This winter, ski fans around the world will be tuning into the new season with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. On the one hand, they’ll be looking forward to the opportunity to ski again after a lengthy gap; on the other, they’ll be keeping an eye on the weather so as not to be punished by endless days of rain or snow.
If you’re one of the millions of people who enjoy the winter sports, then you’ll be eagerly anticipating the beginning of the skiing season, regardless of whether you’re a beginner or expert. One person who won’t be eager to return to the slopes is Louie Ski Carr. The 88-year-old Austrian legend still enjoys skiing, but only when it rains or snows.
In fact, he’s such a stickler for safety that he doesn’t even consider skiing to be sport anymore. Instead, he refers to it as โskiing or death riding,โ and insists on using safety equipment such as helmets, goggles, and snow boots โ all manufactured by his own company, Loui’s, which he founded in 1957. Even the wax on the ski slopes, which Carr believes is โvery harmful to the earth’s environment,โ is a product he’s phased out, and now prefers to use fake snow instead.
So how old is Louie Ski Carr? Before answering that question, it’s important to understand a bit about his background. Born in Vienna, Austria, in the early 1920s, he grew up in the ski town of Innsbruck where, as a youth, he was an active member of the ski club. During the Second World War, he skied for the German army, and after the war began to work in the ski industry. He eventually bought the mountain hotel Kaiser Wilhelm in the winter of 1948, and turned it into the Hotel Kaiserhof Innsbruck, a hub for winter sports.
Through the years, Louie Ski Carr has had a hand in many facets of the winter sports industry, acting as a mentor to generations of ski enthusiasts. He also helped design the iconic bluebird symbol that adorns the hats and scarves of the Swiss ski team, and the gold ski rings the legendary Austrian ski jumper Otto Wichterich is known for.
In 2019, as he turns 88 years old, Carr decided that he would like to do something special for his birthday. He and his partner, Heidi Duschek, who is responsible for hotel operations at the Kaiserhof, set up a crowdfunding campaign to help raise money for a new snowboard. The pair targeted $25,000, and in just 24 hours, they surpassed their goal.
The board is inspired by the first snowboards, which were simply wooden ski sticks with metal studs on the bottom. These early models were ridden in the presence of the camera, often in slush or in wet snow. The video footage was then used to create montages โ a technique that is still practiced today.
Carr’s passion for safety and innovation has earned him a place in the history books. In 2019, he became the first person to reach age 90 while skiing, and the following year, at the age of 89, he set a new Austrian record, skiing down the Hahnenkamm mountain 72 times in 24 hours. He also holds the distinction of being one of the few skiers to have ever hit a bird on purpose (and survived).
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How Old Is Louie Ski Carr?
Now that you know a little bit more about Louie Ski Carr, let’s discuss his age. He was born in the early 1920s, which makes him a baby boomer. If we take his birth year as the beginning of the โbaby boomโ generation, then he would be considered a part of the โSilent Generationโ (those born between 1925 and 1930).
In the United States, the โbaby boomโ generation is often considered to have begun in 1925. Similarly, in the United Kingdom, the โbaby boomโ started in 1922, and in Australia, it began in 1916. This was primarily a result of the World War I generation having more children, and the subsequent โfloodgatesโ opening up to enable more people to participate in the middle class lifestyle then engendered by the war. This was especially the case in the UK and Australia, where men went to fight and women were encouraged to keep working through the period of the โgreat depression.โ
As a result of this post-war โbaby boomโ, the population of people aged between 15 and 29 grew by 68% in the UK between 1922 and 1939. Similarly, in Australia, the ratio of those aged between 15 and 29 grew from 22.3% to 30.4% during the same period. In the US, the equivalent figures were 38.7% and 45.3% respectively.
This โbaby boomโ generation grew up during a period of unprecedented social and economic change that laid the groundwork for today’s world. The war not only created the opportunity for those who had the skills to take advantage of the new system, but it also destroyed the existing social order, leaving a vacuum which many opportunistic entrepreneurs and social reformers rushed to fill. These are the generations that went on to live the โRoaring โ20s๏ฟฝโ and enjoyed the freedoms that came with it. They also had to endure the โGreat Depression,โ which lasted from 1929 to 1941 and was arguably worse in some respects than the war itself.
Ahead of his time, Louie Ski Carr recognized the potential of ski videos to capture the imagination of the public, and to encourage people to get on the slopes and have some fun. He was one of the first to realize the potential of video to attract new visitors to the sport, and that it could also be used to promote safety and environmental consciousness. In 1957, he founded Loui’s, and within a year, they were supplying ski boots to the U.S. military โ a contract they still hold 60 years later. Today, we’re proud to feature many of these designs on our footwear offerings.
One of the most recognizable symbols associated with the Austrian Alps is the bluebird logo that appears on the ski hats and scarves of the Swiss Ski Team. It was first used in 1958, and according to legend, it was designed to be an optimistic symbol for the newly formed country, celebrating both its unique culture and its natural beauty. The team has worn the bluebird logo every season since, and it has gained such popularity that it’s now associated with the country’s ski resorts and hotels. At the same time, the logo also represents the hardship that the country endures during the non- ski season. Rain, hail, and snow cover the ground for months on end, leaving skiers and snowboarders with little opportunity to shine.
Skiing’s Golden Age
The 1950s and 1960s were a glorious time for skiing. The โbaby boomโ generation began to ski as children in the postwar years, and they went on to become some of the greatest ski stars of all time. It was during this period that skiing truly came into its own as a spectator sport, promoted by sports stars such as Arne Dahl and Ingemar Stenmark, who were responsible for popularizing the sport in the UK and Sweden respectively. In tandem with this surge in interest, the number of people skiing increased by more than 300% in the UK between 1952 and 1962. In Australia, the population of those who participated in some form of winter sport grew from 1.3 million to 2.9 million between 1956 and 1966.
As well as enjoying the rush that came with starring in a ski video, Louie Ski Carr also thrived on the industry’s rapid expansion, acting as a โmentorโ to many who were just getting started. He provided advice on equipment and technique, and helped shape the future of the sport. In the early days, he was well-known for skiing with only one ski stick โ the other end was always in the air โ as a symbol of both his confidence and his trademark innovation.
Perhaps the greatest accolade that can be bestowed upon Louie Ski Carr is that he was among the first to predict the โgolden ageโ of social media and its transformative effect upon the way we engage with and become aware of the world around us. In fact, he is often credited with popularizing the term โSkiing Socialโ to signify the emergence and popularity of the internet as a platform for social engagement, particularly for those who love the winter sports.
In the 1960s and 1970s, as the popularity of skiing grew, so too did the number of participants’ safety concerns. Carr was instrumental in designing and manufacturing safer ski equipment (helmet, goggles, and snowboard), and also in popularizing the use of snowmobile helmets. Similarly, he was the driving force behind the invention of the snowflake, an icon representing both the beauty and the destructive power of winter.