Objects Database

Dachstein ski boots

Accession Number

1072.2013.1

Object Name

Dachstein ski boots

Created

18/04/2013

Creator

Hermione Cooper

Accession Date

18/04/2013

Brief Description

Pair of brown ski boots with 4 metal clips and rubber soles.

Materials

leather, metal, rubber

Dimensions

26(l) x 8 (w) cms

Number Of Objects

1 pair

Inscription Description

On side of boot gold circle with " DACHSTEIN MADE IN AUSTRIA INTERNATIONAL" written inside in gold lettering. "MADE IN AUSTRIA " on sole

Colour

brown

Maker

Dachstein

Object Production Place

Austria

Provenance

The arrival of ski tows on Cairngorm and in Glencoe in the 1960's changed the style of Scottish skiing dramatically. Prior to that skis and boots were multi-purpose...you skied up the mountain, along the top and down the other side with the same gear. You probably had to hike through some bog and heather to find snow in the first place.
Boots did not need to be so flexible and versatile to be hauled up by a ski tow and the more rigid they were, the more control the downhill skier had over his or her skis, so they became vice-like in their rigidity and it was not long before Scottish skiers were using boots like we have here in the collection imported from the continent.
Dachstein had been making mountaineering boots from the 1920's and they very quickly moved into the downhill market with boots like these which date from the 1960's. With the foot so firmly clamped into the boot, what became known as 'boot top fractures' were common amonst downhill skiers in these early days, though the bindings were as much the guilty party as the boots and new, quick release bindings helped reduce visits to A&E.
We are not quite sure who donated this particular pair of boots but they are an interesting link in the evolutionary chain of skiing.

Acquisition Method

Donated by Scottish Ski Club

Acquisition Date

18/04/2013

Condition Check Date

18/04/2013

Rules

Spectrum : UK Museum documentation standard, V.3.1 2007

Modified

18/04/2013

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