{"id":3232,"date":"2015-01-20T18:42:39","date_gmt":"2015-01-21T01:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/skiblog.powder7.com\/?p=3232"},"modified":"2020-08-01T17:07:35","modified_gmt":"2020-08-01T23:07:35","slug":"2015-head-i-supershape-ski-review-science-and-science-ibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.powder7.com\/ski-blog\/2015-head-i-supershape-ski-review-science-and-science-ibility\/","title":{"rendered":"2015 Head i.Supershape Ski Review: Science and Science-ibility*"},"content":{"rendered":"

There are mysteries in life we were never meant to understand.  Like the flight of a hummingbird, or the rules to Canadian football, or what gluten is.  Scientists dedicate their careers to such inscrutable riddles, but we\u2019ll never solve them.  That\u2019s mostly because our best minds are, apparently, designing sweet futuristic skis in the Head Supershape laboratory, which I assume is located in space.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d argue it\u2019s all worth it.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the most technology-packed skis on the planet (outside of the World Cup circuit) are the i.Supershape series from Head.  You can tell it\u2019s cutting-edge because there\u2019s a lower-case “i” followed by a period in the name.  Classic Steve Jobs move.  The four skis that make up the Supershape family–starting at 66mm-underfoot with the i.Supershape Speed<\/a>, and maxing out at a still-svelte 80mm with the i.Supershape Titan<\/a>–are uncompromising rockets meticulously designed to destroy firm snow.  The 72mm-wide i.Supershape Magnum<\/a> and 76mm i.Supershape Rally<\/a> complete the line-up, providing a range of award-winning options for the discriminating speed freak.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The Head Supershape Fab Four:  Blue is the cute one, Red is the smart one, Green is the goofy one, and Yellow is the rebel.  They’re so hot right now.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The key to that world-beating performance–specifically, to the liveliness and pop found in all Supershape skis–is the invention of KERS technology, which you can read about here<\/a>.  Does that name sound like a horrible disease?  Yes.  Does the explanation on Head\u2019s website read as if it has been translated from German to English by an unusually boring robot?  Sure.  But I promise you the science is sound.  Probably.  I don\u2019t know, I\u2019m not a mechanical engineer–even though I\u2019ve frequently pretended to be one at parties to impress mechanical engineering groupies.  I\u2019ve since learned that there\u2019s no such thing.<\/p>\n

The point is this:  there\u2019s a microchip in these skis.  But it\u2019s not like the microchip in my computer that lets me watch the British feed of ESPN because I prefer my sports announcers to sound like characters from Downton Abbey<\/a>.  No, this one actually serves a purpose.<\/p>\n

It (with the help of something called piezoelectic fibers) captures the kinetic energy generated by the flexing of the ski at the start of a turn. Then, as you transition out of the turn, that energy is released, stiffening the tails, and rocketing you forward. I\u2019m pretty sure that\u2019s basically the plot of \u201cInterstellar\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For the more visual learners among us, there\u2019s a nice little animation explaining KERS technology at the end of this extremely weird Head commercial, which features Bode Miller and what I believe are Polish subtitles:<\/p>\n