I Figured There’s No Way This Funky New Ski Tech Could Change the Game. But It Just Might

At a glance, the ShredShox full-suspension ski platform looks, well, full sus. Early reactions on the slopes tell a different story.

By Steve Mazzucchi

Published December 19, 2024

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Updated December 19, 2024

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In the ski and snowboard space, it’s easy to view hardware innovation with a fair amount of skepticism. From hangboards to brakes to the (rather charming) ski & see, there have just been so many … fails.

Naturally, that carries over to the latest attempt to revolutionize skiing: the ShredShox Full Suspension Ski Platform.

shredshox full view — True to its name, ShredShox offers actual shred shocks.

Much to our surprise, however, early impressions are hardly dismissive. Not necessarily glowing, mind you, but encouraging nonetheless.

Better than expected?

What is ShredShox? Just what it sounds and looks like. Mimicking a full-squish mountain bike, this product employs air shocks to suspend the bindings above the ski.

According to the brand, this approach reduces the impact of jumps, abrupt turns and uneven terrain, while also reducing the dreaded chatter and allowing you to ski longer and stronger.

“By absorbing shock,” some of the marketing copy reads, “it reduces muscle fatigue and decreases the risk of injury, making for a smoother, more controlled ride.”

Check out the video from a recent demo at Loveland Ski Pass, and you’ll see a bunch of people who are totally stoked. But it’s a tad slanted, coming straight from the brand itself.

shredshox closeup — ShredShox enables you to set the PSI on both the front and rear, depending on your body weight.

A more reliable and promising first impression comes from GearJunkie’s Will Brendza, who recently gave them a test ride alongside ShredShox head of brand Jarrod Krisilioff at Vail.

The CliffsNotes of his experience can be summed up in one excerpted paragraph:

“True purists, minimalists, and most budget skiers will scoff at this system. But for skiers who really like to nerd out on techy gear, or for those who need to reduce the impact of the sport on their bodies, I think this could be a promising (if expensive) new technology. Of course, there are still some kinks to work out. But any technology like this needs time to get dialed, refined, and perfected.”

Here’s a quick synopsis of this product’s potential based mainly on Brendza’s review, plus other stories we’ve seen online and the offhand opinion of a ski journo and friend.

Good, bad and ugly

The system gets better as you go faster: As you pick up speed, the shcoks engage, boosting energy return and acceleration coming out of turns.

It smooths out the crud: The shocks dampen the impact of choppy terrain and even moguls, but do not completely numb it. You still feel the bumps under your feet, in a good way.

shredshox air — While the bindings do add weight, not enough to stop you from catching serious air, it appears.

Jumping is harder but landing is softer: The prototype weighs about 2.75 pounds per foot (the brand aims to shave at least half a pound for the production model). That hurts your amplitude anytime you leave the ground but goes easy on the knees when you return to earth.

Reducing fatigue may be a wash: While absorbing shock could enable you to ski longer and harder, the benefit may be largely canceled out by the extra weight you’re lugging around.

Adjustability isn’t for everyone: You set the PSI of each shock to account for your weight, and you can also change the “damping” setting, depending what you are planning to do on the slopes. As someone who pretty much only turns my mountain bike shocks from “off” to “on” when I switch from the road to the trail, I think that just sounds like a pain, but for some skiers that feature may be really compelling.

Like snowler-blades before them, ShredShox might attract attention of the mocking kind. Reminds us a bit of what they used to say about mo-peds: fun to ride till your friends see you on one.

They could be difficult to fix: The tech is so new, you can’t expect your local ski shop to help you tune or repair it (right now), meaning you’d have to send it back to ShredShox if something breaks.

They’re kinda dorky: Like snowler-blades before them, these might attract attention of the mocking kind. Reminds us a bit of what they used to say about mo-peds: fun to ride till your friends see you on one.

They’re not fun to lug: No matter how you carry your skis, we are hearing the added bulk makes it awkward to tote them around the resort, to say nothing of mounting on a ski rack or storing in your apartment or garage.

shredshox ender — As easy as these folks try to make it look, carrying ShredShox-mounted skis has to be somewhat dodgy.

Bottom line

I’ll leave the last word to my longtime ski buddy Rich Stoner, the founder of All About Après and a veteran schusser who’s written one or two ski stories for GP. I kinda expected him to bray with laughter at the notion of ShredShox, but his response was remarkably measured.

“My initial impression is that they look really ridiculous,” he texted. “But I think as the technology advances, they have to be probably a pretty cool system — kind of like when they first started adding suspension to mountain bikes, and now those things are built like motorcycles.”

’Nuff said.

Availability and pricing

The ShredShox full-suspension ski platform is expected to start shipping in February. You can put down a $500 deposit now on one of five colorways. The total cost is $1,995.