Sammy Carlson announced on Monday that he's leaving his longtime sponsor Salomon and has signed a hardgoods contract with Swiss company Apo. This comes on the heels of recent news that Simon Dumont was also leaving Salomon to become Head Skis' first sponsored halfpipe skier.
Apo has been making snowboards in Europe for the last 20 years, but the company is relatively unknown in the U.S. freeskiing scene. Apo started making skis in 2007. Carlson, the 2011 Winter X Games Ski Slopestyle gold medalist, will be the brand's first pro skier.
"Apo was started by snowboarders and they reached out to me over the summer to help them come into the ski world," Carlson told ESPN. "I really appreciate everything Salomon has done for me and it was a really hard decision to leave, but I'm really excited to be working with Apo to shape skis from the ground up."
Apo will be releasing a Sammy C pro model park ski this winter and a pro model powder ski under his name next year.
"Sammy is one of the most talented skiers and he fits with our brand -- he's a creative guy, fun and he rules on the style," said Cedric Le Cordroch, Apo's marketing manager. "He is also a great technician, he's got the feeling and he can express what could make a ski better. He's going to be a huge part in the development of the skis in the future."
The ski designer at Apo is a guy named Eric "Bob" Bobrowicz, who's known for having built the Rossignol Scratch, an early innovator in freeskiing hardgoods.
Carlson says he will have a lot of say in how his pro models turn out. "We've been testing skis all fall. I have a lot of input on how the ski rides, the flex, and the graphics," Carlson says. "I just received the newest prototypes with the changes I wanted and they are literally the best park ski I have ever skied. So stoked on how they ride."