One characteristic of skiing that may be lost on those who don’t do the sport: beyond the tall takes of total vertical feet skied and mad hucks that you claimed to have landed, at its best, skiing lets you enter into a conversation with nature, one born out of your own particular passion and love of the mountain. For those who love that part of the sport more than the bragging rights, start saving, because you may soon discover that you have to own a pair of boards from Big Wood Skis. Hand-crafted by celebrated “ski shaper” Caleb Baukol, the skis are a thing of beauty, with a bamboo core and an artful mix of fiberglass, carbon fiber, Kevlar, rubber foil, and carbon-steel edges, cradled in hardwood topsheets that are hand-stained to bring out the wood grain. Interested customers should plan a trip to their Sun Valley HQ, where Baukol offers an on-mountain evaluation before meeting with you to ID your ideal ski. Then he hand-crafts each one to your exact specifications, including your choice of four different types of wood topsheets. At $2,500 a piece, they’re not a budget item—but you end up with a work of art that should also let you ski at your top form, paired with 100 percent guarantee on all materials and craftsmanship for five years. They also make cross-counry and kids’ powder skis with the same dedication to craft and aesthetic.
—Nathan Borchelt
