When we think of the products that make our ski days better, we tend to assume they are the creation of hard-core world class ski champion/expert types lending their experience and smarts to the process of creating exactly what we need to make our sport even greater.

After all, wouldn’t the most technically adept skiers best understand what we need?

But sometimes, it’s the everyman skier – in the right place at the right time and with the right tapestry of business and life experience –  that lights the spark to just plain make things better.

Meet then the Bay State’s own David Abramowitz, a lifelong Westwood resident who embraced skiing as a University of Vermont student and went on to become an avid ski dad to three. Abramowitz was on a chairlift at Stowe Mountain Resort – one of his favorites – when he had an epiphany.

Having done the daily schlep that any ski parent – or skier themselves, for that matter  – knows, dreads and yet endures, he realized the key to a perfect ski day wasn’t necessarily the perfect skis for that day’s surface or the most technical jacket one can find.

Abramowitz realized: It’s in the (boot) bag. And he wanted to make that bag make sense.

“For me, skiing represents fun. I’m not hard core,” he said. “For me it’s all about fun and enjoyment. It’s about family times.”

Cutting back on the stress of the schlep, he knew, would just make it all better. And the basis of that, he thought, is a well-designed bag that’s a natural organizer (a smart and obvious place for everything), that’s durable and lasting, and that’s comfortable and easy to wear.

He searched the many ski shops in the region and realized innovation was needed.

“The stuff I saw in the shops? It was all horrible,” he said. “Everything I checked out was obviously not designed by people who skied. They were … uninformed.”

And so in 2009, with the help of his brother Steve, he set out on a mission to create a bag that made it all easier for his family and for all.

Kulkea (https://www.kulkea.com/) boot, ski and now travel bags were born from that. Then with one bag, “The Boot Trekker,” they joined the industry. Today a top name in the market, Kulkea’s New England ski dad roots make sense: It’s smart, strong and makes life easier.

“A good pack is like a tool box,” he said.

“A skier needs to not just carry it all but know quickly where everything is,” he said. “I didn’t like going to the mountain and being like, ‘Oh my gosh I forgot my glove.’ You want to know (easily) what you have with you and where it is.”

It also had to be easy to carry to almost all. As a ski dad, Abramowitz knew, too, the angst of perfectly packing each child’s ski bag and then – in the rest parking lot – realizing they are too large or unsteady for a child to actually carry. (Cue the multiple trips and added prep time to your ski day).

He used his own children as models, working with engineers and designers to tweak and rework until the bags fit many bodies well and were firmly yet comfortably in place.

It helps, he said, that he came from not just a family of travel and adventure nuts, but of Finnish descent. His mother, a Finn, is honored in the company name; Kulkea means “to go” in Finnish.

The Kulkea boot, ski and travel bags enhance the skiing experience for skiers of all sizes and ages. (Courtesy photo)

So what does a good bag do?

Here’s why this ski writer loves Kulkea:

Organization: Boots tuck easily (phew!) into their own side pockets where they don’t dirty or dampen other things. There’s a perfect compartment for goggles where they’ll never be crushed or scratched, spots for gloves and other soft goods, a zip pocket perfect for your snack or lunch, an area that fits a helmet well and plenty of space for ski pants and other things.

Ease: It’s easy to pack as well as double check since you’ll never need to cram things in one big bucket spot ever again. It slides easily onto your shoulders and – as a gal who long struggled with bags slipping off my shoulders or feeling off kilter –I find it stays in place and centers the weight so it’s super easy to carry. And no worries on breakage – they happily send replacement parts if needed.

Good looks: I’d rather a bag be ugly but useful, but I get both here. It’s attractive, has color choices, is easy to clean and stays crisp looking for years.

Benevolence: Abramowitz pledged to give back to the community if his bag dream was a success. It is, and he does. Take their recent donation to Boston’s Youth Enrichment Services (YES), a group that strives to get inner city kids out on snow. Kulkea equipped 50 of their new skiers with bags last season.

While he admits getting into the business did show him some of the hard parts (“I came in with big eyes assuming everyone is on the same page,” he said. “That’s not exactly so.”), Abramowitz loves the giving part – because, as he said, joy is what the sport is all about.

“To be able to share that? It’s fantastic,” he said.

Last-minute ski stocking stuffers

If you have a ski/ride enthusiast in your life, you know it’s more ski season than holiday season for them. Centering all the holiday fun around their passion is easy, though. Consider these last-minute stocking stuffers to delight your winter sports addict.

Warm and comfy hands: It’s thoughtful to tuck some of those disposable hand warmers in their stocking, but the Ocoopa Rechargables (https://www.ocoopa.com/) are even better. Easy to carry and recharge and super warm, they’re also good for the environment – and affordable. At under $30 to start, they’ll pay for themselves in just a few ski days.

Smooth those lips: The sun, wind and winter air can really do a number on lips, and most skiers like to have a treatment at the ready. I’ve been a Dermatone (https://www.dermatone.com/) fan since I discovered it in the 1970s; I don’t ski without it on hand. Grab a bundle and then your skier will have lip protection and back up.

Skiers know that sun, wind and cold air can do a number on their lips. (Courtesy photo)

Toasty on top: Skiers and riders can never have enough neck warmers. They’re adjustable as needed, protective when warranted and add a splash of fun to your outfit. I’m a fan of New England-based Skida (https://skida.com/), they feel good and wash well (what’s worse than a neck gator that smells like bad breath?).

Sparkling clean car: Post-ski road trip our cars look like giant hunks of salt and mud. It’s a badge of honor but one we must remove fast for the sake of our car. Why don’t tuck a packet of car wash gift certificates into your ski lover’s stocking? They’ll have them in their glove compartment and then, each time that part of the ski adventure recovery comes up, they’ll cheer you when they just roll on through to clean car life again.

A ski day or more: Lift tickets are purchased on line almost all the time now. Why not click on to your loved ones favorite ski area and purchase a day ticket or gift card for one? If they’re parents, include a “free babysitting for the day” add on and give them the best gift of all: a free day to just soar on the slopes. All that fits right into a stocking.