November 24, 2019

The Best Gifts for Skiers

Best Gifts for Skiers


When temperatures start to drop and the snow begins to fall, we’re fast approaching the most wonderful time of year, Ski Season.. also the Holidays. But what do you get for the skier in your life if you know nothing about skiing? 


Chances are your knowledge of the ski industry and the new products that constantly flood the market are nowhere close to what you would need to give a ski gift without the need for a return or exchange.


The best gift for skiers is a ski rack.

Seem wrong? It’s not, and here’s why..

Knowing your skier

Creating a ski setup is an extremely personal process. Every aspect of a skier’s setup is selected per the individual and caters to their style of riding, physicality, and personal preferences. From picking the right ski boots with the proper stiffness to enable skiers to perform on the slopes while properly fitting the unique shape up each foot to ski bindings DIN range that let’s hard-chargers charge hard without their skis popping off. While boots and bindings are incredibly important, most time and thought is generally spent on the size, shape, camber, and artwork of our skis.


Unless you are a ski savant or possess the power of telepathy, it will be nearly impossible for you to get the right gear for said skier. You want to find something you can be confident they’ll get a lot of use out of, and you only have to know one thing.... that they have one or more pairs of skis! 


Why is a ski rack the best gift for a skier?

There are many advantages to ski wall racks and indoor ski storage.


  1. Ski Storage is a problem. Hardly any skier has their gear stored in a way that gets it out of the way but gives it the visibility we want. Skis, poles, and helmets create clutter, make spaces unusable, and create situations that can be dangerous to move around. “Pick up your ****ing skateboard!” from Wedding Crashers was no joke!
  2. Damage - In addition to creating dangerous situations for foot traffic, gear can easily get damaged when not stored properly. Other gear collides, sharp edges slice bindings and top coats, edges get dinged and rusty, and gear stays wet which produces the perfect environment for mold.
  3. Proper storage prolongs the life of your gear. Longer lasting sidewalls and protected edges will keep you gear at it’s best for longer and even prevent delamination.
  4. Skiers love their gear. We spend days, weeks, or longer picking out the perfect setup and we love every piece. To us, our skis are art and we want to see it as much as possible, but the reality is we don’t ski as much as we like and the down days far outnumber the slope days. Seeing our skis keeps the stoke alive until we can get out on the mountains again.

In short, the reason that a ski rack is the best gift you can give a skier is that the only thing you need to know is that they love skiing. You don’t need to know foot size/shape, bindings, ski style, etc. In fact, you only need to know how many skis (or boards) the rack needs to hold. This ensures that your skier has safe, organized skiers/gear, a more efficient space, and, most importantly, a way to display their gear so they can  appreciate it on the regular.

 

Ski Racks - Wall-Mounted Indoor Ski Storage


Why Grassracks are the best ski racks to buy.

This is the part where we should insert a shameless plug about how our brand is amazing and the rest of the market pales in comparison and, while we may believe that, we will just explain the benefits of our brand and let you decide.


A quick market analysis. Almost the entirety of the rack market focuses on function. They cater to athletes who are looking for a cheap storage solution in an out-of-sight location. Bottom line pressure to make cheap racks leads to low-quality materials, designs, and construction which are abundantly evident when taken out of the box.


Our goal was never to be the cheapest and we are not. When designing our racks we had 3 goals and one rule.

  1. Make the strongest/safest racks on the market.
  2. Make the best-looking racks on the market. (“Racks” imply storage, we wanted to make “displays” worthy of our home while still being storage efficient.”
  3. Make racks that are easy-installation and adjustable.

Rule: Don’t make anything at the expense of the environment.


Functionality


It doesn’t matter how good something looks if it doesn’t work. Lucky for you, we designed our ski racks with both looks and functionality in mind. In fact, they function better than anything else you could buy. We make a lot of claims about our racks being the best on the market and here’s why..


  • Strength 
      • When it comes to sustainable, naturally occuring materials, bamboo is the best there is. With a higher tensile strength/lb than steel, a higher compressive strength/lb than concrete, and a Janka hardness rating of 1,500+ lbs, bamboo is ridiculously strong. 
      • We use a 3-ply bamboo plywood with perpendicular grain direction between plys with incredible multi-directional strength which allows our products to hold any reasonably sized gear with a sleek design.
      • We also have a Birch material option if you’re looking for a more economical solution that is still great looking in any space, and strong with the same multi-ply construction.
    • Mounting System - Our wall-mounted products feature our proprietary Mounting Bar System that has a few key features.
      • Easy-Installation - Many brands say it, we mean it. Once you find the studs in your wall, our rack will take you just a few minutes to install.
      • Multiple attachment points create a very secure base to which each cradle can hang. Our Mounting Bars have pilot holes 16” apart that will align perfectly with your studs, making each rack incredibly strong. In the case that you can’t hit studs with your placement, we provide drywall anchors that are weight tested up to 75 lbs each.
      • Adjustability - The design of our Mounting Bar and Cradle system allows racks to easily be taken off the Mounting Bar and repositioned at different widths to accommodate bindings or anything else that may obstruct cradle arms. Most other racks on the market are fixed to a certain point on the wall so if your gear needs change then you are SOL or have to uninstall and reinstall your entire rack.
  • Design / Angle / Utility Hooks - We’ve been at this for a while. We have been measuring, researching gear, designing, and tweaking for 10 years to find the perfect arm spacing and angles to maximize visibility of gear and storage capacity.
  • Style

    With nodes running up each shoot, bamboo has a distinct look that produces a beautiful grain pattern showing each of the thousands of bamboo fibers that run the length of the culm and make bamboo so strong. Our finish brings out a rich amber color with golden fibers and “knots” (nodes).

    Bamboo Ski Racks - Bamboo Grain

     

    Sustainability

    • Bamboo - It’s a grass not a wood.
      • Bamboo doesn’t need to regrow roots which means it continues to grow quickly without replanting or developing a new root structure.
      • Sequesters more carbon from the atmosphere than any other plant, including trees.
      • Filters water and reduces erosion.
    • Finish - We us a super eco-friendly finish from Vermont Natural Coatings which protects from moisture/water and scratches while bringing out the color. It does not require respiratory gear during application like most other stains and finishes.
    • Packaging - We use compostable/recyclable materials in manufacturing, boxing, shipping, etc. We don’t waste time, money, or resources with ‘retail packaging’. Even our hardware baggies are plant-based.
    • Our direct-to-consumer model saves on excess shipping and retail packaging.

    Assortment

    No matter how many skis you have, we have the perfect rack. 


    The Hallsteiner Series - Horizontal Wall-Mounted Ski Rack

    Horizontal Ski Storage - Ski Wall Rack

     

    Our most popular ski rack, the Hallsteiner Series displays your skis horizontally and can accommodate skis up to 100mm under foot. Two Mounting Bars allow you to install each cradle at a width of your choice. Need to adjust for bindings? It takes only seconds to unhook cradles from each Mounting Bar and move them to your desired width. (For fatty McFat powder skis try our Moloka’i Series). With utility hooks designed into each cradle, you’ll have extra storage space for poles, jackets, bags, helmets, etc.


    The Vercules Series - Vertical Wall-Mounted Ski Rack

    Vertical Ski Rack

     

    Our Vercules takes advantage of your vertical wall space and holds up to 3 pairs of skis (or snowboards).


    Nubbins - The Storage System for Everything

    Flush Vertical Ski Wall Mounts

     

    Our Nubbins are our simplest, most minimalist products. As part of our Zero Waste Program, we created our Nubbins to allow skiers and snowboarders a way to display their gear flush against the wall. We soon realized that the applications went far past gear and are also perfect for jackets, bags, helmets, and anything else that can hang flat against the wall. As far as skis and snowboards go, Nubbins are great because they take only seconds to install and accommodate skis and boards of any width while keeping your gear on display and out of the way. We also bundle our Nubbins so athletes can buy up to 10 in a package with quantity discount.

    Bamboo Forest

    That’s how we make the best racks ON & FOR the planet. Our mission is to create the best racks on the planet so people who genuinely love and appreciate their gear can display it with pride.


    Out of sight, out of mind. There’s something about seeing your skis every day that keeps the stoke alive. You’ll remember your favorite trips and you’ll be more amped than ever to plan the next one. Your ski equipment will last longer and be in better condition during its life. In the end, it will bring you joy.


    If you are sold on Grassracks products but aren’t ready to purchase our premium Bamboo racks, you’ll be happy to know that we’ve just made just about our entire line available in a Baltic Birch material. Birch is still an incredibly strong material and looks great but its lower price point and no-finish allows us to sell at a cheaper price for customers that love our designs but are priced out by bamboo.