Photographer Oskar Enander sits down with Stephan Drake in late December 2007 for some questions about DPS Skis.

DPS has been in the shadows the last couple of seasons. What’s the story?

Well
Mr. Enander, as you know, a few years ago we set off to create a
revolutionary ski construction that would be lighter, more powerful,
and rip harder than anything that has ever been built before- the
world’s first sandwich construction prepreg carbon fiber ski. Carbon
fiber is very difficult to work with in a ski: it’s expensive, very
fickle, and requires total precision. There are stories in the ski
industry of the big ski brands having tried this project, but they gave
up. It has taken us a few years of hard work to mature the process and
technology. While the brand had really good buzz a few years ago, we
simply didn’t have the skis to sell, so we decided to lay low,
concentrate on the technology, and operate at a low volume until the
skis were fully ready and in stock.

It’s been awhile, and we are doing this chat now. Does that mean that DPS is starting to roar?

Yes,
we realized that from a business perspective we missed the opportunity
of really striking hard a few years ago, but we stubbornly said, “We
are going to stick it out, and build this dream carbon ski even if it
destroys us.” We refused to give in. We fought and struggled and fought
to tame carbon and make it work toward a perfect ski. We had a lot of
manufacturing problems with the new technology, but have come out the
other end of the birth canal with most complete quiver of any
manufacturer on the planet, the most advanced technology, and the most
advanced shaping.

More importantly, every model, flex and
size is currently in stock and can be shipped anywhere on the planet in
a few days. They are truly unique, exotic skis, and they are a reality,
so it’s time to start talking again.

These big Lotus models you guys have been working on have been creating a lot of buzz. What’s the deal on those beasts?

Yeah, the 202cm Lotus 138, and 200cm Lotus 120, are big, floaty, and refined.

They came into existence together as a result of core DPS customers, and five years of experience shaping progressive powder
skis. Take the 202cm, Lotus 138. It’s a patent-pending design that has
three years of rocker refinements and shaping. It’s a shape that has
evolved over multiple seasons of Alaskan testing and been mated with
the DPS carbon sandwich build. It’s 138mm
underfoot, over 2 meters long, has more torsional stiffness than a
world cup race ski, has a practically infinite flex life, and weighs
less than a 175cm Pocket Rocket- pretty futuristic stuff. These kind of
numbers run all the way through the line. Take the 178cm Wailer 105, it
skis beautifully, rips, and and only weighs only 1560g.

That’s
rad… Can’t wait to ride mine. Seems like everywhere I travel to around
the world, the core pow resorts, at the helicopter ops- a lot of the
best guys are riding DPS, and I spent a lot time shooting guys involved with DPS in some way. What’s going on?

Yeah,
it’s a tribe- this group of people from engineers, to customers,
designers, reps, photographers, that all share a deep passion for high
performance skiing and especially powder. When you’ve experienced that
special state that happens when you are planing weightlessly in deep
snow, it’s very easy to communicate that vibe intuitively to others who
have also been through the gate. It goes without saying that once you
create a life that is built around chasing storms and delving deeper
into the powder experience, you seek out a special ski that’s going to
match the way you approach the mountains. When those skis are found,
they become a bit more than just skis- they become a craftsman’s tools
and take on their own unique energy.

These skis are an
attempt to reflect the perfection that we feel out there in the big
mountains while riding powder. We’ll never reach that purity, but the
closer we can get to reflecting it with our tools, the happier we are.
If the ski is in tune with the rider, then the experience out there
just gets better and more fun. That’s what DPS is about. It’s only because of the interaction and a relative high
level of shared understanding of what skis should be between the
customer, designer, skier, engineer, that they turn out as they do.

Alaska. Less than three months Away. Are you excited?

Oh
man, can’t wait! From a ski design standpoint, you can often learn more
about a ski in one run in Alaska than you can in a whole season at
resorts, so it’s super valuable to keep progressing shapes. From a life
and skiing standpoint, after working hard, it’s the place to really get
an intense shot of big mountains- the reason why we work in the first
place. Looking forward to getting back to the travel roots on the
Powder Road; it’s a good time with good friends. We will be updating
the DPS blog for posts and showcase amazing
photography by you and Mark Smith. People will also get photos, updates
and stories from the deep if they are on the mailing list at www.dpsskis.com