Bikers descend on DMR

By Gregory Moore
Herald Outdoors Editor

Jacek Stalmach, an early arrival for DMR's ski-bike festival, carves a turn at the resort on Wednesday riding a fully suspended model built by his company in Austria.

Ski-bikes are back.

Last seen in large numbers in the United States in the early 1970s - like bell-bottoms and hip-huggers - ski- bikes can once again be seen carving turns alongside skis and snowboards at many Colorado resorts.

But it may be years before you'll see as many bikes and riders as you'll see next week at Purgatory.

The largest ski-bike festival in the U.S. begins its third incarnation at Durango Mountain Resort on Wednesday, and Roy Meiworm, DMR lift operations manager and local ski-bike guru, couldn't be more excited about the event, or the sport's resurgence.

"This year I'm expecting 150-200 riders," said Meiworm, who has been an avid fan of the bike since DMR bought a fleet of 20 to rent out to guests in 1999. "The sport has been huge in Europe for a long time now, and it's growing in popularity here in the U.S.

"Judging from the amount of e-mails I'm getting, this festival is getting out of control, but in a great way."

Festival events include a day of snowcat biking with the San Juan Ski Co. in the backcountry on Thursday, with competition - dual slalom, multi-cross and trick riding - on Saturday and Sunday.

At least six ski-bike manufacturers are expected to bring bikes for participants to demo. And one of the best-known European names in the sport, four-time world ski bobbing champion Jacek Stalmach of Austria, is in Durango for the second straight year to ride with friends, race for fun and promote his own line of ski-bikes.

For snow-bikers from near and far, the festival also provides another important function: For a week, at least, they won't feel like such a minority on the slopes.

DMR employees Bob Rau, left, and Roy Meiworm, right, flank Stalmach at the Purgatory base area as all three prepare to board a chairlift for a ride up the mountain. Meiworm is the prime organizer for the ski-bike festival, now in its third year.

"Really, the snow-bike is just another way to play with gravity," said Meiworm, who has been teaching people to ride the bikes for six years. "I've been skiing since 1965, and this is something new."

While ski-bikes are not new - the first ski-bikes, or skibobs, appeared in the European Alps in the 1850s - Meiworm said the sport suffered from a lack of standards in the 1970s and many resorts banned the bikes because they were perceived as a liability.

"In the old days there were no standards and no regulations. People started bringing some homemade contraptions up to the slopes," he said. "That's one of the reasons we're being so careful about getting it right this time around."

To be allowed on the slopes at Purgatory, and at other ski-bike friendly resorts, a bike must be from a recognized manufacturer. And at DMR, the bike rider must be certified.

"To get certified, you just have to go through a one-hour class, and basically, that's our way of knowing that a rider knows how to get on and off the lift."

And while snow-bikes now come in a wide variety of sizes and styles, Meiworm said all well-known bike brands will be welcome at the festival.

"Peggers" - ski-bike riders who wear winter boots and place them on pegs protruding from the bike frame while riding - and "foot-skiers," who wear ski boots and strap on short skies used for balance and turning while going downhill, will ride side by side.

There may even be some Winter X bikers, who have turned their mountain bikes into snow-bikes by attaching a manufactured ski kit to the forks and rear suspension systems in place of wheels.

As far as safety in concerned, Meiworm said that while safety will be emphasized throughout the festival, it is not really one of his biggest concerns because of the user-friendly nature of the bikes.

"The learning curve on the ski-bike is really quick, and because you make contact with the snow at so many points, (the bikes) are really safe," said DMR National Ski Patrol member Scott Clements.

"I can remember only one (injured) person that we've brought down the mountain since we've had them here, and we bring down skiers and snowboarders every day."

DMR employee Bob Rau, who taught his son Mike to ski-bike a year ago at age 5, isn't shy about his feelings for the sport.

"I haven't put my skis on in two years," he said Wednesday as he prepared for a demo ride with Meiworm and Stalmach. "Once I got into it, it's just been biking for me."

Both Meiworm and Rau, who is also a ski-bike instructor at Purgatory, emphasize the qualities of the ski-bike that are most appealing to new riders. The bikes are easy to ride, easy on the body and simply a ton of fun.

"I taught a 67-year-old woman to snow-bike last year," Rau said. "She picked it up in a couple of hours, and she loved it."

"That's why ski-bikes are a great alternative for people who can no longer ski because of an injury," Meiworm said.

One of Meiworm's favorite ski-bike stories centers on a man he met in a Purgatory restaurant who was watching his wife and kids ski but could not join them because of trouble with his knees.

"I walked up to him and said, 'If I could show you a way to get out on the snow that wouldn't hurt your knees, would you be willing to try it?'"

The man agreed, and within hours he was ski-biking alongside his skiing family.

"That guy was grinning from ear to ear. It was the first time in eight years he'd been able to get out on the mountain and do more than just eat lunch with his family," Meiworm said, adding that the Adaptive Sports program at DMR has acquired snow-bikes to use with disabled skiers.

Ski-bikers and first-timers who would like to participate in the festival are encouraged to register at a welcome table in the resort plaza upon arrival at DMR. The resort is offering a variety of discounts for ski-bikers, but participants must be registered to take advantage of them.

"I don't envision ski-bikes becoming as numerous as snowboards," Meiworm said. "But I could see bikes becoming, say, 20 percent of the customer base on any given day.

"That's important to a resort of this size."

Exclusive Interview with
Jacek Stalmach

By Juan Aranda Albuquerque NM

SBM: What started your skibob racing career?

Stalmach: I was born in Poland, in times of [socialism/communism], and the companies did a lot for the workers and employer [to share]. My father had a hat manufacturing company, and they [built some] skibikes for the people. Every weekend, the company took a bus to the mountain and people went skibiking. So when I was 15, and I wanted to ride skis, my parents told me "that is too expensive for us, but you can ride the skibikes of the company," so that was the start for me. I tried a few times and started training. However, starting at 15 was a little bit too late to become a racer. Really, 10 years old is the last moment for skibike racers when compared to professional skiers that start at 5 years old. As a child, you can learn more things without [hesitation], like going fast. Older people have to think about what they do, and are thinking about safety.

SBM: But, you became a professional competitor!

Stalmach: I did OK, but really [started] too late. I was four-time world champion starting in 1995. Later, from 1998 to 2003, I was the Men's, Women's and Junior coach of Austria's National Team. Now I don’t have time for this because my company is growing.

SBM: What skills are required in professional racing?

Stalmach: There is a big difference with recreational [riding]. Recreational skibikers ride on the whole ski, not on the edge, so they have a different technique. The professional technique is carving by riding on the edge, the same as skiing.

SBM: So then, what is special about a racing skibob?

Stalmach: It is important that the skibike have much control and it must be fast. (The world record is 198km/hr). My company's World Cup and Colorado models are designed for the whole frame to move together and the new-generation skis are made with laminated wood core. For our recreational Snow Horse, it is the saddle and handle bar that move. With these skibikes the riders can do jumps, half pipe, trees, moguls...

SBM: With all the races in Austria, is sport big there?

Stalmach: Maybe not too big, but same as snowboarding. Skiing is still number 1 in Austria, with a long history, but skibikes are not [doing] too bad. The big difference between skibike sport in Austria (and generally in Europe) and America is that we have World Cup races, World Championships, a lot of races in Austria. We also have races in Germany, Austria, Italy, Poland, Czech Republic, Switzerland. The sport is [present] in Finland and a little in Russia. In the World Cup we'll have one or two people from Japan.

SBM: Are skibikers bashed in Europe?

Stalmach: No, the whole of Europe is open for skibiking with no regulations, except for France, where it is not too open. Skibiking is, for lot of people, a nice sport. But most [Europeans] don't have enough money to [travel] so they will prefer to ski... In Europe six people go in a van, or cars to go to races, so we don't need airplane. The longest trip is one day, maybe 12 hours. We drive there, and stay for four, maybe five days, and then drive back to home. Then do it again in two weeks, and so on, for the whole winter.

SBM: Will we see skibiking in the Winter Olympics soon?

Stalmach: I think not. The International Federation of Skibob must have 15 national federations, and we only have 10 [nations currently represented]. So this is not enough to [propose] to the Olympic Federation to make this an Olympic sport. It's too small, and there is not too much money into this. It costs a lot of money to bring up a sport. If the organization can bring TV to the races it is possible that the sport get more sponsoring, which means more money. But the sponsor companies only want to [appear] on TV. So it is a loop.

SBM: What's next for your company?

Stalmach: Because there are not many racers, we'll have more direction into recreation. We had 30% more sales in America since last year. We want to grow bigger in America.

SBM: You have so many skibikes in your catalogue. What does it take to produce so many models?

Stalmach: My company makes a new model every year, as an evolution [of previous designs]. Colorado is this year's model. When I first have an idea, I'll speak with my engineers and we build it together. We have 5 people in the design team, and 29 for the whole company. We could make about 1,000 skibikes if we had to. (Editor's note: Stalmach Group manufactures many other stainless steel products).

SBM: What do you have planned next?

Stalmach: My company has two skibike lines: the Racing Skibob and the Fun Skibobs. The Race line is perfect for the next two years because we've been making this skibike since 1992. So, for the future, I'll make a new recreational skibikes. We have some good ideas for the next type of skibikes.

SBM: Who is your biggest competitor? Flaschmann?

Stalmach: No, because the Flaschman company makes the exact same skibike for 20 years. Their skibike is very heavy at 23kg. My heaviest is 15 kg, and the recreational skibikes are 10kg with a light iron frame. The smallest is the Kids at 3.5kg for $99.

SBM: What do you see in the US skibiking?

Stalmach: I like the people here. The skibikers are very friendly. I came to America for the first time two years ago and found that people were very enthusiastic and open. They see my skibikes and say "Oh, I want to try!”. People ask directly [about it] and want to use the skibike once or twice. So we built [and named] the Colorado after last year's Festival because Colorado has amazing country.

SBM: Well, Jacek, you're welcome any time!

9 x gold
13 x silver
16 x bronze
as well as 23 placed under the first 10 skiers

This year Adrian Kreiss won 4 gold medals in the school class at the World Championships. At the Austrian National Championships in Tyrol skiers using Stalmach Skibobs won 23 medals in all classes. Special congratulations to 19 year old Gerhard Hauer, who won the Austrian National Championship and his first World Cup race in Missen , Germany .

For the winter saison 2005/2006 we developed the new Funskibob Grizzly