The revolution has begun

[SecretAgentMan]

Skiing is back. Throw away your snowboards, helmets, and funny-shaped skis.

Narrative excerpt (48:15 - 49:25) from The Telemark Movie (1987):

"A while back we made a point that anything can be done on cross-country skis. Of course, this includes parallel skiing. In our next film to be titled 'Revenge Of The Telemarkers' we will present a detailed progression for learning parallel techniques, but for now here are a few things to think about. Give your telemark muscles a rest and parallel ski, especially on packed slopes. Parallel turns can be easier, faster, and require less energy than telemarks.

If you have alpine skied a lot the natural place for you to start on cross-country skis is to try all your alpine skills. Try your wedge, stem, and parallel turns before trying the telemark. Notice the fundamentals of the parallel are the same as those for the telemark: the lowered body position, the bent knees, the flexed ankles, the wide stance, and the vertical motion.

Parallels can be done in all conditions and once mastered look as stable and strong as any telemark. Mark Utting is a geologist from Seattle."

 

[cantunamunch]

Philosoraptor wonders - if no one cares that we telemark, does anyone mind if we don't telemark?

 

[Don in Morrison]

Now do a back scratcher.

 

[SecretAgentMan]

Philosoraptor wonders - if no one cares that we telemark, does anyone mind if we don't telemark?

I was skiing on Prima when I was 16 and saw some guy telemarking on really skinny wooden XC skis struggling to navigate the bumps. "What a poor misguided sap," I thought to myself. "Who would want to do that?" I was a fantastic mogul skier who could almost do a double daffy. Half Jack Taylor, half John Clendenin.

That poor sap now is probably an accomplished backcountry telemarker as good as, or possibly better than, Mark Utting. Me 42 years later? I'm watching Keith Nicol videos on YouTube to help me become an intermediate XC telemarker.

The last laugh.

 

[SecretAgentMan]

You find the low road that's plowed by the county. You find the high road that's plowed by the county. You ski the 2,500 ft of virgin snow-covered mountainside in between. I heard you guys wrote a song about this called the "Western Colorado 2-car Shuffle." Joker's Wild.

 

[SecretAgentMan]

 

[SecretAgentMan]

"I put the load on my back thinking I could easily ski this stuff on my 180 cm alpine touring skis, but I soon realized that with the load, the wet snow and floppy mountain boots there was no way I could begin to initiate a turn; so I unlatched my heels and headed down with a sort of snowplow/stem/ telemark/steering turn. No unweighting necessary -- or possible. Modern man reinvents skiing. This experience was a revelation for me and soon after I hung up my fat boards and went skinny." Source

 

[SecretAgentMan]

Langniappe: ready, set, Go.

 

[SecretAgentMan]

XC telemark skiing on lift-served groomed runs is the best way to get good before you venture into the backcountry. You can ski 5 miles per ski day and it is almost impossible to get hurt.

Learning to XC telemark in the "outback" is probably not the best idea. You spend approximately 45% of your time walking/skinning and you have to watch out for tree stumps and barbed wire fences as you ski down the mountain on powder (if you're luck), Cascade concrete, and ice. You might be able to ski 0.5 downhill miles per day.

Get good at a place like Smuggs. Then climb up and ski down Brown Mountain or the base of Mount McLoughlin.

 

[SecretAgentMan]

 

[SecretAgentMan]

You are an intermediate alpine skier who skis with shaped-skis and typical alpine boots. You want to start skiing downhill on metal-edged XC skis at a ski area like Smuggs. You want to be able to occasionally log some kick-and-glide miles on the skis. Good skis, some with bindings, for a good price on Ebay. (Rumor has it that in 35 years 25% of Vail's ski instructors with be certified to teach XC downhill.)

TRAK Competition Carbon Fiber cross country skis DOVRE 3-Pin bindings (Sweeeet skis and bindings. Get 'em before they're gone.)

ALPINA Backcountry Waxless Metal edge Cross Country NNN II Skis (I want these.)

Rossignol Metal Edge Waxable 200cm Skis

FISCHER Spider 62 Skis

Fischer Adventure 62 Crown XC Skis (No metal edges.)

 

[Wooley12]

Everything old is new again. Tele has it's place in the quiver of turns on snow. The stem christie is a legitimate back country tool. Last season I found myself with 500' of packed 20 deg. blue run to descend on skinny edgeless foam XC skis and leather boots. Pole brake snowplow, straight down the fall line mach foolish glissade to a perfectly timed soft snow sitz stop at the bottom. Using all the skilz. Priceless.

 

[markojp]

Newer vid of an old friend. Most all of this is on XCD gear. He absolutely rips on heavy teley gear.

 

[Paul Lutes]

Hiro's quiet, calm upper body always makes me smile.