I’m in the best mood EVER!!! Want to know why? …Because today was the first day of my 09-10 ski season. It felt so good to finally get reacquainted with the snow, and I am so happy to be sliding down mountains again. I forgot that I would have to get used to my equipment again, but after a few runs i was quickly charging ahead at full speed. After skiing today, I have a feeling that the rest of this season is going to be truly epic!
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Tag: conor davisHello fans of telemarking and skiing in general,
Just by coming to www.conordavis.com you have helped me to keep my dream to ski alive.
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The 2009 Baldy Bash was a blast! The competition consisted of coming up with, and singing a team theme song loudly to everyone in the Lodge, a Photo-op Scavenger hunt all over the Mountain, and finally costumes were judged as well. Needless to say our amazing team (YMCA): Riley Berman, Lily Debray, Lynsey Dyer, Madi DuPont, Allegra Gordan, and Conor Davis(me), won the days events. I cannot wait for Baldy Bash 2010.
Hot-CoCo CanCan
Conor’s Amazing Tail Grab
All-Star Team!!!
I went to Revelstoke Mountain resort for opening day on Nov. 27, 2008. The mountain opened with 80cm, which is awesome compared to other mountains in the American Northwest. Revelstoke Is an amazing mountain, there isn’t too much for one learn on, but the intermediate, and advanced terrain is impressive. I had a great time and I can’t wait to see what this mountain is like with some real snow on it. I had an amazing first day skiing, but it seems that no matter how much I train, my legs turn to flab within the first couple of hours or so each season. Nevertheless, it was great to finally get some vert in; I managed to get about 31095ft in the 5hrs I skied. I’m ecstatic that ski season is upon us once again, see you out there…
Besides the cliché half-binding/half-brained hippy statement: “because the turn looks and feels so sweet dude,” I telemark because it is a key to unlock the hidden treasures of the mountains and because it allows access the backcountry. Telemarking allows me to enjoy mountains, and express myself better than I could do with tradition alpine skiing. “Then why don’t you just A.T.” you might ask? We all know that A.T. means “Almost Telemark.” I feel that A.T. doesn’t allow the seamless and fluid movement through the mountains, that telemarking does. I believe that A.T. is a great way for beginners to experience touring, but why not loose that clunky heelpiece?
To me, telemarking is like using handwritten calligraphy instead of type: it’s more technically challenging, it boasts additional style, and it contains an individual flair unique to each artisan… Plus it just looks cooler. Duh!!!
Haig Glacier
I try to compete in as many events as I can each year, here is my 2010 line-up so far:
Alpine Extreme Freeskiing Events
-January 6-10, 2010 – The Canadian Freeskiing Championships, Revelstoke, Canada
-January 21-23 Canadian Open Freesking Championships
-February 4-6 2010 – Subaru Freeskiing World Tour Qualifier, Telluride, CO, USA
-February 17-21, 2010 – Subaru US Freeskiing Championships, Crested Butte, CO, USA
-March 3-7, 2010 – Subaru North American Freeskiing Championships, Kirkwood, CA, USA
-March 16-21, 2010 – Subaru Freeskiing World Championships, Snowbird, UT, USA
SV Telemark Events (Dates Are Not Posted Yet)
-January – All-Terrain at Sun Valley (Bumps,Jumps,GS,Hiking)
-February – Idaho’s Original Bob Marley Day (All-Terrain, Big Air, Tele-Powder8’s)
-April – Hawaiian Nationals- Duel GS, Tandem-Tele-Challenge, Parade, Rail Jam
Telemark Extreme Freeskiing Events
-Feb 18-21, 2010 – Alpine Meadows Free-Heal open
first poster I'm on!!!
-March 18-20, 2010 – Crested Butte Extreme Freeskiing Telemark Nationals
-March 23-28, 2010 – Telemark World Championships Alaska
Conor Davis|Big Mountain Telemark Skier and Ambassador
I honestly cannot remember a time in my life before snow or skiing. My first memories seem to be mental recordings of me sliding past the snow banks of our driveway on little plastic skis from the local drugstore. I remember the hours I spent in our backyard, playing in the snow, never feeling wet or cold. My mother would always have to drag my brother and me back into the house, away from the jumble of backyard ski runs and jumps we made. Skiing has always been a way for me to connect with the world around me, a way to live in the moment. When I’m skiing I’m free.
 Photo: Chris Holmquist |
 My First Time Skiing |
I believe that my skiing career started when I was old enough to stand(2-ish), when my ambitious father pushed me, down the driveway on cheap little plastic skis. As I became skilled enough to make my way down the slopes of the “bunny hill,” i was retrofitted with “edgy-wedgies” and “racer-chasers.” Soon i joined the early stage of ski team, which was more like a super cool after school daycare, where i got to ski with all my friends. As time progressed, my friends and I became alpine racers on the A-team. We would head to the mountain almost every day after school to run gates and occasionally free-ski. By the time my first year in high school came around, I was pretty bored of the monotonous routine of training for alpine races, so I made a radical shift and I joined the Cross-Country/Nordic ski team. I had always been a great endurance athlete, and I was a varsity cross-country runner my first year in high school. I stuck with the Nordic team for two years, until an unfortunate health issue forced me to quit. However, the Nordic team instilled a life long passion of the outdoor-fitness, and made me want to lead and active outdoor lifestyle. After Nordic team, I knew that I wanted to continue to downhill ski, but I wanted something new and exciting, something unique, and I took up telemark skiing.
My father has always been a Telemark skier; he is from an era of leather boots, three-pin bindings, and big long wooden skinny skis. He was the major influence in my decision to lose half my binding and free my heel. Telemarking came very naturally and quickly to me, I had some difficulty letting my knee drop at first, but I slowly felt more and more comfortable. I fell in love with the fluidity and beautiful style of the “tele-turn.”
-I haven’t gotten back in my alpine boots since…
“We got a young ripper here named Conor Davis. Conor is super passionate about Telemark skiing. He has been one of our youngest racers for years. He represents the total youth movement: rails, high speed and has been competing in the Big Mt Comps for a couple of years. Did I mention he is a fitness freak. Remember the days…” -Danny Walton
Goals for the Sport
I want to tear down the traditional views of telemark skiing. With ever-evolving gear and technology, there are more possibilities to push the sport than ever before. I strive to ski faster, go bigger, get in the park and invent new tele-tricks, and ski better than my alpine companions, and have an amazing time doing it.
Photo: Buck Naked Films
This was my first freeskiing competition of my 2008 winter season. I had a lot of fun and I placed well considering I was the only competitor on telemark equipment. The snow was amazing, but the visibility went to zero soon after the competition started, so finding my line was a bit difficult.
2009-2010 Competition Highlights:
Competed in 6 freeskiing comps (3 of which were alpine comps I did on my tele-gear)
6th at Alpine Meadows Big Mtn Telemark Comp
5th at the Telemark Extreme Freeskiing Nationals in Crested Butte (fell in super-final was in 2nd)
7th at the Telepalooza World Extreme Comp
Tough Guy Award at the World Comp
-In Telemark Skiing Mag’s movie
2008-2009 Competition Highlights:
1st big air category of all terrain Comp Sun Valley Tele
1st Overall Sun Valley Tele All Terrain
Highest Ranked Telemark skier: Canadian Freeskiing Open
36th Crested Butte Freeskiing Championships: Subaru Freeskiing tour (best on Telemark)
Highest Scoring Run: Alpine Meadows Free-heal open
8th place Alpine Meadows (fell in super final)
10th National Extreme Telemark Championships
Other Life Highlights 2008-2009
-As far as I know I invented a new tele-surf technique (video coming as soon as the snow falls)
-127 days skied, at 14 different resorts in the US and Canada, and 20 days of amazing back country touring.
-expanded my bag of tricks with: Back Flips, 720′s, Lincoln Loops and others inverts.
-Biggest air I’ve ever hit: 50ft ish from takeoff to landing… stuck it
2007-2008 Season Competition Highlights
-1st Bob Marley day big air telemark comp.
-7th Extreme Freeskiing telemark world championships– Alyeska resort AK
-9th Canadian Freeskiing open– Red Mtn. BC (alpine comp i did on my tele’s)
-10th US Extreme Freeskiing telemark nationals–Crested Butte CO
-lots of top results in the mens elite class for the Sun Valley Telemark Series
Other Life Highlights 2007-2008
-two week yurt ski trip in the Sawtooth Mountains “Boulder Yurt” with friends
-148 days skied (37 in backcountry)
-Three week trip to Moab, for river rafting, Climbing, and Mountain Biking
-Graduated High School!!! (and i even gave a speech)
