Pics-Another Spruce 120 Telemark set up

[jjue]

This season , I got some email from a couple of guys who were interested in putting telemark bindings on their Spruce 120. Here is some pics that Adam G sent me of his very nice set up . . He used a home plastic riser set up similar to the one I use. Telemark set ups on skiboards have the toe of the boot positioned at the center point on the board rather then the center of the boot at the center point . This allows the rear board not to dive in soft snow if the heel is raised in a traditional telemark turn , they also can be ridden with traditional flat footed "steered" skiboard techniques by leaning forward , or " unweighting alpine " ski techniques off the tail . Here are some nice pic's of Adam's set up :



http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l88/jjue/sprucegobi.jpg

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l88/jjue/sprucegobi2.jpg

[Mark]

nice ! did you need the telemark style boots to ride in this manner ? are you still able to transmit power from the entire boot to the ski ? or is telemarking more for mellow riding ?

I've never tried it but it looks like alot of fun with the right conditions.

[CrazyBoy-1]

I've also wondered about the ability of tele bindings to transmit enough power to the edges for hard riding on skiboards. At the same time, I'd be very interested in trying it out since it does look like an interesting feeling. I'd go with the Bomber Bishops for sure, sooo pretty.

[jjue]

modern telemark bindings and plastic boots transfer power to the edges very well . guys are driving big fat long skis with the same bindings and boots I am using on skiboards ..
the bomber bishop tele binding is amazing and transfers power to the edges extremely well ,
I like plate telemark bindings like the bishop as I get excellent edge control both in telemark mode and in regular skiboard mode with the foot flat to the ski ... Telemark bindings are similar to non release skiboard bindings but just allow the heel to ride free , you need telemark boots that have a bellows in the front to flex your forefoot to get a proper telemark turn ..


Here is a nice park /free ride telemark film.. imagine doing this kind of stuff on skiboards with out poles ... that is where freeride skiboard telemark progression is headed :)! unfortunately , there is only a few of us riding skiboards with telemark bindings, so it may take a while to get there ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPE8ar4qCiQ

Here is a pic of my current telemark line up ..

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l88/jjue/DSCN1150.jpg

Here is a pic of a telemark boot in the Bomber Bishop Tele binding , unfortunately this baby costs $335 a bit more then the bomber skiboard binding , a bit more then I wanted to pay for a tele binding http://www.bombertele.com/images/boot_binding_side_med.jpg

[CrazyBoy-1]

That was a really cool vid. I liked the fakie tele riding toward the end. It looked like those guys were having a lot of fun, and I can definitely see doing that stuff on skiboards poleless. It didn't look like those guys had their heels free for jumps and rails though, so really the free heel is only unique for carving etc. right?

So you basically have to use telemark specific boots to ride properly? That kinda sucks cause I love my Deeluxe boots. I suppose if I found a used pair on ebay I'd consider picking them up to experiment with.

[MindLink]

I found that (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAwTxpE7THk) video much more fascinating, since you see much more of the actual telemark-technique (even though there's no rails and stuff). Looks very smooth ;-)

[jjue]

Crazyboy-1, yeah , rails /jumps are done in regular ski /skiboard style , the entrance and exit to rails can be sometimes entered into telemark style or exited telemark style , standard or switch ..

the boot and the binding are both important , the bellows in the front of the boot allows the boot to flex .. the rear ski in a telemark turn is skied with the ball of the foot , not the toe as some folks think .., a boot that does not flex does not allow the proper ball of the foot steering of the rear ski .. modern telemark technique is all about getting a bit higher and more of the forefoot on the ski , like this

http://www.telemarktips.com/Resources/FSurmasStance1.jpg

Mindlink
thanks for that other link , has lots of cool telemark riding

some guys ride poleless but it is very , very rare ..
http://www.descender.com/issue3/freeride.html

[skierbrent5530]

i remember reading a article or watching a video of some kids in Colorado that tele and they were using twin tips and doing rails and jumps it was very cool
also i thought telemarking was a old people thing (no offence) and seeing kids doing it and that they combined it w/ freestyle was cool

[CrazyBoy-1]

Lol, those ski patrol guys looked like they were having way too much fun. I really liked the glade and mogul bits in that one.

[DennisEvans]

I'm not sure if it's possible to love telemark too much, but you might.:D Just kidding, is it a challenge?

[jjue]

Originally posted by Godofmedia
I'm not sure if it's possible to love telemark too much, but you might.:D Just kidding, is it a challenge?

Yeah , it takes awhile to get it right ... but the turn has a cool feeling to it ... I particularly like the feel of the telemark turn in pow and soft snow ... I tried a bit of switch on my Tele skiboards , but it was very awkward and I have to get the rhythym down better , you need to switch leads back and forth as you see in the vid and there is a rhythym to it ... I think if you can get the switch stuff down .. it would be really cool .. I have only seen switch riding on vids .. never , ever seen anyone do it on tele skis at the resort , in fact , I have never ever seen anyone ride tele skis without poles at the resort either .. although I have seen a number of folks riding twins without poles...