Bcomp’s Flax Technical Material Lifts Ski Performance Through K2 Collaboration

Bcomp is thrilled to have collaborated with K2 on the redesign of the iconic American ski company’s Mindbender line of products. The re-issued line of freeride and all-mountain skis contain a layer of unidirectional flax-fibre ampliTex™ reinforcement material to heighten both feel and function on the slopes, while also improving the durability and ecological profile of the equipment.

Founded by two skiers exploring natural materials to sustainably lighten the weight of their skis, Bcomp has been part of K2’s design journey since 2013. When the ski company first used bCores™, Bcomp’s first commercially available product for skis. This made Bcomp a natural partner in K2’s recent efforts to further leverage flax’s remarkable mechanical properties in pursuit of ever higher quality and performance standards for their ski products.

Patrick Vuagnat, Manager of Sports and Leisure at Bcomp, took the opportunity to discuss flax’s role within the complex ski development and design process in a Q&A with industry-renowned Jed Yeiser, K2’s Ski Product Director.

Patrick Vuagnat, Bcomp: What are the problems that have driven your designs and design philosophy at K2 over the years?
Jed Yeiser, K2: Big question! The two largest problems we try to solve with all our designs are product performance and product durability. We’ve wanted to make our skis more sustainably for years, and now technology and materials — including ampliTex™ — exist where we can enhance performance and durability with a material that is superior from an ecological standpoint. Our design philosophy has evolved to simplify designs where possible, so that a given part or material may serve multiple functions.

What problems are you trying to solve by turning to sustainable materials?
When we’re testing new materials, the two most important criteria are on-snow performance and quality or durability. While minimising the environmental impact of our skis is extremely important to us, product performance concerns us before factoring in sustainability benefits. A sustainable material that performs poorly or lacks the durability and quality we need is a step backwards from a sustainability standpoint! Our interest in flax grew significantly because skis with flax not only exhibited desirable changes in performance but also met our durability needs.

Tell us how skis reinforced with natural fibre composites feel under your feet, out on the mountain.
I’ve been working with and skiing on flax skis for more than a decade now and, ultimately, the best way I’ve found to convey understanding about how flax alters performance is to just put people on flax skis. Flax improves suspension and tracking through snow — especially cut-up snow or snow with rapidly changing mechanical properties, such as hardness, moisture and density. Flax skis manage to significantly improve edge contact and control without feeling damp, dead or unresponsive.

“Does the use of flax improve the performance of our skis? Absolutely.”
Jed Yeiser – K2’s Ski Product Director

How did you first discover Bcomp and their materials?
I think we initially focused on bCores™ for the LINE Magnum Opus, LINE Tourist and some K2 Waybacks. We began introducing more and more flax reinforcements into our skis as costing came down to a point where the performance improvements found by using flax reinforcement were justified.

What does it mean that ampliTex™ was originally conceived by two skiers trying to improve the performance of skis?
This had no effect on our decision to adopt the fabrics. However, the fact that there is a deep understanding of our products and industry from within Bcomp has made communications and developments far easier than working with other fabric suppliers. Having many skiers at Bcomp made it much easier to communicate our needs and develop a shared understanding of objectives. The support and flexibility we’ve received from Bcomp has also made it easy for us to tailor fabrics to our needs and meet delivery objectives.

How do the strength, stiffness and damping of ampliTex™ compare to conventional materials?
Strength and stiffness are in-line with conventional materials and closely match theoretical expectations. Specifically, flax has a higher bulk stiffness than glass fibre, but a comparable stiffness overall, and both flax and glass fibre have significantly lower bulk stiffnesses than carbon fibre. We’ve observed no durability issues related to flax. The issue of damping is far more interesting, where the hysteresis inherent in flax provides a notably smoother and more composed feeling compared to either glass- or carbon fibre. It’s a difficult sensation to describe, but skis with flax don’t feel damp and dead in the conventional sense of a damp ski, but rather feel calm, composed and energetic.

Did substituting ampliTex™ for conventional materials require any adaptations to your manufacturing equipment and/or tools?
We adopted ampliTex™ in part because it required no changes to our process. It was a drop-in-place change.

Do flax fibre materials open any other new opportunities in ski design or construction compared to conventional composites?
I suppose the answer hinges somewhat on our threshold for what is new. A ski is still a simple laminated beam that is subjected to a massive range of loading scenarios. Using flax doesn’t change the design space we’re working in, nor does it fundamentally change our approach to ski design. It does, however, offer a compelling tool to achieve high performance and durability in a more sustainable package. Does the use of flax improve the performance of our skis? Absolutely. Can you achieve similar performance through other means? Absolutely. We chose flax and Bcomp’s material in particular because it allows us to achieve our performance and durability goals more easily than conventional materials.

How far can designers go with sustainable materials in skis and winter sports?
The sky is the limit. Beyond cost, there are no limitations to what can be achieved with the material. I suppose the one limiting factor is that a 100 percent flax ski will not retain its shape as needed, so some amount of standard composite or metal material is required to give the skis geometric stability.

Ultimately, Jed predicts that the alignment of the costs for flax-based ski equipment with those constructed solely from conventional materials will drive market demand for their enhanced quality and feel underfoot. And the beneficiaries of the successful collaboration between Bcomp and K2? Both the natural environment and a new generation of contented skiers traversing winter terrain around the globe on a dynamic, responsive pair of flax-based skis.