Ross was interested in how the skis were designed; especially the bindings that held the skis on, and how the contour of the skis from front to back affected control stability in either rough or flat water. The partners didn't hold much back. They thought Ross was eager to sign a contract that would double the size of their wooden ski business. Ross also asked about the line of ski vests that the men had recently added to their product line. With lumbar support, neoprene pads, heavy-duty zippers and strong, double-stitched seams, the vests would be another hit in the ski world.



The three sat down in the office and Ross laid out some big dollar numbers that made the partner's wallets salivate. But Ross, wanting assurances that their skis were better than the competitor's, mentioned ski manufacturing competitors by name, including the one for which the partners had formerly worked. The partners told him that they had worked for that company, and they began bragging on their accomplishments there. It wasn't long before they were talking about improvements to wooden skis they had made at the time.



One of the partners finally started talking about details of their wood products. Ross was all ears, waiting for them to admit they had stolen the secrets and used them in their own line of water skis. But he was stunned when they continued talking. They told him that it would have potentially wrecked their new business if they had used any of the improvements, so they had started from scratch and invented new improvements for their own water skis. They took him back into the factory and showed him wooden skis that used the new technology.

Ross got into his car and headed back home. Tomorrow he would tell his employer the partners hadn't violated the IP agreement. He would tell his employer that his own company had better get busy making improvements to its own lines of wooden water skis, or these boys were going to blow them out of the water.