Torsion Land Skier

Abstract

A land skier of a resilient plastic material molded into a shell-shaped substantially like a ski with lateral sides that depend down from an upper skier supporting surface in the shape of an upside down U with a plurality of ball bearing rollers having beveled cylindrical surfaces mounted between the sides of the shell beneath the foot of the skier. The forward end of the shell is curved upwardly like a ski with the foremost roller mounted in the upwardly curved portion and the lower rear edges of the shell taper upwardly toward the rear with a plastic braking surface mounted between the sides of the shell.

Description

This invention is concerned with a device that permits skiing on dry land such as grass or weeds and is an improvement of U.S. Pat. No. 3,282,598 which was issued to me on Nov. 1, 1966.

With the advent of the snowmobile in addition to winter skiing, this leisure time sport becomes dormant during the summer months when there is no snow. The ski slopes and tows remain inactive out of season, and nonremunerative.

It is a purpose of the within invention to provide a summer ski for use with snowmobiles and also for use by people for the purpose of skiing on grass, weeds and the like where there is no snow.

It is a principal object of the within invention to improve the maneuverability of a dry land skier.

It is still a further object of the within invention that it is adaptable for use by skiers who normally winter ski.

It is still an additional object of the invention that it is inexpensive in the cost of manufacture.

It is yet a further object of the within invention to provide a summer skier that may be assembled from molded components.

It is also an additional object of the within invention that it is made out of a material that is resilient whereby said material being less likely to break under severe conditions and is adaptable to absorb the shock of a rough terrain.

One of the problems with the original land skier as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,282,598 was the fact that the surfaces forward of the area where the ski shoes are attached, had open rollers and the surface to the rear had a brake shoe that was below the surface of the plane where the ski shoe is mounted. In traveling over weeds, grass, and the like, a great amount of debris accumulated from the weeds above the skier and makes it necessary for a cleansing to remove the debris therefrom. With the closure type of shell now employed, in this invention, this problem has been eliminated. Further, the ski as now designed has a much more streamlined appearance, and is, therefore, substantially free from debris forming therein.

Further, the curvature of the surface is more geometrical and consequently more efficient, particularly in the area forward of the skier and proximate the brake shoe in the rear.

These and other objects are obtained by the use of an elongated molded shell that has a concave inner surface and in which is housed a plurality of rollers. The rollers are barrel shaped having a convex periphery and mounted on ball bearings. The rollers are located proximate to each other within the elongated shoe. The elongated shoe has an upper forward surface with a roller inserted therein adaptable to receive rough terrain. A plastic drag shoe is located within the rear of the housing which enables the user to control the skid or braking action of the ski as well as to avoid rough terrain.

For a more detailed description of the within invention, reference is made to the following specification and in particular to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective top view of the skier.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the skier.

FIG. 3 is a front elevation view, part in cross section, of the roller.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the inside of the shoe plate.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the bottom of the skier.

The shell 1 of the skier is formed from a mold and is a unitary integral unit. The material employed is synthetic and is of a strong plastic material. This is both resilient and unbreakable.

The shell 1 which, as can be seen in the various views of the drawing, is in the general shape of a ski having a front surface that extends with an upward curvature at 5 and having a lower bottom surface that extends upwardly at 12. The rollers 2 which are made of a hard rubber-type material are mounted within the frame of the shell on the inside hollow area 13 between locknuts 4.

For a more detailed description of the rollers 2 reference is made particularly to the view of FIG. 3. An axle 3 runs through the geometrical center of the roller 2 extending out from each side thereof. The end 8 of the axle 3 extends outwardly and connects to the nuts 4 which are fastened on the outer surface of the shell 1. In the cross section of FIG. 3, the roller bearings 9 which circumvent the axle 3 can be seen in detail.

Mounted in the rear under portion of shell 1 at 12 is the brake shoe 6. The brake shoe 6 can be seen clearly in the view of FIG. 4. The brake shoe 6 is hollow on the inside at 7. There are openings at 12a which enable the screws and bolts 11 to secure the brake shoe surface 6 within the shell 1.

The lower portion of the brake shoe 6 extends slightly downward and in a slightly curved position from the bottom of ski shell 1. Mounted on the top surface of the shell 1 in the openings 14 are the shoe supports 10 which are shown in dotted lines in the view of FIG. 2.

As stated previously, one of the applications of the within skier is for use with a snowmobile which can be operated out of season when there is no snow with the use of these skiers instead of snow-type skis.

In operation, the Turf Skier, as this device is called, is attached to the shoe of the user. This can be done by the clamping procedure that is customary to a winter type ski such as are indicated by dotted lines in FIG. 2 at 10.

When the skier places his weight forward on the within skis, the center of gravity is on the horizontal plane where the ski shoe is located and particularly where six of the rollers 2 are located, excluding the most forward roller.

Forward of the six rollers 2 is another roller 2 located within the curved surface at 5. The purpose of this particular roller and the curved surface at 5 is to permit deflection for any ground obstacle such as stones or other protruding objects.

To the rear of the shell 1 is the inclined surface 12 and the lower portion thereof.

The brake shoe 6 which is mounted within this surface is for the purpose of when there is a change of gravity from the rollers 2 to the rear of the shell 1 to give a stabilizing effect for slowing down, turning or stopping. The brake shoe 6 is for braking and controlling the speed of the skier.

The shape of the shell 1 in the front with the curved upper surface 5 and the enclosed top surface is an important improvement over the prior disclosure U.S. Pat. No. 3,282,598 because it absorbs shock when the ski contacts rocks and travels over rough terrain.

The design and arrangement of brake shoe 6 is also an improvement in that it is less likely to wear out since it is hollow on the inside and absorbs the shock of the braking action much easier than the solid brake shoe of the aforesaid patent.

The improved design of the Turf Ski permits more control for reasons of torsion and weight control over my original conception.

Claims

In consideration of the foregoing I claim:

1. A land skier having a unitary, upside down U-shaped shell, a plurality of rollers, a ball bearing means within said rollers, said rollers connected to each side of said unitary shell within the U-shape thereof, the front end of said shell rising upwardly forming a curvature similar to a ski, one of said rollers being mounted in that portion of the curvature that rises up being above the plane of the other said rollers, the rear bottom edges of the sides of said U-shaped shell tapering upwardly away from the bottom plane of said rollers, a unitary brake shoe being mounted to the rear of said rollers within that portion of said U-shaped shell that rises upwardly aforesaid, said brake shoe being a unitary member having a lower surface and four upwardly extending side surfaces means on each of two sides of said surfaces of said brake shoe for fastening to the sides of the U-shaped shell, clamping means mounted on the upper surface of said shell for mounting and locking a ski boot thereto, said upwardly extending portion of said shell tapering to an elliptical point, and the rear portion of the surface of said shell tapering towards a common point and being abutted at the end thereof.