Shape EP 1: Bastien Saillard
Bastien Saillard has been designing ZAG skis since the brand's early days. Seventeen years of prototyping have taught him that skis speak. Today, he is redefining the way ZAG approaches freeriding.
When you walk through the doors of the ZAG Lab, prototypes line the walls. Most of them don't have topsheets. Raw carbon fiber, exposed wood cores, edges waiting for snow. Some have notes written on them in marker and tape. Others show signs of testing. A few seem perfect, intact, ready for the Grands Montets. In this workshop, everything exists in conversation with what is happening in the mountains.
Bastien Saillard has been having this conversation since before he even joined ZAG. In his garage, with clamps and vacuum bags, he made skis that didn't really work but still taught him something. Seventeen years later, he heads up research and development. The dialogue remains unchanged. A prototype hits the snow, the mountain responds, Bastien listens and then adjusts, before sending back the next version. The cycle continues without interruption. The shaper shapes the ski. The ski shapes the shaper in return.
Three new freeride skis are currently in development. Deadlines are tight, ambitions are high, and Bastien is going through the most critical phase of the project. These skis are set to transform the way ZAG approaches freeride terrain. The prototypes speak for themselves. He listens more attentively than ever before.
You were already designing skis before ZAG. In your garage, right?
B.S. — Yes, even as a teenager, I always loved making things. Windsurf boards, surfboards—it's always been a bit of an obsession of mine. And then, of course, being a skier and loving it, it's my passion, I started making skis at home in my garage. It didn't work very well, to be honest. I didn't have a press, I think I used clamps or a vacuum. Anyway, I tinkered around, but I was really proud to have my own skis, even if they didn't really work.
What defines the identity of a ZAG ski?
B.S. — I have a very clear vision on this. In my opinion, ZAG's identity is performance, but always with a touch of comfort and accessibility in its products. I think it's really important that the products are designed for a wide range of uses and that they appeal to people who are looking for performance, but with a certain level of comfort.
Each ski performs differently. What is the process that leads to this?
B.S. — I don't always have ideas in front of my screen when I'm working on my design software. I can get ideas when I'm skiing, anywhere. Ideas pop into my head about what settings I could use to make the ski work, what I could change. I think about all this for a while, and then after a moment, something comes out of my mouse, out of my finger on the screen.
Which ski made the biggest impression on you?
B.S. — I will always remember the first ski I designed at ZAG. It was the Slap 122, which we called the Slap XL at the time, and it's a ski that I really enjoyed. I'm very proud of that first ski I designed for the brand. And I still ski it on big powder days, even if they're a bit rare these days. I love that ski, and it was a really great product that won awards for many years.
Developing a ski also means getting out in the field. How does that work?
B.S. — The testing phase is carried out in several stages. The first stage, which really concerns the basic prototype, involves only a few testers. There are just a handful of us, maybe four or five, because we really need specific feedback. I need to know the person giving me feedback so I can really understand them and translate their language into technical language when I'm at my computer. Once we start to have one or two prototypes that work really well, we expand the test. And that's where the problems start, because we get a lot of feedback from a lot of people.
What is your reason for making skis?
B.S. — My goal is for skiers to feel comfortable right from their first turn, as soon as they get off the chairlift. They may not even be able to explain why they feel comfortable, but they just do. They shouldn't need time to understand skiing; they should understand it right away, from the very first turn, and then boom. From there, they really take off, and that's it. Skiers will surpass themselves; they won't ski at 100 percent, they'll ski at 120 percent, and they'll love it.
There's a new shaper at ZAG. What difference does that make to you?
B.. — Paul and I have been working together for several years now. So we're a well-established duo. We're the pillars of research and development at ZAG. He's the prototyper. I usually send him the files and he processes them to produce the prototype. He's also involved in all stages of development, particularly testing. Julien has just joined the team and we're going to be working together, particularly on the new freeride shapes. So it's going to be really interesting to have two shapers, sometimes with two different visions and two different ways of working. But that's what keeps things moving forward.
Three new freeride skis are in development. Short deadlines and high stakes?
B.S. — The big challenge is that we have to release three skis in a short period of time, which is a real challenge. Especially since if the skis aren't awesome, we won't release them. So we're setting the bar very high. But I think we'll get there, and we're going to have a blast with the products. The idea is really to release some great stuff that will revolutionize freeride skiing a little bit.
This interview is part of Shape, an original series produced by ZAG, which goes behind the scenes to explore the creative process behind three new freeride skis.
SHAPE
Discover our original series, which enters the ZAG Lab to explore the creative process behind three new freeride skis.
For Bastien Saillard, seventeen years of prototyping have taught him one thing: skis talk. Today, he is going through the critical phase of a project that will transform the way ZAG approaches the mountains. The dialogue is getting serious.
