Those Tele Guys

In this week's episode, we head down into the depths of the gear lab with Andy Crow.  Andy has spent a fair amount of time conducting his own research in the nitty gritty of telemark equipment which has helped foster great technical conversations on chair lift rides and we thought our listeners would enjoy hearing what some of those chats sound like. Our 'talking tele' chin wag covers important topics such as Bishop equipment, mounting bindings, ski design, Franken bindings, and dream boots. We also review the Voile Ultra Vector BC, a pattern-based ski we have fallen in love with. A special song for the freeheelers also features at the end of the episode from a very happy human named Angus, so stay tuned for that! 

After a two-year hiatus due to covid restrictions, Australia's biggest free heeling event was back! The Kangaroo Hopper is an iconic and challenging 42km Worldloppet international cross-country ski event held in the Bogong High Plains. The course meanders throughout Australia's unique alpine environment, taking in the unique flora and fauna that resides there. Skiers will need a good level of fitness and experience to successfully ski the fully groomed undulating course, which climbs up onto Heathy Spur to reveal spectacular views over Rocky Valley Dam, Falls Creek, and the surrounding High Plains. 

This week, Ronice Goebel joins us to talk about the history of the Kangaroo Hoppet and her involvement with the Birkebeiner ski club over her 28 years of participating and volunteering. We discuss just how important this race is for the community and how it fits into the bigger picture of international racing.

Ronice also took shares her two scents about the preposed lakeside development and the movement started that's opposed to it. 

Last weekend, Those Tele Guys were gifted a recording studio at the Victorian backcountry festival. Hundreds of volunteers slaved for hours to create an igloo to host a live episode that would feature anyone that dared to enter, and enter they did! The fluorescent sign emblazing the word 'recording' was barely illuminated upon the entrance before a hoard of happy participants came stumbling in.  Over the course of the evening, we met a range of different people to chat about tele, split boarding and AT, but more importantly, we talked about just how good it was to be surrounded by a group of like-minded people celebrating everything BC! 

A huge congratulations to the team that organised the 2022 Victorian backcountry festival! It was amazing to see the festival back in the flesh after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. So many passionate people were happy to share their positive experiences of the festival on the show, which highlights just how successful the weekend was. We can't wait for next year's festival already! 

This week's episode is coming in early so we can help provide an update for the up-and-coming Victorian BC Festival, starting on Friday the 2nd of September. Rich caught up with Anne Chiew, the organiser of the festival, to talk about any updates or last minute changes attendees should know about. What's on, where to camp, what to eat, and where's the beer? You'll find the answers here.

Like all of our guests, we also ask Anne how she discovered her passion for the mountains and what makes them so special to her. Her passion and energy for Australia's Alpine region is infectious, and it's obvious to us that the festival is in good hands this year.

It's the first time the festival will be run in three years, so get around it if you can! 

It's the end of August and it's time to dust off the skates because the Kangaroo Hoppet is back! The Hoppet is part of the World Loppet series and is a 42km XC ski race. Covid canceled the Hoppet in 2020 and 2021, but nothing can stop it this year! 900 participants have signed up to grace the Bogong High Plains and this week we chatted to at least two of them.

We were very happy to welcome Peter Holmes to the show and have been hoping to catch him for an interview for quite some time. Pete was one of our lecturers at university during our outdoor education studies and opened the door of telemark, nordic and backcountry skiing to many students. We find out where Pete developed his passion for skiing and how he found his love for teaching.  We also get some insight about his business, Nordic Ski adventures, which aims to take guests 'chook footing' to some of the world's most iconic nordic ski destinations.  Pete's longtime friend, Blair Hume, also joins the show to heckle him whilst enjoying a few tinnies, but also shares his own stories about growing up with nothing but three-pin bindings and leather boots. 

Just like Morgan, it was a matter of time before Rich dipped his toes into the NTN world. He pulled on his new Garmont Kenais and stepped into his first pair of NTN bindings and felt lightning pulse through his veins. Like Harry Potter finding his perfect wand, he felt the UNLIMITED POWER instantly and found himself under the guidance of Snape (Lucas), who initially seemed evil in this NTN Slytherin ways, but in the end, was ultimately a true freewheeling guru. In this episode, Rich confesses his NTN sins to a Free-heeling Lord and shares his thoughts about his first time away from 75mm.

The Bogong Bulletin, the catch of the day, the mailbag, how to do stuff, and telemark brand power also feature this week. 

This week we welcome Britain's modern-day telemark Eddie the Eagle. Jasmin Taylor holds the record for the British skier with the most World Cup and World Championships medals after winning her 30th World Cup medal in Pralognan-la-Vanoise, France in 2020. During the 2020–21 season, Taylor trained in Switzerland, as French ski lifts were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and is now freeing the heel on the slopes of Mt. Hotham, Australia!

We had a great time chatting with Jasmin about how she got into telemark skiing, how the hell telemark racing works, whether telemark ever make the winter Olympics, and what exactly bought a skier of her caliber to Australia in the first place.  Please enjoy as we dive into World cup telemark racing with Jasmin Taylor!

Wowzers, we have done it. 50 episodes of Those Tele Guys. Where has the time gone?

This week we have decided it's time to celebrate our podcast milestone by doing what we do best....talking telemark. We may not know exactly what we are talking about sometimes, but we sure do have a passion for it and for whatever reason, loyal listeners are tuning in. We thank you immensely for sitting by the wireless every week to hear our take on the free-heeling world as we would not have continued without the ongoing support we receive. Again, thanks for your support.

This week we focused on running some of our segments to honor what we have done in the past and we also introduce some new ones to give a sneak peek of what the future may look like for Those Tele Guys. Segments include the weatherman, the Bogong bulletin, the mailbag, catch of the day, Telemark brand power, telemark therapy time, and songs for the free heelers. Please enjoy our 50th episode! 

Our guest this week wears several different hats from many walks of life. Kelly Van Den Berg is a backcountry guide working for Traverse Hotham and runs courses to get beginners into backcountry snow sports.  Last year, Kelly ran an intro to backcountry skills day for women looking to get out beyond the ropes and it was a huge hit.  This year, Kelly will be running another women's backcountry skills day on August 7th and it will undoubtedly be another great success.  When not guiding on Hotham, Kelly is pursuing other goals across many different occupations and interests, including performance coaching, horse training, journalism, photography, and pack rafting. Kelly is also a committee member of the Mountain Safety Collective and also collaborates with the ABC in Gippsland to share information about some of her interesting adventures and recreational pursuits. Please enjoy getting into the backcountry with Kelly Van Den Berg!

Use the link below to book a spot with Kelly on the woman's skills day or see many more of the great tours Traverse Hotham offer:

https://www.traversehotham.com.au/

Our guest this week is a writer, adventurer, speaker, and environmentalist that has a keen interest in type 2 fun. Huw Kingston has completed many interesting adventures on foot, in a boat, on wheels, and on skis. In 1997, Huw completed a 600 km ski traverse of the Australian Alps, and this year he aims to repeat this trip but go one better by skiing all the lift-assisted resorts along the way whilst raising funds for a good cause. The Alpine Odyssey will aim to raise funds for Our Yarning, a charity organisation that Huw is deeply passionate about.nHuw has worked closely for a number of years as an ambassador for Save the Children, supporting their great work with a number of fundraising ventures. Our Yarning brings this fundraising closer to home, to support First Nations children to learn their own stories from books written and illustrated by Indigenous authors and illustrators.

We hope you enjoy listening to our interview with Huw Kingston and, if you care spare any pennies, we also hope that you can donate and help him reach his fundraising goal of $50,000. You can donate by jumping onto www.huwkingston.com