Howard Head was an American aeronautical engineer who is credited with the invention of the first commercially successful aluminum laminate skis and the oversized tennis racket. Head founded the ski -making firm, Head, in 1950. Later, he became chairman of Prince Manufacturing Inc. The U.S. patents for the laminate skis and oversized tennis racket are in the name of Howard Head. He graduated from Harvard College in 1936.

A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than they are wide, and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partially secured heel. For climbing slopes, ski skins can be attached at the base of the ski.