Skiing can be a thirsty sport. Your extra large ski jacket may have many pockets to carry some quintessential quenching quaff, but it's already full with goggles, sunglasses, handwarmers, cell phone, MP3 player, headphones, and that amusingly-shaped stick you found when you went off-trail, so there’s no room for a bottle. Not even a flask.

Why not adapt something you’d be carrying anyway? Enter the gentleman's ski pole. Made with a few dollars worth of hardware store bits and pieces, you can make portable liquid container. For the refined gentleman, your schnapps is sippable even when you can’t reach your pockets. Also, by combining the pole with a flask, you're less encumbered when on the chairlift and far less likely to inadvertently drop a skiing accessory.

Forget bringing a St.Bernard on your next ski trip, all you need is the gentleman's ski pole! A discreet decanter for the discerning downhill gentleman

Enough talk, let's hit the slopes in style!

_{^{*this project is in response to the Cold Pole liquid reservoir ski pole. My version is about 1/10th the price.}}

Step 1: Tools + Materials

tools:

drill + bits
hobby knife
adhesive

materials:

clear PVC tubing
travel-size plastic bottles
ski poles

Step 2: Assemble Components

Ski pole handles are typically friction fitted to the poles. I was able to get the handles off these poles with a little effort and by applying a rubber mallet to the underside of the handle, striking the handle from the pole. If you can't get your handle off try submerging the handle in a pot of boiling water for a few minutes to warm the plastic, then wrap the handle in a towel and try removing from the pole.

The size and length of your PVC tubing will be determined by the interior diameter and length of the ski pole you choose. I used a 7/16" O.D (11.1+mm) PVC tube with a length of about 2' (610mm). An opening was made in the top of the handle slightly larger than my PVC tubing, making sure to line up the opening with the cavity inside the handle.

Next, I found travel sized shampoo bottles that had a similar sized opening as the outside diameter of my PVC pipe. I cleaned each bottle thoroughly and removed the neck off each bottle. The PCV tube was pushed inside the neck of the bottle and is held in place with friction.

The bottom of the PVC tube was sealed with an acrylic plug. I cut mine using the laser cutter at work, but almost anything would work as long as it seals the bottom from leaking. I had originally envisioned using a small wooden dowel or scrap plastic. I'm sure the bottom of your junk drawer will produce something you could use.

Step 3: Feed Tube Through Handle

After the opening in the handle has been made, feed the tubing through with the bottle neck on the handle top.

Apply a small amount of adhesive to the underside of the bottle neck and press into handle top. Allow adhesive to dry completely, then place tube into cavity inside the pole and reinstall the ski pole handle and press fit it in place.

Repeat entire process for the other pole.

Step 4: Fill

The last thing to do is fill your boozy ski poles with your favourite alcoholic alpine aperitif!
Carefully pour your liquor into each pole and seal it tight with the caps.

Step 5: Take a Break!

With your poles all liquored up you're ready to hit the slopes in true class! Make sure to break out these ski poles the next time you're lost in the back country, or just taking a break after shredding gnar all day.

Have fun!

Did you make your own gentleman's ski poles? Post a picture of your version of this project in the comments below.

Happy making :)