Watch an experienced freeheeler make a perfect tele-turn, and it’s like art. And thanks to Jason Layh, coach of the Tahoe Freeheel Youth Program at Alpine Meadows, it’s not a dying art.

Last month, team members Bennett Drummond and Kami Abi-Nader won the Junior Divisions for the Mountain Hardwear Big Mountain Telemark Festival, skiing Keyhole on day one and The Buttress on day two.

They dominated at the Grand Targhee tour stop too.

“We’re headed to Crested Butte in two weeks, and if they do it again they’ll have swept the entire national series,” Layh said.

The competition runs March 17-19 at Crested Butte.

The program started 5 years ago, an offspring of the Freeride Program, Layh said, growing to 15 members this year.

“It’s just different, something new to try,” Abi-Nader said. “It hurts more,” she added with a smile.

Telemark skiing allows the team to really move around the mountain into different terrain, so a big part of the program has been teaching the team mountain awareness, Layh said, and many athletes have there Avalanche 1 certification.

“They need the head skills to match the foot skills,” Layh said.

Abi-Nader said she thinks Alpine Meadows is a good fit for the team, with diverse terrain accessible by traversing or hiking a little away from the lifts.

“We’re broadening the things we can do rather than just staying in the same runs,” Abi-Nader said.

Competing at Alpine Meadows, Drummond said he liked the Keyhole on the first day of competition, where the juniors were able to tackle the same terrain as the pros.

To learn more, go to the Tahoe Freeheel webpage here.

Freeheelers tackled The Buttress, dropping cliffs, straight-lining shoots and making perfect tele-turns. One may have made a call to his mother mid-line (GNAR points) and another rocked a helmet, boxer shorts and knee pads for his run.

Keep an eye on the Tough Guy Productions page for results, and check back here for video of all the action.

Competitors dropped big cliffs, threw a couple flips, and one guy was even skiing with wooden sticks for polls and a raccoon tail trailing behind his helmet.

Keep an eye on the Tough Guy Productions page for results, and come out to see the finals of The Buttress on Sunday!

But for now, have a look at a slideshow of all today’s action:

Dance Party at the Ice Bar!

You gotta be good to hang in a hula hoop contest while wearing ski or snowboard boots.

Oh yeah!

The Band Wagon brought the beats.

Snowball fight!!!

Drink specials were flowing…

… and the barbecue was cooking.

The crowd.

Game on!

These snow artists created an Alpine Meadows logo and a chairlift.

And these kids managed to sculpt a free-standing A!

On the other side of the mountain, Alpenglow Sports put on a demo day with the latest and greatest in alpine touring and telemark backcountry gear.

Jason with Dynafit shows off Dynafit skis, bindings and boots.

All sorts of telemark and alpine touring boots were on hand.

Getting ready to try out the fat Black Diamond Megawatts!

The first stop you’re going to want to make is at Estelle Sports, where ski and snowboard jackets and pants (excluding fleeces and base layers) are 20 percent off for the holiday weekend! (January 14-17).

Then on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. you can test-drive the latest alpine touring and telemark gear, free of charge, from brands like Black Diamond, Dynafit, K2, Garmont, Scarpa, G3, Rotefella and Ski Trab at the Alpenglow Demo Day.

If that’s not enough, THE party of the weekend will be at Alpine Meadows’ famous Ice Bar, located at the base of the Sherwood Chair. The sun-drenched hot spot features cold beverages and barbecued bratwurst – and the party adds a hula-hoop contest, music from the one-and-only band wagon, a snow sculpture contest, and the inevitable snowball fights that are par for the course.

Drink specials at the Ice Bar Kick Off Party include the Naughty Toddy – ($5 Hot Toddy – Ice Bar Style), and Anderson Valley Boont Amber Ale, also going for $5.

So come on up and enjoy the great snow, beautiful weather, fantastic events, and the long weekend!

Competitors went BIG, picking tough lines through Keyhole and throwing down killer tele turns. In the end the best men and women won, and the rest of us drank not a few beers

Thanks to all the competitors, volunteers and spectators for making this one of the coolest events of the year for us again. And thanks again to Tough Guy Productions for putting on another killer Telemark event!

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Check out the video from last year.

RESULTS

women
1 megan michelson
2 kate cardamone
3 paige brady
4 mackenzie mailly
5 sydney fuller
6 amelia jervey
7 tiffan wannamaker
8 dana lark…in
9 shaun raskin

junior men
1 luke cutler
2 grant johnson
3 sam bockius
4 kenyon clayton
5 bevan white
6 holden reed

junior women
1 hannah fasiang
2 julia masur
3 kami abi-nader
4 klara wohlers

Lynn handing out telemark demo from Black Diamond

Wes showing us his tele style

Not every event is on the hill… a snow safety seminar for Alpine Club members and season pass holders was held above the Alpine Bar.  The presentation was given by Evan and Gene, two of Alpine’s Professional Ski Patrolmen and Avalanche Forecasters.  With over 40 years experience between the two, a power point slide show gave skiers/riders an up close look at the surface we enjoy sliding on.

Evan, Alpine Meadows Professional Patrol

And for the Kid’s, Alpine held a scavenger hunt powered by, Flaik, the ultimate real time tracking solution. The course takes children to various areas of the resort, encouraging them to have fun exploring the mountain while looking for hidden objects. The scavenger hunt uses Flaik to track exactly where participants are, have been, their vertical feet, speed, runs completed, and objects found throughout the event.  To find our more about Flaik at Alpine Meadows, check out our Kid’s Ski and Snowboard Programs.

Don’t even think we forgot about the apres part of skiing! In celebration of what we all love…SNOW!  The party was held In the Last Chair Bar, while SambaDa rocked the house with their funk reggae beats.  The crowd was shakin’ as Alpine’s legendary Diva’s, Team RAD, hosted the event.

While the adults were playing in the Last Chair, the first Junior Alpine Club party took place in the Mezzanine.  Junior Alpine Club is for 18 and under. The Mezzanine had ping pong, pool, soft-tip darts, and a raffle giving away cool gear! What a great place to bring your kids while you relax at the Last Chair.

To make sure you are a part of the upcoming events happening at Alpine Meadow, check out Alpine’s Events Calendar. We look forward to seeing YOU at the next event!

MS

Keyhole Slopes @ Alpine Meadows

The BIG picture of Alpine Meadows.