Ken Read visits Fischer
Ken Read, former ski racer and Crazy Canuck, went into the history books with Fischer during his career. He recently returned to the birthplace of his then unbeatable C4 Hole Ski. Together with his eldest son Eric and two other young Canadian hopefuls he was amazed at the details he saw in ski production. "A lot has changed, the quality standards are top notch these days. It was good to see though that the skis are still made by hand!"
Development back then and today
Some things, however, have remained unchanged, including the basic concept of a ski: there is no beating the tried and tested sandwich construction which is still the top technology used in ski making today. Ken Read, who was the first North American to win an Alpine World Cup race, was a regular guest at his equipment provider throughout his career to play an active part in development work. This included not only visits to the test centre at that time in Tauplitz, Styria, but also frequently to Ried for celebrations. "I have fond memories of a party back in April 1980 when we celebrated two Olympic medals together with all the employees at Fischer. We were good at partying in those days as well!"
Profession: firefighter
The 55-year-old has stayed loyal to the sport to this day. As the father of three sons his main job is chauffeuring them around, but he does give them tips now again to help them on their way to becoming professional skiers. As far as his own career is concerned, he has had to put out a few fires in his time in Canada. "The Canadian Ski Association was stuck in a major crisis in 2002. I left television and went back to the ski branch as president of the ski association and brought about a change in direction. My 15 years of experience as a sports commentator at CBC was definitely a benefit. We need the media. As president it was important for me to know what makes them tick."
The big difference to back then
After ten years in the "White Circus", which is how he refers to skiing in his book, and five victories in the World Cup, Read retired from competition at the age of 28 - the average age of retirement at that time. In 1983 he then changed to television which turned out to be quite tough at the beginning. "Being a spectator was hard for me, especially in the first year. Many things were new and exciting, though, which made the whole thing easier for me," reminisces the skiing giant. And the biggest differences between now and then? Probably the professionalism and quality in skiing. And the communication. "Whenever I try to explain to my son how a telegram worked, he simply shakes his head in disbelief." When Read called home after his first World Cup victory to share the good news with his family, his sister picked up the phone. "She got the shock of her life because she thought something had happened to me! And that was just because we hardly had any contact at all when travelling around Europe."
