Almost a year ago I was brought onto a team comprised of badass lady skiers with the goal of designing a women’s ski that we would want to ski everyday. Rachel Delacour, Alexandra Pallas and I spent the next few months conducting market research, logging long days on-hill and giving ourselves a crash-course in ski design. Eventually, we offered our suggestions to the company. They were completely stoked with our work and to our amazement the end product turned out almost exactly as we recommended; they were actually designing a ski for hard-charging women.
Throughout our collaboration, an overlying theme was present. We wanted a ski that performed as well as any men’s ski, but was something of our own. Pulled from the actual design collaboration document, Rachel comments on her ideal ski. “I have a lot of opinions on a lighter core. I would agree that a majority of recreational female skiers enjoy a ski that requires less force and power to turn. On the other hand, I also know there exists a segment of the female ski market that doesn’t agree with this. I have talked to a lot of women of different demographics that have been overpowering the average women’s ski for years. I think one of the reasons ON3P sells well is the consistent, damp flex in many of its more aggressive skis. They plow. I don’t think that is something we want to take away from women, at least not in the more aggressive women’s skis.”
Each of the three skis in the Jessie line cater to a different type of skier. The true twin Jessie 86 reigns supreme in the park—jibby enough to hop and pop all over. The Jessie 100 provides a stable ride all over the mountain, allowing its user to ride switch and hit backcountry booters, too. Big storms require the Jessie 112, with a tip and tail rocker and a wider waist to plow through the deep snow. All of the skis were based off already existing models in ON3P’s men’s line, but were given minor tweaks to accommodate what the ladies wanted.
I sat down with founder and owner of ON3P Skis, Scott Andrus for an in-depth look at the brand’s journey into the land of ladies skis.
What was the motivating factor to add a women’s ski to ON3P’s line?
The motivating factor was to offer skis for women that are built with our finish, materials, and attention to detail that the hard-charging women out there deserve. There are a lot of women’s skis available, but it seems like many aren’t built for women who rip, and don’t maintain the same performance and build quality as their male counterparts. We believed there was a void at the top of the women’s ski world, and we hope our introduction to that market gives solid female skiers the option they didn’t have before.
How did you come up with the concept for the Jessie?
We decided to start tweaking the skis that were already part of our lineup and have been developed over many years. We figured that starting with those tested platforms, and then tailoring the designs to better fit women would be the best way to enter the market. Our jib line is the bestselling part of our ski line, so it was chosen as the foundation for the initial women’s series. We talked to women we knew and researched what else was out there, then got to work prototyping.
What was the design process like?
Visually, you need to talk with our creative director, Trevor Woods, and the artist for the Jessie line, Katy Pierce. By the time things got to my desk, they were already so solid and well-developed that the visual process was mostly tweaks and refinement for me.
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