Rope Specifications: Then & Now

When I first started out making ropes and handles (about 25 years ago), the standard for slalom mainlines was 1/4" rope.  AWSA actually specified, to the best of my recollection, that the polypropylene rope for slalom mainlines had to be 12 strand, 64 filaments per strand.  When we went to the bigger 3/8" rope it was referred to by most slalom skiers as 80 strand rope.  This was a misnomer because it was still 12 strand rope, but 80 filaments per strand.  At this point, AWSA no longer specified the number of strands or filaments per strand.  So now a days most rope is 16 strand.  Not only can the number of strands differ but also the number of filaments per strand, the filament size, and how many times the strands cross per inch.

AWSA changed the rope specifications to make the average breaking point higher because pro skiers were breaking brand new tournament ropes.  I still contend the culprit was using pink rope instead of purple rope; pink rope is much weaker than purple.  Pink was an "in" color at the time (a historical moment for men) so Straight Line used pink rope for the purple section.  I'm not saying we should go back to 1/4" rope...just merely making conversation.

                                                                                                      Brenda