Latest Headlines

Some Archived News Stories of Note:

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SIA Begins Tracking Online Sales... With Interesting Results.....

 TeleNews Page 93

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A Look At Jarden Inc., The New Owners Of K2

 TeleNews Page 96

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No Big Surprises in Alexa Rankings Of Snow Sports Media Web Sites

 TeleNews Page 94

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BD's "Holy Grail" Binding: Details Emerge

 TeleNews Page 97

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Commentary on the Demise of Couloir

 TeleNews Page 95

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MORE... 

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Notes On The Demo Tour and Introduction of Rottefella's NTN Binding, Feb. 2007

 TeleNews Page 98

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Rottefella breaks years of silence on their New Telemark Norm (NTN) in this exclusive Telemarktips interview.

 TeleNews Page 49

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Rottefella officially announces its new NTN system (with photos):

 TeleNews Page 64

The Battle of the Titans, How We Got Here & What To Expect...

 TeleNews Page 80

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 The Battle of the Titans Begins: Black Diamond To Build Tele Boot & Binding System In NTN Showdown

 TeleNews Page 60

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Black Diamond To Build Tele & AT Ski Boot Line.. (and maybe an "NTN" type system of their own?).

 TeleNews Page 65

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Telemark News & Commentary by Mitch Weber

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  • 9/10-- From the "What a concept" file... Aspen Skiing Co. will take a new approach in its advertising this season. Facing a six digit decline in skier days last year, and perhaps thus very concerned about a still-recovering world economy, the company has decided to hop off the green bandwagon in its print ads for 2009-2010. According to the Aspen Times, instead of relying on "environmental messages to inspire people to take a ski trip," Aspen's new ads will showcase photos of skiers and snowboarders out having fun on the slopes. One such ad features a line of riders charging out the ridge to Highland Bowl on a bluebird powder day. Vice President of Marketing Jeanne Mackowski called the new ads “an invitation to come to Aspen-Snowmass.” Aspen is said to have actually paid a consulting firm, Factory Design Labs of Denver, to come up with this idea. Stoked skiers, blue skies and fresh powder instead of ads (in better economic times) definitively proclaiming snow to be an "endangered species... expected to disappear by 2100." What a concept indeed!

Meanwhile, in other Aspen news, work is about to begin at tiny Aspen/Pitkin County Airport-- Colorado's third busiest-- on a $4 million improvement intended to "provide a smoother place for private jets to park." The work is being funded as part of President Obama’s economic stimulus package, and according to an airport official, the improvements will also allow for a "slight" increase in the total number of private jets able to park at Aspen. The project, which is said to have already been in the local "planning and budgeting pipeline," but can now be "done completely with federal funds... sooner than planned," is scheduled to be completed before the start of the ski season.

If, like me, you are a little uncomfortable with the use of climate change, as well as other environmental issues, to promote skiing, our much-beloved activity which is, at its core, a full-blown, majorly hedonistic pursuit, an escape of the very best kind... well, perhaps you may take some comfort in considering this: Of the many private jet owners who will enjoy the smooth, taxpayer-funded parking at Aspen's airport this season, a few might actually buy tax-deductible carbon credits, or maybe they will donate (just to make sure) a little money to retire already issued credits so they will not be used, thus totally (really!) offsetting their jet aircraft's emissions. Or maybe not.

 

  • 9/9-- Will this be the year that the NTN system finally comes together? Indications are that it very well may be. It's no secret that the big problem thus far with the new system has been with the boots. Designing and building reliable boots that are optimized for the NTN binding has proven to be a bigger challenge than anticipated, but now with three manufacturers offering a variety of models this fall, skiers looking to make the switch will have multiple choices. We'll have a full report on Telemarktips later this month, but for now the good news we would like to pass along is that our testing of all of this year's models has gone very, very well... much better than expected in fact. The three models from Scarpa complete a line of boots for skiers of all kinds, including racers and the hardest of chargers. Garmont's powerful new Prophet NTN boot proved to be tuned just right for the binding and was pretty much our "go to" boot for most all of last winter and spring. And with a reworked bellows, even Crispi's latest EVO model was pure pleasure to ski from Day One, right out of the box. Comfortable and responsive, our EVOs spent a surprising amount of time on the snow. We've never been big fans of Crispi's approach to building boots, but thanks to this newest EVO, we are now. In the strange saga that has been the introduction of the NTN, accurate predictions have proven to be hard to make-- areas of concern turned out okay and stuff we thought would be a slam dunk turned problematic-- and yet with our uniformly positive experience testing the latest boots, a first, and our continuing enthusiasm for the advanced features and dependability of the binding, we can't help but think that yes indeed, this third year may very well be the season that the new system's promise is finally fully realized. Stay tuned for more...

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  • 9/8-- The Avalanche fatality data from the 2008/2009 ski season tells an interesting story. In the U.S. there were 28 fatalities, well short of the record of 36, set the year before. Of that total, 16 were snowmobilers, by far the most in any single category. Six were backcountry skiers, but rather shockingly, 3 more of the recorded fatalities were resort skiers on open, avalanche controlled terrain that had been previously skied. As Bob Comey, director of the Bridger-Teton National Forest Avalanche Center told the NY Times last winter, "One in-bound fatal avalanche in a season is unusual; three separate fatal incidents in one season is really rare... We're doing what we normally do. Our techniques work really well, but they're not ever 100 percent guaranteed."

Most backcountry skiers know to be vigilant and educated, to carry a beacon, probe and shovel, and it seems likely that most are fully aware of the risk of avalanche . But I wonder how many skiers at the resorts, including bc/resort crossovers, actually realize that of the nine skiers to die in slides last season, fully one third took their final, tragic run inbounds, on open slopes that had been avalanche controlled and previously skied? I doubt many do, but these inbounds fatalities seem to confirm for me a major "take-away" from our own near-miss, inbounds, "post-control" incident at our home resort.

It's been nearly two years, and still, hardly a day goes by that I don't think of those brief but indelible moments of absolute shock and terror.

I suppose it's normal to question yourself and your role in the wake of a near-death, razor sharp close call. I'm still haunted by a few of my answers. Mostly this is a story for another day, but I feel compelled to note that last year's three inbounds avalanche fatalities at three separate resorts, seem to confirm an observation noted in my initial account of our dark event: Many, if not most of us, tend to try to avoid at all costs thinking about the role plain old luck plays in determining our fate when we are out on the snow... in particular while out chasing powder.

Although comforting, denial is not much of a strategy, so consider this:

The avalanche safety professionals at these resorts are out there every day. They've got the tools and the education, as well as detailed historical knowledge of their home terrain and past and present conditions. Through daily repetition, there is likely a sharpness to their skill that the average recreational skier can only dream of possessing. And of course they have access to what that sage of avy safety sages, Rod Newcomb, once told us was the best avalanche avoidance tool (other than your brain) one can carry: A pack of two-pounders.

Yes, the pros are out there each morning, reading the terrain, making intensely well informed judgments, and when in doubt, tossing a few two-pound bombs onto suspect slopes along the way. Every day on the most familiar of possible terrain, and they are good, really good, at what they do. Still, as we have just been reminded they are "not ever 100%" successful in making the all-important go/no go decision.

As I reported at the time, immediately prior to our slide I noted ski tracks (mostly our own, from our previous time through) and that there were also bomb holes all over the place, more than I had noticed previously. I had ski-cut the area that slid, not once but twice. it's part of my routine in setting up video shots on powder days, and I did not see, hear or feel a single sign of instability. Nuthin', zip, zero. We found out later that the patrol director for that day had skied the same area in between our first and second runs. Apparently neither he nor his control crew earlier that morning observed any direct signs of instability either. If they had I'm sure the terrain would not have been open for skiing. Still, the slope we were on let go impressively, and two good buds and ski partners-- including my best friend-- very nearly lost their lives. The role raw luck played that day, both good and bad, was HUGE.

So as I have mentioned before here, we now carry our avalanche gear in our Avalung-equipped packs on every powder day, inbounds or out. That being said, by way of perspective it's important to note that the odds are certainly in our favor. Out of all the uncountable days spent in the backcountry last season by thousands of backcountry skiers in the U.S., just six were lost to avalanches. Of the nearly 60 million skier visits to resorts recorded last year, just one inbounds, post-control avalanche fatality occurred per 20 million skier days. Of course the overwhelming majority of those 20 million aren't out chasing powder (thankfully) during and right after storms, so don't get too comfy with those numbers. And for whatever reason, it appears that post-control slides have become more common in recent years.

My advice: Although the odds remain overwhelmingly in your favor, and yes, the drive up to the hill is probably more likely to get you into trouble (etc., etc.), bring your gear and your backcountry-style vigilance on every powder day, no matter where you're headed. Then if the hand of fate delivers a high hard one to the inside, at least you'll know you did all you could and were as prepared as possible, regardless of the outcome. Trust me on this one, knowing that you were not as prepared for what the mountain served up as you could easily have been, especially considering the very high stakes, is not all that fun. Keep it fun, be prepared.

 

  • 1/14-- Twenty Two Designs has a new binding and will conduct a beta test similar to the one HammerHead designer Russell Rainey ran when introducing his ground breaking design back in 2001. Based on that now very popular high-performance freeheel binding, the Driggs ID based innovators have come up with a free-pivot touring model called the "Axl." In a press release sent out today, Twenty Two says it will build 200 to be "sold with the understanding that they are not a final product, but a test binding. However, this fall when we release the final version, we will provide all testers with a new binding or new parts if the design changes significantly."

Weighing in at 4 lbs., the Axl's touring mode pivot point is located directly under the pin line for a more natural feel when skinning.

Shown at right, (click for larger version) the Axl will also feature the HammerHead's six hole screw pattern and unique adjustable cable guides, allowing skiers to fine tune the binding's level of activity according to personal preference, a key feature of the original design of the standard HammerHead.

The Axl will sell for $310 and more information can be found on the Twenty Two Designs website at twentytwodesigns.com/axl

 

 

Telemark News story index & archive..

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