Renoun's Athlete Kelli Spencer

[Tricia]

@Cyrus Schenck and Renoun has signed Kelli Spencer to its team of athletes.
Follow Kelli on instagram

See the introductory interview here
Snip from interview:
Where did you grow up skiing?

I grew up skiing in Colorado! My home mountain is Winter Park, CO…but I hopped around a lot to Loveland, Breckenridge, Aspen, Keystone….long before there were cool things like the Epic Pass!

Did you travel much at a young age?

Yes! But not really for skiing. However, I was fortunate to travel with my parents A LOT. We went to family reunions across country, and out of the country often. It taught me how to travel independently, be confident in other countries, and allowed me to develop an appreciation for other cultures.

 

[HardDaysNight]

https://www.cloudlineapparel.com/bl...eet-adventurer-skier-and-artist-kelli-spencer

Is this the same person? The comments in the above link are a bit concerning, so hopefully not.

 

[VickiK]

Yikes. I think @HardDaysNight has a point.

I say that having read both interviews, the comments on the Cloudnine interview, the artist Rachel Pohl's 'About Me' page, and if that wasn't enough, intuition. Hate to be the hammer that pounds in this particular unique nail head, but summat's not right here.

 

[raisingarizona]

Weird.

She skis with a red bull helmet but I’m having a hard time believing she of that caliber. The photos of her skiing on her Instagram don’t look like she’s a really great skier. I don’t like picking people apart like that but this does feel a bit off for me. I guess in today’s world it’s more about your social media following? She does have like 30 something k in followers.

Rachel Pohl is a legit artist and if she’s calling this gal out I believe her.

 

[fatbob]

Yup something very fishy about her art

This is a legit design for Torah Bright's pro model Roxy snowboard from Iuna Tinta

https://iunatinta.com/portfolio-item/roxy-bright-edition/

Wonder if @cyrusschenk has any comment?

 

[fatbob]

Not that respectable digital art isn't easy to do. Here's something I knocked up in 2 mins from a photo I recently took

 

[fatbob]

A little more detective work finds this piece

https://medium.com/@jensparkman/kelli-spencer-an-interview-79ae9454dc80

Clearly she was at the time making a big deal of her art yet the link to her gallery is now a 404. People make mistakes when trying to make a living but things like this and the Red Bull helmet aren't mistakes people should be making in the small world of skiing. Her own website is curious in that there is no sponsors' list.

 

[Wendy]

Yikes. I think @HardDaysNight has a point.

I say that having read both interviews, the comments on the Cloudnine interview, the artist Rachel Pohl's 'About Me' page, and if that wasn't enough, intuition. Hate to be the hammer that pounds in this particular unique nail head, but summat's not right here.

Yup, all that made me suspicious. Her art is inconsistent, and not really mentioned in the Renoun interview either. I didn’t scroll through her whole Instagram feed, but I didn’t see any pics of some of the places she’s traveled....Everest? I would think that accomplishment would be front and center.

The plethora of Instagram “influencers” and ease of creating a website has unfortunately created a “fake it till you make it” culture.

I am hoping my judgment is way off on this one.

 

[raisingarizona]

I’m guessing she dished out the big money to be guided up Everest but didn’t make the summit.

She has a buddy that has been giving her Red Bull hats and that helmet. There’s no way she has an actual contract with RB.

I scrolled through her photos a bit more, her skiing is average at best. This gal is definitely what I’d call a poseur.

 

[VickiK]

Kelli Spencer didn't present herself as an artist in the Renoun interview, so that might have been a misstep she backed away from. Just the language of being unique, wanting to be recognized--kinda sad if it's at the cost of integrity. I get it, it takes hard work for anyone to achieve that, not just artists and athletes.

 

[raisingarizona]

Kelli Spencer didn't present herself as an artist in the Renoun interview, so that might have been a misstep she backed away from. Just the language of being unique, wanting to be recognized--kinda sad if it's at the cost of integrity. I get it, it takes hard work for anyone to achieve that, not just artists and athletes.

Really great post. So yeah, we all had hard lessons growing up and we’ve all made mistakes, that’s part of the human experience. Maybe it’s just a shame that in today’s world kids throw it all out there for anyone that wants to log on.

 

[fatbob]

True enough but there is a lot of the "generic outdoorsy girl" about her bio/website and actually not that much about accomplishments and when a business signs an "unknown" athlete it's kinda weird that the first few google searches throw up more questions than answers.

Not that I'm against ski cos signing more ordinary skiers. Happens all the time with smaller companies and guides/ instructors except then it's little more than proform and not the subject of press releases.

 

[raisingarizona]

I looked at her site and her photography/media page is confusing and misleading imo. She has pictures of herself skiing that are mediocre at best and then an image of a true pro ripping a high speed monster slash but she doesn’t differentiate between them. It appears very disingenuous to me.

 

[raisingarizona]

True enough but there is a lot of the "generic outdoorsy girl" about her bio/website and actually not that much about accomplishments and when a business signs an "unknown" athlete it's kinda weird that the first few google searches throw up more questions than answers.

Not that I'm against ski cos signing more ordinary skiers. Happens all the time with smaller companies and guides/ instructors except then it's little more than proform and not the subject of press releases.

Agreed! She’s really reaching here! I used to have a few contracts and had plenty of free gear so I have some experience with this and her skills and credential “claims” just don’t add up.

 

[Wendy]

Agreed! She’s really reaching here! I used to have a few contracts and had plenty of free gear so I have some experience with this and her skills and credential “claims” just don’t add up.

Here is the artist/skier Rachel Pohl:
https://www.visitmt.com/campaign/montana-tv/episode-6.html

It was this video, along with Rachel’s website, that has too many similarities....especially the painted trucker hats - that Kelli Spencer claimed to create.

Rachel Pohl is a professional artist and skier/climber but she does not market herself as a pro skier. She is genuine.

 

[crgildart]

Well this is awkward. Renoun is one of PugSki's biggest major long term supporters and vice versa. I doubt that the full story of both sides of this is in plain view for most of us. The fact that she said "re signed" for another 2 years seems to indicate that Cyrus knows her pretty well and trusts her to carry the brand in a positive manner.

 

[fatbob]

Well I guess Cyrus and/or Kelli are free to tell their side of the story here.

 

[raisingarizona]

Well this is awkward. Renoun is one of PugSki's biggest major long term supporters and vice versa. I doubt that the full story of both sides of this is in plain view for most of us. The fact that she said "re signed" for another 2 years seems to indicate that Cyrus knows her pretty well and trusts her to carry the brand in a positive manner.

I agree that that is a sign of something positive going on there.

Well she’s probably a good kid and motivated to do stuff but made a few mistakes? I’m ok with that. No one is perfect.

Still, don’t try so hard kid, it’s a bit weird.

And shoot, if renoun wants to support a struggling ski/trail artist that’s very #authentic I sure could use the support

 

[Cyrus Schenck]

Hello everyone!
I just saw this and wanted to jump in here.

First and foremost, we stand by all our athletes 100% and Kelli is certainly no different. We've been fortunate to have been working with her now for over 18 months and are very excited to have her on board officially for the next 2 years (at least). We typically work with an Athlete for a year prior to signing them to a longer-term contract and thus the 're-signed' language of her post.

We have a long list of requirements to be an athlete, instagram follower count being at the bottom of the list. Personality, values, attitude, skill, and generally being a good person are far more important. We are proud to have Kelli Spencer on our team.

If you want to get to know her the article in question is here: https://stories.renoun.com/whats-it-like-being-an-athlete-1

cyrus

 

[VickiK]

I appreciate you for coming on here, @Cyrus Schenck . No disrespect to you, Renoun, or Pugski is intended. My comments, and like those of others here, come from a place of concern and respect for your collective success. Thank you.