Hey Nicole,
Just for the record, Trak Sports is a TINY corporation. Their total gross revenue for a fiscal year is less than 8% of just Salomon, and K2 and less than 3% of Quicksilver, which of course owns Rossi/Dynastar along with a grip of other brands.
Trust me, if anybody on this site knows it's me.
For everyone else...
It's true there are changes going on at the Line brand. Some of you will probably be stoked, and some of you probably won't. The only claim I will make is that we're still just as focused on the sport of skiing as ever. We will continue to progress skiing as much as we can for as long as we can. That doesn't necessarily mean just paying the top pro in the world to endorse our skis, but it does mean listening to riders...like Eric and just like you...about what we should build next.
Regarding the comment about why Eric doesn't ride our "normal" skis...Eric is continually progressing and pushing his own riding. That means we're continually progressing and pushing the development of the skis we build for him. While it's true that he may ride one of a kind prototypes, it's also true that the skis that he rides and his ideas greatly influence the production of our "normal" skis. The perfect example is the Invader. That ski was heavily influenced by the Elizabeth which was heavily influenced by the 150mm waisted prototypes Eric rides in Powder. By the way, most pros are not riding the same ski that ends up on the retail sales floor. If a company has any type of R&D department they've got their athletes riding new ideas and concepts that will eventually turn into the great skis that you all buy at market.
Lastly, the one thing Line is not doing is selling-out and only trying to make money. However, Line does need to make some money. For 10 years Line has progressed the sport of skiing, product design, and promoted athletes...all while losing money. When Line finally strategically decides it might need to break even, every one assumes that J is rollin' in money, driving his Yacht accross the Atlantic. It's not the case.
Just wait until the new website launches and you'll see the new direction of Line.
peace,
Jordan Judd
Product Manager
Line Skis