CA1049593A - Ski sled - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
One seater and two seater ski sleds having elongated rectangular seats carried on rearwardly inclined top surfaces of support members upstanding from a flat bottomed ski runner. The seats are elongated transversely of the ski to overhang the sides of the ski to enable the sled to be steered by the user shifting his weight.

Description

The present inventio'n relates generally to ski sleds.
In particular the present invention relates to a ski sled having a seat configured to allow the user to shift his weight for ;
steering the sled.
Various articulated ski sleds have heretofore been proposed having front and rear skis. The front ski is generally rotated to accomplish steering. For this purpose, handlebars are provided to control the front ski.
While it is technically possible to provide a ski sled having a single rigid ski, in which steering is accomplished by shifting the weight of the user, such a ski sled has previously been considered difficult to mechanize because prior art sled seats have not been configured to allow the user adequate freedom to shift ~;
his weight.
The present invention provides a ski sled which has a seat configured to allow the user to steer the sled by shifting his weight.
The present invention also desirably provides a ski sled for two users having a pair of longitudinally spaced apart seats.
According to the present invention there is provided a ski sled device comprising a single elongated flat bottomed ski;
a first support member upstanding from said ski, said first support member having a rearwardly inclined top surface; and a first rear-wardly inclined elongated rectangular seat carried on said top surface, said seat being elongated transverse of said ski for over-hanging the sides of said ski, said bottom of said ski being upwardly curved to provide generally downwardly convex shape with its greatest radius of curvature beneath said support means.
In accordance with the present invention there is provided a ski sled having support meansing including a support member upstanding from a single ski having an upwardly curved downwardly convex flat bottom. The support member has a rearwardly inclined ~ 1 -- ..

- ' ' ''' ''. ~. : , ,, ' t ' ~49~j93 top surface on which an elongated rectangular seat is carried. The seat is elongated transverse of the ski to overhand the sides of the ski. This feature, along with the resultant rearward inclina-tion of the seat allows the user to sit on the seat with his hands gripping along the front edge of the seat on opposite sides of the support member. The rearward inclination of the seat requires that the hands exert a force on the bottom of the seat for preventing ~the user from toppling rearward. The resultant positioning of the body enables it to be rocked to one side or the other for accomp-lishing steering of the sled which is faciliated by the curvedslope of the base of the ski.
In one embodiment of the present invention a two-seater sled is provided in which two similar seats are longitudinally spaced along the ski.
The present invention will be further illustrated by way of the accompanying drawings wherein:
Figure 1 is a pictorial presentation of a one-seater ski sled according to one embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the ski sled in Figure l;
Figure 3 is a top view of the ski sled in Figure l;
Figuxe 4 is a pictorial presentation of a two-seater ski sled according to another embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 5 is a side elevational view of the ski sled in Figure 4;
Figure 6 is a top view of the ski sled in Figure 4; and Figure 7 is a front elevational view of the ski sled in Figure 4.
Referring first to Figures l through 3 of the drawing, there is illustrated a one-seater ski sled lO which has a single ski 12 which may be constructed of hardwood 14 and covered with a sheet metal liner 16 for wear resistance. The ski 12 is preferably .

s .- 1~49S~3 30 to 32 inches in length and 1 1/4 inches in width.
; A support member 18 is provided upstanding from ski 12 with its front positioned between 17 and 19 inches from the front tip of the ski 12. The ski 12 has a flat bottomed upwardly curved -base which is downwardly convex and has its greatest radius of curvature beneath the support member 18. The support member 18 has a top surface 20 which is inclined rearward from the horizontal.
~Support member 18 spans approximately 8 inches along ski 12 and top surface 20 is one inch higher at the front of member 18 than at the back of the member. A strap iron brace 22 runs forward from the front of support 18 to the top of ski 12 to strengthen the support.
A transversely elongated rectangular padded seat 24 of `
approximately 8 inches in length, measured along ski 12, and 14 inches in width, measured transverse of ski 12, is carried securely on top of support 18. Due to the inclination of surface 20, seat 24 is also rearwardly inclined from the horizontal. It will be appreciated that the seat 24, being elongated transverse of ski 12 `-overhangs the sides of the ski by more than 6 inches on each side of the seat. This overhang allows the hands of the user seated on seat 24 to be placed gripping the bottom front edge of the seat at locations 26 and 28 on opposite sides of support 18. Further, because of the rearward inclination of the seat 20, the user is able to lean backwards somewhat for his hands to exert a force on the underside of the seat to maintain or anchor the hands in position. `~
Then to maneuver the sled, with the hands of the user so positioned, the body of the user is rocked to either one side or the other to -steer the sled 10 in the same nature as change of direction is ~`
accomplished by a skier.
; Further, due to the transverse overhang of seat 24 it is necessary to provide triangular gussets 30 between the opposite sides of support 18 and the underside of the seat.
Figures 4 through 7 illustrate an alternate embodiment ,, .. , . . . , ~ .
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~ 109L9593 two-seater ski sled 32 in which like parts to the one-seater ski ; sled 10 have similar reference numerals. Two-seater sled 32 is derived from one seater sled 10 by providing a ski runner 34 which h~ iS longer than ski 10 by about 14 inches. This additional length is provided at the rear of ski 34 to provide the space for the " positioning of an additional support member 36 spaced behind support member 18 with the greatest radius of curvature of the flat bottom intermediate the support members 18 and 36. The support 36 also ; has a rearwardly inclined top surface 38 and carries a seat 40 identical to seat 24. The ski sleds 10 and 32 may be made entirely of injection molded plastic.

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Claims (2)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. A ski sled device comprising a single elongated flat bottomed ski; support means including a first support member upstanding from said ski, said first support member having a rearwardly inclined top surface; and a first rearwardly inclined elongated rectangular seat carried on said top surface, said seat being elongated transverse of said ski for overhanging the sides of said ski, said bottom of said ski being upwardly curved to provide generally downwardly convex shape with its greatest radius of curvature beneath said support means.

2. The device of Claim 1 said support means includes a second support member upstanding from said ski at a position longitudinally spaced along each ski from said first support member, said second member also having a rearwardly inclined top surface, and a second elongated rectangular seat carried on the top surface of said second support member, said second seat also being elongated transversely of said ski for overhanging the sides of said ski.