jmjennings
01-30-2007, 12:15 PM
i live in the colorado high country, and became an avid telemark skier after moving up here several years ago. but my interest in skiing dates from my long-ago service with the marines: my regiment, 2d marines, went to norway in early '85 for the annual exercise defending NATO's northern flank. because i was in the S-4 shop at that point, and nearing discharge, i didn't get to go. so i didn't get telemark ski lessons from the royal marines, as i had hoped.
the following winter, after my discharge, i went on a truly outstanding ski-mountaineering course at the colorado outward bound school; after that i didn't strap on the planks again til 2003, when i moved to the high country.
in february 2004, i was at ski cooper, a little family owned ski area near my new hometown, when a group of very conspicuous guys got into the lift line together. they all appeared exceptionally well-built. they were all wearing identical dark-khaki jumpsuits and on identical white skis -- a bit straight, kinda old-fashioned, not the shaped or 'parabolic' skis favored by civilians. I asked one if they were with the army's 10th mtn division, remarking that 'those look like NATO skis,' and he replied, 'yeah, they're NATO planks, but no, actually we're with the navy.' i said 'oh' and zipped my lip, since i assumed that meant they were SEALs, but that they would be reluctant to spell it out.
they had an instructor with them who was less conspicuous, ironically, due to his more colorful civilian-style ski garb. but he stood out too whenever he spoke, because he had a strong working-class british accent. i assumed [again i was too polite to ask] that he was a royal marine; as i understood it, they are NATO's duty experts on military skiing. later at one point, i skied through a glade, past the brit and one of the 'navy' men who was getting some pointers from him. i was in mid-turn, in a very low, classic telemark stance, and the instructor pointed at me and said, 'look at that bloke. now THAT's what i'm talkin' about!' my head immediately swelled about three sizes -- so abruptly that i lost my balance and fell a couple of turns later, fortunately after i was already out of their sight through the trees.
i haven't run into any SEALs, marines or other military telemark skiers since then. but i regularly have seen army SF guys at arapahoe basin and keystone [in summit county CO], from 10th group at ft carson CO. [they were less leery of self identifying and i was bolder about asking]. they are NOT on telemark gear -- they are on 'alpine touring' [aka randonnee] equipment. on that kind of set-up, your heels are loose so you can walk uphill with climbing skins; but you lock your heels down and then ski downhill using alpine, not telemark technique. also, you can't do a tele turn properly on standard AT bindings, because your binding pivots on a hinge. so, you can't plant the ball of your foot even when your heel is free.
i would like to hear from anyone knowledgeable on this site regarding the current state of US military skiing. for example, why does the army SF ski on AT rather than telemark equipment, and how long has that been the case? do marine units still deploy to norway, now that the cold war's over, and do they still get ski training while there? which marine units, and individuals, get to go to the mtn warfare training center near bridgeport, and is skiing still part of the curriculum? is it the case, as i assume, that the naval services [ie SEALs and marines] still telemark, instead of using AT equipment? is ski training routine for all SEAL teams, or just some? and what about recon marines -- do they get ski training? if so, how much, what style and where? also, i'd love to hear any opinions on which style -- telemark or AT -- is better suited for winter military ops. please feel free to address anything interesting that i didn't mention and that isn't classified. [in fact, if any of my questions are out of line from an opsec standpoint, be very blunt about letting me know!] thx .
the following winter, after my discharge, i went on a truly outstanding ski-mountaineering course at the colorado outward bound school; after that i didn't strap on the planks again til 2003, when i moved to the high country.
in february 2004, i was at ski cooper, a little family owned ski area near my new hometown, when a group of very conspicuous guys got into the lift line together. they all appeared exceptionally well-built. they were all wearing identical dark-khaki jumpsuits and on identical white skis -- a bit straight, kinda old-fashioned, not the shaped or 'parabolic' skis favored by civilians. I asked one if they were with the army's 10th mtn division, remarking that 'those look like NATO skis,' and he replied, 'yeah, they're NATO planks, but no, actually we're with the navy.' i said 'oh' and zipped my lip, since i assumed that meant they were SEALs, but that they would be reluctant to spell it out.
they had an instructor with them who was less conspicuous, ironically, due to his more colorful civilian-style ski garb. but he stood out too whenever he spoke, because he had a strong working-class british accent. i assumed [again i was too polite to ask] that he was a royal marine; as i understood it, they are NATO's duty experts on military skiing. later at one point, i skied through a glade, past the brit and one of the 'navy' men who was getting some pointers from him. i was in mid-turn, in a very low, classic telemark stance, and the instructor pointed at me and said, 'look at that bloke. now THAT's what i'm talkin' about!' my head immediately swelled about three sizes -- so abruptly that i lost my balance and fell a couple of turns later, fortunately after i was already out of their sight through the trees.
i haven't run into any SEALs, marines or other military telemark skiers since then. but i regularly have seen army SF guys at arapahoe basin and keystone [in summit county CO], from 10th group at ft carson CO. [they were less leery of self identifying and i was bolder about asking]. they are NOT on telemark gear -- they are on 'alpine touring' [aka randonnee] equipment. on that kind of set-up, your heels are loose so you can walk uphill with climbing skins; but you lock your heels down and then ski downhill using alpine, not telemark technique. also, you can't do a tele turn properly on standard AT bindings, because your binding pivots on a hinge. so, you can't plant the ball of your foot even when your heel is free.
i would like to hear from anyone knowledgeable on this site regarding the current state of US military skiing. for example, why does the army SF ski on AT rather than telemark equipment, and how long has that been the case? do marine units still deploy to norway, now that the cold war's over, and do they still get ski training while there? which marine units, and individuals, get to go to the mtn warfare training center near bridgeport, and is skiing still part of the curriculum? is it the case, as i assume, that the naval services [ie SEALs and marines] still telemark, instead of using AT equipment? is ski training routine for all SEAL teams, or just some? and what about recon marines -- do they get ski training? if so, how much, what style and where? also, i'd love to hear any opinions on which style -- telemark or AT -- is better suited for winter military ops. please feel free to address anything interesting that i didn't mention and that isn't classified. [in fact, if any of my questions are out of line from an opsec standpoint, be very blunt about letting me know!] thx .