Safety ski pole

#The conventional ski pole used for alpine or cross-country skiing consists essentially of an elongated shaft having a point and basket at one end and a handle at the other. The handle of the pole is normally integrally formed with the shaft of a single piece of metal, although frequently the handle end of this single piece of shaft is covered with a finger grip. Because the pole is rigid along the entire length, skiers are frequently injured when the pointed end of the ski pole is engaged and rigidly secured in the snow while the skier is moving. This type of accident will happen, for example, when a skier is making a quick stop or turn. The skier jams the pole into the snow and occasionally will rigidly engage the pointed tip of the pole in the snow against a rock or underneath his ski while turning or stopping. At the same time, the forward movement of the skier causes his hand to move in the direction of skiing while the pole remains implanted in the snow. When this occurs, the skier's thumb is jammed against the handle end of the pole frequently bending it back and causing serious and sometimes permanent injury to the thumb joint.

#Ski pole manufacturers have attempted to avoid this type of injury by providing handles with break-away straps. The theory of operation in providing such break-away straps is that the strap will release when unusual forces are applied to the hand of the skier, thus, presumably, avoiding the type of injury described above. Unfortunately, break-away straps which are frequently made of a piece of plastic integrally molded with the hand grip and appropriately split to permit ease in removal do not perform and function as desired. When a skier's hand is forced against the handle of a ski pole, the type of injury described above will occur even if there were no break-away strap, or for that matter, any strap on the pole. In short, it is the skier's hand rigidly holding the handle of the ski pole which is the source of the injury rather than a strap. These break-away straps do perform some function, but the function they perform is normally to avoid injuries to the wrist which occasionally occur if the ski pole is rigidly attached to the skier's hand.

#It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved ski pole designed to minimize the likelihood of injury to skiers' thumbs when ski poles become jammed in the snow during use. A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved ski pole having an articulatable handle normally held in longitudinal alignment with the ski pole shaft during use, but which shaft and handle may be moved angularly with respect to one another upon the application of forces on the handle and shaft in different directions of a minimum magnitude.

#The foregoing objects and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

#FIG. 1 is a elevational view of a ski pole embodying a preferred form of my invention;

#FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional enlarged fragmentary view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 taken substantially along the line 2--2 of FIG. 1;

#Referring to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a ski pole embodying a preferred form of my invention in which the ski pole comprises a shaft 1 and a handle 2 longitudinally aligned with and secured by means hereafter described to the shaft 1. A basket 3 of conventional design is mounted on the end of the shaft opposite the handle by conventional means. In addition, the basket end of the shaft is provided with a pointed tip 4 of conventional design. The tip 4 and basket 3 are designed to be engaged in the snow when the ski pole is in use. A hand grip 6 with a safety strap 7 may be formed over the handle 2. The hand grip and safety strap may be of any conventional design including safety release straps which are integrally molded and form part of the hand grip. In the specific embodiment illustrated, the safety strap is a conventional strap normally made of leather or plastic and formed as a loop of sufficient diameter to permit the skier to insert his hand through the strap.

#Referring now to FIG. 2, there is illustrated the details of the handle 2. The handle 2 comprises a tubular length of material, preferably steel or aluminum, having one end 10 that is of the same diameter as the adjacent end 11 of the shaft 1. The tubular handle 2 may be cylindrical in shape or may, if desired, be slightly tapered to conform with any taper that may be provided in the shaft 1. The tubular member may be of any desired length, but preferably is at least 4 inches long and is preferably no more than 8 inches long. The length of the tubular handle 2 depends in some part upon the particular size of the ski pole in which the invention is incorporated.

#The inner surface of the tubular handle 2 is threaded at end 10.