LEKI, the world's leading manufacturer of ski, hiking and trekking poles had its start in Kircheim, Germany as a hobby of its founder, Karl Lenhart, an airframe mechanic and avid skier. Lenhart believed aluminum would make a superior ski pole compared to the heavy steel models available in the late 1940's. After successfully creating light-weight poles for his friends, in 1954, the hobby became a full time business...more