Thor Verdonk

About me:

I like to build things, in both my job and personal life. I am not an engineer by schooling, but the practical mechanical minded guy who most people say probably should have been an engineer.  I am passionate about finding the balance between a product and how we can use it to its fullest. I am a detailed perfectionist (maybe not good for my health..lol) but nothing is perfect…even when we build/make something special…there is always something that could be better. I modify almost everything in my life, there is always more we can find, more we can do… I like the challenge, its problem solving, innovative and sometimes simply common sense. Once its done…I am already looking for the next way/place to improve…never stop learning. I love the mix of “Art and Science”. Fascinated with biomechanics and how we can build ski boots to enhance our experience, performance and fit.

My time at the Rossignol Group:

First 12 years I was running the race department in US, worked with athletes like Lindsey Vonn, Julia Mancuso, Ted Ligety, Juri Kosir, Martina Ertl…and a slew of others domestically and internationally. This is where my real boot fitting and boot setup started. At the time Rossi race boots were not Langes, we had a lot of work to do to try to find setups that performed, it was constant tinkering, creation of ideas and modification. This period working with athletes and trying to find every advantage was some of the most rewarding work I have ever done. I was able to experiment, learn, fail, succeed, so much conceptual testing. This time of my career made me who I am today, and shaped the way I view ski boots and their function. Did a lot of testing and study during that time, which took me to moving to product development side internationally on both Rossi and Lange boots in 2005/6. Ran the Lange brand globally from 2017 to 2020 as Brand Manager. In 2020 the management wanted to refocus on performance brand wide, I was asked to leave the brand manager role and assumed the current role as Technical Director for winter equipment for all of our brands. Focused on development and technical points of fit and performance.

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