Telemark Skiers

[sobo]

I'm just here for the

 

Carry on.

[E-rock]

Arrogant, holier-than-thou, cult-like pricks clinging to a dying sport?

Dude, "AT Apostle" on TTips has beat this dead horse into the ground multiple times. Get a new schtick.

 

That being said, I'll take the bait....

 

Yeah, some tele skiers enjoy playing up the "look at me" factor, especially when riding the lifts, but there are plenty ripping it up in bounds and in the backcountry who couldn't care less who is watching. Smart tele skiers will use whatever turn is appropriate for the terrain.... you can do tele jump turns in a tight chute, but parallel turns would make more sense. Only the "televangelist" insists on making tele turns in all situations, and is a less accomplished skier for it.

 

There's no doubt that the turn itself is more work than parallel skiing. For some, that's the whole point... they enjoy the extra workout and/or the satisfaction of learning a new skill and executing it well. As for touring efficiency, with modern free pivot tele bindings it's pretty much the same as with most AT setups (excluding Dynafit, which is indeed the cat's ass).

 

It's also worth noting that AT and tele boots are starting to look very similar. You can get AT boots with bellows and telemark boots with Dynafit inserts. A binding which allows for both tele and fixed heel turns will probably appear in the not too distant future. It's already been done by mixing and matching existing binding components.

Choice is good. Ski what you like. The freshies will be back in about 4 moons!

 

We will now return to the regularly scheduled spraying.

 

It's exactly this sort of "well thought out" response from telemarkers that makes the whole fucking thing suck. Just shut up and ski. Making fun of telemarketers is even more fun than telemarketing

[Maine-iac]

When I get bored with my AT set up, I just unlock the heel and go free. Not having that resistance from the boot causes a real workout.

 

I don't even have AT boots either!