Jeannie Thoren
Jeannie is a skier with a mission - a crusader for women skiers - to create ski equipment to "fit" women according to their body type. Her motto is "Women Aren't Small Men" and for the past four decades, she has been perfecting skis and boots to enhance women's ability to ski. The Thoren Theory evolved to help women skiers radically improve their technique through equipment modification. In 1986, she built the first women's specific ski featuring a forward binding location in the Blizzard factory in Mittersill, Austria. In 2005, Dynastar/Lange hired her to perfect the Dynastar Exclusive Carve Ski which won the 2007 Gear of the Year Award. In 2009, she opened Vail's first women's ski shop. Fast forward to 2018 to present, Jeannie is a partner with the Steadman Philippon Research Institute's BioMotion Lab in Vail, to study the effects of ski boots in relation to ACL injury risk in women. Jeannie did not start out to save the world. She just wanted to be a better skier. Along the way, however, she transformed the thinking of an entire industry. Through her dedication, tenacity, and perseverance, Jeannie has elevated the skiing experience for women across Colorado and globally.