Why are you learning tele?

Or why did you pursue in back when you started?

I came at it from a different angle, than some alpine skiers who have tried freeheel. I started nordic skiing at age 30 at Garnet HIll, and got into lift-served tele at Gore when I was 40.  Initially the reason was that I want to ski as much as I could and Gore had snow when there was none in the woods.  Also I thought the downhill skillz could help me in the BC.

TheHof's thread got me thinking... why are some of these alpine guys trying tele?  I guess I am also interested in why you continue if you do, but mostly why did you start?

I have my own theories, but I want to hear it from the source.

http://nyskiblog.com/telemark-ski-ntn/

LOL yea Marcski you are the one guy I have talked to about this.

In the mid 90s, as snowboarding was really starting to take off, and some of my buddies were getting REALLY good, I worked in a ski shop that had some Rossi telemark demo gear that nobody besides the employees were ever using.  I had never truly given up skiing like my more hardcore friends, and had had a couple of snowboarding injuries. I started taking out the tele demo gear (leather boots with the Rossi logo but obviously made by Scarpa or Asolo or someone, 412 cable bindings, some straight noodle ski I can’t recall) mostly just to goof on my hardcore snowboard buddies.  But I enjoyed it, the soft boots, the new skill, the independent leg action, and the challenge it brought to familiar terrain that I could Alpine or Snowboard down blindfolded.  I was intrigued by the idea of getting off the grid and out into the woods too.  So after the shop abandoned the tele demo at the end of the year, I bought a pair of the used boots and bindings, and slapped them on some old soft slalom ski of my little sister’s.  Used them for a bunch of years, but still identified mostly as a snowboarder and had to take Alpine back up for my first patrol gig.

Flash forward a few years to Gore, where there was an established, entrenched freeheel culture on the patrol, some new plastic boots, skis with sidecut and starting to get wider, glades and wooded terrain everywhere, and fun terrain just to rip around on.  Boom!

I’m pretty sure I will never be a tele-guy.  Of course, having taken up AT on the wrong side of 45 who knows.....

Yeah, I see the tele turns from the lift.  They look cool, but also like a lot of work.  I also see the tele-guys, who mostly all seem like they must have interesting life stories, and (again, having moved away from the bounds of the resort the last few years) admire their free spirited, outside the mainstream alpine spirit.  Having interest in all things skiing, and expanding my horizons recently (my own liberating epiphanies), I notice it, I’m curious to a degree about it, but I’m not inspired to actually try tele.

What I would like to know more about, as Marc mentioned in his piece, is the liberation that tele provided him, this new found (?) ability to explore the whole mountain, in any condition.  Is it mostly just a feeling, a state of mind, or can a tele setup actually allow you to ski and enjoy more of a mountain, in more conditions (as compared to an AT setup), as opposed to just freeing heel and mind to just make a different kind of art on the same canvas?

I’d think tele would be limiting as a sole means of playing on the mountain, as I’ve never seen a tele-guy dropping a 40+ degree rock lined chute with a free heel.  Are there limitations (I’d think there are), or is it go anywhere, do anything once mastered?

JTG4eva! wrote

   Are there limitations (I’d think there are), or is it go anywhere, do anything once mastered?

I'm no tele guy. I've tried it and liked it but my heel will be locked forever. That said, there are tele dudes who are BOSS! I skied with one at Smuggs for a number of years --- he made M1 Liftline his bitch.

I think it depends on where you ski. There's really nothing at Gore that a motivated intermediate can't ski on tele, and there is a lot that is much easier to access with freeheels.  Think about all the whining about flat spots you hear from Gore skiers. I'm guessing that is coming mostly from those with fixed heels or snowboards.

In terms of "more work" that also could be considered exercise depending on your outlook.

Harv, you didn't start skiing until you were 30? And Nordic to boot? Then you got into resort skiing? That's cool -- I don't think I know of anyone else who's done it that way. How did you end up at Garnet Hill to start schlepping through the woods?

The lightness factor is really cool for touring but I don't want to do squats all day, I need that energy for descending fast and climbing the skin track.

Either way, do whatever works and get after it.

I rode my first lift at age 40 on 210s with leather boots. My late start is my excuse for sucking so bad.


I followed a beautiful girl to Garnet Hill. She lured me there with her feminine ways. For 3 or 4 years we skied the groomed trails and then started to venture into the Wilderness, eventually doing some overnights. I get a kick out of root finding with map and compass.  It's scary sometimes but thrilling too.

One year I went to Switzerland to ski with my nieces. They were total rippers. I switched to plastic boots that summer so that I could try to keep up.  I keep telling myself I should switch to alpine of at least try it, but I really love tele, and also the cost of all new (boots bindings skis) slows me down. That has also slowed me down on NTN.

I have never tele'd but I understand the appeal. Snowboarders are still a mystery...

That's totally cool.

I'm a big map and compass guy as well ---- orienteering was part of a class I took in college --- total blast!

I stuck with alpine cause I didn't want to learn anything new ---- that and I didn't feel like falling anymore than I had to

Haven't tried tele yet but plan to take a lesson at some point because my daughter is pushing me to give tele a try.  Bought her tele boots and tele skis a few years ago and we are close enough in size that I can borrow her gear, so a tele lesson is more likely to happen.  But very unlikely that I'll make a switch given that I'm over 60.  Having too much fun with alpine and just bought Stöckli Stormrider skis that I expect to last for quite some time.  I didn't become an advanced skier until after age 50.

My daughter switched over while at North Country School in Lake Placid (junior boarding school).  She was already an advanced skier.  The head of the snowsports program at NCS has been a tele skier for a long time, as is his wife, and the head of NCT (North Country School and Camp Treetops).  She and a classmate, who was also an advanced skier, were talked into the challenge of learning tele as new students in 7th grade.  In 8th grade, the two of them spent a week skiing tele with a few other students as part of the special projects week.  Included attending Telepalooza at Platty.  They had a ball.  They can tele pretty much anywhere at Whiteface or Alta, although my daughter mostly does parallel turns on steeper terrain.  Her classmate lives in LP so he still gets to ski at Whiteface now that they are NCS graduates (ends in 9th grade).

marznc wrote

.  The head of the snowsports program at NCS has been a tele skier for a long time, as is his wife, and the head of NCT (North Country School and Camp Treetops).

I'm a big fan of the people you're talking about.

MC2 5678F589 wrote

marznc wrote

.  The head of the snowsports program at NCS has been a tele skier for a long time, as is his wife, and the head of NCT (North Country School and Camp Treetops).

I'm a big fan of the people you're talking about.

So am I.  Both I and my daughter's classmate's father are also graduates of NCS.  So my association to NCS goes way back.  The two of us not only go back every summer for the alumni gathering, I go to the alumni event at Alta Lodge in April.  There is a strong connection between the owners of Alta Lodge and NCS that goes back to the 1950s.

My daughter was very lucky to attend while Hock is head of NCT.  John was her advisor.  She coveted Libby's skis.  John helped her buy tele boots for her last season at NCS, but I didn't buy her tele skis until she graduated.

40 years of alpine skiing has taken a toll on my back. the last season hickory was open i really screwed up my lower back chasing the tele guys/gals around. it looked so graceful and easy on the lower back. that is what drove me to purchase the gear. I have four tele days under my belt.  i am not sold, its difficult to learn something new at the age of 50. after 2 years of physical therapy my back is stronger then ever so i am back to alpine skiing on the powder/packed powder days. but if the woods are closed and the conditions are fast i break out the tele gear. its a refreshing change on days i normally wouldn't ski.
after all these years i just find cursing the mountain on alpine gear boring.

JTG4eva! wrote

...is the liberation that tele provided him, this new found (?) ability to explore the whole mountain, in any condition.  Is it mostly just a feeling, a state of mind, or can a tele setup actually allow you to ski and enjoy more of a mountain, in more conditions (as compared to an AT setup), as opposed to just freeing heel and mind to just make a different kind of art on the same canvas?

Ok. Perhaps some literary license was taken in the article. :).   It wasn't truly newfound in the sense that I had been an advanced alpine skier for a long time and had been exploring "the whole mountain" on alpine skis for years.  

But, it was most definitely an awakening.  I think it makes me keep my head in the game more. I think about each turn more; I'm more present in my skiing. And that presence...being in the moment...I think is what frees me.  

To answer your question, it is both a state of mind and a feeling. When things hit on all cylinders (I'm still relatively new to tele, so it might not happen that frequently yet), the feeling of it all on tele is magnified as compared to what it was on alpine gear. When you hit the sweet spot of a tele turn...mmmn, it's like a hot knife through butter, it goes straight to my soul.

I'm also on NTN gear...and I'm sold!
IMHO, as an advanced alpine skier, once you find the sweet spot of NTN gear, you can still carve a pretty mean alpine turn. So, for me, NTN allows me to ski alpine and tele simultaneously. But, I don't have to choose between setups, I can mix it up, turn by turn, depending on terrain, snow or my energy level. It just allows me to do more things on the mountain in any given run, which again enhances the feeling of freedom.

JTG4eva! wrote

I’d think tele would be limiting as a sole means of playing on the mountain, as I’ve never seen a tele-guy dropping a 40+ degree rock lined chute with a free heel.
 
Are there limitations (I’d think there are), or is it go anywhere, do anything once mastered?

You should ski with MC sometime. Granted, I haven't skied that much with him and never where there were anything near 40+degree chutes, but the guy jumps, spins, carves and rips on groomers, steeps and trees with the precision of an Olympic figure skater.  He certainly skis and performs on teles as well or better than any alpine skier I've skied with in 45+ yrs of skiing.  

To answer your last question, for me, I'm done with alpine equipment. Especially, after my Tahoe experience. At this point, I feel confident that I can go anywhere with my teles that I would have on alpine equipment.

Finally, don't discount tele before you try it...you may well end up a tele guy.  Go in with a positive attitude and you never know...it is really quite addicting.  Plus, I feel that I'm a nube when it comes to tele...so, personally, it gives me that extra something to strive and work toward, which I enjoy and think you would as well based on your professed newfound enjoyment with backcountry.

Very interesting sig and kind of what I was looking for. Something that would surprise me.

I had never heard that alpine skiing is hard on your back.  I've never felt any back stress skiing tele.

You might think tele would stress your knees, but I actually think it actually helps my knees. I can no longer run since an injury incurred on an expedition to the cataracts on the West Branch of the Sacandaga. But I can tele and I feel like it strengthens the muscles that surround my knees.

Would like to hear from MC about what parts of the body are stressed by alpine and tele.

Marcski wrote

You should ski with MC sometime. Granted, I haven't skied that much with him and never where there were anything near 40+degree chutes, but the guy jumps, spins, carves and rips on groomers, steeps and trees with the precision of an Olympic figure skater.  He certainly skis and performs on teles as well or better than any alpine skier I've skied with in 45+ yrs of skiing.

Skiing with MC is really fun for me. He's so advanced yet has true patience for a mortal. Rips anything, takes the time to enjoy the moment, won't leave you in the dust, and only gives you instruction if you ask. I have his words in my head from the times we've skied and try to execute what he has told me.

I am taking it up so I don't have to shower, cut my hair, and use deodorant.