These skis and bindings date from the 1920s and it’s worth noting that skis and ski bindings from that era were used for both cross-country and downhill, as the two codes of skiing were barely separated back then. New ideas for bindings were coming thick and fast, replacing the much used Huitfeldt binding, which was little more than a metal clamp with a toe strap – there are fine examples elsewhere in the collection.

A Norwegian skier called Thorleif-Haug created an adjustable binding in the early 1920s. It didn’t require a slot cutting in the ski like the Huitfeldt did, and it could be easily adjusted with a system of screws and inserts. A more refined version of the Thorleif-Haug binding appeared in 1924, it was called the Loipe, which means track in Norwegian, and we have a very fine example of it here in the collection. An elliptical dial can be turned with the screws, allowing for different sizes of boot, and the little lugs either side hold the welt of the boot in place, though lots of folk added a toe strap. Some of these binding had a metal heel strap, ours has a fabulous leather version with a tensioning lever.

The bindings are on a pair of standard Norwegian skis, bearing the ‘Selected by Lillywhites’ logo. There were very few UK ski manufacturers back then (there still aren’t) and companies like Lillywhites would import a batch from Norway, double the price (at least) and sell them on.

This pair were kindly donated by Elizabeth Forbes on behalf of her late husband Alan. Both of them were avid skiers and long time habitues of the Glencoe ski slopes in Scotland.