Abstract: The present invention relates to a material with high visibility to humans and low visibility to deer and other dichromatic animals, and a method for making the same. The color “Safety Orange” emits and reflects light at the long visible wavelengths of 595-605 nm, which are conspicuous to humans and largely unseen by dichromates. Common manufacturing and laundering practices cause existing Safety Orange products to also emit strongly at 455 nm and 496 nm, the peak sensitivity of deer blue cones and deer rods respectively. The present invention differentially reduces light emission and reflection at wavelengths below 500 nm for decreased visibility to dichromatic animals. This differential reduction preferably incorporates a pattern, such as a camouflage pattern, to further reduce visibility to deer. This pattern is preferably visible to dichromates while remaining largely invisible to humans.

Abstract: A ski binding includes a step-in lever or latch for releasably clamping a ski boot to a sole plate. The latch is pivotally mounted on the bight of a U-shaped bail having ends pivoted within the sole plate. As the ski boot is stepped downwardly, the latch is rotated and translated upwardly by camming action of an arcuate undersurface eccentrically located with respect to the bight. A wedge surface interconnecting the arcuate undersurface and an opposed surface frictionally engages the ski boot and continues pivoting of the latch until an opposed latching surface moves from one side of the bail to the other in order to provide an over-center toggle action to cause the latching surface to overlie the ski boot heel extension.

Abstract: In a ski binding including a toe release unit, a heel retainer unit, a sole plate adapted to be received between and releasably retained by the units, and securing devices on the sole plate whereby the sole plate may be attached to a ski boot, the improvement including structure at the interface of the sole plate and the heel retainer unit for releasably capturing the sole plate in the heel retainer unit upon the application of force to the sole plate in a direction tending to align the heel retainer unit and the sole plate to allow a skier having the sole plate attached to a ski boot to step into the toe release and heel retainer unit on a ski on which they may be mounted.

Abstract: A ski brake is formed of spring wire bent so that one end, carrying a plastic brake shoe, forms one brake arm and an intermediate portion, formed into a first loop welded at the top, forms a second brake arm. A transverse portion of the wire, intermediate the pair of brake arms, is rotatably mounted in an open slot of a mounting pad secured to a ski. Extending from the first loop is a second or holding loop. The remaining end of the wire is parallel with the transverse portion and is rotatably mounted in a second open slot in the mounting pad. An anti-friction metal plate covers the mounting pad. A pair of brake stops are located inward of the extending brake arms when in a rest position adjacent the ski upper surface. Each brake stop has a serrated bottom surface clamped against a toothed pad which extends across the ski.

Abstract: A toe unit spring biases a release pin into mating engagement with an arcuate socket on a sole plate which is releasably securable to a ski boot. For increased anti-shock retention, the arcuate socket has inclined side walls with a lateral extent greater than two times the vertical extent of an inclined bottom wall, and greater than two times the diameter of a hemispherical end of the release pin. The sole plate has a pivot bar located under the ball of the skier's foot, and a rear beveled tongue which is urged into one of plural angled recesses in a rear retainer plate. The retainer plate can be rotated to change the ratio of upward to lateral release pressure. To provide cant adjustment, cant strips having snap-fit connectors are insertable into apertures in the sole plate.