Marker International is a German

manufacturing company Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...

equipment Equipment most commonly refers to a set of tools or other objects commonly used to achieve a particular objective. Different job Work or labor (or labour in British English) is intentional activity people perform to support the needs and ...

for

winter sports Winter sports or winter activities are competitive sports or non-competitive recreational activities which are played on snow or ice. Most are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding. Traditionally, such games were only played in cold area ...

established in 1952 and headquartered in Straubing,

Lower Bavaria Lower Bavaria (german: Niederbayern, Bavarian: ''Niedabayern'') is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of the state. Geography Lower Bavaria is subdivided into two regions () – Landshut and Donau-W ...

. Founded by Hannes Marker, the company is known for pioneering releasable binding technology. Marker's first model, the Duplex was followed in 1953 by the Simplex toe binding which was a huge success in the 1950s. New models introduced in the 1980s were major competitors on the alpine racing circuit. Marker remained independent until the 1980s, since then the company ownership switched hands several times until becoming part of the

K2 Sports K2 Sports, LLC (K2 Sports) is an American winter sports company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. K2 Sports operates the K2 Skis, K2 Snowboarding, K2 Skates, Backcountry Access, Ride Snowboards, Tubbs Snowshoes, Atlas Snow-Shoe Company, LIN ...

group, which in turn was purchased by

Jarden Jarden was an American consumer products company. Formed by the spin out of Ball Corporation's canning business, the company became a wider conglomerate of consumer brands, particularly in the outdoors and home appliances market. Jarden was acqui ...

in 2007. After Jarden merged with

Newell Brands Newell Brands is an American manufacturer, marketer and distributor of consumer and commercial products. The company's brands and products include Rubbermaid storage and trash containers; home organization and reusable container products; Contig ...

, the corporate group sold Marker and other winter brands to equity firm Kohlberg & Co. in 2017.Private equity firm buys K2, Volkl, Marker and Boulder’s Backcountry Access
by Jason Blevins on ''The Denver Post'', 26 May 2017 Current range of products by Marker include

ski binding A ski binding is a device that connects a ski boot to the ski. Before the 1933 invention of ski lifts, skiers went uphill and down and cross-country on the same gear. As ski lifts became more prevalent, skis—and their bindings—became increasin ...

ski helmet A ski helmet is a helmet specifically designed and constructed for winter sports. Use was rare until about 2000, but by about 2010 the great majority of skiers and snowboarders in the US and Europe wear helmets. Helmets are available in many styles ...

goggles Goggles, or safety glasses, are forms of protective eyewear that usually enclose or protect the area surrounding the eye in order to prevent particulates, water or chemicals from striking the eyes. They are used in chemistry laboratories and ...

sportswear Sportswear or activewear is clothing, including footwear, worn for sport or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons. Typical sport-specific garments ...

and accessories.

History

Early models

Until the 1950s the ski industry had not split into different disciplines and used the

cable binding Cable bindings, also known as Kandahar bindings or bear-trap bindings, are a type of ski bindings widely used through the middle of the 20th century. It was invented and brand-named after the Kandahar Ski Club in 1929 by ski racer and engineer Gui ...

for all purposes. The "Kandahar" style binding added clips to hold down the foot for downhill runs, and then released for cross-country striding. These bindings had no release system, and could cause serious injuries during even the most minor falls. In the early 1960s, Dr. Richard Spademan had to deal with 150 fractures during a single three-day weekend at

Squaw Valley Ski Resort Palisades Tahoe is a ski resort in the western United States, located in Olympic Valley, California, northwest of Tahoe City in the Sierra Nevada range. From its founding in 1949, the resort was known as Squaw Valley, but it changed its name in ...

. During the early 1950s a number of skiers introduced systems to help release the foot in the event of a fall. The most worrying injuries were spiral fractures caused when the ski was forced sideways and twisted the lower leg. In 1950 Look introduced the

Look Nevada Look's Nevada, released in 1950, was the first recognizably modern alpine ski binding. The Nevada was only the toe portion of the binding, and was used with a conventional cable binding for the heel. An updated version was introduced in 1962 with ...

binding, which allowed the boot to release from the ski when it rotated to the sides. This was used with a conventional cable binding on the heel. Hannes Marker felt he could improve on the concept, and in 1953 he introduced the "Duplex" toe. The Duplex used two small wedge-shaped metal clips that fit over the toe of the boot's sole, holding it down, and used a spring in order to keep the boot centred. During a fall, the clips could be forced outward against their centring springs, allowing it to release the toe. Like the Nevada, the Duplex used a cable binding for the heel. In 1953, he followed this with the "Simplex" system, which used a single metal piece that could be rotated to either side on a cam plate that allowed the boot to travel directly to the side. This was paired with a new design for the heel cable, which formerly looped around the entire boot to a lever at the front that provided tension. Marker's "LD" replaced this with just the portion of the binding at the rear of the boot, moving the lever to the cable itself.

Rotamat

In 1962, Look dramatically updated their line with the Nevada II toe and the Grand Prix heel binding. The Grand Prix was essentially a toe binding rotated on its side so it released upward instead of to the side, allowing release when the ski caught or was forced up toward the skier. This basic design has remained the basis for downhill ski bindings to this day. Marker followed Look's lead in 1965, retaining their existing Simplex toe and adding the "Rotamat" heel. The Rotamat placed a release mechanism like the Grand Prix on short cables that ran to the boot's instep. This allowed the boot to release in twisting forward falls, a feature that Look would soon copy in their "turntable" mechanisms. The Rotamat's heel clip could not be easily re-set if it opened, earning it the nickname "explodamat". Several variations of the Rotamat followed, introducing plastic housings for lower weight and other changes to the design.

M series

In 1972, Marker replaced the Rotamat with its first step-in design, the M4 toe and M44 heel. The M4 re-introduced a two-finger design, allowing the fingers to rotate outward. The M44 heel was relatively conventional, allowing release only directly up. This was replaced in 1979 with the M4-15 Rotamat S heel, which was an improved version of the original Rotamat that was simpler to reset after release. Like the Look designs, it included a turntable under the instep that allowed the boot to rotate to the sides. A major upgrade was released in 1981 as the M40 Racing series. This is perhaps one of their best known bindings as it was a regular feature on the racing circuit through the 1980s. This featured an updated version of the M4 toe and an entirely new heel piece with a push-button release. Another major update followed in 1985 in the M46. This introduced the Twin-Cam toe and a Salomon-like lever-release heel. This basic design has remained the pattern for Marker bindings to this day.

Modern designs

In 2007, Marker unveiled a new freeski binding system called the Duke. Complemented by the Jester, the new system redefined the performance parameters for freeride bindings. In 2008, the company released two new bindings, the Baron and the Griffon, that are also based on the Duke system. In 2009, the company unveiled the Jester Schizo, which lets the user switch stances to adjust for a more "park" configuration (more towards the center of the ski) or for a more "all mountain" configuration (back from the core center of the ski). The Royal Family of bindings has become so popular that in 2007, the Duke was the subject of numerous internet scams stemming from people wishing to buy the binding. Marker has since expanded into the outerwear industry with its Marker Ltd. Apparel line.

Bibliography

"About Marker"
Marker USA, 2001 *
Marker International Signs Letter of Intent
''Business Wire'', March 8, 1999
MKR Holdings Announces CT Exercises Option
''Business Wire'', April 2, 2002
K2 Buys Volkl, Marker and Marmot for $200 Million
K2, June 16, 2004

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marker (Alpine Bindings) Skiing equipment Skiing organizations Ski equipment manufacturers Technology companies established in 1952 Manufacturing companies established in 1952 1952 establishments in West Germany 2007 mergers and acquisitions 2016 mergers and acquisitions 2017 mergers and acquisitions