David Johnson, founder of Outdoor Logic — Solutions, hadn’t skied in 30 years when he moved to Bend from South Texas, and his back problems made it a challenge to remove ski boots. So he decided to do something about it.

A year later, Bend-based Outdoor Logic — Solutions is ready to debut its signature product, the DeBooter. The DeBooter is a device that weighs just over a pound and does just what its name suggests: allows users to remove their ski boots more easily.

“I’m of the belief that people stop skiing not so much because of the skiing, but because of the equipment,” Johnson said. “The more you can make that easy, then they’ll stay around longer.”

Johnson moved up from Boerne, Texas — outside of San Antonio — in 2015 to ski and go fly-fishing. He had worked in a variety of industries, from oil and gas to sports entertainment, but the DeBooter is his first foray into selling an outdoor-oriented product.

Johnson’s design, the product of more than 10 prototypes, is made from hard plastic and manufactured through injection molding by a company in Corvallis. The design features a ramp with a slight incline designed to create leverage and a piece that attaches to the heel. Users unbuckle their boot, loosen the tongue and attach the heel of the boot to the DeBooter. The process takes about 10 seconds, and the device works for ski boots of all shapes and sizes.

“These are especially hard to get off when it’s cold, so when you use this, you just want to kiss it,” Johnson said.

There are two prototypes, one designed for personal use and one for commercial use by resorts and ski shops. The commercial version can be bolted to the floor and doesn’t have an added support piece that appears on the personal version. Johnson said he has been working with clients across the Western United States and has gotten enough interest from Mt. Bachelor ski area he left a prototype at its rental center.

“I envisioned a DeBooter station, where you’ve got eight or 10 of them lined up against the wall,” Johnson said.

With ski season well underway, Johnson is accepting preorders and said he will start selling products outright before the end of the month. Outdoor Logic — Solutions was one of the finalists for the early stage of the 2015 Bend Venture Conference, and the product received a lot of attention during the conference and the immediate lead-up. Going forward, Johnson plans to launch a Kickstarter campaign and to add to his product line, adding a variation for snowboarding and wading boots later in 2016.

— Reporter: 541-617-7818, shamway@bendbulletin.com

Q: What made you feel like the Bend Venture Conference was a good fit?

A: It’s an outdoor community, and I think they’re going to be trying to move it into areas other than tech, although obviously tech is a very important thing and a very needed thing. So outdoor and exercise. I passed muster up until the end.

Q: This is your first outdoor product — any surprises?

A: There’s a big learning curve because I’ve never been involved with the injection molding process. But I’ve met some really good people who have helped with the process.