Teleboard

=History=

Developed during the winter of 1996 by Martin and Erik Fey, the Teleboard consists of a long, narrow, snowboard with two free-heel telemark bindings arranged one in front of the other at a slight angle. This unique alignment coupled with the use of free-heel bindings allows the rider to face forward and have complete freedom over the weight distribution. The extremely close angle of the bindings, along with the length and narrow width of the board make the Teleboard extremely easy to switch from edge to edge quickly, rendering the board ideal for riding bumps and carving tight turns. Because the bindings are mounted almost in-line with the direction of the board, it is possible for the rider to use poles, which aid the rider in learning the sport.

Patents

The patent for the Teleboard is held by Uniboard, Inc. (US Patent # [http://www.google.com/patents?id=WCEZAAAAEBAJ&dq=uniboard+patent&ie=ISO-8859-1 6000711] )

The abstract is as follows:

A skiboard system is provided, which includes a divisible skiboard having left and right skiboard halves and left and right loose heel binding. When the skiboard halves are joined, the skiboard has a central, waist portion and an upward curving front shovel area. The left and right loose heel bindings may be secured on the left and right skiboard halves when the skiboard halves are divided, oriented substantially parallel to the longitudinal axes or the skiboard halves. When the skiboard halves are joined, the left and right loose heel bindings are mounted on opposite sides of the skiboard waist at an acute angle less than 35 degrees from the longitudinal axis.

No implementation of this 'split' board described in the patent is commercially available. All commercial teleboards are made of a single monolithic piece, and therefore are most appropriate for resort skiing, not the backcountry approaches which would be possible with a split board.

pecifications

There are currently four different models of teleboards ranging from 168cm to 191cm.

Pipe Dreamer 168

The Pipe Dreamer 168 was designed for the pipe and park, and for younger, lighter riders. The deck is 168cm long, with dimensions (Tip / Waist / Tail) of 187mm, 120mm, 183mm. The sidecut radius is 9.4m with an effective edge of 148cm.

Legend 181

The legend 181 is based on the design of the original Teleboard. It was the first Teleboard to make the descent of Mount Washington's Tuckerman Ravine. The deck is 181cm long with dimensions (Tip / Waist / Tail) of 195mm, 122mm, and 179mm. The sidecut radius is 9.3m with an effective edge of 158cm.

Pursuit 191

The Pursuit 191 along with the King Carve 191 are the two longest Teleboards available. The Pursuit 191 was designed to be the longer brethren to the Legend 181 for those who want the additional stability which comes with a longer plank. The dimensions (Tip / Waist / Tail ) are 199cm, 127cm, and 185cm. The sidecut radius is 9.3m with an effective edge of 168cm.

King Carve 191

The King Carve 191 was a stiffer version of the Pursuit 191 mounted with 25mm solid polymer risers and Rottefella Cobra K hardwire bindings. The dimensions are identical to the Pursuit 191.

External References

* [http://www.teleboardusa.com Uniboards "Teleboard" Corporate Website]
* [http://www.telemarkdown.com Uniboards Corporate Website]
* [http://www.telemarktips.com/Teleboard.html The Teleboard: Downhilling's Bastard Child By Erik Fey]
* [http://www.teleboarder.com Unofficial Teleboarder Site]
* [http://www.google.com/patents?id=WCEZAAAAEBAJ&dq=uniboard+patent&ie=ISO-8859-1 US Patent 6000711]