Kjell Ellefson Self Edit 09-10 from Kjell Ellefson on Vimeo.

I can’t believe that this season is but a few months from coming to an end, and that the first comp in Revelstoke, BC was almost two months ago. Now over halfway through the comp season, the 2010 Telemark Big Mountain/Freeride Comp in Alpine Meadows, California is also already over. This last comp went smoothly even though the weather and snow conditions didn’t feel like cooperating. I did however, have a major break threw, in that I was finally able to stay on my feet, and not get lost for at least one comp run! Even though a hip-check/slide would put me into the 8th spot, I feel that my falling/getting lost streak is finally over! Hopefully I can finally “have one” at the next stop in Kirkwood and show those alpine skiers that a guy on tele-boards can SKI. With three comps down and three more to go, there is still a lot of skiing to be had.

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Josh Madsen from Telemark Skier Magazine also did a fantastic job covering the comp:
(if the video doesn’t open in a player click the transparent “facebook” I cant figure out why some videos load and some don’t)

The Alpine Comp was another great competition, and it felt good to be back in the company of so many rippin’ Telemark Skiers. The First day I skied well but I had an unfortunate bobble upon landing the bottom cliff out of the “Key Hole,” but I redeemed my self second run, with the highest total run score for the whole comp, which put me into 3rd place, right behind Jake Sakson, and JT Robinson. The next day in the Finals I was hoping to bypass JT and Jake by skiing the “money-line” faster and better than I had done the day before. I ended up being too aggressive and I lost my balance as I dropped into the keyhole and I fell in the “NO-FALL Zone.” Obviously my scores suffered, but I with the great run the day before, I was able to pull off a 8th place finish.

Now it feel like have time to breath, but im back to training, Crested Butte is coming up in a few weeks…
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Dude where’s my Car?

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Lift Line

Megawatts=best powder ski ever!!! I love these skis

Chris and I are loving life!

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)

-March – Dollar Mountain GS

-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

Competed in 6 freeskiing comps (3 of which were alpine comps I did on my tele-gear)
6^th at Alpine Meadows Big Mtn Telemark Comp
5^th at the Telemark Extreme Freeskiing Nationals in Crested Butte (fell in super-final was in 2nd)
7^th 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)