So, a couple of years ago I first learned how to ski (alpine).
A bunch of friends from college were heading to the countrys largest ski resort and I tagged along. I got a hang of it very quickly, and within the day I was skiing red slopes with the rest of them. Not the fastest or prettiest, but they didn't have to wait for me by the lift at least.
Fast forward a couple of years and we've been on a couple of more similar trips. I feel like I've improved further, but there's still a bit more experience to go before I would call myself "good" at skiing.
Throughout all that time I've thought telemark looked really cool and fun, but there's not really any place around here that rents the gear, and it's hard to find anything second hand since I'm rather tall. So I'd most likely have to buy new gear.
I rarely ski anything other than on piste, so I've been looking at NTN gear. I've heard that you can kind of alpine ski with that gear if you keep your weight a bit back, is this true? I doubt it'd be as good as proper alpine gear, but if it's an option, it'd definitely make it more appealing to drop the money on.
I used to telemark ski a few times each season for several years. Reasonably talented/athletic but not overly so. Enjoyed easy runs and was also able to somehow get down icy moguls, albeit not pretty and not exactly linking turns. It's been several years since I did any kind of winter sports, but in 10 days I will find myself near a ski resort with (probably artificial, if any) snow, and the possibility of dusting off my telemark skis. At this point I am not athletic anymore, which will show itself in both lack of conditioning as well as weak quads. Plus I don't know if my gear is still any good. It's been stored in a carport storage cubby in Southern California. How do I know if the plastic boots, skis, etc. are still any good? I'd hate to buy a lift ticket and then find out that my boots are disintegrating after 5 turns. On a scale from 1-10, how bad of an idea is it to go "off the couch" telemark skiing? Any tips & tricks how to maximize my chances at success at this point?
I am big into downhill skiing and am looking to get into telemark skiing. What do you recommend for gear. Any recommendations on where to get cheap gear in the northeast. Also if you have any recommendations and tips, they are greatly appreciated. Thanks!
I'm a rookie when it comes to skiing, but it does interest me and I would like to learn more about it. I know skiing id divided into different disciplines (alpine, Nordic, Telemark, cross country, grass, freestyle etc), but I wonder whether Telemark is seen as 'inferior' to alpine? I ask because whenever skiing is talked about 'in the mainstream', its usually alpine that's referred to. Also alpine skiing is in the Olympics, while Telemark doesn't.
When it comes to the women's' game and the 'GOAT' conversation, Lindsey Vonn and Mikaela Shiffrin, the current golden girl, are the names usually uttered and familiar to casual audiences. They are the most famous. Vonn Both are Alpine skiers. Moreover, as far as I can see, Vonn is portrayed as the benchmark of the women's game (e.g her 82 individual world cup victories) that Shiffrin, serious injuries notwithstanding, will eventually surpass and become the best ever.
But few know of Amélie Reymond of Switzerland, a Telemark skier, who has the all time record among men and women across disciplines of individual 156 world cup victories. She's also the most successful Telemark athlete ever. For instance, she has 19 Telemark world championships. To put it into perspective, she is the only person to have broken the 150 win barrier mark and one of 3 to get past 100 wins. She is still active, while 2nd and 3rd place are retired with 114 and 106 WC victories respectively. So she will further extend her tally when the season starts again. It also means she will have double the amount of victories that Vonn has in alpine. In her discipline, Reymond is the undisputed Queen. She has 19 World championship gold medals and 10 world cup titles, which is just incredible. No other Telemark athlete even comes close to the amount of victories Reymond has on the all time list.
Why doesn't Reymond get more recognition? She doesn't even have an English wikipedia page. Is this discrepancy because Telemark is seen as non-traditional and 'inferior' while alpine and cross country are viewed as more traditional and established? I'm curious as it doesn't make sense to me. I'm a novice when it comes to skiing knowledge so maybe I'm missing something. Surely, having more WC victories than anyone else, male or female, across all disciplines, by considerable distance whilst still being active, as well as being a virtuoso, in a class of her own, without peer or rival, in her own Telemark discipline, deserves a lot of respect and recognition?
At the end of last ski season my mother tore her MCL skiing, and it still bugs her often. As an avid and experienced skier, she wants to get skiing again but her injury is healing very slowly. Her brother and some other people we are close with telemark and are very into it and they suggested she try telemarking because it may be better on the ligament. We are wondering if telemarking would be a better option for her injury, how it may effect the ligament. If anyone has any experience with getting a MCL injury and returning to skiing or telemarking, please let me know. Thanks
I'm not a telemarker but I'm really interested in trying out telemark and my ski boots just gave up so since I have to buy knew boots anyway I thought that if I can use telemark boots either with normal skis or tm boots with tm skis but with the heel locked, then I could just buy that and not have two sets of boots/skis.
I know there are different types of fixations for telemark but do they all permit to fix the heel? Or none? I guess they have to, when you're in the chair lift but can you ski with the heel locked?
So I'm very interested in telemark. I've no experience with telemark skiis other than classical nordic, which I don't think translates well into downhill skiing.
I'd say I'm a decent skier for having only skied donwhill a few times, and I'm honestly tempted to make my first pair of boots and skis a telemark pair. Althought standard alpine skiing is fun, telemark looks even more fun, and from what I've heard, you can still ski "alpine" with telemark skis when you get tired.
My question here is how does skiing "alpine" with telemark gear compare to normal alpine gear? I assume you can't put as much preassure forward in your boots as you can in alpine.
What tempts me is the idea of being able to practice telemark skiing on my own, but if I want to ski with friends, I could still alpine ski and keep up with them until I'm good enough at telemark skiing to keep up.
Surely, it can't be the best of both worlds. Burst my bubble here!
Telemark skiing has peaked my interest, but I have a few questions about it.
What are the advantages of it compared to alpine skiing?
What are the disadvantages of it compared to alpine skiing?
How difficult is it compared to alpine skiing?
Can it do everything alpine skiing can do?
Hello all,
I have telemarked once before, and would consider my self a pretty experienced alpine skier. Last year I took a tele lesson in Alta and enjoyed it. I didn't think it was quite worth changing out all my normal equipment for the one week a year I get to normally ski per year.
However, earlier this year I herniated a disk and was wondering if telemark skiing is considered easier on the back than normal alpine skiing? I have been told it's easier on the knees and wanted to know.
Thank you for all of your help in advance.
I'm seeking to revamp my outerwear. I live in metro Boston. I'm a year-round bike commuter (upright positioning and not too intense thanks to my electric assist); East Coast telemark skier (mostly on resort, with some skinning when I occasionally venture off resort); occasional cross country skiing; and typical fun-in-the-snow with my small kiddos, snow-clearing and all-around use.
A few constraints:
- non-black color availability. I wear a reflective vest so high viz not needed on my commute.
- Helmet compatibility
What I've been eyeing so far -- for my outer layer -- REI StormBolt.
I'm open to suggestions. Seeking outer shell, inner layer(s) and pants. I'm generally frugal, but will certainly pay a premium when it makes sense for overall value.
Hello
This post is for anyone who has taken part in a telemark ski-ing race or competition (any level) in the last year.
I am carrying out research into the attitudes that snowsports competitors have towards sports psychologists. I would be grateful if you could take part by completing my anonymous questionnaire (link below). It only takes 10 minutes. I am interested in the views of people who have never used a sports psychologist before as well as those who have.
https://uwe.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5AcIsHSkeU82mP3
Thank you
Does anyone have experience with this type of skiing or with free heel skis?
Let me start by saying that i have been skiing since i could walk and i love it more than any other activity out there. I would consider myself an expert skier and have been thinking about making the switch to telemark skiing now for about a year. i I want to know from you guys: Pros, cons, good experiences, bad ones, should i go straight to telemark boots and bindings or should i try out some AT bindings first? I mainly ski in the east but get out west at least once a year.
hey guys, i just have some questions about telemark skiing,bcs im really thinking about to start ... so hit me with answers :)
-is it possible to ski alpine style with telemark binding on pretty good level?
-what is the most versatile binding?
-how is it to ski couloirs? especially steep and narrow/cramped
-how is it to ski through ice,moguls,and those icy ''rocks/balls'' don't know its name in english
I am big into downhill skiing and am looking to get into telemark skiing. What do you recommend for gear. Any recommendations on where to get cheap gear in the northeast. Also if you have any recommendations and tips, they are greatly appreciated. Thanks!
