Any parent who has lost sight of their child on a busy ski hill can tell you about the immediate panic as they frantically scan the slopes to pick them out of the crowd.
Penticton’s Keith MacIntyre experienced that scenario 10 years ago when he and his son became separated while skiing.
“We found him on the bunny hill about 45 minutes later, he was fine,” MacIntyre said.
But the experience got him thinking there must be a way for parents to keep track of their kids, and for other skiers to see where their friends are on the hill. That’s when MacIntyre, who has run a software consulting firm for 20 years, came up with skiKrumb.
It’s a small device, that can be tucked into a pocket, which transmits a GPS location via low-frequency radio.
“A ski resort is a challenging environment,” MacIntyre explained. “Technology like cell and mesh networks just don’t work on ski hills.”
It took a few years to find the right technology but MacIntrye perfected skiKrumb, including infrastructure at a ski resort, so it can track someone with the device on an interactive map downloaded to a smart phone. That tweak was added for this ski season.
“We can cover a larger area of the mountain than other technologies can,” he added.
skiKrumb was launched last year and is currently in use at Big White, Apex, Sun Peaks, Revelstoke, and Mt. Sima in Yukon. MacIntyre said the feedback has been incredible.
“We used it at the ski school at Big White and they loved it. Our customers last year said it changed their entire skiing experience and they’ll never ski without it again.”
MacIntyre noted expansion plans include two to five more hills this year.
“I would say in a couple of years we’ll have most Canadian resorts and will expand into the U.S. next year.”
skiKrumb also presents other opportunities, he added.
“We’ve had a lot of interest in it for kids walking to school, lone workers, hiking by yourself, mountain biking and other outdoor activities.”
MacIntyre’s invention was recently named a top 10 startup in the New Ventures BC Competition, taking third place.
More information can be found on the skiKrumb website.
