Category Archives: "culture"

Ep1 – CANSI Creates a Level 4 Telemark Instructor Certification

© Photo: Charles Lawton

Aiming High: My Journey to Level 4 Telemark Certification

Why I’m Taking on Level 4

Since I first slipped into telemark bindings, skiing has been more than just a sport for me. It’s shaped my life, my career, and my connection with the mountains. Teaching telemark has been at the heart of it all, and over the years, I’ve introduced hundreds of skiers to the art and flow of the free heel. There’s something special about telemark—its rhythm, the way it feels like dancing down a mountain. That’s the feeling I want to pass on to others.

CANSI is the Canadian Association of Nordic Skiing Instructors. It certifies the cross-country instructors and the telemark instructor in Canada. This year, there will be a fourth level. Up until now, Telemark was the only snow sport in Canada with a fourth level of instructors.

So, why go for Level 4 now, after decades of experience on the slopes? To be honest, it’s about challenging myself to be the best I can be for the skiers I teach. Level 4 will now be the highest telemark certification in Canada, and as one of the first to attempt it, I feel a mix of excitement and responsibility. Achieving this certification isn’t just a personal goal; it’s a chance to bring something new and elevated to telemark instruction here in Canada. And maybe, just maybe, inspire a few others to push their own limits along the way.

For the last 10 years, I’ve trained with Denis Vezina each year.

One of my biggest influences has been Denis Vézina, one of the lead evaluators for Level 4. His technical precision and approach to the sport have made me look at my own skiing in a new way.

First, he has giving me new advice and my skiing has changed significantly. He is a big reason why I want to push forward and improve my ability to teach telemark skiing. He has directly influenced a shift in telemark teaching from exercise based progression to a more feeling progression. This is a major change that has happened in alpine skiing and snowboarding as well. And this is where I think a level IV makes sense.

Getting Ready in My Own Way

The Brain

Approaching a Level 4, I know I needed to dive deeper into technique, analysis, and even some details I thought I’d long mastered. This isn’t just any certification; it requires an in-depth understanding of telemark’s technical aspects and a high level of skill in all conditions. So, I’ve been studying. A lot.

I’ve watched countless videos of telemark skiers. I’ve focused on racing, technical turns, freestyle—anything I can find to study the flow and movements at this level.

And I’ve watched myself a lot.

It’s a humbling process, watching myself on video alongside all these experts. I pick apart every movement, every turn, looking for ways to make it smoother, more controlled, more powerful.

I think this is my superpower. Analyzing movement. I’ve talked about this a lot on this blog. But I need to improve the way I bring my student to a new feeling, a new movement. To give you perspective, I’m still very far from the ability Denis has to analyses telemark skiing. So I’m asking a lot of questions.

The Body

Then there is the skiing. I know that every detail counts, and seeing my own skiing alongside people who’ve mastered the craft has made me aware of nuances I never paid attention to before. Trying It’s been an eye-opener, and I’m thankful for all the learning moments—even the frustrating ones.

I have started to train, stretch and to gain mobility. In the end, we are not eternally young and starting the season ready is one of the keys to success.

 

What This Means for My Teaching

For me, Level 4 isn’t just a title or certificate; it’s a chance to elevate my teaching.

If you have followed this blog and my email newsletter (subscribe here ) you know that the competitive side of things is not my forte. This was one of the reasons I liked telemark in the first place. I don’t want the title. I want the journey.

I want to master the technique and the teaching. I want to undertake a doctorate, to think, to reach that next step. Eventually, my goal is to contribute to the community of telemark instructors just like I have done with this blog. This really is about the journey.

Teaching and technique are evolving. I don’t teach the same way has I used 10 or 20 years ago. I feel that CANSI offers the best way for me to reach that next level.

One of the keys to improve is to surround yourself with motivated and talented people. The more I understand, the better I can explain every subtle movement, every technique that makes telemark skiing what it is. I want to help skiers of all levels find that sense of flow and control, and to feel the same excitement I do when I drop into a turn.

What’s Next: The Journey Begins

Telemark skiing has given me so much over the years. It’s taken me to beautiful places, introduced me to inspiring people, and taught me more about focus and resilience than I could have imagined. Pursuing Level 4 feels like a way to continue on this journey. There’s always room to grow, no matter how many years you’ve been at it.

Throughout the season, I will be adding content this blog, I will revive the Absolute Telemark Tips Podcast (in a new format). Sharing my thoughts through different social media like Facebook and YouTube.

In the next post, I’ll share another version of this story through a podcast episode, explaining the unique process I went through to be allowed to try the level 4 without actually having the Level 3. This is rare, and it’s only possible because of my years of teaching and skiing experience. I’ll walk through what that meant for my journey and why it was such a significant step forward as I move closer to Level 4.

Thank you for following along on this journey! I’m excited to share the highs, the challenges, and everything in between. Whether you’re a fellow telemark instructor, a recreational skier, or just curious, I hope my experience can offer some insights into what it means to push the limits of telemark skiing.

Stay tuned!_CFL4370 2

Telemark Olympic dreams: No thanks

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Over the summer the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have taken the telemark community on a roller coaster.

They first took the decision to evaluate the integration of telemark as a discipline for the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

And by the end of the summer, the decision not to include telemark in the 2022 Olympics came as a heart-breaking decision for the whole telemark community.

The process that led to the decision had everyone hoped for a different outcome.

I have to say that I’m very sad for all the telemark racers, the coaches, the volunteers. I know these people work hard and this would have changed their lives. Some money to pay the coaches, some money to help the athletes travel and train. And it would have helped grow local telemark club for a new generation.

By accepting the oldest snow sport, the IOC would have helped our sport’s visibility and recognition like nothing else. A boost we really need.

Or do we?

I am against the participation of telemark in the Olympics.

I have to go against the crowd on this one even if:

  • The sport is not growing in North America, where most skiers, snowboarders and telemarkers are. (UPDATE: I have been told that it is now growing again, so I’ll focus on the “marginal” snowsport )
  • Olympics is the greatest platform to develop a sport. It’s the biggest sport’s brand, it’s the biggest show.

So you have a marginal sport that is offered the biggest advertisement there is.

Why on earth would one pass on this?

Rene, are you crazy? Do you really love your sport?

Here are my arguments:

Money, Influence, Environment.

—

Money

IOC is a major corporation worth billions. That’s not bad in itself, but it comes at a price. This gigantic corporation sells the TV right for billions worldwide. With money comes power, corruption and people who’s goal is not related to the sports anymore.

The athletes in Olympics sports have no money from the games. Unlike pro football, hockey our major sports, there is no sharing. Why would we want to have our poor telemark athlete staying poor and being exploited by the billion dollar industry.

It not all bad has it would probably help pay coaches, trainers, training and so on. Can we find another way to finance all this?

Who pays? Sochi cost 50G, many traditional winter cities are not interested in investing in the Olympics anymore. The return is negligible, the massive infrastructure will serve for two weeks, and then will be abandoned. It’s still a part of the Olympic problem.

For the IOC, Athlete are the product they sell. And the good news is that it’s cheap labour.

Influence

Politics. It’s the major problem of the IOC. Once you are in, the IOC have a lot of say in the sport. They will make changes in the administration, events schedule, and even the sport’s rules if it suits their need.

Corruption, cheaters, drugs.

Looks like doping is a major problem at the world stage. From the East German era where the secret service drugs the athlete without them knowing to the recent Russian state organize doping as a system. The Russian federations got banished and then reinstated for shady reasons, this is part of the Games. Do we need that in our sport?

The show must go on. The IOC is nothing like the values it was founded on.

Environment

And finally, this is the most important reason I’m strongly opposed to the Olympics as an event. It just doesn’t make any sense to organize major events like this anymore. The impact of building the infrastructure, the impact of hundred thousand tourists in one place at the same time has been a problem for a long time.

Now, it’s gone to a whole new level with localization problems. 2014 Sochi Olympics were held in a humid sub tropical climate, Beijing the choice for the 2022 Olympics is just ridiculous. Beijing is not a mountainous city, so the skiing, snowboarding and sliding events will be held on the edge of the Gobi desert. No snow there. At all.

Climate change is the greatest challenge humanity has faced. We, as a community, cannot choose to ignore this for the sake of our sport.

The technique is a sport. I love the technique, not the sport.

A lot of sport in the Olympics are not more popular because they are at the Olympics. It’s a big show. What would have been our place in all that

I have chosen telemark because it was different, there is no drug problem in our race, there is no coaching scandals with our youth, there is none of the problems of a major sport where money and power are at stakes. Just people enjoying the sport

I’ve devoted my life to the turn, the feeling. Surely we don’t need major exposure to convince people to try. After that, the community need to self support.

I don’t love the sport. I don’t love it blindly. The more the better is not my motto.

In the end, we do need a strong telemark tribe.

We do need people to be exited about our sport, the culture, the history.

I just feel like the Olympics are done. This is not the way.

Telemark is Dead: Response to Powder Skier Magazine

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I’ve heard it hundreds of times.

Telemark is dead, or Is telemark dead?

Well, I would agree to some degree.
Yes, it’s on a low.

It was popular around 10-15 years ago. You have to say popular with a sense of proportion. It’s always been marginal. There are no benefits. There never was.
I can’t buy new equipment around here. I live in Quebec City, an 800 000 inhabitants Nordic City in the province that counts the most ski resorts in all North America.

We love skiing in Quebec for sure.
Not telemark.

First, you should go read the article by Hans Ludwig. His arguments are really a Telemark vs alpine skiing trend confrontation.

So that’s what I’ll do. I’ll give you my perspective on that confrontation.

Gear:

SKI:

This is an interesting area. I would agree that alpine gear as taken a strong turn around 2010, fat skis, light and powerful boots with incredible walk mode have really changed the game. The shift happened, the mass started to go out in the backcountry and most of them were not fit to carry the big alpine gear.

Dynafit already had the lowtech binding but it was not really popular with anybody but ski guides or people earning there turns more than riding a chair lift.

Yes technology killed the attraction for telemark as a BC tool.

TELEMARK:

What funny is that it’s exactly how telemark became popular in the 90s, gear. Plastic boots arrived on the scene and the sport changed forever. That’s faded away now.

As for the point that no major improvements have been made in recent years, I disagree. The bindings have seen major improvements with NTN and TTS alike bindings. The change is BIG. the passion is strong with a lot of small companies, but you have to agree that gear has evolved with the very limited money invested by the big companies. TTS, Bishop and 22 Design, Voile in the US have all released new bindings since 2010. The M Equipment and their Meidjo have been the most creative in my mind. All these companies are still doing business. They have very creative ideas that will become the telemark experience of tomorrow and just like the debate about leather vs plastic boot we had 20 years ago, there will always be a before and after NTN telemark scene.

The missing piece are the boots. We are still with the same design we had 15 years ago. And that’s the most expensive to R&D. It’s the only thing that could kill the sport. If the numbers would get too low, the companies stop making them. Never mind innovate.

Culture

SKI:

But BC was  so marginal, it was for the purist.

Now the masses do both, inbound and outbound. They want a new experience. The resorts are all the same, groomed, pack with lift lines, pricy…

It’s the whole ski industry that’s going down. The numbers are not disastrous but it’s not a booming industry like it was. A lot of people think that snowboarding and parabolic have saved the industry. Now, the lowtech binding is the new buzz. Look at all the big companies, jumping in that direction. We are seeing the small family owned resorts closing and the giant corporations making risky moves with huge investments. Will the industry survive the transformation as a whole? I think it’s fair to ask. Maybe Chinese will save the gear industry. It’s getting very popular over there I hear. But will they come ski in our resorts. Will it be enough to support the whole industry?

TELEMARK is different.

It’s a crow of passionate people. We ski about 3 times more days than any other snowsport. There is no mass. You don’t receive telemark gear for Christmas and try it for 3 days in the holidays. This is what alpine skiing numbers are. Loads of less than 5 days a season skiers. They are the moving force. Will they stay.

And we don’t do it because it’s cool, trendy or eccentric. If you telemark, you know it’s all about the turn. PERIOD. There are no other arguments in favour of the telemark turn. Alpine is just better in every way. And it was in the mid 2000 as well. Gear doesn’t matter. So it will never pass a 5-10% market share we had a decade ago.

Telemark skiers are the most passionate. This is a major plus. I can alpine any run I can telemark. For me it’s just playing the video game with a cheat code. The fun is altered. I would change to split boarding before going to alpine skiing for sure.

We will not make the industry survive or fail. But the skier will.

Future:

SKI:

Who knows? Will the prices keep rising? Will climate change make snowmaking financially viable? Will the new generations keep coming to the super resorts? After all snowboard have hit a plateau too. The Snowsport Industry is asking these same questions right now.

TELEMARK:

There is a lot more telemark skiers than a mere 10 000. This web site alone has 30 000 visitors a month. I have a YouTube video with 200 000 views. That doesn’t look dead to me.
Yes, Vermonters will keep it alive. Eastcoast terrain is perfect for telemark for sure. I hear that the alps have very dynamic festivals, race, communities especially in France, Italy and Austria.

In fact, telemark is really great at gathering people with a different mind set.
Small pockets everywhere.

  • Remember your HAHA moment, how you felt for the first time the telemark turn
  • Remember the gear you use to ski with. And it worked. It’s not about the gear
  • I have never tried to convince people around me to tele. But each year I see newcomers attracted by the smooth, flowy turns.

Conclusion

On the personal, small-scale side, it’s obvious. Telemark will never die. It’s the best feeling. It’s hard, it’s physically and technically harder. But the rewards are making me come for more.

On the global economic scale, it’s harder now. The wheel is turning slower. I don’t think Chris, Pierre or Dave will make the Fortune top 1 000 000 richest people by selling bindings. But if it’s sustainable, we have dedicated companies still pushing the technology.

For those two reasons, I declare that Telemark is alive :)

I should do an interview with 4 ex-skier that have changed to telemark and ask them what they think about the ski industry

…

Leave your comments below.

 

To Deep, Too Step

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“…Telemark skiing has a time and place and it’s not in the big mountains…”

Well, that quote from The episode One from Beans and Rice season One is sure to get some talk.

Cause if it’s to Deep

 

I can’t pass the opportunity to share this nice video with the Telemark Tribe. If you don’t know Beans and Rice, make sure you check them out. Enjoy

Beans and Rice: Episode One “To Deep, Too Steep” from BeansandRiceFreeride on Vimeo.

Beans And Rice also promote the youth. Check out Jake’s Telemark Freeride Camps

You can also check a podcast episode with Paul Kimbrough, usual partner with Jake.

 

Episode 17: Evans the Snowchaser – The Ultimate Ski Bum

Evans snow face

The Ultimate Ski Bum !

Today we meet with Evans from the blog www.snowchasers.blogspot.ca

This passionate telemark skier as made a life of skiing all winter long, every winter!

This is more than the average Joe. And in my mind, he his the Ultimate Telemark skier. (Debatable in the comments, LOL)

He has skied from Norway to Japan, from Kyrgyzstan to Greece in the last 10 years.

Listen to the Podcast here

 

Links to the Show:

Snowchasers Blog Spot

The Facebook for the Snowchasers

At the end, Evans put the emphasis on Avalanche Awarness. Here’s a list of what he suggests:

Avalanche Canada Courses

BCA, a Gear compagny has some great videos here

Ortovox, Gear compagny, others videos here

The Human Factor Season 1 and Season 2

 

Evans Sponsors

The 40th Nato Telemark Festival

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Last spring, I got he chance to to to the 40th telemark festival organized by the great Dickie hall, founder of the North AMerican Telemark Organizasion (NATO).

If you’ve followed this blog for a while, you know just how much I respect Dickie’s implication for the sport. I mean, 40 years, that’s just insane.

This year is supposed to be the last so I would not miss it for anything.

With a great group of friends we drove to MRG, thanks to Marie-Claude and Phil for organizing everything. The combo of a great telemark community, this great mountain and your best ski buddies is hard to beat.

Here’s a video of the week end

I’d really like to thank Dickie Hall and all his crew for another great festival. I don’t know if someone will take over Dickie’s festival, but regardless, I promised myself I would go back again this next year. I have met so many great person, and the skiing is just incredible.

In the end, the quality of this festival is the proof that the telemark community is not a fad. Telemark is timeless, and I’ll bet that it’ll still be around in 40 years.

The next Step: Organizing a Festival

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My 3 step plan for developing the Telemark community

With the development of Absolute Telemark last year, I questioned myself about how it could have a stronger impact on the community.

My plan was a three part action:

First develop a personalized online tutorial that many of you have seen with he 7 Flaws. (you can register here)

Second was to get new people to the sport: last week was the second edition of Elle Telemark and was a blast. 40 girls getting stoke on telemark. WOW

The third part was to do something for the actual community around my area. Last year, we had a BBQ at Le Massif and 30 people showed up which was really great. But I wanted something of a greater impact. For the last two years the Telemark Festival is no more at my home mountain, ironically, since the arrival of our new CEO which is a Telemark Skier. And last year I organized this as a plan B. We even had a little unofficial race on the mountain called the Le Derby de la 42. So much fun!

But this year, I went to a greater length and organized a new Festival.

In a backcountry location I have talked about in this blog, the Jacques-Cartier National Park were I also work. This is important for me because backcountry is getting so popular for snowboarders and skiers. The amount of new ATers is just phenomenal around me. It’s important to create places for the community and also to get together and create a great ambiance.

I want to be able to share this with every one, going out in the backcountry is the main thing. And giving people the opportunity to have a dedicated place is great. Telemark is just the best way in my mind, but I know it will probably never be mainstream (hope I’m wrong). But by being part of the backcountry community in my area, I also want telemark to keep it’s place, to show others the possibilities, the ease, the FUN of it.

 

Here is the Festivals add:

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There’s two parts I’m really looking forward.

We have a GoPro contest with Video Editors that will create short movies and Avalanche Quebec will be here to talk to people about avalanches. And there is no avalanche in our off-piste areas.

The Go-Pro event is a real challenge for a new event because we have no fan base. I can’t wait to see the end result and I’m very nervous about the response of the community. But it’s a great risk that I love in organizing an event.

As for the presence of Avalanche Quebec, It’s like having a Pro hockey coach coming to an event in Florida. People here are so unaware about the risks around here.Chances are, these new adept will one day be in avalanche terrain. I want this festival to be the perfect place to learn about all the components of backcountry.

This is a festival for experience inbound skiers looking for an escape, out of the ressorts and out of rules. But at the same time it’s a mean of learning about all that comes with being in a public land. No security, no patrol, no rescue, that’s the price of no rule in the backcountry.

The challenge of a new area, a new philosophy

The other day a friend of mine was addressing a rightful issue.

– There should be a sign that tell people about the dangers and the responsibility of each individual, he said. I see people coming here so unprepared, not knowing about anything

– We have 3 signs.

– Ah!

– With all those new comers, many are careless and someone will get hurt. The park should have someone at the entrance talking to people.

– We have someone.

– Ah!

I told him that it’s okay to be worried. It’s ok to talk to people if they are mislead, but in the end, wherever you do, people will always assume for the best. It’s the blessing of being unaware of the danger, it’s Yhprum’s law (the opposite of Murphy’s law), the Fate in optimism.

And there right, the vast majority will be just fine.

And then, my friend’s also right, someone will get injured and will not be prepared for it. His Friends won’t be ready for it, and the public won’t be ready for it.

And then it’s the media game that will start. Where the mesures in place ok, where the park rules clear enough…

We need to find someone to be guilty.

Sorry I got carried away.

But it’s true, risk management is a no faults game. I used to patrol for a small resort in Eastern Quebec called Mount Glen. One year it was shot down and sold. The new owners wanted to change it to a residential area. But people kept going to ski and hike. Until one day, a guy got injured. He couldn’t work for a while so he turned to his insurance company who sued the new ownership. You can be sure that nobody ever skied again on Mount Glen.

The Heritage

So back to the festival, oh right I was telling you that my goal was to create a nice ambiance. The good news is that I have chosen a place with moderate terrain, 20 to 34 degree angle, in an open birch tree forest with minimal to no avalanche risk (risk 0 doesn’t exist). The perfect place for advanced riders to come and try a new experience.

The local community is great and a lot of people are really exited about this project. The local shops all jumped in to sponsor the event, the newspapers already covered the project, there is a general interest. Time will tell if we can move from the all organized Mountain resorts to places like the Off Piste in the Jacques-Cartier National Park.

Funny thing is that exactly where this sport as started, 80 years ago.

The Province of Quebec have the honour of being the birth place of skiing in North America (we can debate that in the comments :) and the story of Jack Rabbit Johansson  is about the birth of cross country skiing. But to many here, he was all about skiing, their was no cross country vs downhill and Jack Rabbit  could do it all. check out the story here.

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http://www.onf.ca/film/jack_rabbit

 Welcome to the Jacques-Cartier National Park

Check out this nice short film about the new area I just opened this year. Here’s a nice video with my boss, Mathieu Brunet, a real Tele Ripper

So I dream of this place becoming the center of the local community to come and ski in the backcountry, it’s only 30 minutes from the city. I also hope to become the place for newbies to come and chalenges there skills before going to the regionally famous Chic-Chocs where terrain becomes complex.

And you can be sure that I also want to create a place for people to learn about BC, about there responsibility and about there privilege. You can do anything you want, but you have to stand by those choices.

Welcome to my East coast universe.

Episode 12: Telemark skiing in Thompson Pass Alaska with Matt Kinney

Matt Kinney

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telemark skier Magasine

Follow one of the most dedicated telemark skier on the planet on his journey to ski and pioneer some of the most challenging descent in Valdez Alaska.

Matt Kinney former guide, hiking for his turns for 35 years now, and author of Alaska Backcountry skiing: Valdez and Thompson Pass.

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Links for this Episode:

Matt’s website: Thompsonpass.com

Matt’s equipment:

Skis, Carbon Convert or on Earn Your Turns

Binding, Voile SwitchBack Or on Earn Your Turns

Boot Garmont Kenai

Matt’s Book: Alaska Backcountry Skiing: Valdez and Thompson Pass (I think I’ll buy a copy just as a dream trip coffee table book )

 

In the same idea: here is the link for the movie A Life Ascending

All pictures are curtesy of ThompsonPass.com

Elle Telemark, Girl ripping on Tele and A Milestone for This Blog

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An Anniversary

Last year, at a certain point, I was wondering about the impact of this blog and how I could do better.

I set myself three goals with one of them having more people to start Telemark…

Une partie de la gang

Une partie de la gang

In it’s second year, the Elle Telemark is about the go live.

This year again, it’s Maryse Paquette, a good friend of mine and a true telemark passionate reached out to organized the event.  She also happens to be an ambassador for Oakley Active. Great stuff!

Just to give you an example, last week she organized a White Lips event where she got 60 gals introduced to the Backcountry on alpine, telemark and split board.

So this year again, she organizes every details of Elle Telemark (literally She Telemark) . Once again, it should be a blast.

Great Partners Makes The Difference

With incredible partners like Black Diamond Equipment, LeYéti.com who helps a lot with the rental equipment, Mont Sainte-Anne who is the perfect place for this event and who came back this year really wanting this event to grow… WOW. and it has. We have doubled the number of subscriptions to 40.

It’s a small drop in an ocean of skiers and boarders and it’s nothing like the impact of Dickie Hall with NATO but the goal here is just to have a statement. Telemark has a great image and a lot of people are just waiting for an opportunity to try.

The Next Step

Here and now, I will make a statement. My next goal is going to organise a Kids Telemark event. I’m not sure when, I have no idea how, but it will be my next goal. (maybe I can get Maryse to help me!)

Telemark is the best feeling. There is no reason not to believe it’s going to KEEP growing in the future years

 

 

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