Backcountry Skiing Bindings

Virtual Museum (museum index)

1982-3, Pre Production Prototype Low Tech (Dynafit)
Backcountry Skiing Alpine Touring Binding

This is the first Low Tech (now Dynafit) binding that binding inventors Manfred and Fritz Barthel actually skied on, during 1982 and 1983. It's made using the basic concepts of the Ramer touring binding, only the boot acts as the Ramer binding plate, and the ball/socket system of the Ramer is reversed so the balls are on the "plate" and the socket on the ski. The boot is a Koflach Valluga, which at the time was the only boot they felt might be strong enough to act as a binding plate. As it turned out, just about any plastic boot is stiff enough to do the job.

Detail of toe unit. The lever operates a cam used to lock and unlock the binding for downhill skiing or touring. Joke at the time was that, yes, the bindings were light, but Fritz was carrying a tool and repair kit that easily exceeded the weight of one pair bindings. But his feet were light and that's what counts.

Toe unit detail showing retrofitted ball protruding from boot toe. This was later reversed to the present Dynafit concept of pins that seat in sockets at the toe of the boot.

The heel uses a Ramer latch system, only with the rear part of the Ramer binding plate built into the boot heel.

(Epistemology note: "Dynafit" bindings had no name when the prototype above was in use. Later, when the Barthels decided to make and sell the binding they called it "Low Tech." When producing the binding themselves they chose the Dynafit Tourlite boot to be used with the binding, which led to the Dynafit company making the binding and calling it "Dynafit.")

This binding is owned by inventor Fritz Barthel and was photographed by Lou Dawson in Europe, it is not present in the WildSnow.com physical binding collection. Thanks goes to Fritz for allowing me to provide this information.