Binding Timeline: Part 2 of 3
In the beginning there was an urge to find different ways to get down a snow-covered hill, to be different, and to tinker. This account is not meant to issue bragging rights or lay down who’s-first claims (unless they are widely known,) but it’s an effort to educate and give thanks to the early pioneers who had the ingenuity and took the time to make snowboarding better. This is a simple account of the evolution of the snowboard binding.
[First published in Transworld SNOWboarding, February 2005]
By Dennis Nazari
Photography by James Cassimus
During the 1986/87 season, Gnu bindings had a shorter highback and used a molded tongue to pressure the toeside. Ironically, this binding used a four-hole mounting pattern, which was different than the five-hole mounting pattern most manufacturers were using at the time. Years later, a narrower four-hole pattern would be the industry standard—what we still use today. PHOTO: James Cassimus
Click here to check out Part 1
Click here to check out Part 3
TAGS: Binding Timeline, history, Snowboard history
