Fish-scale based skis from the olden days...

[Ron Gonzalez]

Hi, 

I thought folks here might be interested in seeing this. 

I found a post on wooden fish-scale based skis and a 'ski paddle' made by a fellow out of Ely, Minnesota named Henry Niemi, circa 1940 . While skis of this period were normally very long and not very wide, these skis are shorter and wider. They also look like they have a long tip rise, probably to make it easier to break trail in deep snow. 

Original post (on Facebook): https://www.facebook.com/groups/456906747773172/permalink/3357402564390228

I like seeing that many concepts we think are new and cutting edge have been around for generations. 

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- Ron G 

[Phil]

Thanks. Very interesting. 

The ski paddle seems mysterious. Was it used like a paddle to move through the snow? Doesn't seem long enough though it does seem like it had the ability to be extended (or maybe just collapsed for easier storage). All the same it would be hard to make skis work like a SUP. I wonder if it was a variation on the shovel rather than a paddle. Would seem like the spoon shape could be a very efficient means of moving snow, especially if you wanted to dig a snow cave type shelter. The taper on the front of the spoon would limit the amount of snow you disturbed but the wider part would make sure you could remove all of it. Having dug snow caves with aluminum grain scoops (that also were modified to break apart for easier packing) I can say the spoon shape seems like it would work better.