Quirky Furniture Solution
Not that we’re suggesting we have any, but what little credibility lifeiscarbon® has we may well blow with this next post. However, we’re a sucker for a good story behind a company, we love to try our hand at different sports and we’re always on the look out for quirky items of furniture. Given all of that, how could we resist writing about the Finnish company ESLA (or E.S.Lahtinen Oy, to give it it’s proper name).
ESLA make kicksleds. "What’s a kicksled?" we hear you cry. Kicksleds are in common use in Norway, Sweden and Finland, especially where roads are not sanded or salted, and they often serve as a winter substitute for a cycling. What’s our fascination with kicksleds? Firstly as a ecological and fun means of travel - once you’ve tried one you’re hooked. There’s no better way of moving from village to village in the far north of Scandinavia. Secondly, we’ve come up with the crazy idea of using some bright red traditional kicksleds as meeting room chairs. But first we need to share some history with you….
A kicksled (a direct translation of the Finnish word potkukelkka - also known as a spark, kicker or chair-sled) is basically a small sled consisting of a chair mounted on a pair of flexible metal runners. The runners extend backward to about twice the chair's length and there’s a handlebar attached to the top of the chair back. Kicksleds are driven forward by standing on one runner and kicking backwards on the ground with your other foot (hence the name). The flexibility of the runners allows the driver to steer the kicksled by twisting the handlebars. A passenger or luggage can carried on the chair seat.
The first definite record of a kicksled was in a newspaper in northern Sweden around 1870. The kicksleds of that era had stiff wooden runners and were heavy. In 1900 the design of the modern kicksled with flexible metal runners was introduced in Finland and quickly became the standard in Finland, Sweden and Norway. Between 1890 and 1910 kicksled racing was a popular sport, especially in Sweden, and was a major event in the Nordic Games, which were the ancestor of the Winter Olympics. More recently, in 1990, kicksled racing was revived as a serious sport in Finland and there are now races of up to 100 km long with an average speed of around 30 km/h. Amongst their many models, ESLA happen to produce a light-weight racing model called a Kickspark.
E.S. Lahtinen Oy was established in 1928, when Erkki Samuli Lahtinen signed an agreement with Indian Motorcycles of the US. Based in the village of Koura, Finland, the initial idea was to sell motorcycles and bicycles together with a offering a machine repair service. Since Koura village was not electrified until 1947, the workshop had to be equipped with a steam locomotive and custom designed machines had to be built in order to repair the motorcycles. E.S. Lahtinen became expert machine builders but sadly motorcycle sales didn’t take off. However, by disassembling the bikes the company ended up with a lot of good parts to satisfy their newly found skill of machine building. In 1933 the company hit upon the idea of designing and building machines to produce kicksleds and suddenly their business was born. Some of those remarkable machines are still in use today, including a band saw, which was assembled from parts taken from a Model-T Ford.
Since the demand for kicksleds is seasonal, at one time the company expanded into producing garden harrows and liquid gas grills before eventually deciding to concentrate on the manufacture of mobility equipment. Although this last chapter in the history of the company didn’t come about until as late as 1980 when someone had the crazy idea of placing wheels under a kicksled. Suddenly it became apparent that modified kicksleds could be used all year round. These days there’s no stopping ESLA and their production of slightly odd-looking mobility devices.
There’s a lot of nostalgia is connected to kicksleds and the original model produced by ESLA has changed little during the last 70 years - basically Finnish birch and spring steel in a choice of red, blue or natural.
In short, an interesting company history, an obscure but fun sport and a quirky solution for office seating. At least we know that not many other offices will have a similar looking meeting room to ours.
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