Helly Hansen

Check out the Freeride Spirit show on Eurosport. HH professional, Aurelien DuCroz gives you a sneak peek into the freeride scene and his life.

Pretty cool, guys - check it out!

http://video.eurosport.fr/sports-d-hiver/freeride-spirit-epis.-1_vid115034/video.shtml

(Lake Wanaka, New Zealand – August 15, 2009) –The North Face Big Mountain Finals at The Volkl NZ Freeski Open came to a spectacular close at The Remarkables Ski Area today with New Zealand Freeride skiers Geoff Small and Janina Kuzma crowned champions once again.

Small, of Wanaka, has now claimed his eighth title since 1996, while Kuzma, also of Wanaka made it her fifth straight victory.

Small wooed the judges as he put down the run of the day with his signature style of skiing.  Calculated line choice and huge airs off massive cliff drops gave Small a score of 8.17 out of a possible 10.00. Hot on his heels was fellow Kiwi Sam Smoothy, scoring 7.97 while Swiss skier Jérémie Heitz secured third with 7.67.

“I knew I had to do something different today at The Remarkables and I’m really stoked to win,” said Small who dedicated his victory to close friend who recently lost his life in an avalanche.

Kuzma, who took out the women’s category with a score of 8.65 out of 10 is currently ranked seventh on the Nissan Freeride World Tour after a stellar Northern Hemisphere campaign.

“I’m just so happy to win again," Kuzma said. "Stoked to have such good conditions. I found my line and stuck to it.”

Sweden’s Rebecka Eriksson, who also competes on the Freeride World Tour placed second, while Lorraine Huber, Austria, took out third.

WELCHES, Oregon (July 13, 2009) – The difference between action sport films is often just music, locations and athletes where the edit formula is the same.  Skiing is about more than the latest tricks and best action from the previous season.  The new motion picture film from Nimbus, “Contrast”, takes a different approach to both documenting and editing a ski film by examining the difference between objects, people, concepts, color, and the skiing of Pep Fujas, Andy Mahre, Chris Benchetler, Blake Nyman and Eric Pollard.

“Contrast” is a two-disc DVD set that includes the “Hunting Yeti” and “En Route” video series.  This premium DVD is a true collectors edition with a total of nine different films.  “Contrast” was shot in high-definition while following storms through Slovakia, Austria, Japan, Canada and America.      

Nimbus Independent and Poor Boyz Productions are proud to announce the launch of a new event series, the “Triple Threat Tour.”  The new Triple Threat Tour is a separately branded event that will encompass three parts: photo/art exhibit, film showings of “Contrast” and “Everyday Is A Saturday” and an after party.  The new tour will hit over 50 stops in North America, then expand across the globe with athlete appearances, poster signings, product giveaways and lots of free gear.  Please visit www.poorboyz.com/tour to find a tour stop near you.

Nimbus Independent projects are presented by K2 Skis and supported by: Helly Hansen, Oakley, Atomic, evo, Tecnica, Marker, Dakine, Dragon, Bern, BNQT, VAS Entertainment, Line, Poor Boyz Productions, Freeskier and Newschoolers. 

Nimbus Independent is building a new business model for filmmaking and what it means for audiences, athletes and sponsors through online digital distribution.  The “En Route” episode series is syndicated online and available on TV through The Ski Channel.    The feature film “Contrast” will be available on DVD, as well as sold online as HD computer, iPhone or iPod downloads off of the Nimbus website.  Check the Nimbus website regularly for blog, photo and video updates at www.nimbusindependent.com.

MSP Films presents, “IN DEEP: The Skiing Experience”
CRESTED BUTTE, Colorado (June 29, 2009) – MSP Films’ new release, “IN DEEP: The Skiing Experience,” debuts on September 19th in Boulder, CO at the Boulder Theater.  The teaser is live and the film is now available for pre-order at www.skimovie.com <http://www.skimovie.com/> . The first 1000 pre-orders will get $5.00 off the regular DVD price, and every US order comes with a free one-year subscription to Powder Magazine.
The 2009 season gave MSP the opportunity to take an original look at the sport of skiing. “The format of the film is going to be a fresh approach for MSP this year,” said Executive Producer, Murray Wais. “We captured so much epic footage this winter, we could have put out five teasers like this.”  “Haines, AK was the ultimate trip because everything came together,” added skier Eric Hjorliefson. “We had great weather, great snow, and we were able to ski everything we wanted to, which usually never happens.”
 
MSP was also faced with tragedy this year when long time friend and star skier Shane McConkey died in a BASE jumping accident.  In this film MSP will feature a McConkey tribute segment that will highlight his incredible career as a pro skier.  Each tour stop will have a contest to see who can dress up as the best Saucer Boy with prizes being given out nightly.  “Shane McConkey was the greatest ski film star of our time, in addition to being an incredible person and a loyal friend. We all miss him deeply," said Co-Founder, Steve Winter.
“IN DEEP” features the best skiers in the world including Mark Abma, Sean Pettit, Eric Hjorleifson, Daron Rahlves, Henrik Windstedt, Chris Davenport, Bobby Brown, Colby West, TJ Schiller, Mike Douglas, Kaj Zackrisson, James Heim, Hugo Harrisson, Rory Bushfield, PK Hunder, Ingrid Backstrom, Jacob Wester, Russ Henshaw, Henrik Harlaut, Alexis Godbout, Michelle Parker, JT Holmes, Sammy Carlson, Chris Rubens and Shane McConkey. 
“IN DEEP” is shot in high-definition on location at Squaw Valley, Keystone, British Columbia, Italy, Haines, Sweden, Crested Butte, and additional destinations worldwide.  The MSP Film Tour visits over 200 locations across the globe this fall, featuring athlete appearances, poster signings, after parties, live entertainment, and more.  Please visit www.skimovie.com/tour <http://www.skimovie.com/tour>  to find out when "IN DEEP" will be at a location near you.
MSP Films would like to thank all of their partners for their continued support: Helly Hansen, Subaru, Red Bull, Salomon, Dakine, Discrete, Coreupt, and Powder Magazine.

ABOUT MSP Films:  MSP Films is the leader in action sport filmmaking. The team at MSP works with the best athletes in the world in the most exotic locations in order to capture compelling images in action sports.  Their ultra progressive camera techniques, editing, and production value have earned them many prestigious awards, including 2007 and 2008 Emmy nominations for outstanding cinematography.  For more information about MSP Films, please visit WWW.SKIMOVIE.COM

A couple of weeks ago, Dav, Lorraine Huber (our fellow Kastle rider) and I got to go on this amazing trip to the Lyngen Alps and film with Warren Miller.  We met up in Tromsø city, located 350 kilometers inside the Artic Circle, so we were definitely pretty far north. We got to eat some delicious fish soup and check out town for one day before heading out to Lyngen Lodge the next day, about 3hrs away.

Lyngen Lodge was built about a year ago, located on the spectacular Lyngen Fjord of Northern Norway and is surrounded by magnificent mountains offering unlimited adventure possibilities. Their concept is to combine luxurious accommodation with first class catering and unique guided activities, a concept they definitely live up to!
Owner Graham Austick and lodge manager, Elisabeth Braathen, took very good care of us and fed us more than well. I had an overload of Norwegian dishes I haven’t had in a very long time, especially the fresh fish! One day we even ate the cod Chris got out of the sea only a few hours earlier, amazing! I didn’t really catch any fish, all I did was ruin one of the fishing rods....

We had two successful days during the 5 or 6 full days we had there. Day two at the lodge was supposed to be a day with good weather in the morning and then get cloudy around noon, however, the weather Gods were giving us a full day of awesome light! So we got out there early, got in the boat, a uniquely designed 35ft / 11m cabin RIB boat, which we had a lot of fun with! The cool thing about Lyngen Lodge is their idea of ‘Summit to Sea’, taking the boat out to locations where you hike up the mountains to then ski back down to the boat. Our actual hike was only about 4hrs that day, however with filming and taking pictures we were probably at the summit around 6-7 pm and it took us a couple hours to make our way back. The view was absolutely amazing the whole day and when the sun got closer to sunset, the light was unreal! I had one of my most incredible experiences in the mountains that day for sure! Just check out the pictures!
Special creds to the camera crew; Tom Day, Josh Haskins, Colin Witherill, and Peter Mathis were carrying their heavy gear skinning all over the place without complaining at all! They’re practically machines. ?

I think some of us were actually sort of okay with the fact that the next day turned out to be a weather day as the previous day ended up being about 15 hrs long out there...!
Can’t really complain about a day in the hot tub right in front of the mountains, LOTS of delicious food and snacks, sauna, etc....!

Second day – HELIDAY!
So first off, the fact that we got to get permission for a heli is pretty incredible! It is extremely hard to get one in Norway, as they are very concerned with protecting the environment. However, we got permission to land on certain areas, mainly on this one island, Ulvøya.
Our pilot, Tom, was really cool and flew in the night before. Unfortunately there wasn’t as much snow as we hoped for, so we didn’t get to ski certain areas that we planned on. However, we got some fun skiing in for sure, and we skied along a gnarly edge on Blåtind (name of a peak), which was pretty sick. And again, the light was so amazing all day, especially in the afternoon/evening.

In the end of the week I believe we all felt that we got some good work done even though we only had a few days skiing, we all probably left a couple pounds heavier due to the magnificent food, and it was fun to get to know each other before taking off in all different locations around the world.

Lyngen Lodge was definitely an experience that’ll be remembered for the longest time, I can only hope to get back there one day and ski under the midnight sun!

To check it out more about our trip and Lyngen Lodge here’s some links to their site and our blogs/websites:

Lyngen Lodge - http://www.lyngenlodge.com/
Chris Davenport - http://steepskiing.loopd.com/Members/ChrisDavenport/Blog.aspx
Lorraine Huber - http://www.skilori.com/index.html
Karine Falck-Pedersen - http://www.karinefalckpedersen.com/2009/05/heliskiing.html


Enjoy the summer!
Until next time!

-Karine

There are certain elements needed to enjoy the great sport of skiing, like snow for example. As many of us enjoy it, we are destroying that very environment at the same time, putting the future of our sport at risk. Mark Abma has taken the first step to help create awareness and bring attention to climate change.

Mark has created an environmental advocacy group to help ski resorts and skiers reduce their carbon footprint while still encouraging people to get out and enjoy the mountains. The charity, which was launched last fall, is aptly called “One Step.” Mark is leading by example by creating environmentally conscious products with his sponsors, like his new bamboo ski with Salomon, supporting the Ekolab products at Helly Hansen, working with Dakine on more environmentally friendly gloves and backpacks, and using Smith helmets and goggles made out of recycled medical plastic. But that’s just the beginning.

Mr. Abma realized that a large part of his carbon footprint is driving a big truck with a couple sleds on the back, not to mention accessing terrain with snow mobiles, snow cats and helicopters. Working with Helly Hansen, The Public Works and One Step, he installed a bio diesel converter in his garage. Mark will now get oil from local Whistler restaurants like Sushi Village, take it back to his house and make his own bio diesel fuel to run his big rig. Eventually, he hopes to take this initiative to ski resorts and encouraging restaurants to donate extra oil from their deep fryers to power the areas’ snow cats.

When asked what made Abma start his advocacy group, he explained: “I was inspired to create One Step because I love the mountains and skiing and have been noticing the effects of global climate change all around me. It’s affecting ski communities all over the world and I want to create a voice and model in which we can start to make positive changes towards sustainability and a brighter, greener future.”

During the Telus Ski and Snowboard Festival in Whistler, One Step held a launch party at the Blake Jorgensen Gallery. All proceeds from the evening went towards the Whistler 2020 Energy Task Force. Mr. Abma spoke to the crowd, expressing his concerns and offered some insight. “When we connect leaving the lights on to energy shortages and pollution rising, when we connect our trash to landfills and disease, and when we connect the things that we buy and use to the places they come from, we more fully understand the importance of being mindful,” he said. “Ignoring the causes and effects of what we do and how our actions impact our world will eventually come back to haunt us. When we examine issues through an environmental lens, consciousness is raised and the opportunity for change occurs.”

Mike Douglas, along with his beautiful assistant Kristi Richards, got behind the mic and auctioned off photos by Jorgensen, year-long yoga passes, Lululemon gear, Salomon’s new bamboo skis, clothing by Helly Hansen, Whistler vacation packages and some spa time.

With good friends and supporters in attendance, the kick-off event was a huge success. Look for a lot more to come from Mr. Abma and the One Step organization. For more information visit www.onestepnow.org.

The ninth edition of Røldal Freeride Challenge took place in Norway this weekend. HH athlete, Rebecka Eriksson was second, only 1, 9 points behind Freeride World Tour champion, Ane Enderud after Finals Day 1, but after a convincing run down the final face on day two - the victory was hers. RFC is the sister event to the first of 4 event on the Freeride World Tour next year - Rebecka has already put in her visa application for Sochi FWT 2010!!! Congratulations!

Torgrim Vole won the mens ski category  - a spectacular run - with the highest score ever given in the history of RFC - fast, solid and BIG are just a few key words!

Check out more news from this event on http://roldalfreeride.no/ 

Røldal is a small mountain village nestled between the majestic fjords and the massive Hardangervidda mountain plateau. The area is well known for its snowpack, 5 meters is normal... so this event is a great way to end the season! If you need a place to crash while your there - check out http://hordatun.no/

It’s time for the third and final winter installment of the “En Route” webisode series from Nimbus Independent.  There will be other short edits coming out this spring and more short edits coming out next fall, but this is the last major release of this season.  The plan to shoot the whole thing in Montana fell through due to injuries, weather and travel fatigue. Everyone chose to hang close to home and hit the West Coast. The crew decided split into two groups for increased efficiency.   After a few days rest from the trip to Europe, Pep, Wiegand, Andy, and newcomer Blake Nyman headed to the Mt. Baker area. Upon arrival, sunny skies and good snow greeted them. Moving quickly to avoid landing zones getting side-hilled by the ever growing sledneck population, they built a nice wedge into a steep transition. Blake and Andy went back and forth on the jump, landing numerous tricks backwards or what’s called “switch.” Pep rested his knee but still managed to have some fun on his sled.  They celebrated that evening by preparing “the best burgers ever.”   The snow turned good again the next week, prompting Andy to recruit Ike up to his home terrain of Yakima, Washington. Andy showed Ike a nice jump spot the first day. It was one of the few times Ike’s seen a sunny day with cold, deep snow in the Northwest. They took full advantage of the weather and put a few more shots in the bag, then spent the storm days doing avalanche control work with the ski patrol at Andy’s home mountain, White Pass. This led to more good shots and allowed us to ski the resort an hour before the public.   While one crew was in Washington, Chris, Eric and Wiegand hopped down to California and a well known sled zone. They had four good days of sun and deep snow before parting ways.  Chris went to Canada to film for Warren Miller, and Eric and Wiegand joined Andy and Ike in Oregon.   The last leg of our journey took place in Eastern Oregon. Everyone drove thru the night expecting to get another sunny powder day.  Unfortunately the snow was already baked, so we headed back west to check out Mt. St. Helens. To no one’s surprise the snow was baked there too!  Guess it was the first week in April, but nobody complained and still made do with great snowpack and some airsoft guns. Needless to say, the next webisode has variety. If we were to tell you everything that happened, it would take longer than watching it. So don’t forget to go to nimbusindependent.com on or after tax day, April 15, to watch “En Route - America.”

PK finished his season with some great news and some not-so-great news.  Good news first...  PK and his Norweigen teammates took home the coveted JOSS victory!  Not-so-good-news... PK "stomped" a dub cork 10 to half-punch-front-flip and broke his neck.

Fortunately PK's viking strength kept his spinal chord uninjured and is already on the road to recovery.  After a summer of girls, card tricks, and rehab he'll be back to his terrain slaying self.

Here is the video of the trick and the crash.

You can read more about the incident, his recovery, and the rest of PK's life at:

http://www.pkhunder.com

Here's to a quick recovery!

Jessica on ESPN.com

"There's something about a girl who can beat you down the mountain with a smile on her face. Ready to be intimidated? The following six ladies are doing this on the daily in dizzying chutes, strict no-fall zones and terrifying avalanche run-outs ... and with just as much style, speed and aplomb as their male counterparts. Gentlemen, please allow us to introduce you to the Sisters of Steep."

Last week I hung out with Terje Haakonsen and Jake Blauvelt guiding them around my backyard. We had a sweet heli hookup and did a day of sledding in the snowstorm. Winter hit Whistler last this year so we've gotten a bunch of snow in the last month. We found some very cool terrain and its literally outside my backdoor. I was super stoked to check it out and ride a bunch of it after looking at it for so many years driving back and forth to Vancouver.
I have a feeling that this is the start of a bunch of new terrain I'll be riding.

Team Norway has won the Jon Olsson Super Session, arguably the biggest, undoubtably the coolest, competition in skiing.

PK Hunder and Andreas Håtveit teamed up to showcase thier skills in front of the lenses of Jon Håtveit, Filip Christensen, and Thomas Kleiven.  The event was judged on the edit and slide show of the imagery from two weeks of skiing on the most progressive features is skiing history.

Congrats guys!

Check for more updates at http://www.josupersessions.com

Contact: Christina Erb, 319-310-1415, christina@hayterpr.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Helly Hansen’s Big Mountain Battle Winner from Squaw Valley take Second place at Battle in the Bowls

DELTA, B.C. (March 31, 2009) – Helly Hansen Big Mountain Battle Squaw Valley USA winners gave Aspen locals a run for their money at the second-annual Helly Hansen Battle in the Bowls, scoring second place.

Local Aspen skiers Baker Boyd and Kevin Frazier took first in 3 hours and 3 minutes and Big Mountain Battle Squaw Valley’s winner, John Morrison with Aspen partner Neal Biddleman, took second in 3 hours and 4 minutes. Aspen locals John Ruger and Nathan Rolland, crossed the finish line four minutes later to take third in 3 hours and 8 minutes.

Morrison and Biddleman also grabbed first place in the fastest hike category with a time of 25 minutes and 35 seconds.

“Having a great first season with the Big Mountain Battle and then taking the winners to Aspen for the final Battle was incredible! These guys were super stoked to win this trip of a lifetime, but they also wanted to show locals they could be competitive. This just shows that they’re strong skiers no matter what mountain they’re on,” said Marc Campbell, Helly Hansen’s sports marketing specialist for North America.

The Aspen/Snowmass-based event challenged 46 two-person teams to ski an intense, big-mountain course designed by Helly Hansen’s big-mountain skier Chris Davenport. Athletes could take any route as long as they completed each listed run. Each team was tracked using FLAIK GPS, a unique tracking device that provided race officials with real-time data on each teams. For results of the Battle in the Bowls go to http://aspenhellyhansen.flaik.com

The two teams, alongside Smugglers Notch and Sun Peaks Resort’s Helly Hansen Big Mountain Battle winners, competed at the Battle in Bowls on behalf of Helly Hansen.

Helly Hansen has manufactured technical outdoor apparel since 1877. Today, the brand is recognized as a global leader in technical apparel and footwear designs for a range of alpine and water sports activities. Helly Hansen products are distributed in more than 40 countries. Helly Hansen’s North American operations are based in Delta, B.C. For more information on Helly’s products, team news, or to locate a dealer, visit www.hellyhansen.com.

Contact: Christina Erb, 319-310-1415, christina@hayterpr.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Biggest turnout of the series brings out local Vermont Skiers John Holcomb and Nathan Herman to take Gold at Helly Hansen’s Big Mountain Battle at Smugglers’ Notch Resort.

DELTA, B.C. (March 23, 2009) – Thirty-seven teams showed up this past Saturday to race for gold at Helly Hansen Big Mountain Battle’s final stop.

Resident skiers John Holcomb and Nathan Herman took gold in 2 hours and 22 minutes — just one minute ahead of second-place finishers, Smugglers’ Notch ski patrollers Jason Evans and Greg Cunningham.

“Everyone thought the patrol team was going to win. They know the mountain really well and they really trained. Greg would skin up the mountain two to three times a day,” said Rick Witham, on-hill events coordinator for Smugglers’ Notch. “The underdogs came out and won.”

The race challenged two-person teams to an intense, big-mountain course designed by Helly Hansen’s big-mountain skier Chris Davenport. Each team was tracked using FLAIK GPS, a unique tracking device that provided race officials with real-time data on each teams. The results will be posted today, March 23, at http://smugglershellyhansen.flaik.com.

“This has been an incredible series from the get go, gaining momentum from one event to the next. We have some pretty strong teams coming out from each resort to compete in the final Battle in the Bowls, it’s going to be exciting to see how they do outside of their own mountain” said Marc Campbell, Helly Hansen’s sports marketing specialist for North America.

The pair won an all-expense-paid trip to Aspen/Snowmass where they’ll square off against roughly 50 teams in the final Battle in the Bowls, March 29, alongside Squaw Valley USA, Sun Peaks Resort and Steven Pass Ski Area’s winners.

Helly Hansen has manufactured technical outdoor apparel since 1877. Today, the brand is recognized as a global leader in technical apparel and footwear designs for a range of alpine and water sports activities. Helly Hansen products are distributed in more than 40 countries. Helly Hansen’s North American operations are based in Delta, B.C. For more information on Helly’s products, team news, or to locate a dealer, visit www.hellyhansen.com.

Contact: Christina Erb, 319-310-1415, christina@hayterpr.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Former Telemark Ski Rivals Matt Kuharic and Peter Wesman Take Gold at Helly Hansen Big Mountain Battle at WA’s Stevens Pass Ski Area

DELTA, B.C. (March 2, 2009) – Former college telemark ski rivals Matt Kuharic, 28, and Peter Wesman, 30, beat out a field of mostly alpine-ski-equipped competitors to take gold in 2:16:00 at Helly Hansen Big Mountain Battle at WA’s Stevens Pass Ski Area.

The race challenged two-person teams to an intense, four-hour-long, mountain-wide course designed by Helly Hansen’s big-mountain skier Chris Davenport. It wasn’t an easy win for Kuharic and Wesman. The free heelers missed a checkpoint in the dense snowfall and had to double back, forcing them to complete an unintended hike. The mistake allowed second-place finishers, Michael Zaratzek and Tim Cartwright, to close in on them, and finish just two minutes later, with a time of 2:18:00. 

“My partner, Peter, almost gave up because he thought we’d be passed while we were hiking. But we hiked back up and made it,” Kuharic said. “Our strategy won it for us.”

Each team was tracked using FLAIK GPS, a unique tracking device that allowed race officials to track competitors from their laptops the instant the race kicked off. Results will be posted today, Mar. 16, at http://stevenspasshellyhansen.flaik.com

Kuharic and Wesman as well as Squaw Valley USA and Sun Peaks Resort winners will travel to Aspen/Snowmass where they’ll square off in the final Battle in the Bowls, March 29. But before that final showdown can occur, the Big Mountain Battle will make one last stop at VT’s Smugglers’ Notch Resort on Mar. 21 — and send one final two-person team on all-expense-paid trip to the Aspen/Snowmass event.

Winners will also walk away with great prizes from Helly Hansen and our sponsors Thule, Rogue Beer, Powder, Dakine, K2, GoPro Cameras, Skull Candy and Smith Optics.

Cost for the event is $75 per team and includes two Helly Hansen Lifa baselayers valued at $45 each. For more info and to sign up go to www.hellyhansen.com/bigmountainbattle.

Helly Hansen has manufactured technical outdoor apparel since 1877. Today, the brand is recognized as a global leader in technical apparel and footwear designs for a range of alpine and water sports activities. Helly Hansen products are distributed in more than 40 countries. Helly Hansen’s North American operations are based in Delta, B.C. For more information on Helly’s products, team news, or to locate a dealer, visit www.hellyhansen.com.

A great sunny day in Verbier today - the Bes des Rosses gave the riders a good challenge! HH rider Aurelien Ducroz won todays event and also the over all title as World Champion and winner of the 2009 Freeride World Tour. Just a few points behind, HH rider Reine Barkered impressed with massive airs and fluidity and captured the second place in todays event and also the second place on the Freeride World Tour.

Congratulations, dream team!!!

The circus has started! All the top freeriders in the world are gathered on the last and final stop of this years Freeride World Tour in Verbier.

Current leader of the tour, Aurelien Ducroz, and winner of the 2nd FWT event, Reine Barkered are ready to charge down the mythical Bec des Rosses, a 500m north face, in places some 55 degree sheer terrain with steep and narrow couloirs, high rock cliffs, changing snow and terrain!

Best of luck to both of you!

Japan managed to fit a trip to Japan into his busy schedule.  He went straight from shooting with Absinthe in Switerland to Japan and linked up with the folks of Helly Hansen Japan.

Sounds like next year's Absinthe movie should be amazing yet again.  Word on the street was that the session that went down prior to JP heading to Japan was all time.