With apologies to the guys from the Ski Patrol, if there’s one thing that goes great with skiing, it’s booze. We all do it; we take nips while on the lift, we raise a toast to a buddy who just caught some sick air, and we warm our blood and steel our nerves with a swig before assaulting that double black back bowl. (Yes, we know that for the record alcohol, in fact, lowers body temperature and that drunk skiing is a bad idea. There, now no more of that talk.)
In the past, enjoying a welcome whistle wetting of whiskey required hauling a flask along with you while you skied or boarded the day away. No more. Thanks to the brilliant minds behind the WhiSki Poles, now your ski poles themselves are your flasks. And when you think about it, a flask ski pole truly is brilliant.
For starters, it’s not like you were going to go skiing without poles, so you might as well put those poles to work doing double duty. And as ski poles were already hollow, it’s not like these flask poles are some marked departure in the heft and feel of your poles. Finally, as BYO-booze is generally frowned upon (though ubiquitous nonetheless) at most ski resorts, by hiding your container in plain sight, WhiSki Poles are actually the most covert way to carry that rum or rye along with you for the day on the slopes.
Serious skiers need not worry, because WhiSki poles are hardly mere gimmicks. They are genuine, technically-proficient ski poles manufactured from aircraft-grade aluminum.
Emptied of booze (or water or Red Bull or whatever fluid suits you), they will perform just like any other good ski pole. Loaded to the full complement of eight fluid ounces (or a pint per pair) they will weigh a bit more, of course, but still handle admirably as you carve, bomb, or pizza and French fry down the mountain.
WhiSki poles come with a handy collapsible silicone funnel, so filling them up is clean and easy. Just consider covering the prominent WhiSki Poles logo on the side of each pole before you actually hit the slopes if you’re packing in booze, because that just might tip off the authorities. Or the lift operator guy. But he’ll probably be cool with it anyway.
If you’re interested in a pair, you can check ’em out here, order them on Amazon, or learn more about the brand’s new Kickstarter, which ends January 22, 2019.
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