Alex Hackel, Family Loyalty
(Dec. 3, 2021)
ZipFit is proud to announce our partnership with Alex Hackel. While much of the freestyle skiing world learned about ZipFit in the last year, Alex learned about ZipFits close to a decade ago from his parents, both of whom ski in ZipFit liners. Alex’s dad was known to rave about how much he liked his ZipFits, but Alex was still growing and his folks wouldn’t get him a pair that he was going to grow out of.
Alex connected with our team this past spring expressing interest in trying some ZipFits and was able to ski in the liners over the summer and fall before we committed to working together. For ZipFit, Alex’s technical skills and dedication to producing the best quality ski content is just the tip of the iceberg. Alex leads by defying convention: making himself available to his audience, inspiring others through creativity, and putting pressure on the industry at large to stride in the direction of sustainability as seen in carbon neutral film production and the 100% renewable production of 1000 skis. Alex’s voice in our sport is amplified by his influence on many of the most influential skiers. When we asked our favorite skiers who their favorite skier is, Alex’s name came up again and again.
Skiers in the know have skied ZipFit for the last 30 years. It’s a perfect fit to partner up with a skier’s skier like Alex Hackel. Alex skis the Gara LV liner in his Dalbello Lupo 130 shells. This is our most popular liner, as it is the most universal fit for mid volume shells and average feet.
In the video above, Alex impresses the importance of the “use phase” of a product in calculating the sustainability of said product. The “use phase” refers to the amount of time a product remains in use. ZipFits are handmade in Montebelluna, Italy with expert care and quality control. While our liners take three to four times as long to produce compared with other ski boot liners (adding production cost) we see the value in making a product that is going to last five to ten times longer than competing liners.
ZipFits feature a cork composite filling called OMFit instead of conventional foam. Cork is regeneratively harvested from cork oak trees, with a single tree producing upwards of 20 bark harvests. The cork is finely ground and mixed with proprietary ingredients making the OMFit cork respond dynamically. If you warm your liner, the cork will flow from tight restrictive zones into areas where more material is needed, achieving the desired foot positioning and heel hold. As Alex mentions, we also offer our OMFit cork on our website so you can add more material to dial in your initial fit, adjust your liner fit if you get new shells, or add more cork every couple years depending on how your liners break in. This last point is what helps many skiers extend the “use phase” of their ZipFits to 750 days on snow, even 1000+ days of comfort.
We’re jazzed to add Alex Hackel to our athlete team and support the positive changes he is imparting to our larger community and industry. Thanks for checking out what we’re doing and visit us at http://www.zipfit.com
Gara LV
All-mountain
Aggressive
Mid
Designed for the all mountain skier seeking performance, the Gara LV (low volume, meaning less cork material) ski boot liners offer uncompromising edge control, with an engaging forward leaning design, keeping you balanced through bumps, steeps, powder, and chunder. Recognized as Best of by Blister Magazine 2020-2024, the award winning Gara is the signature liner in our fleet and is now offered in low volume and high volume models to accommodate more skiers.
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