Classic Ski Brands and Manufacturers
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Wooden Skis
R. Amundsen

Oslo, Norway

1925-1932

Image by woodenskis.com

Image by woodenskis.com

R. Amundsen & Co. ski factory was located in Oslo, Norway. Roald Amundsen was a famous polar explorer who ventured to the North Pole and had his skis for that expedition made by L. H. Hagen company of Oslo. Hagen made 20 pair of hickory skis for Amundsen. L. H. Hagen was not only a ski maker, but a wooden wheel maker.

German-born Heinrich Beck met Reidar Amundsen, while working in Germany. They discussed exporting Norwegian skis to Germany. They saw a huge potential market in Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Switzerland, Poland, Italy and France. In January of 1922, Reidar Amundsen formed the company R. Amundsen A / S. Immediately, the company had name recognition because people thought that the ski company was named for Roald Amundsen. Reidar was a broker and sold skis manufactured in various ski factories in Norway to other countries in Europe.

In May 1925 Reidar decided to open his own ski factory, so R. Amundsen A / S Ski Fabrikk opened in Vålerengen, Norway with 47 - year-old Einar Olsen as foreman. The original wheel-maker Olsen had worked over fifteen years, first at L.H. Hagen ski factory, followed by Johansen and Nielsen ski factory. Five men worked at the R. Amundsen ski factory in 1927. Amundsen explored selling his skis in Canada and the United States at that time. Due to a slow market and low sales, the R. Amundsen A / S ski factory sold its assets in 1932 to Thorleif Haug, of Drammen, Norway for 500 kroners. Thorleif Haug was the winner of all three Nordic skiing events (18 km, 50 km and Nordic combination) at the 1st Olympic Winter Games in 1924

Source: Skimakerne. 1997. Thor Gotaas

Anderson and Thompson

Seattle, WA

1933-1975

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In Seattle, Washington, Jørgen Aaland experimented with making a laminated ski, a ski made up of multiple layers of wood glued together. Recognizing the complexity involved in manufacturing such a ski, Aaland approached Ray Anderson who was a skier and President of a furniture manufacturing company. In 1933 Anderson joined with Ben Thompson to start the Anderson & Thompson Ski Company, later known as the A&T Ski Company. They implemented Aaland’s ideas and began manufacturing laminated skis. Despite the fact that the lamination approach was Aaland’s idea, the U.S. patent was issued to Ray Anderson in 1936.

Henry Simonson bought the Anderson and Thompson Ski Co. with John Woodward in 1955 and sold it in 1975. A&T made skis until 1958, then purchased skis, boots, bindings from around the world and became a distributor.

In 1961, A & T Ski Company helped Bill Kirschner, a partner in the family business Kirschner Manufacturing, get started with his new ski manufacturing company. In 1964, Kirschner produced his first batch of 250 pairs of skis. In 1967, Kirschner separated his business from Kirschner Manufacturing and changed the name to K2

Source: Skiing Heritage Journal - #2

ÅSNES

1922-1998

Åsnes Turski ca. 1970 ***

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Åsnes Ski Factory started the first commercial manufacturing of Åsnes skis back in 1922 when the four Åsnes brothers began the ski production on a small scale. Arne Åsnes, the eldest in a Christian family of nine, got a job at LC Hagens ski factory in Oslo in 1910. After a short time, he was joined by three brothers and in 1922 they started up the Åsnes Ski Factory.

Since then, the development had gone from production of solid wooden skis to laminated wood core, glass fibre and cap skis, with or without steel edges, on an industrial and high-tech basis.

Åsnes delivered his last wooden skis to the military in 1987 and later went bankrupt in 1998.

Åsnes manufactured various other brands to be sold in the United States during the 1970s, including: Telemark, Holmenkollen, Sigmund Ruud, Norge Ski, and Trysil Knut. Customers in Norway and abroad knew little about Åsnes' profusion of models, only that they were Norwegian.

The skis shipped to the United States in all of the different brands also had different colors, such as brown, teal, and red. Skiers in Norway were happy buying Åsnes skis, but skiers in the United States were attracted to the other brands made by Åsnes, due to the brands' myths and cult-status.

Åsnes skis were imported from Norway to the United States by Haugen Nordic Products, a division of Dartmouth Outdoor Sports, Hanover, NH.

The four brothers who started Åsnes Ski Factory at work. On the left, Kristian, in the middle of the image Kolbjørn, further to the right Jonas and Leif. In the background to the right of Kristian sons Jonas, Lars (with cutter) and Jon at work.

From Åsnes's image collection.

BLÅ SKIA

1956-1985

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Ivar Halvorsen had worked at Ullevoldsæter ski factory from 1931 until he started for himself in 1950. The new factory was located very close to Ullevoldsæter's factory at Kruttverket in Nittedal. For the first two years, the company was a carpentry workshop, but from 1952, only skis were produced. The ski shop was called "Ivar Halvorsen's Ski Factory". Halvorsen focused on cross-country skiing, and produced cross-country and racing skis, as well as ski jumping. The first brand was called Snøgg, which were wooden skis that were varnished and decorated with a blue stripe on top. The emblems were created by the artist Borghild Ruud.

Most of the skis made during that time were dark brown and utilitarian. Friend and fellow coach Gunnar Finstad returned from the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina, Italy and mentioned to Ivar that the winning skis at the Olympics were colored. Both thought that it would be a good idea to color Ivar's skis in his factory, so Ivar used traditional Norwegian blue paint to color skis the next day. The results were amazing. The skis were no faster, they just looked like they were. He painted five more pair of skis and gave them to local ski racers. The racers placed high in the standings in local races, while other skiers remembered that they had used blue skis. Halvorsen decided to make more blue-colored skis and in the 1956-57 season he produced 400 pair. All were sold before he made them. Blue skis became popular and the name BLÅ SKIA stuck.

16 year old Odd Martinsen was given a pair of Blå Skia skis in 1958 from his coach Ivar Halvorsen. The popularity of Blå Skia skis contuned and by the mid-1960s Halvorsen had 9 employees in his ski factory. Nordic ski racers Odd Martinsen, Ivar Formo, and Jan Istad took Olympic and World Championship medals on Blå Skia skis. Requests for the skis came from all over as skiers went to visit the factory to see Halvorsen.

Odd Martinsen used a pair of wooden Blå Skias in the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France to win a silver medal in the 30K and a gold medal in the relay. Martinsen's 215cm skis weighed a mere 1300 grams (2.86 lbs.). Weight alone was not the only factor; Blå Skias were some of the first skis to have purposely built camber for specific snow conditions. Halvorsen used birch, beech, fir, hickory, and balsa in special combinations for his skis. After the success of Blå Skia skis in the 1968 Winter Olympics, Halvorsen was strained to keep up with demand in his 8,000 pair capacity factory in Nittedal, Norway.

When Thomas Magnusson won the 30K Winter Olympic race on fiberglass skis in 1974, Halvorsen knew the days of wooden skis were limited. Halvorsen kept his wooden ski factory open until 1983, then signed a contract with Landsem to make his skis for the 1984-85 season. Halvorsen retired from working and the Blå -skia name in 1985.

Odd Martinson is the father of Olympic champion Bente Skare, who won medals for cross country skiing in 1998 and 2002.

Blå Skia factory in Nittedal, Norway

Source: Skimakerne and http://industrimuseum.no/

BONNA

1939-1980

Bonna 1700

Bonna 1800

Bonna 2000, 2200, and 2400

Bonna Nor Turski

Bonna NoreFjell - ca. 1960s

Bonna Snow Stars - Wooden ski with synthetic base and fiberglass top

Bonna Fjellski ca. 1958 ***

Bonna Konkorranse ca. 1960 ***

Bonna Fjellski ca. 1965 ***

Bonna ca. 1968 ***

Bonna Grenader LS wooden racing ski

Bonna was a brand of the Lommedalen Ski Factory in Lommedalen, Norway. Ski Jumper Narve Bonna started the Lommedalen Ski Factory in 1939 with Captain Earl Willoch. Bonna, who won a silver medal in ski jumping in the Winter Olympics in 1924, had previously worked for three years at Splitkein Ski Factory, where he developed his own patents. Bonna not only liked to ski jump, but he worked on building skis.

Bonna experimented with gluing laminations in a ski in Dalarna in Sweden in 1921. The skis were three meters long, with a birch sole and mahogany overlay, which made for skiing ease over the marshes and frozen water. The experience made him intent on making a shorter glued ski, more adapted to Norwegian ski touring.

Earl Willock (1896-1955) partnered with the innovative Bonna, who had ski-building experience from Splitkein. Willock raised funds from people and asked them to sign share certificates, while Bonna provided professional ski-building knowledge at the Lommedalen ski factory.

Bonna and Sverre Brodahl took out patents on skis that they made at their own factory. Both made many skis and of good quality. They bought technology that was tested by Bjørn Ullevoldsæter, pioneer of glued laminations for skis. Ullevoldsæter sold his glueing patent to Peter Østbye, maker of Splitkein skis.

"Bonna-Ski" brand skis were produced by the Lommedalen Ski Factory. The factory name was changed to AS Bonna-Ski in 1967 and models were wooden until fiberglass skis became popular in the mid to late 1970s. The Bonna brand name disappeared after 1980.

AS Bonna-Ski factory also made the ski brand "Eiger"

"Bonna models included the 1700, 1800, 2000 and 2400. "My best experience has been with Bonnas, because they were so well constructed. The 1700 model warps easily in the tail, and is to be avoided. There are some excellent 1800s on the market, but the tails have often delaminated at the lignostone edges. I have a 25% success rate in buying 1800s in excellent condition. The 2000 model is more reliable - I have a 75% success rate with it. The 2400 is rarely on the market, and one has to pay attention which 2400 is listed. There is an extra wide and heavy 2400 with metal edges (I am 2 for 2 in buying terrific-shape 220 cm models), and there is a 2400 which is the same width and weight as the 2000. Perhaps this latter 2400 is an early version of the 2000. All of these models have lignostone edges. I have come across a 2200 - which is a larger 2400 without lignostone or steel edges. It is a beautiful ski, but it needs to avoid rocks because of the soft edges.".....Jim Pugh, Andover, MA.

Bonna Ski Information from a 1979 Advertisement

1600 Bonna - Top flight performance in light touring. High performance for the discriminating skier.

1800 Bonna - The grand daddy - best in wood

2000 Bonna - America's favorite top performance touring ski. Light, strong, and responsive for even the most demanding skier.

2200 Bonna - The recreational ski with Norwegian "know-how" and dependability.

2400 Bonna - The backcountry workhorse for the backcountry experience.

Bonna skis were imported to the United States from Norway by Norfell, Inc. of Chelmsford, MA

Dartmouth Skis

Hanover, New Hampshire 1940-

Dartmouth Cooperative Society

1919-1986

Image by vintagewinter.com

Image by vintagewinter.com

Fred Harris, Class of 1911, founded the Dartmouth Outing Club in the winter of 1909–10. Harris was a native of Brattleboro, Vermont, and by his own account had “skeeing on the brain”. This pleasant affliction had him making skis (the typical size was eight feet long, ash or hickory) and using them on the local hills and farm fields.

Source: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~doc/about/history/

In 1919, John Piane, Sr., owner of the Dartmouth Cooperative Society began selling skis made by the Gregg Ski Company of St. Paul, MN. The first Dartmouth Ski Catalogue was published in 1937 and not only carried Gregg-made skis but Kandahar bindings.

Source: Journal of the New England Ski Museum, Fall 2011

"With the rapid rise in the popularity of skiing, sporting goods dealers throughout the country began searching for a source of supply for ski equipment. Naturally, their attention turned toward the cradle of the sport in this country; Dartmouth College. Here they found the Dartmough Cooperative Society supplying ski equipment to Dartmough students. The desire of these dealers to purchase similar equipment on a wholesale basis led to the founding of the Wholesale Divison of the Darmought Cooperative Society. The response to this venture was so favorable that it has been found necessary to form this Wholesale Division into a separate company. Thus, the season fo 1940-41 sees America's finest ski equpment repsented under the name of Dartmouth Skis Inc."

Source: 1940-41 Dartmouth Ski Catalogue

EDSBYN

1899-1984

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Image by woodenskis.com

Edsbyn is a town, and the seat of Ovanåker Municipality, in Gävleborg County, Sweden. The story begins in 1899, when the craftsman Lars Fredrik Pettersson started a small joinery shop. He made furniture, doors and windows to new buildings in the rapidly growing Edsbyn. Lars Pettersson's son Ivar took over in 1928 and began a new era. Ivar had studied Henry Ford and his assembly line. The new concept of a production line was used to make furniture.

In 1934 Edsbyns Ski Factory was created, which was another milestone for Ivar. Edsbyn skis would become classic for generations of Swedes.

The Edsbyn ski brandname was sold to JOFA in 1984 with continued production until 1999 in the town of Edsbyn (possibly not JOFA all that time) when production halted after a number of winters with too little snow. Edsbyverken ("The Edsby Works") still makes office furniture.

Wood was and still is the common thread running through the company. The story tells us about how the company has, in a peculiar way, managed to adapt to social changes. Edsbyverken has over the years been involved in various operations but furniture has always been the main product. Many still associate Edsbyn with skis. This is understandable since Edsbyn was one of the world's largest ski producers in the mid 70s.

Edsbyn was the largest Swedish manufacturer of skis in the 1970s with 400,000 produced.

Source: http://www.edsbyninredningar.se/newspost_5803.html

Park Manufacturing Company

Gregg Manufacturing Company

St. Paul, Minnesota 1892 - 1953

Henry S. Gregg was president in 1906 of the Minneapolis Iron Store Company, which owned Park Manufacturing and Gregg Manufacturing companies. Park and Gregg started out making wooden farm implements. Gregg began making wooden skis for the Dartmouth Cooperative Society in Hanover, NH in 1919. Henry Gregg's son John Gregg became vice-president of Gregg Manufacturing in about 1926. Demand grew into the 1930s and Gregg Skis was one of the three major suppliers of skis for the 10th Mtn. Div. during WW2. Gregg also made toboggans.

In 1953, when the Northland/Lund Ski factory burned to the ground in North St. Paul, MN, Christian Lund promptly bought Gregg Ski Manufacturing, so that he could continue to make skis. Within three weeks from his own factory burning, he started making skis again in the existing Gregg factory in St. Paul. As of 1954, Gregg Manufacturing was no longer in business.

Harry Holmberg worked as a ski engineer and designer for Gregg skis in St. Paul. Harry's brother, Hartvig “Hart” Holmberg, opened a carpentry shop in St. Paul, MN in 1943. Harry called upon Hartvig’s manufacturing skills and together they began working on a prototype, metal-edged ski. After three years of creating and refining, Hartvig, Harry and friend Ed Bjork were ready. In 1955 the first "Hart" metal-edged ski was introduced.

Source: Skiing Heritage Magazine and MN Secretary of State

Park Manufacturing Company became Gregg Manufacturing Company in the mid-1920s

The photos shown below are the same building.

In 1953, Northland Ski Company took over this same building after theirs burned to the ground.

Photo 8/30/1950, St. Paul, MN

Source: MN Historical Society

A. Gresvig

Oslo, Norway

1901-

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Image by woodenskis.com

Image by woodenskis.com

The ski logos shown at the left are from a ca. 1926 pair of wooden skis. Aksel Gresvig was a racing cyclist, and founded A Gresvig at Rosenkrantzgate 1 in Kristianna (Oslo) in 1901. His vision was take sporting activity to the people. A Gresvig acquired the Huitfeldt Ski Factory and Sports Shop in 1923, and A Gresvig eventually exported skis to the rest of Europe and North America. The initial “A” was removed from the company name in 1927, and it was subsequently called Gresvig.

Knut Gresvig joined the company in 1936. The ski and bicycle factories moved to Alnabru outside Oslo in 1939, when the premises at Stenersgate 4 were built. Gresvig developed a safety ski binding in 1955. This Kandahar brand was the most popular binding for cross-country skis in the 1950s and 1960s. Aksel Gresvig took over from Knut Gresvig in 1970

The ski and bicycle plant at Alnabru burnt to the ground in 1976, and the central warehouse was built at Askim south of Oslo in 1978. All the shares are sold to a company controlled by Norwegian businessman Kjell Inge Røkke in 1991. The company received a stock market listing in 1994. Røkke sold out of the company in 1996, and Gresvig became owned by financial investors.

In 1997, Gresvig ASA acquired Sport Holding AS and the Intersport chain in Norway. The latter was the country’s second largest sports equipment chain. Gresvig ASA became a holding company, and its assets included two equal but competing chains – G-Sport and Intersport. G-Sport Norge Detalj (later Gresvig Detalj AS) was established.

Source: www.gresvig.no

Hedlund Manufacturing Company

Nokomis, Illinois 1949-1970

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From article printed in 1956: In July, 1948, Swan Hedlund met Ed Ruppert and Ray McCurdy at a reunion at a lake in Augusta, Wisconsin, and during the course of conversation Mr. Hedlund expressed a desire to go into business and stated that he was interested in establishing a wood-working plant, having had a number of years experience in this line of work in Minnesota. The Nokomisans advised that Nokomis was looking for a new industry and hoped that the town might be considered for a

location.

A building was completed in late 1948, and the building was sold to the Hedlund Manufacturing Company who opened for business in January, 1949, with eight plant employees and one office employee. Principal items manufactured at that time were toboggans and snow skis. Late in that year the manufacture of water skis was started on a small scale but during the past few years the popularity of water skiing has advanced so rapidly that water skis have now become the main item manufactured.

The plant was originally started with 10,000 sq. ft. of floor space; facilities have been expanded extensively during the past years so that at the present time another addition is being made to the plant which, when completed, will give approximately 30,000 sq. ft. of space in all. Five years ago the manufacture of water skis averaged about 1500 pairs for the year, three years ago 10,000 pairs, and this year it is estimated that production will be well over 40,000 pairs besides

all other accessories and in addition to the other lines manufactured. Employees have increased from the original eight to seventy and office personnel from one to seven.

In 1953 a sled manufacturing business was purchased and added to plant operations. At the present time Hedlund Manufacturing Company manufactures water skis, toboggans, snow skis, sleds and hockey sticks.

The Hedlund Manufacturing Company is grateful to the people of Nokomis for their support and proud to have been a part of the town's progress.

Source: http://www.nokomisonline.com/hedlundhistory.html

John O. Herrem & Son

1938-1948

Herrem Woodworkers, Ltd.

1948-1988 Fort Frances, Ontario

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John East and Archie Steele designed a building in 1913 in Fort Frances, Ontario, Canada for the manufacture of not only boxes, but also millwork such as mouldings, cabinets, window and door frames. However the market at that time didn't produce enough demand and the business went broke very soon. John East then took over as sole owner.

John Herrem worked as a shopman for John East until one cold morning in 1922 when he had a serious accident and lost all the fingers on his right hand on a jointer. John East operated the millwork plant successfully until the demand for millwork deteriorated and he was forced into receivership.

In 1938, John Herrem in partnership with his son, Harold, bought the property and commenced manufacturing Norway Pine Skis in lengths from 3 1/2 feet to 7 1/2 feet. John Herrem invented a machine that would turn out 500 pairs ready for steaming and bending to shape in an 8 hour day. In the summer of 1946 a total of 27,000 pairs were manufactured and sold.

Over the years a total of 175,000 pairs were produced and shipped by C.N.R. to destinations all across Canada from Vancouver B.C. to Moncton N.B. The ski business was ideal for providing jobs for students and over a period of 23 years more than 300 lads had work there.

In 1946 a two storey addition was built which resulted in a total of 7,000 square feet of manufacturing space. In addition to skis, the plant made windows, screen and combination doors, beehives, clothes horses, cabinets, sleighs, Swede saw frames, water skis, doll furniture and toy building blocks with the copyrighted name 'Tulla'.

The business was incorporated in 1948 under the name of Herrem Woodworkers, Ltd. John Herrem retired in 1950 and Harold took over. He had plenty of work for his wife, Irene, and his son Peter and daughter Paula.

In 1977, the company was sold to Tom Kiddle who had been the foreman for many years. In 1987, Tom sold it to Jim Armstrong. Unfortunately the building was totally destroyed by fire in the early morning of August 27, 1988. Now the property contains two modern apartment buildings.

Source: http://www.museevirtuel-virtualmuseum.ca

JANOY

1971-1983

Janoy tur-langrenn, light touring ski

Janoy tur-modell, wider general touring ski

Janoy skis were made in Norway for distribution in the United States. Jan E. Haug started the company manufactured with his company name on them, "Janoy". His name was Jan (he was from Norway) E. Haug. His business partner who knew nothing about the ski industry or the sport, was Floyd Hedding. They put their names together to form "Janoy" back in the early 1970's.

Floyd provided financial backing for the business venture, but retained his full time job at an electrical manufacturing plant in Minneapolis, Minnesota USA, while Jan quit his job at the same company to follow his dreams. Skiing was Haug's passion, and he did everything possible to promote xc skiing here in the U.S. He did not get rich by eating, living, and breathing XC skiing. But he sure got a lot of people hooked on it, as the folks at Finn Sisu will tell you. Finn sisu was one of his best local customers.

Karen Haug Osen from Minneapolis remembers some details from her father, Jan. "I remember him spending a lot of time promoting ski trails in county parks. He helped establish French Park in Plymouth. He even made tracks in the snow with a primitive wood block he built and dragged behind him on a rope, with us kids following along behind".

After Janoy went out of business, Jan went on to sell Edsbyn skis (his middle name was Edward).

Jan died suddenly at the age of 56 of an enlarged heart, in 1988 (just when L.L. Bean signed a contract to purchase Edsbyn skis). None of Jan's children knew enough about his business to take it over. Two years later, the four surviving children helped their mother move from her four bedroom house in Plymouth, Minnesota, to a town home. The youngest sibling was 20 by then. In doing so, multiple garage sales were held and at least a dozen pairs of skis were sold.

"We didn't realize how much we'd miss Janoy skis, especially to feel connected to our dad in his absence" said Karen.

J. C. Higgins

1908-1964

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Image by woodenskis.com

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Image by woodenskis.com

J. C. Higgins was a name brand of the Sears Roebuck Company. Many people ask if there was a real "J.C. Higgins" who worked for Sears. There certainly was. John Higgins began working for Sears in 1898 as the manager of the headquarters' office bookkeepers and retired as company comptroller in 1930.

"John Higgins" the employee became "J.C. Higgins" the brand name during a discussion in 1908 among Sears' executives of possible names for a new line of sporting goods. At this point, the story gets a bit murky, but Higgins' name was suggested and John Higgins consented to Sears use his name. Since he did not have a middle initial, Sears added the "C."

In 1908, the Western Sporting Goods Company in Chicago began putting J.C. Higgins on baseballs and baseball gloves sold in Sears catalogs. By 1910, the J.C. Higgins trademark was extended to cover footballs and basketballs. Later, the popularity of the Higgins brand—combined with the wider participation of American youth in sports—led Sears to place tennis equipment, soccer balls, volleyballs, boxing equipment and baseball uniforms in the J.C. Higgins line.

By the 1940s, J.C. Higgins represented all Sears fishing, boating and camping equipment. After the Second World War, Sears consolidated all sporting goods under the J.C. Higgins brand name and added it to a line of luggage.

J.C. Higgins skis were exclusively made by the Gregg Manufacturing Company from St. Paul, MN

The J.C. Higgins brand disappeared shortly after Sears introduced the Ted Williams brand of sporting and recreation goods in 1961.

Source: searsarchives.com

Kongsberg

1939-1979

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Image by woodenskis.com

Ski made by AS Kongsberg Elite. 1972-1975

Kongsberg (literally "The King's Mountain") is a municipality and town at the southern end of the Numedal valley, in the county of Buskerud, Norway. The town is known for many great ski jumpers.

"Kongsberg" ski factory was started in 1939 by ski jumper Sigurd Hoff. Hoff had managed the Brødrene Hoff ski factory in Rollag, Norway for ten years. When Sigurd moved the business to Kongsberg, it was natural to change the name of the ski brand to Kongsberg Skifabrikk. He thought that Kongsberg sounded better, because the name was good for advertising and it had a kind of seal of approval, because ski jumpers from there dominated the national and international ski scene. Sigurd Hoff was manager of the factory until 1946

In 1946, famous ski jumper Birger Ruud was hired as manager and he changed the name of the company to Kongsberg Skifabrikk, Birger Ruud and Co. Ruud was involved until 1953

In 1954, Birger Ruud resigned and Sigurd Hoff took back over as manager. Hoff was involved until 1972.

Big changes came for Kongsberg in 1972. Kongsberg merged with Askjem Skifabrikk from Stokke, Norway. Due to the change of company structure, the company had to be re-organized and the name changed to AS Kongsberg Elite. Some of the skis were made in Kongsberg and some were made in Stokke. For a couple of years in the early 1970s, Kongsberg made skis for the American company Head"

Kongsberg Elite struggled financially in the mid-1970s and they were taken over by Einar Elvrum Teknisk Bedrift (EETB) AS in 1975. Most of the Kongsberg employees remained there until the business was shut down in 1979.

Side note: Kongsberg made a brand of ski called Blefjell. The first model came out with just the name Ble, which brought lots of attention from Denmark. Ble means diaper in Danish, so Kongsberg changed the name to Blefjell

Source: Kjell Gunnar Hoff

LAASANEN

1922-1991

The ski factory of Laasanen (official name Laasasen Suksi or Laasasen Suksitehdas) was located in Veteli, Finland.

Founder of the factory was Mr. Leander Laasanen (1892-1985), a carpenter who also made furniture and musical instruments. Ski making was later carried on by Leander's three sons: Erkki, Reino and Kullervo.

Laasanen skis were awarded in Lahti Ski Exhibition of 1926. During the wartime 1939-1945, Laasanen supplied the Finnish Army with skis. In the 70s and beyond, only about 5% of their production was sold in domestic markets.

Laasanen skis were mostly exported to countries like Canada, USA and Sweden.

An importer from Kenosha, WI, named Wilho Knutti, imported the skis into the United States. Most of the skis were sold to people living in Wisconsin and Michigan. He was raised in Finland, and in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan.

12.13.09 - "Wilho is still around, and living in Neenah, WI. Definitely in his 70's by now, but a real promoter of x-c, and xc racing. He dragged me from So. Wisconsin up to Calumet, Houghton, and Copper Harbor on many a late Friday night in the early 70's, to race at Swedetown, MTU Trails, or over Brockway Mountain. His father, who fought the Russians on skis in the late 30's, lived many years in Baraga, MI, never learned to speak English, but brought Wilho over from Finland when he was a kid."......Tony Hartman, Madison, WI

A small amount of Laasanen skis are preserved in Lahti Ski Museum.

Source: Tony Hartman and Lahti Ski Museum

Landsem and Norsprint

1946-1987

Landsem ca. 1970 ***

Landsem ca. 1966 ***

Made by Landsem Små Ski

In 1918, Ole Jonsen Haltli started manufacturing wooden skis in Rindal, Norway.

Even Landsem got a job at Ole Haltlis in the 1930s. He was a good skier and made his first own skis home at the Landsem farm at the age of 12. Even Landsem took over production of wooden skis in 1946, naming his brand "Landsem". The first year of production, over 100,000 pairs were made. Even developed his business to be the largest employer in Rindal , Landsem Skifabrikk, with about 70 employees in 1970-1980. Landsem specialized in making competition skis, while a breakoff company called Landsem Små Ski made children's and touring skis.

Even Landsem put balsa wood in the middle of the skis, which made them extra light and Landsem skis were very popular among the most famous cross country skiers in Norway between 1950 and 1987. Landsem used wood and wooden materials for cross country skis long after other manufacturers switched to plastics. Landsem still holds the record for Olympic medals won --all of the champion skiers used Landsem skis through the 70s. In the skiing museum in Oslo there are pictures of everyone from Norway's many gold medal skiers to Norway's King Olaf using Landsem skis.

Old debts and miscalculated investments became Landsem's demise allowing Madshus Skis to buy Landsem on March 1, 1987. Madshus kept the Landsem name until about 1991. Eventually, the Landsem family deposed a large collection of winner- skis used by famous skiers like Oddvar Brå and Gjermund Eggen from their ski factory to Rindal Ski Museum. Magne Myrmo became the last World Champion on wooden skis from Landsem in Falun, Sweden in 1974. These skis are at Rindal Ski Museum.

Norsprint skis were manufactured by Landsem Små Ski in Rindal, Norway for U.S. distribution by Brunswick Corporation.

Click here to read about Edgar Kattem's personal memories from working at the Landsem Ski Factory from 1968-1981.

Source: Rindal Ski Museum and Skimakerne

L. L. Bean

Freeport, Maine 1912-today

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In 1911, an avid outdoorsman named Leon Leonwood ("L.L.") Bean returned from a hunting trip with cold, damp feet and a revolutionary idea. L.L. enlisted a local cobbler to stitch leather uppers to workmen's rubber boots, creating a comfortable, functional boot for exploring the Maine woods. This innovative boot – the Maine Hunting Shoe® – changed outdoor footwear forever and began one of the most successful family-run businesses in the country.

L.L. began his business by working out of the basement of his brother's apparel shop. In 1912, he obtained a mailing list of nonresident Maine hunting license holders and prepared a three-page flyer that boldly proclaimed, "You cannot expect success hunting deer or moose if your feet are not properly dressed. The Maine Hunting Shoe is designed by a hunter who has tramped the Maine woods for the last 18 years. We guarantee them to give perfect satisfaction in every way." The public could not resist the commonsense logic and genuine enthusiasm of his appeal.

L.L.Bean, Inc., quickly established itself as a trusted source for reliable outdoor equipment and expert advice. The small company grew. Steady growth continued. By 1934, the company had increased its factory size to over 13,000 square feet. The simple flyer evolved into a 52-page catalog. The company generated over 70% of the volume for the Freeport post office. By 1937, sales surpassed the $1 million mark. Leon Gorman noted decades later, "The most important legacy of L.L.'s genius was the power of his personality. It transcended the buying and selling of products. His personal charisma based on down-home honesty, a true love for the outdoors and a genuine enthusiasm for people, inspired all who worked for him and attracted a fanatic loyalty among his customers."

L.L. never missed an opportunity to improve service. While the bulk of sales were generated by the catalog, hunters and visitors frequently dropped by Freeport. A night bell allowed the late-night visitor to call a watchman or even L.L. himself. In 1951, L.L. opened the store 365 days a year, 24 hours a day proclaiming, "We have thrown away the keys to the place." To this day, there are no locks on the doors of the flagship store in Freeport.

L. L. Bean has been selling skis for many years.

Source: www.llbean.com

Madshus

1906 to 1916 - Vardal, Norway

1916 to 1936 - Gjøvik, Norway

1936 to 1973 - Lillehammer, Norway

1973 to present - Biri, Norway

Madshus ski from the late 1960's

Madshus racing ski ca. 1968 ***

Madshus Birkebeiner trade mark first used in August of 1970

Martin Madshus worked for four years with organ builder Peter Berntzen. During this time, he honed his woodworking skills. He decided to start a ski factory and did so in a barn in 1906 in Vardal, Norway.

The first Madshus skis were made from single pieces of wood, trimmed, carved and finished with hand tools. Some of the tools used in this traditional production are still found on display at the present Madshus factory in the town of Biri.

Even in the earliest days of Madshus skis, with little distinction between Nordic and Alpine styles of skiing, Madshus was a leader in innovation.

Major advances in construction came in the form of glued laminate skis in 1934. This multiple- layer construction gave more strength, lighter weight and more mobility to skis. Madshus moved the factory to Lillehammer in 1936.

Laminated skis allowed Madshus to produce more specialized skis, for alpine skiing, for the mountains, for trails, and eventually for specialized track skiing and racing. Cross country skiing became the backbone of the growing Winter Olympic Games movement, and skiing of all types spread around the world,.

The Madshus factory flourished in the heart of Norway, where people know and love the benefit of fine skis. Madshus combined the traditional art of ski-making with continuing technological advances, new designs and materials.

At Madshus, there was an inherent understanding of what a good ski should feel like.

The result was skis that people loved to take skiing.

In the 1950s there became more distinction between Nordic and Alpine skis, while Madshus continued Alpine ski production until 1964. Becoming a specialist after 1964, Madshus built a leadership role in the many types of cross country skiing.

Popularity of cross country worldwide grew spectacularly in the 1970s, and the wood Madshus Birkebeiner ski, a beautiful and multifunctional touring ski, became a favorite symbol of the boom.

Madshus Birkebeiner brand skis were designed/created by Dag Helgestad and Reidar Madshus in about 1967. A US trademark for the Madshus Birkebeiner brand was filed in 1971. Reidar was the son of Martin Madshus, who was CEO of Madshus and Norwegian Native Dag Helgestad lived in St. Paul, MN at the time, while working for 3M Company. Dag was the perfect ambassador for Madshus to introduce skis to the US and with his business partner Norm Oakvik, they imported skis from Norway. The entire idea was to have a special touring ski for the US market. The natural-finish Madshus Birkebeiner ski was so popular in the United States, that Troll-Ski Factory in Rindal started making skis very similar to the Birkebeiners

Skilom brand was created by four Norwegian companies in 1971 to have an advantage in the US and world-wide market. The four companies were: Falk Skofabrik (ski boots), Madshus (skis), A/S Røyken Jernvarefabrik (ski bindings), and Odd B. Eide skistavfabrikk (ski poles). Skilom skis were imported to the US by Anderson/Thompson of Seattle, WA.

In 1968 and 1972 Magnar Solberg of Norway - with Madshus skis -- won Gold Medals in Biathlon at the Winter Olympics in Innsbruck and Sapporo, the only athlete to repeat as Olympic Biathlon Champion.

Fibreglass skis created a revolution in Nordic ski production in 1974, the same year Madshus began fibreglass production in its new factory, opened in Biri in 1972.

It is many years of ski manufacturing knowledge, Olympic medals from such great athletes like, Simon Slåttvik (1952), Håkon Brusveen (1960) and Thomas Alsgaard (1994, 1998, 2002) and Katerina Neumannova (2002) that has made Madshus the second largest ski manufacture in the world. Madshus looks forward to success at the Torino Olympics, and will present the Nordic world with its best ski, boot and binding program ever. Madshus - “The Cross Country Ski Company since 1906!”

Source: http://www.madshus.com and Skimakerne, Thor Gotaas

Northland Ski Manufacturing Company St. Paul, MN 1912-1945

North Saint Paul, MN

1945-1953 Saint Paul, MN

1953-1965 Laconia, NH 1938-1965

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1912-1918

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1918-1928

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1929-1934

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1935-1940

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1929-1940

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Post -1940

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1942-1958

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1930s era

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1942-1943-

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1941-1956

Northland Ski Manufacturing Company was incorporated in 1912 by Hugo Kjølstad, John Fryer, and Ole S. Ellevold, former foreman of the Strand Ski Company. After a relatively short time, Ellevold needed cash for the operation and management expertise, so in 1913, Norwegian born Christian A. Lund became associated with the business through purchase of stock. Lund had been working right across the street at Gold Coin Chemical Works, so he was somewhat familiar with Ellevold and his situation. In 1916, Christian Lund owned most of the stock of the company and Ellevold left Minnesota to farm in North Dakota. In the 1920s and early 1930s Northland published some of the first U.S. how-to-ski pamphlets printed in the U.S. Northland skis soon gained a widespread reputation for unsurpassed quality making Northland the largest manufacturer of skis in the world. A series of factory fires caused Northland to move to different locations over the years.

In 1938, Northland opened a factory in Laconia, New Hampshire to capitalize on Eastern ski demand. The factory in Laconia was managed by Christian Lund's son Carl. A complete line of skis, skiing accesories, hockey sticks, and toboggans were manufactured in Laconia. Abercrombie & Fitch Department Store sold skis made by Northland.

Northland was forced to adopt fiberglass in the late 1960s, and became just another ski company—its product was pedestrian. And, unlike Rossignol, Kastle and Kneissl, Northland couldn’t afford to support athletes on the U.S. team, although they did sign Stein Eriksen.

In October 1966, Northland was bought by Larson Industries, which built Larson and Glaspar fiberglass boats. Larson expanded rapidly into snowmobiles and other sports, and then went bankrupt. Most Larson stock was acquired by Wilson Sporting Goods in 1970 and the Larson conglomerate closed.

Source: http://skiinghistory.org & http://www.nlrb.gov, newspaper articles, and personal research

Monarch

Monarch appeared in approximately 1942 and was a brand of the Northland Ski Company.

Rustad

1872 - 1980

Rustad Ski Factory in Fåberg, Norway

Rustad Ski Factory was the first ski manufacturing facility in Norway.

In 1872 Rustad Ski Factory was established on Rustad farm and later moved to Fåberg, Norway in 1906. Fåberg was a farming village. There was of course a number of small industries in the district, including a number of sawmill operations. But generally speaking, Fåberg industrial center was in and around Lillehammer. Lillehammer Ski Klubb was founded in 1883 and is Norway's largest "pure" Ski Club.

Most of Fåberg industrial workers worked in Lillehammer industry. And some of the industry that usually linked to Lillehammer, was actually in Fåberg. However, there was one industrial company that did not fit into this picture. It was Rustad ski factory.

Simen Rustad

Simen Rustad was the company's founder. He was born on the farm Rustad in 1858. As a 14-year-old, he started in 1872 to create a ski on the farm. Ski was now in its infancy and Simen got deposition on his skis. In 1880 he got hold of an old house, which became his ski shop. Water power provided energy to the machines and thus change its name to Workshop Brooks. When the water flow in the creek became low, Simen got hold of a gasoline engine. It was a far-sighted procurement at this time. Eventually, he invested in several machines: circular saws, milling machines, etc. By the turn of the century, the ski factory became a solid small company that also exported skis to Sweden, Germany and Russia.

Snow skis made of solid wood

At first he used pine, but later ash, imported from Denmark and Germany. The skis were made of solid wood, as glued skis were not common until the 1930s (Splitkein). In 1900 a new and hard wood came to the industry: hickory. The same year, Simen Rustad made the first pair of hickory skis. This pair was expensive. It cost three times the price of other ski pairs. Average earnings for a manufacturing worker in Lillehammer was 500 kroner per year.

Moving to Fåberg station in 1906

Production increased and Simen came up with an average production of 1300 skis per year. The farm workshop was too small and too cumbersome for ski transportation. In 1906 he therefore move into new premises at the new settlement at Fåberg station. In 1916 the company significantly expanded and 3-4 men were employed.

Difficult Times

Simen Rustad died in 1925. His widow, Petra, and the young son John took over ski manufacturing, but the economic crisis caused by World War I made it difficult to survive. The international postwar recession beginning in autumn 1920, hit Norway more severely than most other countries. In 1921 GDP per capita fell by eleven percent, which was only exceeded by the United Kingdom. Average annual production was in the 1920s down to 300 pairs of skis. Most Norwegian ski factories, however, did well through the occupation years, so too did Rustad ski factory, by creating plenty of skis for the Germans.

After the war

After World War II, the market for skis was a good for the Norwegian ski factories. Rustad ski factory expanded greatly with a large new building in 1962. Then the company produced 10,000 pairs of skis a year and went at once to more specialized production (mainly cross country and mountaineering skis). More and more production was exported and eventually the United States and Canada became the major markets

The End of Wooden Ski Production

In 1980, Rustad Ski Factory closed its doors like so many other Norwegian ski factories at the time. There were two reasons for this: First, there was a great overproduction of skis in the world, which lowered consumer prices. Second came the fiberglass revolution. This was seriously visible at the World Championships in Falun in 1974. Norwegian wooden ski factories could not compete with fiberglass ski companies situated in cheaper economic areas of Europe.

When Rustad stopped its production plant in 1980, it had produced 327,412 pairs of skis over the years.

Source: http://www.lillehammerbryggeri.no/index.php?id=7 and http://www.byavis.no

W. L. Stadig

Soldier Pond, Maine 1930s-1940s

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Walter L. Stadig was a mechanical engineer and lived in Soldier Pond, Maine. Born in 1889, Stadig was the grandson of ski maker Lars Stadig, who immigrated from Sweden. Being one having a mechanical mind, Stadig invented an early version of the modern snow blower. His version, called the “Stadig Rotary Snowplow,” earned a total of five patents, one of which is still used by Catepillar in their modern snowplows.

In the 1930s, Stadig turned his attention to making skis, using the knowledge gained from his grandfather Lars. Stadig's skis were known as "Swedish Rift Skis", which means tha they were made from straight grained wood with the bark side down. Stadig tried to sell some of his skis to the US Government and even though they performed better than other government skis, the US declined to purchase then, becuase Stadig's skis were made of birch. Hickory was the US Governement's wood of choice for skis.

In 1936 and 1937 Stadig participated in the 176-mile Bangor to Caribou Ski Marathon. Stadig was one of five finishers in the 1936 race with a time of 43 hours and 23 minutes.

Stadig's other inventions included one of the first ski lifts in the state of Maine. Stadig died in 1953 of a heart attack.

Source: Ski Museum of Maine, www.ancestry.com, Bangor Daily News,

Stöckli

1936-

Stöckli is the only ski manufacturer in Switzerland.The company manufactures in its new ski factory and not only distributes some 50,000 pairs of skis per year but also has seven of its own ski shops across Switzerland.

Stöckli Ski has been crafting for 71 years, making it one of the oldest ski makers in the world. In the middle of the 1930s, Josef Stöckli was producing wooden skis for his own use and also for his colleagues. As the demand became even greater, he decided to open the Stöckli AG ski works in 1936. Joseph Stöckli made his first pair of wood skis out of Ash in 1936. At this time, in Switzerland alone, about 30 ski producing factories had been founded. A few other larger ski factories such as Schwendener, Attenhofer and Authier flourished.

In 1946 he set up his factory in Wolhusen, where he crafted laminated wood skis made of Hickory and other woods. In 1957 he made his first metal ski, and in 1965, the first composite-plastic ski was introduced to the market.

Stöckli went on to continue to make skis for the European and United States' markets.

Source: http://www.californiaskicompany.com/stockli.html - http://en.stoeckli.ch/main/company/stoeckli_story/

Stride

1972-1980

Stride skis were made in Norway and imported to Canada in the 1970s. Stride skis were produced for eight years by A/S Gjøvik Skiifabrikk, Gjøvik, Norway. There were four models of Stride skis:

Explorer - Blue - Touring width

Quest - Red - Lt. Touring

Yellow/white lettering - Ultratouring

Yellow/red lettering - racing

These skis were the first ones out of Scandinavia that had "modern marketing graphics" - the attempt to brand a complete line of STRIDE product - skis, poles, boots, bindings, socks and clothing was a great success with well over 2 million individual items sold under the brand in a ten year period including about 23,000 pairs of skis branded STRIDE.

The brand STRIDE was registered by Christopher Goodfellow in 1972. Christopher had graduated from Cornell Business School with an MBA in 1970 at the age of 22!. He went to ski and train in the winter of 1971-72 in Finland at the National training center up in the interior of Finland with a group of Canadian skiers. Goodfellow had the pleasure of skiing many long distances with the famous Finn Olympian Eero Mäntyranta. He soon recognized the commercial possibilities of the sport and visited factories in Finland, Sweden and Norway getting all sorts of samples and a complete product line to brand STRIDE.

Goodfellow gave up racing to promote the commercial side of the sport! He soon had customers coast to coast in Canada and through an associate firm Dovre Ski Binding in West Concord Mass they distributed many thousands of skis, boots, poles and bindings across America as well.

Christopher Goodfellow in 1979 in Quebec with daughter