Introducing Dale Talkington

For those of you who aren't in the loop, Orage regional rider and all around homeboy Dale Talkington has been straight up KILLING it this season.  Between filming projects with the 4bi9 crew, Stept productions, and Meat Head Films, Dale has been putting in some serious work, and it shows...


St. Sauveur Coors Light Challenge - Dale Talkington filmed by Connor Scofield (Stept Productions)

One of the styliest kids in the park on any given day, Dale is influenced by veteran pros Liam Downey and Tanner Hall.  While he calls Okemo his home mountain, he can be found traveling up and down the East coast attending comps like the Mount Snow Freeski Open and the Mont St. Sauveur Coors Challenge.  He has also taken some trips out west this year to ski and film with the 4bi9 crew in Utah and shred the park at Keystone.



Dale Talkington Spring Edit from Evan Williams on Vimeo.

As the season begins to wind down, Dale is going to be finishing up his high school career at Burr and Burton Academy.  He'll be attending a shoot at Stratton Mountain with the 4bi9 crew, as well as some other East coast shoots with Meat Head Films.  After highschool graduation, Dale is going to be pointing it west and heading out to Mt. Hood where he'll be training and filming this summer.

Props to Dale for putting together a solid season thus far--- we're stoked to see your upcoming film segments and future world domination.

Stay tuned as we will be introducing more of our regional athletes throughout the week....

"So if you don't know, now you know!" - Biggie

Orage team falls victim to voodoo curse

This year has been a rough year for most members of team Orage. Granted, we did bag some high profile podiums, slayed some urban features, and got more shots than Joey Baggadonuts on spring break in Atlantic City. Regardless, I'm pretty sure that there was some sort of voo-doo hex cast on the team, because damn near everybody ended up getting injured. Here's a rundown of all the carnage that was inflicted on the team over the past few months.

Phil Casabon - Some rumors have surfaced suggesting that Phil hyperextended his leg while hitting an urban rail in Finland with the Level 1 crew resulting in an injured tibia plateau. These rumors are of course false, because everybody knows that there are no handrails in Finland.

Photo courtesy Finnish National Ice-Fishery Archives

In reality, Phil was in Finland to embark on an ice fishing trip with his partner in crime Henrik Harlaut. According to Harlaut, "Aw man me 'n Phil was jus' gillin' around on that ice 'n Phil got bit by a pike. I was jus' gonna let beef slide but then that pike started moufin' off so I had to kick that sucka back to Latvia or wherever he came from yaddaddamean?"

Phil is currently rehabbing by spending a lot of time on the stationary bike and in the pool, and is hoping to get back on skis by next week. He'll be spending the rest of the season shooting with Level 1 Productions and the Blackout Project.  Despite this minor setback, Phil is still poised to have one of his best film segments yet with Level 1.  Stay tuned!

Jess Cumming -"I got injured the first night of X Games practice in the pipe.  I had learned right 5's earlier in the week and I knew that I needed to get them bigger and contest-ready that night.  I started setting them really corked and about 3/4 of the way through practice came down on one with my leg kind of straight and my ski twisted and then I ended up landing forward hunched over my knee.  I pretty much knew I had torn something because I did my left leg 6 years prior at US Open and knew how it felt.  I went back to Vail and got an MRI the next day and found out I blew my ACL with partial tears to my MCL.  (During surgery the doctors found out that I also tore my meniscus.)"

Jess's gory surgery photos... Clockwise from top left:  Weird fleshy stuff, probably not healthy // Looks like a closeup of the rings of Saturn // Poking through with what appears to be a Bic pen // More rings of Saturn

Jess had her surgery in the 2nd week of February (see photos above) and has been on a long and arduous road to recovery since.  So far her regimen includes physio 5-6 days a week, and she's hoping to get her full range of motion back soon.  Jess will be hanging out up at the Orage Masters in Whistler in late April, and is hoping to be back on skis in September.

Max Hill - "The ghost town of Clearwater, the god awful place I told myself I would never return to film again, was forced upon me stopping for a couple handrails on our way from Vancouver to Edmonton with Voleurz. We had hit a downbar all day at an elementary school with a garbage can chained to the end to get some tap out combos.  After I had greased it a couple times, I noticed a gap from the school roof, over the road over a 5 foot high fence.We used a banshee bungee tied from the fence across the road up onto the school roof to pull me in.I didn't have enough speed the first two speed checks, so we just pulled the bungee another 10 feet back and started rolling tape..."

Fractured Tibial Plateau on the left...  Not to be confused with the Tibetan Plateau on the right.

"Instantly as I let go of the bungee pulling me in I regretted committing so damn hard.  I had dropped 25 feet to the fence with an extended knee, fractured my tibial plateau on impact, and hung my chest up on the fence just coming up short.  I instantly started coughing as I peeled my body off the fence and started stumbling off to the car saying I cant believe im going to walk away from this.  My adrenaline had completely hit rock bottom within 5 seconds, and as I took another step I just started screaming.  2 months in bed, and now I am back.  I leave to california tomorrow for a Line shoot in Big Bear, then back to vancouver to film with voleurz.  Hopefully get Hot Lunch 2 rolling a documentary with the Anthony Boronowski and the joystick crew.  The Orage masters and wsi,and a couple shoots here and there in the states with voleurz.  Theres an SBC photo shoot for a wekk somewhere in the mix,wow. just writing this i never noticed how busy my next 2 months are looking." - Max Hill

Matt Margetts' battle scar would be pretty disgusting if it wasn't so damn adorable.  "Look!  It's smiling!  It must like you!"

Matt Margetts - A couple weeks ago at the European Open, Matt was in the Laax public park learning tails-first switch 270s onto urban set up rails.  One botched attempt left Matt with his knee sliced wide open.  Marge was pretty stoked on his new gash, which looked like a big ol' smile, and also served as a great place to stash his chapstick.  After 23 stitches, his knee is repaired and he'll be laid up for a couple more weeks.  Marge will be back on snow for the Orage Masters, some spring photo shoots, and he'll be coaching at the Camp of Champions.

Kaya summons the shamanistic powers of her Arapaho beach blanket to help heal her knee

Kaya Turski - Last week at the European X Games Kaya was building off the momentum of her recent X Games gold to put together rock solid runs.  In the finals, she laid down a picture perfect first run topped off with a huge cab 7 which landed her comfortably in first place.  Always the true competitor, Kaya decided to one-up her previous run by going for a cab 9 in her final run.  Kaya had the trick dialed, but landed slightly back seat and felt something give out in her knee.  She's scheduled to have an MRI today and will know to what extent she is injured, but she is in remarkable spirits and is able to walk.  We'll keep you posted with the details on Kaya as we get them.

Taylor  Seaton's dislocated + swollen ankle.

Taylor Seaton - Taylor had some rough luck this year.  He was sidelined for most of the season after dislocating his ankle at Woodward at Copper over the summer.  After a few long months of healing, Taylor was back on snow and hungry at the X Games.  During practice, he took a rare spill and caught the grip of his pole directly in his stomach, resulting in a lacerated liver and a severe hematoma.  Taylor is hoping to get back on snow for some mellow cruising by the end of the season.  He'll be up at the Orage Masters as a guest judge, and then it's off to Windell's where he'll be coaching and getting his feet back under him as he makes his way back to the top of the game.

Keep your eyes peeled as the Orage team makes their comeback over the next few months.  While they might have been down, they're definitely not out, and it's safe to say team Orage is hungrier than ever.

Kaya Turski Repeats Winter X Games Gold in Tignes!

The final day of competition at the ESPN Winter X Games Europe kicked off bright and early in Tignes this morning with an 8:30am start for the womens ski slopestyle finals.  Eight of skiing's finest were slated to do battle but one lady wanted the top spot in a bad way and not even injury would keep her from getting what she wanted.  Kaya Turski had her eyes squarely set on winning two Winter X Games gold medals in the same season.  What Kevin Rolland accomplished in the men's superpipe finals two nights ago was Kaya's one and only mission... and she came dressed to impress.

Kaya Turski

In a best of three format, Kaya closed out the first two heats with insanely solid runs reminiscent of her gold medal run at Winter X Games 14 in Aspen and was well on her way to fulfilling her goal.

Ashley Battersby

Three ladies stood out amongst the pack today.  Slopestyle veteran Ashley Battersby threw down a consistently smooth run spinning 5's both ways with buttery smooth metal work on the rails, and finished things off with a switch 7 taken two thirds of the way down the landing on her second run.  With the bronze on lock down, Ashley was stoked beyond belief to have finally claimed an X Games medal... her first.

Keri Herman

Also following on Kaya's repeat train was Keri Herman who stomped solid runs all day putting Kaya to the test.  Corking out nearly all her spins and adding in one of the only double grabs known to female slope skiers, Keri took home her second Winter X Games silver medal of the season leaving some breathing room for Kaya to do what she came to do.

Kaya

On a course that was plagued with speed issues and less than perfect trannies earlier in the week, the course kinks were worked out for the finals and Kaya showed Tignes who was boss.  Kaya started things off with a 270 on/off the first box into a switch 3, switch onto the flat bar, a big 720, right 5, switch 5, effortless style over the rainbow rail, and then took it home stomping a switch 7 mute off the money booter like it was her job... go figure.

Kaya

Already having the gold medal on lock down after her first run Kaya was comfortably ahead of the field, but in true competitive fashion Kaya wasn't going to settle for a victory based on her first two runs... she was determined to throw down a run that would beat out her own top score.

Kaya

Prior to her final drop in Kaya claimed her final hit to be a cab 9; and up through the second to last feature she was smoother than all her previous runs.  Coming in to the final hit she had plenty of speed, plenty of pop and plenty of rotation.  But a second gold medal would not come without a price.  Kaya sat back seat on her landing and instantly felt that unmistakable strain that every athletes fears.  She came into the finish coral gingerly and quietly mouthed "I just did my knee". The crash looked more like a slide out than a crash but in the end, Kaya would leave Tignes with a repeat gold medal and an earlier flight home to get her knee checked out.  It's uncertain what the exact details are but for now, it seems Kaya may be sitting out for a bit.

Despite a bitter sweet victory she's in good spirits, celebrating a well deserved gold medal and a killer season.  She'll be back and when she is, she'll undoubtedly be back on top of her game.

Bon chance Schmuck!


Photos: Felix Rioux

Xav Kev Fandom!

After sharing the podium at three major events this season and a never ending series of fun & games antics in followus.tv Xavier Bertoni and Kevin Rolland have unintentionally started their own Xav Kev fandom in France.

Equipped with giant flags, horns, bells, face paint, and plenty of good natured home town pride the fans of Xav and Kev raised the bar for audience hype level during the superpipe final at the European X Games in Tignes.

Charles Spina as le Yeti

We already know who has the #1 halfpipe run, so we sent our Yeti to the front lines to find out who has the #1 fan club, team Xavier or team Kevin?

Regardless of your favorite, it's a pretty big accomplishment for freeskiing when we see a crowd of 17,000+ people cheering on a halfpipe competition as if their home team had just won the World Cup!

Superpipe Finals - ESPN Winter X Games Europe, Tignes

The French Revolution is complete and there’s been an official changing of the guard.  Xavier Bertoni and Kevin Rolland are now the new superpipe tag team duo of the modern era, a force to be reckoned with and more importantly the new face of French pipe skiing.

Xavier and Kevin

Last night the earth skipped an orbital beat when for the first time since we can remember, Simon Dumont failed to make it through the elimination round to compete in the finals.  On the roster and throwing down in front of 17,000+ pipe crazed fans were Xavier Bertoni, Kevin Rolland, Jossi & Byron Wells, Justin Dorey, Mike Riddle, Tucker Perkins and AJ Kemppainan.

17,000+ in attendance

For those on hand at the inaugural ESPN Winter X Games Europe Superpipe Finals there’s a good chance you suffered a minor case of “am I in Aspen or the alps dementia.”  Had it not been for the abundance of French lingo being slung over the mic and the French alps creating one of the most spectacular backdrops the X Games have ever seen the little brother of the North American X Games is well on its way.   When you consider the fact that this was the first X Games on European soil and that the finals are all being held midweek, the spectator turnout undoubtedly rivals that of Aspen.

Tignes superpipe

As the sun began to set, 8 athletes took to the pipe in a best of 3 finals format.  Starting in reverse order from last nights elimination round AJ laid down one of only two top to bottom runs amongst the first 5 athletes to drop.  It was young Byron Wells who laid down a run that ultimately sparked a flame up under the ass of the crowd that would carry through until the very end.  Following Byron was his older brother Jossi who had uncharacteristic difficulty with his double flip on the right side wall.  During training and in his first and third scored runs Jossi over rotated his dub flip coming in 90 to sketch out his landings seating him in 6th place on the night.

Jossi Wells

Following the elder Wells came a massive roar from the crowd reminiscent of a European football arena event which could mean only one thing… semi local hero from down the road, Kevin Rolland was about to take to the pipe and light up the night.  Kevin dropped in with ferocious power boosting the nights highest first hit and somehow made every hit to follow grow from there.  Rolland capped off a flawless first run with a cork 12 on his last hit at a solid 15’ out.

Xavier Bertoni

At that point the pressure was on for Tignes local boy Xavier Bertoni.  Opting to play the “build up throughout the evening” strategy, Xav threw a single flare on his first hit instead of the dub flip, tapped a bit of lip on his way in and cleaned it up through the bottom landing himself in 2nd place for the time being.

Dorey manages to make this look buttery smooth in person

Justin Dorey charged into his first run with back to back left and right side doubles taking hold of the second place spot for almost all of run number two.

Kevin's switch 7

In true X Games fashion it was the local heroes Xav B and Kevin Rolland who did exactly what they came to do. Kevin dropped in for his third and final run and somehow improved upon what was already a flawless run, boosted higher on his double flip and flat 3, traveled every hit an extra 10 feet down the wall and somehow one upped his own dub 12 on the final hit to lock in Gold at the first ever European X Games, his second X gold of the season.

Xav flat 3

The pressure was placed solidly on the shoulders of Xavier to hold up his end of the deal and that’s exactly what he did.  Saving the double for his final run, Xavier cleaned up his run to near perfection, spinning nines both directions and lofting one of the biggest flat 3’s known to man Xav capped off his run with a monster stomped 10 to take home the silver and for the third time this winter step atop the podium with long time friend Kevin.

Winter X Games Europe Superpipe Podium L to R: Xavier Bertoni, Kevin Rolland, Justin Dorey

With no embellishment, tonight was a night for the history books, one to remember and one to look back on when you ask yourself, exactly when did the new generation of pipe riders take over the game that was once owned by names like Tanner and Simon… the new generation is here and we can’t be anymore stoked for our boy Javier Bertonez (aka Xavier Bertoni).

Party at KFE Lounge in Tignes Tonight!

Tonight after halfpipe finals we'll be partying with Xavier and the rest of the Orage crew at the KFE Lounge in Tinges Val Claret. If you're at the European X Games look for a giant yeti handing out beer tickets in the corral at the bottom of the superpipe!

The French Invasion Part Deux - European X Games Superpipe Qualifier

The French Invasion (as far as I know) was an event that took place at some point in history involving the French invading someone, something or some place.  The specifics in my mind are not necessarily what's relevant to the French invasion that is currently underway, but none the less, it's a great segway and backbone for this post.

The halfpipe smells of elderberries

Just over 13 months ago at Winter X 13, a Frenchman by the name of Xavier Bertoni shook the foundation of the ski superpipe world taking down Simon Dumont and Tanner Hall to claim gold.

you don't always need gold to claim

Since then Xavier's hometown partner in crime, Kevin Rolland has blasted onto the scene with a ferocious bag of tricks and the height to match.  Having both landed on the podium at this year's Winter X 14, one could say that the rebirth of the French Invasion is upon us and seems to be powering through pipe events full steam ahead.

Xavier Bertoni

Adding to the French flavor of this storyline, ESPN decided to box up the X Games and ship it across the pond for the inaugural ESPN Winter X Games Europe – Tignes.  Are you starting to see the pattern?  A French invasion took place at some point in history, a Frenchman wins the x games, the next year, two Frenchmen win the X Games and now the X Games have planted roots in France.

Qual est le connection avec elle, Tignes, et l'oeuf? X Games? What?

I'm not sure what's next, but what I do know is that tonight's European X Games superpipe qualifier was ridiculous... and wouldn't you know it, two French men cracked the top 3 spots to show the worlds what France has to offer in tomorrow night's super pipe finals.

Jeff "Schmunk" and Shay Williams. That's not a type-o, that's just how you say it in France.

We'll save the details for when they really count... in the finals, but in summary Xavier lead after his first round and is riding smoother than ever, and Kevin Rolland was in 9th on the wrong side of the bubble after his first run but decided that the double was in order and continued to stomp the hell out of his run to make it into the finals.  Other noteworthy efforts came from Justin Dorey who also was not in contention for the finals after his first run... he too decided to pull a double out of nowhere and slayed his entire run ending up in first.

Banks Gilberti boosting a switch 7 tail at the end of his run 

Byron happy to have the chance to drop in switch at tomorrow's final

The brothers Wells are both in for tomorrow nights final, along with Mike Riddle, Tucker Perkins, and AJ Kemppainen. See you tomorrow night for  Europe's first Winter X Games Superpipe Finals in Tignes, France.

But one guy you won't see tomorrow night is Bank Gilberti because he was robbed like a bank clerk wearing a sign on his head that read "rob me blind, I'm the run stomper who loved getting robbed!  Thanks in advance for the highway robbery, I appreciate it."

Results:
Justin Dorey - 91.00
Xavier Bertoni - 87.33
Kevin Rolland - 85.66
Jossi Wells - 84.66
Byron Wells - 82.00
Tucker Perkins - 80.66
Mike Riddle - 79.33
AJ Kemppainen - 76.66

Photos: Felix Rioux

LP Sansfacon and Vincent Gagnier Win Coors Saint-Sauveur Challenge

Le Coors Light Challenge est une compétition video de 3 jours en équipe contenant un filmeur + un team de skieur. Félicitation a LP Sansfacon and Vincent Gagnier pour leur victoire de feu !!!

LP Sansfacon and Vincent Gagnier

Dale Talkington and Connor Scofield



Watch all the entries from the Coors Light Saint-Sauveur Challenge at snow-show.ca

X Games Tignes Superpipe Practice

Orage athletes Xavier Bertoni, Kaya Turski, Banks Gilberti, Anais Caradeux, Matt Margetts, Taylor Seaton and newcomer Benoit Valentin all arrived last night in Tignes, France for the first ever ESPN Winter X Games Europe.

Ben Valentin - the newest addition to the Orage team

Anais Caradeux

After the unfortunate weather at the European Open in Laax last week nobody was too excited when this mornings forcast called for temps around -17C, but as soon as the sun came out things changed by about 20 degrees and the first day of practice got underway under bluebird skys and perfect early spring conditions.

Xavier Bertoni or Banks Gilberti

Banks Gilberti or Xavier Bertoni

For no reason what-so-ever Xavier and Banks decided to show up at pipe practice both wearing white boots, black helmets, and the exact same outerwear.  Despite the similiar apparenance, their skiing is anything but. Banks was changing up his "normal" superpipe comp run from what we saw at X Games in Aspen a few weeks ago and is planning to start it out with a switch drop in.  Xavier lapped the pipe looking more and more comfortable as he caught perfect tranny on nearly every hit.

The village at Tignes Val Claret. The mountains here are breathtaking, as long as you don't miss the trees.

Kevin Rolland and Simon Dumont were looking the strongest in the Tignes pipe so far; Simon going huge and Kevin stomping doubles.  With only one day of practice before tomorrows superpipe qualifier it may pay off for those that were stepping it up during this mornings session.


Here's some raw footage from practice.... more to come!

Skiing Superpipe Practice - Winter X Games Europe from Orage on Vimeo.

Photos: Felix Rioux

European Open

Photos: Stadler

As any skier knows, weather in March is predictably unpredictable, as was the case this past weekend at the European Open in Laax, Switzerland.  Although some competitors had flown in from halfway across the globe, the weather conditions were unwelcoming to say the least.  Violent winds, heavy snow, and white-out conditions rendered the weekend a total bust.

Gearing up for the Arctic exploration superpipe qualifiers

Saturday's slopestyle event was canceled due to the whole "not being able to see the jumps" situation.  In lieu of the slopestyle comp, a rail jam was held on Saturday.  A stacked list of pros who are normally throwing down on perfectly manicured parks and pipes were forced to get creative on a small stair set jib.   Kaya Bamba Turski rounded out the womens’ podium with a solid array of switch ups and 270’s.  Katie Summerhayes from England took second and Ashley Battersby walked away with first place after stomping a rock-solid 270 on 270 off .  On the men’s side of things, it was JF Houle who stole the show with a nosebutter 450 on to 270 off on the down bar.  Tom Wallisch and Samuel Favret joined JF on the men’s podium.

Kaya Bamba preparing to switchup the down box.  Photo: John Vandervalk // newschoolers.com

Meanwhile, Matt Margetts was busy learning about the inner-workings of his knee after casually slicing it open during a botched tails-first switch 270 on attempt in the public park.

Marge’s knee smiles for the camera.  After 28 stitches and a couple weeks of rest, Matt will be back on snow.

 

 

Anais Caradeux sneaks a quick practice run between gale force wind gusts.

Lousy weather couldn't keep Kevin Rolland from busting this huge flair during practice.

On Sunday, the high winds and poor visibility left the competition organizers with no choice but to nix the superpipe event as well.  It looks like everybody’s going to have to wait for this week's European X-Games to find out who’s got the gusto to take the top spot in the slopestyle and superpipe.  The event kicks off on Wednesday with the men's superpipe qualifiers and finals.  Don't miss it!

Antoine Choquette Jibbing Night!

Avec un sourire jacker, Antoine Choquette agresse un rail secret dans un endroit secret en filmant
avec ESK.

Blurred Chronicles pt. 1

Our sales and marketing rep from the Rockies was kind enough to share with us this instructional and educational video.  Even though this has been on the web for a couple months, we can't get enough of it, and decided it's probably worth a Thursday blog post.  In the Blurred Chronicles Episode One, you'll learn loads of relevant and enriching things like:

+Adolf Hitler can't ski park
+Road sodas are legal, as long as you don't get caught
+Canadian tuxedos are always cool
+Skiing on grass (not that kind of grass, Kevin) is a good idea
+Dogs love to wear sunglasses
+Skiing behind cars is a good idea
+Hucking 60'+ front flips is also a good idea

This short edit is arguably one of the most wholesome things I've seen since the Guatemalan Persuader.