G3 Genuine Guide Gear - Innovative Telemark Technology

Speculation ran rampant last fall. Just what was G3 up to? Tinkering with the telemark binding was the trendy guess. As we all know now, the answer was skis, which seems obvious in retrospect considering Paul Parker had recently joined the G3 team.

So why the secrecy about the new line of G3 skis? G3 president Oliver Steffen fills in some of the blanks.

"We decided that talking to people about products before their release is counterproductive," said Steffen. "Decisions become suspect when there's pressure to meet outside expectations and deadlines."

For two years the project was kept under wraps, and when the announcement was made it was decidedly out of step with ski industry protocol. New products are presented in January and February, so retailers can fill out orders for the next season, not in the dry, quiet month of October.

"The October launch exposed us to a lot more risk, which we expected," said Steffen. "We knew we had a good product, so there were no excuses. We were humble without being arrogant because we felt comfortable with what were doing and had accepted the risks.

"We're not into hype. We'd rather focus on quality marketing of good products, which is not hype."

The calculated risk worked beyond expectations. In fact, original estimations of what would constitute a good run were exceeded by nearly three times.

"We did not plan on that," said Steffen.

The original production number came about after lengthy conversations with Paul Parker.

"We wanted a good healthy run," said Steffen. "Paul helped choose a number and we went with it. Then we sold out. In two days. Buyers were waiting for something exciting and new."

The second production run sold out in three weeks. Only after a third pressing of skis was demand finally met.

The launch of the ski line and its rapid success exemplifies the evolution of G3. For years G3's signature product has been the Targa telemark binding. There was a public perception that the name G3 and telemark bindings were nearly synonymous. But that identity has changed. G3 is much more of a backcountry companyrather than a telemark-specific company.

So what's next? After the successful business model used to unveil the skis—"the product is ready when it's ready, then we'll let the world know what we've been doing"—it's no surprise that Steffen is holding the cards close to his chest.

"Maybe we'll expand into products related to ski touring. Would anybody be surprised if we launched a ski pole line or AT bindings?"

Probably not.

G3 is busy expanding the perception of the company. It started with a simple plan: make better probes. Staying true to the mission statement that G3 gear must be true guide gear, a steady stream of products have been introduced—AviTech shovel, Bonesaw, Targa telemark binding, Climbing skins.

"After ten years, the company continues to evolve, which makes it exciting to get out of bed," said Steffen.