Traa attracted attention when she posed almost nude in a series of pictures in the sports magazine
Ultrasport in 2001. She started a company in 2002, selling sports clothes, and has later won awards for successfully launching her collections. Her autobiography
Kari was issued in 2006. After finishing her active career she has been engaged in recruitment of young ski talents and participated as arranger of world cup events. She is also engaged in the festival
Ekstremsportveko (Extreme Sports Week) held at her home in
Voss Municipality, regarded as one of the world's largest
extreme sports festivals. Kari Traa was elected "Sexiest woman in Norway" in 2002 by the magazine
MANN.
Her og Nå and
TV 2 Nettavisen elected her as "Most sexy woman" in both 2003 and 2004. In 2007, she was second on a similar list compiled by the TV-program
God kveld, Norge!. She was also mentioned as a sponsor for the Norwegian comedy duo
Ylvis in a segment on their TV show
I kveld med YLVIS where they tried to become "big" in
Swahiliwood. Ylvis asked Traa to co-fund a movie production that had run out of money. She agreed and co-funded it with Svendsen Eksos, a local car-repair shop in Norway. In return, Traa's merchandise company was mentioned in the movie's dialogue. In 2006 she received the
Nynorsk User of the Year award. ==References==