Passing idle Alpine chairlifts in the bosom of skiing heritage--into Kitzbuhel and past the Hahnenkamm finish line--Nordica U.S.A President Willy Booker and I conversed about the evolution of his brand over local chocolates and Haribo gummy bears. We were on our way to Innsbruck, from Mittersill, Austria, where Nordica produces 90 percent of its skis in an old Blizzard factory the company recently purchased and refurbished. Earlier that day, a Nordica team gathered on the Kaprun Glacier near Mittersill for a beautiful day of fall skiing as they tested a line of sidecountry skis it will introduce next year.

Booker has a long familiarity with the ski industry. His mom has managed the Loveland ski shop outside Denver for 30 years, and his dad is a ski instructor. Booker raced for Burke Mountain Academy and the University of Vermont and upon graduating, began working for Nordica. Full story...