CRJ: The Chronicle Of A Freeskiing Icon

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David Wise Becomes Athlete-Owner of 4FRNT

4FRNT officially announced today the David Wise is now an athlete-owner in The Company.

Wiley Miller & David Wise At X Games Tignes

Wiley Miller is Real Ski Backcountry Fan Favorite; David Wise wins Silver in Men's Superpipe Final; Latest Tech Talk Released.

4FRNT Annouces Four New Web Series

4FRNT Skis announces the release of four new web series, each of which will contain four webisodes to be released over the course of the 2012-2013 ski season.

Quiver Killer Inserts

  Since I became involved with ski production I have wanted the ability to incorporate threaded inserts for mounting bindings applications. Obviously there are many varying factors that prevent the use of pre installed inserts in current ski production within the ski industry:  -Variety of binding hole patterns between binding brands and differences between boot sole lengths from size to size directly effect hole placements are the main limiting factors. I have been dreaming of the day when skiers would be able to utilize threaded inserts technology to mount skis for years:  -The ability to interchanged one set of bindings between multiple sets of skis would be awesome.  -Being able to move your toe piece mounting potion, forward/back to adjust boot centre mount potion and experiment with the "sweet spot" on your skis to match your personal preference.  -The necessity for a versatile setup has now grown exponentially with the recent success/acceptance of Dynafit/Tech touring bindings, the ability to swap Alpine bindings with Tech on a single pair of skis is paramount.  This dream is now a reality thanks to Quiver Killer's beautifully crafted stainless steel inserts, welcome to the future of binding mounting technology!!!I just installed my first pair of Quiver Killer's into a pair of my Renegades for a set of Dynafit's new Radical FT 12 binding and am very exited!  The installation process was pretty straight forward, I used a drill press to drill out my original screw holes as well as tap/thread the new larger holes for the inserts. Quiver Killer recommends using a drill press for these two steps of the installation process to assure drilling/threading straight holes for best results. There is something to be said about tightening your binding screws and feeling a decisive end stopping point, no worries about over tightening and striping the holes you just drilled in your skis. Quiver Killer has a variety of M5 (metric) stainless steel machine screws, that they sell in sets specifically for binding models/brands, no guess work involved. Anyway just wanted to share this exciting new product. I was extremely happy to discover that something that I had been thinking a lot about over the past few years already exists and is available. It kind of takes some of the fun out of the idea but it also eliminates all guess work/experimentation from the process but also allows me to test them out that much sooner. I will keep you posted on future developments on Quiver Killer's, I recommend you check them out for yourself at: www.quiverkiller.com   Cheers, Eric Hjorleifson  

Nurmes Water Ramps

Hello there. I've been hitting water ramps at a town called Nurmes in eastern Finland. My family's summer home is located just a mile away from the ramp so it's always been easy to practice here. I've been here for almost two months, but haven't written about it because of my incapability of taking any pictures of the ramp to support my story. And as we know, there's no good blog without good pictures. I guess I've been too excited about jumping and constantly forgotten to take my camera to a session.  Anyway, today I came up with a brilliant idea. I remembered that I do have a picture of the ramp, just not the most recent one, and as everything here in Nurmes looks just about the same as it did two years ago (when this particular picture was taken) I figured that nobody would notice the difference. Here it is, Matti Räty. I posted this photo because that was the only one I had. But now that it's done, I got kind of interested in why I actually have only one photo. I've never been particularly keen on taking photos of my life. Why? Because I like living my life much more than documenting it. I've seen people ruining their holidays because of the constant stress of getting every single moment filmed. What's the point of visiting a museum and look pieces of art though a camera lens, when perfect pictures of all those works are available on the museums webpage? Or have you been to a rock concert recently and been amazed by that massive amount of cellphones and digital cameras pointing towards the stage? For me it seems like people are not even having fun at concerts anymore, because everyone's so focused on their own documenting "performance". Search any band on YouTube and you'll find hundreds of shitty quality videos of live gigs constantly interrupted by drunken people, or by other filmers desperately trying to raise their camera hands just an inch higher. How cool is that?   

COC!

So ive arrived in canada for another epic summer at Camp of Champions! I'll be coaching for sessions B,C, and D, but for session A i got to just shred around. Long story short I did a little feature for the new rope tows.  Check it out! [video:http://www.vimeo.com/26046106 750x600]

Camp of Champions - Day 1

Day 1 of Team week at Camp of Champions started on a low. Will Berman, Global Team rider, was refused entry into Canada due to some straight up BS related to his one-way ticket and the fact he's a pro skier coming to train in Whistler for two weeks. Rule of thumb, Canadian customs people don't obviously ski so be prepared to surface all necessary paperwork and bank statements on request when entering Canada. A total bummer and a hell of a downer to start things here in the Great White North.Proceeding along, we loaded team shreds Andy Partridge, Finn Anderson, Hugo Pelletier, Mack Jones, Keltie Hansen as well myself, Matt Sterbenz onto what was one of the best first days I can recall on Horstman Glacier. The terrain was finely shaped and the weather did its job. Subtle clouds rolling in and out but visibility stayed clear throughout the day. The hot lap was the three-jump middle line straight to private handle-tow. The lift system inside the camp moves slower than the speed of the T-Bar but its not crowded so we could lap fast. The monster pipe was fun for looks. A bit too big for my liking given the first day routine but the flyout-tranny at the bottom set up the most perfect 12 foot slightly under-vert tranny I've ever and that proved to be pure bliss for backies. The airbags where the feature most campers sent after lunch. I dropped a switch back for the first time in years into it, it was fun. Air bags are a trip.Following camp we sent a team Paintball session just outside of town. It was a really wooded venue, lots of forest courses and our team of coaches and riders slayed some campers but to their defense, they slayed us too. Some kids where name dropping paintball gun specs to the guy running the show; we found that all pretty funny as well intimidating. We closed the evening with a ten person dinner at Mongolie Grill which is totally boss for getting veggies and protein after a long day of heaven on earth.Stay tuned for day two, we're planning for a bit more clouds which should lead to some wicked rail sessions captured by team filmer in attendance, Sam Peters, for our team release of "Loyalty" dropping fall 2011.Peace

A VISIT TO SPY HQ

SO I MADE A VISIT FOR MY FIRST TIME TO THE SPY HEADQUARTERS, LOCATED IN CARLSBAD CA... THIS IS A ROUGH CUT OF THEIR IN HOUSE CATALOG, YOURS TRULY IN THE MIX KEVIN CASILLO IS THE SNOW SEGMENT MANAGER AND WAS THE ONE TO SHOW ME AROUND FOR THE DAY.  BIG THINGS COMING OUT NEXT WINTER IN THIER EYEWEAR... THREE NEW GOGGLE FRAMES TO DROP IN THE NEXT YEAR AND A HALF! SO PUMPED TO BE A PART OF SUCH AN AMAZING COMPANY...

Announcing the 4FRNT Team Movie - Loyalty

4FRNT Skis is excited to officially announce our year-long movie project. About this time last year we sat down with a bunch of our athletes and staff and came up with the idea to create a 4FRNT Team movie. After the success of last year's Tech Talk series we knew we had the ability to create an entire movie, we just needed the right equipment and planning.Over the summer we started the task of getting a professional video camera kit, setting up a dedicated editing station, and working out athlete and shot lists. We also got a half-dozen GoPro HDs from the folks at GoPro which were great to send off with athletes on their different trips and adventures. We are also collaborating with other film companies we have relationships with in order to get footage above and beyond what we were able to shoot ourselves. Here's the teaser for the movie. Stay tuned over the summer for more trailers, and for the whole movie to be released in the Fall.Athletes:Eric HjorleifsonWiley MillerCody BarnhillFinn AndersonWill BermanMack JonesEirik FinsethTorgrim VoleAustin RamaleyMatt SterbenzNiklas Karlstromand more.......Locations:UtahRetallack, BCWhistler, BCAustriaCaliforniaColoradoChicagoJapanMontanaand others.......

Jess Warll's Spring

Jess Warll sent us this update on her spring."After healing up my collarbone for a few weeks I started shredding/ filming my with roomies in sunny/warm Breckenridge and Keystone.From Colorado I headed off to sunny California for some Mammoth shred. They had a sick stopover with perfect speed, great weather and awesome people.From Cali Maude and I took on the 20 hr drive to Whistler. Ending on a great note; no sleep, runnin on redbull, and getting lucky enough to have the car searched. Finally made it to Whistler for WSI. One of the sickest courses I've ridden all year, great jumps and cool rails. Unfortunately, the first jump didn't feel the same way about me and I blew my ACL on the first jump of the course in practice. So gymin' it and getting buff for me. BUT for all of you, head to Whistler this summer and hit up COC. I'll be hangin out there and Maude Raymond will be coaching and there may be a special appearance from Canadian Olympic halfpipe team member Keltie Hansen.Come check it out!"

VALDEZ Slide Show April 2011

Some images from my trip to the Heart of the Chugach... http://vimeo.com/23070183    

"Like" it?

So I bit the bullet and finally answered the call of duty to start a page on facebook... in the process of building it still but if ya wanna ad one more to your mess, i'm throwing it up to keep everyone up to date on the even more web networking haps.... mucho gracias! http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Wiley-Miller/158121234250746

F.U.B.A.R

[video:http://vimeo.com/23548393 100x100]Back home in Norway and I got to say, I kind of miss the US of A. The snow, the park and the locals that took so good care of us. Not to mention that I went against my own principles and went home after I got an offer from Toy Soldier Productions to film with them in Montana for two weeks, stupid stupid stupid(hope you guys are reading this)!!! But here I am and after 3 really good weeks it is a luxury problem to be complaining, still though!!!!     After I came home we had some killer days with some real good pow and when the snow was “used up” MegaPark was ready to be torn up. The next days were just as good with sunny weather and a nice slopestyle with a BIG jump at the top. I’ll see if I can make an edit a little later, I am kind of slow when it comes to computers if you haven’t noticed. Back to F.U.B.A.R! Right after MegaPark I went to Oslo for my surgery, which I got really fast by the way and that is good, but now it is a waiting game. So far so good, but here the other day the wait got longer. Saga put out an edit from my US trip and although I only have two jumps Jordan writes so nice about the team and the effort we put in. I still feel I have so much undone and to prove with still a lot of time before I am 100%. Hungrier than ever I am left back to watch other peoples summer sessions and what I did this season. Happy summer everyone.   Erik    

up to speed

Hello Interwebs! Finn Anderson here after a long hiatus from the blogmonster.   I most recently checked in from UT, after hitting pyramid gap. That was in late January i believe. Let me catch you up to speed.  A week later, i found myself in Helena, MT on an urban mission with Toy Soldier.  Helena is a great town. Although it's the capitol of Montana, it's not very large and not very city- like. My favorite aspect of it though is it's hills. As you may know, there isn't too much opportunity for urban rails in a flat town, and Helena is quite the opposite. It is very hilly, and as a result, it's a mecca. We hit three features in a day and a half- a wall ride, an up rail, and lastly a loooong down rail- not bad for such a short time period. And, on top of those three, we had about 5 more ready to be hit. Unfortunately, that last down rail i'm talking about was hungry. She chomped me good. Here's a photo about 10 minutes before i dislocated my shoulder:   As you can see, the landing wasn't exactly prime. While attempting a blind 2 out i caught my edge and landed full on my right shoulder. Before that, the only thing i had ever dislocated was my pinky finger, so the feeling of my shoulder out of it's socket was very alien to me shocking. The gravel also gave me a mean laceration on my thigh and i couldn't walk so we had to call an ambulance...which isn't too good for the 'ol moneybags if you know what i mean. This rail put me out for two months.  Which brings us to about 3 weeks ago, when i went on my first trip after my injury. If you've been following the 4FRNT blogs at all, you would have read about the 4FRNT Twisted Sisters in Kirkwood, CA. That was my first adventure after my shoulder, and absolutely perfect for me. Because it wasn't a film trip or a slopestyle or halfpipe comp it allowed me to slide, rather than jump, back into ski mode. It felt weird to be back on my shredblades, and i was super weary of my shoulder. At this point in my injury i was 6 weeks in, and my doc was advising me against skiing. The chances of it popping out in a crash were immense. Nonetheless, i took a bunch of crashes and my shoulder remained intact. Most importantly, my confidence was able to return- which is huge in this sport. If you haven't seen any of the videos from Twisted Sisters- here's all of them in one big post! [video:http://vimeo.com/21783445 700x500] [video:http://vimeo.com/21855547 700x500] [video:http://vimeo.com/22060353 700x500] [video:http://vimeo.com/22161274 700x500] After Twisted Sisters I b-lined it for Whistler, BC for the TELUS Intersection competition. TSP had received an invitation to compete in a 7-day film extravaganza. Each team (Voleurz, Family Tree, Dendrite, NuuLife, Videgrass/Peepshow, Toy Soldier) had exactly 7 days to compile a 5-7 minute video showcasing the incradible skiing and snowboarding Whistler/Blackcomb has to offer.  Those 7 days were rough. Because we had no snowmobiles and no budget for cat-skiing or heli-skiing, we decided to focus on urban. Being the only crew from out of town, this was the one aspect of skiing we could conquer and we spent every waking hour trying as hard as we could to get urban shots. It was Sandy Boville, Dash Kamp, and myself shoveling every day and skiing every night for 7 days straight. In the end, it was incredibly fun, and although i'm extremely proud of our final product, the top honor had to be handed to Voleurz. They killed it. So, big ups to fellow 4FRNT-er Mack Jones and the rest of the Voleurz crew!  I would post our video, but so far TELUS hasn't posted it anywhere, and it looks as though we are going to try to keep it private so we can use the shots we got for the upcoming TSP film, Set Your Sights. I will however, post Voleurz's. Check out Mack! [video:http://vimeo.com/22721556 700x500] So, that's it for now. I gotta drive to Moonlight Basin right now for a park shoot. Thanks for reading- if that is, you got through the whole thing. More to come next week!

A fat sack... what goes in my backpack

Pemby

Just got to Pemberton BC. T Rains, Freedle and i are on a mission to get after the ice capped peaks of the coast range... Tres Amigos... Breakfast... Lines... weather has been a huge battle up here. This shot was taken during our 5 minutes of sunlight in this zone.  Freedle and Tanner scope prospective gold claims...

Twisted Sisters Goes Off in Kirkwwod

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 12, 2011 ? Kirkwood, California   ?The Twisted Sisters comp was the coolest event I?ve ever been a part of!? -Josh Daiek, 1st place, 2011 North American Freeskiing Championships   The first weekend in April saw an assault on Kirkwood Mountain Resort unlike any before as the Twisted Sisters freeride competition, presented by 4FRNT Skis came to town.   4FRNT team members Wiley Miller, Matt Sterbenz, Finn Anderson, and Austin Ramaley spent the afternoon of March 31st in the California sunshine building six features on the steep face known as the Cliff Chutes at Kirkwood.   With the course in place and head judge Pep Fujas on site, the scene was set for the big mountain/freestyle contest to go off! ?From my perspective I feel that events like the Twisted Sisters is the future of skiing.  The Combination of slopestyle and big mountain allows riders to display their creativity, trickery and comfort riding in a mountain setting.  It?s fun to watch because there are so many possibilities and nothing is groomed.? -Pep Fujas, head judge/skiing hero/course designer for Red Bull Cold Rush Click here for video update from the course construction Click here for video update from the course inspection   Day one left everyone impressed with the level of amateur talent coming out of the Lake Tahoe area.  With a sponsorship contract from 4FRNT going to the winner of the ?open? category, a lot was on the line and the competition was fierce.  Additionally, the top five skiers from the day would be given the opportunity to compete for the cash purse in the pro category on Sunday. At the end of the day only a few points separated the top 5 competitors but it was Kirkwood local Douglas Carr coming away with the win and the invitation to join the 4FRNT team!   ?I?m really excited about this opportunity to be a part of 4FRNT! Truly a dream coming alive!? -Douglas J. Carr, 1st place Twisted Sisters Open Category Competition and the newest member of the 4FRNT team   Click here for video update from Day 1 of competition   Day two saw the pros take the course to battle it out for the cash purse, provided by SNOWBOMB.COM (Thank you Snowbomb!) but it was the five amateur athletes from day one who set the bar high.  Even with big names such as Wiley Miller, Tim Dutton, Skogen Sprang, and Josh Daiek (among others) in the lineup, two of the amateur athletes from Saturday made the final round and at the end of the day, Davis Souza from Truckee, CA (who placed third on day one to qualify for the pro event) took home first place!   ?I was really impressed with the enthusiasm and effort put into (the event) from everyone at 4FRNT who made it happen!? -Davis Souza, winner, Twisted Sisters pro category competition   Click here for video update from Day 2 of competition   In addition to the high level of talent that was on display throughout the entire weekend, the level of camaraderie among the athletes was equally impressive.  The energy was high, the course was fun, and everyone was stoked, regardless of where they finished in the standings.   At the end of the weekend, the most important thing was that Twisted Sisters was able to raise some funds for the High Fives Foundation, a non-profit organization based in Truckee, CA that helps athletes who have sustained life altering injuries or illnesses get back on their feet.  For more info, please visit: www.highfivesfoundation.org.   ?The course was absolutely amazing, the talented field threw down and the bar was raised for all future big mountain/park infused competitions.? -Adam Baillargeon, Marketing Director, High Fives Foundation   Click HERE to view complete results   ?It was really one of the coolest sessions I?ve been a part of, EVER!? -Skogen Sprang, freeskiing legend   About 4FRNT Skis 4FRNT is a project we started to form leadership within the ski community. It began in 2002; during a period when Freeskiing was becoming established yet the products on the market struggled for direction. We set out to assemble a company that embraced the talent and knowledge of professional skiers. The mission was to attract the sports best riders, provide a platform for them to design signature products and by result, become leaders in the sport and progress the state of Freesking. Entering our ninth year, we have matured in our design for both signature and general 4FRNT branded products yet remain committed to our core values and our enduring commitment to our mission statement.   About Kirkwood Mountain Resort Kirkwood Mountain Resort is located atop the Sierra Crest with a geographical advantage that accounts for the lightest and driest snow in the Lake Tahoe region. With an annual snowfall of over 600 inches, it is easy to see why Kirkwood has become synonymous with deep powder skiing and riding. With over 2,300 acres of legendary terrain and an intimate mountain village setting, Kirkwood Mountain Resort provides destination guests a perfect backdrop for an energizing getaway.   About Snowbomb.com SnowBomb was started in 1997 with one man and his relentless pursuit of a better (and cheaper) way to get on the hill. Now, the team is larger than that one man and his dream, but our vision is still the same. SnowBomb is about more than bringing you discounted skiing and snowboarding. SnowBomb is about helping you find out what other skiers and snowboarders are up to and to get all the information you need before heading for the mountain.   2011 Twisted Sisters was presented by: 4FRNT Skis and Kirkwood Mountain Resort Supporting sponsors: Snowbomb.com, Smith Optics, Dalbello Boots, Porters Tahoe.com, Backcountry Access, Clif bar, GoPro, Hi Ball energy drink, Teton Gravity Research and the High Fives Foundation.

2011 Valdez Highlights- April 2-8

[video: 2011 VALDEZ, AK Highlights 4/2-4/8 from Jason Scheben on Vimeo. 100x100]

Finnish Championships

Two days after Andorra Total Fight I got a phone call from the Finnish ski association’s representative who kindly suggested me to attend Finland’s national championships. I didn’t really know what to say. I sure was confident about competing again, but on the other hand this season was supposed to be dedicated to training only. Anyway, after a couple of hours of mixed feelings I ended up packing my bag again and left for Ruka. I arrived at Ruka in Wednesday evening. Slopestyle took place a day after and the level was insane! There were tons of new kids I had never heard of who were skiing like pros. The course was excellent and many sick doubles were thrown on the big kicker, not to mention the rail tricks, I still can’t believe how some of those kids could nail that super technical rail run every single time. I was lucky enough to make it to the finals, even though the training time for the course was limited. My run was switch bio ten tail, switch right seven japan, switch 270 in 270 out, 270 on back 270 out and a back switch up. With that run I took sixth, which was much worse than I’ve used to in national championships, but instead of the result I tried to think about the way I skied that day. After all, it wasn’t that bad. I skied well at my current level and doubles and other hard stuff could wait. Halfpipe comp took place on Sunday and I had two days of good skiing in between the comps. The weather was horrible. In the first run it was so foggy that the judges couldn’t see the first two hits. Later on the first run’s results were cancelled and the organizers decided to run a competition based on only one run. As the weather didn’t clear up the judges were forced to move to middle of the pipe’s deck, where the visibility to the both ends was decent. My run was alley oop, nine, back to back flairs, air to fakie and switch five. I was thinking of changing the two last hits to alley oop flat three and switch seven, but with the one run format I wanted to stick to an easier run. That was enough for first place! Despite the victory I knew that the level of halfpipe couldn’t quite match the level of slopestyle. It’s interesting how slopestyle in Finland has taken huge leaps forward, while halfpipe level has remained where it was in 2008 (when I won with almost same run). I pondered this for a while and found three possible reasons: First: The lack of halfpipes. At the moment Finland has only few halfpipes compared to hundreds of jumps and rails in every resort. Second: The lack of good halfpipes. You cannot progress in shitty conditions. Even the pipe at Ruka wasn’t in a proper competition shape. We lack both the money and the skill to build good pipes. At the moment no resort in Finland has a pipe machine capable of shaping a 22 feet wall (although this might change in near future) and even the smaller pipes tend to be sketchy. I’m not surprised if kids want to hit jumps and rails instead. Third: The attitude. Let’s face it, halfpipe is indeed more difficult to ski and to enjoy than slopestyle is. The majority of the competitors at Ruka had some serious problems with basic technique and we saw many amazing slopestyle riders not even making it over the lip. Skiing halfpipe requires lots of long term training, while jumps and especially rails are much more accessible to new tricks. It’s fairly easy to have fun on a slopestyle course but before you can have fun in halfpipe, you need to learn the basics and that might take a while. So let’s hope we’ll find that attitude, especially now that the Olympics are around the corner.