Black Diamond Equipment Ltd. announced a new round of hires, athletes and general growth coming off a nationally strong winter. The new hires include Andreas Schmidt as a Graphic Designer and the promotion of Matt Law to the position of Creative Director.


Schmidt comes to BD from Washington State and is an accomplished climber and skier. His recently completed freelance projects include gigs with Alpinist, Cascade Designs and Patagonia. Law, previously serving as BD Art Director, has been a key driver of Black Diamond's look and feel for the last eight years. In particular, Law is credited with strong work on the Fall 2007 ski and Fall 2008 boots graphics and associated marketing collateral.

On the design side, BD has recently hired Paul Oddou from Southern California, Pete Gompert from the aerospace industry, Dale Krantz from Cannondale, and saved Tom Franke from “doing his own thing”. This group of Mechanical Engineers and Industrial Designers will bring to bear a wide variety of experience on BD's product line.


“This winter marked a record year for the BD ski business unit,” states Peter Metcalf, Black Diamond CEO. “We are excited about the path of our freeride boot project, the achievements of our athletes and momentum on the marketing side of our program. Overall, the state of Black Diamond is reflected by the numerous small core successes we are seeing simultaneously in multiple markets.”


Climbing Team News: Black Diamond has added Cedar Wright, Alex Honnold and Katie Brown to their climbing team. All share a blend of vision and commitment to their climbing and are enthusiastic about working with BD to tell their stories and inspire consumers.

Ski Team News: Andy Jacobsen joins BD's young chargers who have been consistently stepping up onto the IFSA podium this season, with Bret Crabtree winning in Crested Butte, Mark Welgos stepping onto the top step in Jackson and Kate Cardamone taking the top spot in Aspen (competing on telemark gear against alpine skiers). Drew Stoeklein and Mark Welgos have added multiple Top 5 finishes. Tele skier Nick Devore won at Telepalooza in Alyeska last week and Will Cardamone has consistently placed in the Top 20 competing free heel versus alpine men. Overall, Crabtree sits in first on the Freeskiing World Tour with Welgos currently in fourth.