon_Hammer