Removable walking attachment for ski boots

Abstract

A removable walking attachment for a ski boot includes an elastomeric body defining a toe pad and a heel pad interconnected by a flexible connector. The toe pad includes a toe base and an upright wall, the latter forming a rearwardly open cavity for receiving a toe portion of a ski boot. The toe base includes a toe underside and an upwardly facing toe support surface. The heel pad includes a heel base and an upright wall, the latter forming a forwardly open cavity for receiving a heel portion of a ski boot. The heel base includes an underside and an upwardly facing heel support surface. The undersides of the toe pad and the heel pad define a common plane when the attachment is not being worn. When attaching the attachment to a ski boot, the undersides of the toe and heel pads will be flexed upwardly to enable a more natural walking motion to be achieved.

1 . A removable walking attachment for a ski boot, comprising:
 a one-piece body formed of an elastomeric material and defining a toe pad, a heel pad disposed rearwardly of the toe pad, and a flexible connector interconnecting the toe pad and the heel pad for permitting relative movement therebetween;   the toe pad including a toe base and an upright wall, the wall forming a rearwardly open cavity configured to receive a toe portion of a ski boot and including a rearwardly projecting lip disposed at an upper end of the cavity and adapted to overlie and engage a lower front rim of a ski boot when the attachment is worn;   the toe base including a toe underside and an upwardly facing toe support surface, wherein the toe underside, when lying flat on a planar surface, defines a plane;   the heel pad including a heel base and an upright wall, the wall of the heel base forming a forwardly open cavity configured to receive a heel portion of a ski boot and including a forwardly projecting lip disposed at an upper end of the forwardly open cavity and adapted to overlie and engage a lower rear rim of a ski boot when the attachment is worn;   the heel base including a heel underside and an upwardly facing heel support surface, wherein the heel underside, when lying flat on a planar surface, lies in said plane;   wherein the respective configurations of the toe and heel support surfaces cause the underside of the toe pad to become inclined forwardly/upwardly relative to said plane, and the heel pad to be inclined rearwardly/upwardly relative to said plane, when the attachment is worn on a ski boot.   
     
     
         2 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the toe support surface is inclined toward said plane from a rear end of the toe support surface, and the heel support surface is inclined toward said plane from a front end of the heel support surface. 
     
     
         3 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the toe pad has a thickness of at least ½ inch at a rear portion of the toe support surface, and the heel pad has a thickness of at least ½ inch at a front portion of the heel support surface. 
     
     
         4 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 4 , wherein said thickness of the toe pad and heel pad is at least ¾ inch. 
     
     
         5 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 1 , further including a front wear piece embedded in a front edge of the underside of the toe pad, and a rear wear piece embedded in a rear edge of the underside of the heel pad, wherein the front and rear wear pieces are formed of a stiff material. 
     
     
         6 . A removable walking attachment for a ski boot, comprising:
 a one-piece body formed of an elastomeric material and defining a toe pad, a heel pad disposed rearwardly of the toe pad, and a flexible connector interconnecting the toe pad and the heel pad for permitting relative movement therebetween;   the toe pad including a toe base and an upright wall, the wall forming a rearwardly open cavity configured to receive a toe portion of a ski boot and including a rearwardly projecting lip disposed at an upper end of the cavity and adapted to overlie and engage a lower front rim of a ski boot when the attachment is worn;   the toe base including a toe underside and an upwardly facing toe support surface, wherein a rear portion of the toe support surface is disposed on a thicker portion of the toe pad than is a front portion of the toe support surface, wherein the toe underside, when lying flat on a planar surface, defines a plane disposed closer to the front portion of the toe support surface than to the rear portion of the toe support surface;   the heel pad including a heel base and an upright wall, the wall of the heel base forming a forwardly open cavity configured to receive a heel portion of a ski boot and including a forwardly projecting lip disposed at an upper end of the forwardly open cavity and adapted to overlie and engage a lower rear rim of a ski boot when the attachment is worn;   the heel base including a heel underside and an upwardly facing heel support surface, wherein a front portion of the heel support surface is disposed on a thicker portion of the heel pad than is a rear portion of the heel support surface, wherein the heel underside, when lying flat on a planar surface, lies in said plane which is disposed closer to the rear portion of the heel support surface than to the front portion of the heel support surface;   wherein, when the attachment is attached to a ski boot, the underside of the toe pad becomes inclined forwardly/upwardly relative to said plane, and the heel pad becomes inclined rearwardly/upwardly relative to said plane.   
     
     
         7 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 6 , wherein the connector has less horizontal width and less vertical thickness than each of the toe and heel pads. 
     
     
         8 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 6 , wherein each of the toe and heel support surfaces includes an intermediate portion extending between the front and rear portions thereof, each of said intermediate portions including closed-bottom recesses to form a ribbed pattern. 
     
     
         9 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 6 , wherein the front portion of the toe support surface and the rear portion of the heel support portion are non-ribbed. 
     
     
         10 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 6 , wherein the toe pad has a thickness of at least ½ inch at the rear portion of the toe support surface, and the heel pad has a thickness of at least ½ inch at the front portion of the heel support surface. 
     
     
         11 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 10 , wherein said thickness of the toe pad and heel pad is at least ¾ inch. 
     
     
         12 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 10 , wherein the vertical distance between said plane and the rear portion of the toe support surface is at least ⅜ inches greater than the vertical distance between said plane and the front portion of the toe support surface, and the vertical distance between said plane and the front portion of the heel support surface is at least ⅜ inches greater than the vertical distance between said plane and the rear portion of the heel support surface 
     
     
         13 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 6 , wherein the elastomeric material of the one-piece body is TPU rubber. 
     
     
         14 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 6 , further including a front wear piece embedded in a front edge of the underside of the toe pad, and a rear wear piece embedded in a rear edge of the underside of the heel pad, wherein the front and rear wear pieces are formed of a stiff material. 
     
     
         15 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 14 , wherein the stiff material is plastic. 
     
     
         16 . The removable walking attachment for a ski boot according to  claim 6 , wherein the heel pad includes a manually graspable tab projecting rearwardly from an upper end of the upright rear wall of the heel pad.