Edgework:
“Claim” is a full length ski film starring Mark Abma, Shane McConkey, and Sean Pettit. McConkey is one of the legends of back country skiing. There’s a very good documentary on his life(he died in a base jumping/skiing accident) that we’re trying to source for this year’s WFF.
The team that produced “Claim” includes Helly Hansen (who make some of the very best active clothing for the most extreme conditions, including sailing and skiing–I have a bunch of their stuff for both sports), Echoboom Sports, Volkl skis, Powder Magazine, and Subaru. Matchstick Productions got producer credits. As always, support them if you get the chance because with sponsors and producers, these types of films would not be made. We are glad to give them a plug.
“Claim” was selected by the English newspaper The Telegraph as one of the 13 best ski movies all time. We’ll let you discover the origin of the title….
Enjoy.
And see you at the bottom.
Our annual Winter Film Festival, the Fourth one we’ve produced, is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed which takes place every morning. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at You Tube, who have an amazingly large collection of great ski (and ice boating) videos available for your viewing pleasure. Thanks, guys, for sharing. This post is number 976 for this site.
The Nightshift: 16 February 2017
Press Clippings:
Good Morning. It’s Thursday, 16 February 2017 and this is the morning edition of The Nightshift, the world’s overnight news feed.
More of the same from Washington. The administration is upset about the leaks, not about the facts in the leaks. It should be, of course, the other way around. The situation will continue to evolve and to deteriorate as America has been put on dual-channel news flow: one from the administration; one from the press/media. Interesting times indeed, but only the media provides sources and checks facts.
The Trump administration took another body blow when proposed Labor Secretary Andy Puzder withdrew his name from consideration after worker protests at Hardees and Carl’s Jr. restaurants–where he was CEO– across America. Guess he decided that the critical exposure of his management style the nomination brought was not worth the glory of the title. Wonder how this entire episode will affect sales at the restaurants? If they go down as a result, expect more drama.
And..the world goes on.
Catch up on what’s happening with the rest of the world by reading the front pages of the World’s Greatest newspapers.
The international Headlines are all at your fingertips:
Our annual Winter Film Festival is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February. See you at The Bottom.
The Times (London
Financial Times (UK)
The Irish Times (Dublin, Ireland)
The Wall Street Journal (European edition)
Washington Post (Washington, D.C.)
New York Times (New York)
The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles)
Daily News Egypt (Cairo)
South China Morning Post (Hong Kong)
The Moscow Times (Moscow)
Le Figaro (Paris)
The Jerusalem Post (Jerusalem)
The Japanese Times (Tokyo)
The Buenas Aires Herald (Buenas Aires)
The Sidney Morning Herald (Sidney)
Deadline Hollywood (Hollywood)
FiveThirtyEight (New York City)
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at Getty Images, who have the photographic history of the 20th and 21st century on file. They remain the independent bloggers go-to source for photos. This visual has not been altered in any way. We thank them for sharing. This post is number 975 for this site.
The Winter Film Festival:"Swift.Silent.Deep."
Edgework:
Editors note: The video that accompanies this text is no longer available. Instead, you can find an 8 part series on the Jackson Hole Airforce at Youtube.com….sorry but these things happen.
Another full length classic, “Swift.Silent.Deep” is “the story of the Jackson Hole Air Force”, a rather legendary group of skiers who were pushed boundaries and broke rules by making out-of-bounds skiing and cliff jumps an art form. The film is beautifully shot, produced by Klutch Productions in association with Akita, and sponsored/promoted by Cloudveil Mountain Wear, Teton Village Sports, and Powder Magazine. Directed by Jon Klacskiewicz, who does a lot of Red Bull’s videos and films, it’s top rate.
Skiing, like a lot of other alternative sports, has always attracted people with a certain anti-authority, rebellious streak. The sport encourages it, and the locations where the sport takes place–small mountain towns out of the mainstream–provide both freedom and shelter for the extreme/backcountry/freestyle skier and their athletic form of rebellion.
There is nothing wrong with it and a lot of that’s right. In exchange for a disconnect from the rest of the world, people who give up careers (and college and stock options) to take their chances and grab their thrills on the front and backsides of mountains gain a kind of freedom and exhilaration that is unknown to 99% of the people on earth. It’s a fair trade.
Legends captured on film, a certain spot in time, great skiing–this is “Swift.Silent.Deep”.
Enjoy.
And see you at the bottom.
Our annual Winter Film Festival, the Fourth one we’ve produced, is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed which takes place every morning. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at You Tube, who have an amazingly large collection of great ski (and ice boating) videos available for your viewing pleasure. Thanks, guys, for sharing. This post is number 974 for this site.
The Winter Film Festival: "Blizzard of Aahhh's"
Edgework:
This one is a classic. It’s full length, produced by Greg Stump, and yes, the interviews are over-dubbed in Spanish. But you don’t watch this film for the dialogue…you watch it for the “extreme skiing”, in particular, the skiing of Glen Plake (famed for his blond Mohawk haircut. This film is good enough that it’s on the Men’s Journal list of 11 Best Ski Films and The Telegraph (English newspaper) list of Top 13 Ski Films. This one is both historic and legendary.
Plake has been called “the father of extreme skiing” by ESPN and he is one of a kind. You cannot watch this film and not wonder either a) how did he do that or b) how did he survive that. Plake, and this film, introduced “extreme skiing” to the world and neither Plake nor the proponents of “extreme skiing” have looked back since. The sport remains extremely dangerous. Equipment and technique cannot protect from nature’s unpredictable events.
The film opens with a sequence taken at a world downhill speed run and..it just gets better from there.
It’s classic and one that you will want to play large and loud.
Our annual Winter Film Festival, the Fourth one we’ve produced, is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed which takes place every morning. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at You Tube, who have an amazingly large collection of great ski (and ice boating) videos available for your viewing pleasure. Thanks, guys, for sharing. This post is number 973 for this site.
The Nightshift: 15 February 2017
Press Clippings:
Good Morning. It’s Wednesday, 15 February 2017 and this is the morning edition of The Nightshift, the world’s overnight news feed.
The White House scandal that erupted late Monday evening did not become any less intense on Tuesday. The drama and intrigue surrounding the sudden resignation, after only 23 days in office, of General Michael Flynn, former National Security Advisor, continued, along with a string of ill-conceived press releases and statements, cross-purpose comments, “alternative facts” and denials from all involved that did nothing to calm the chaos coming out of the White House. In other words: it’s a hot mess.There’s more to come, of course, as the scope of the investigation surrounding Flynn, Russia, Russian hacking, etc. continues to widen. So much for swamp drainage.
Be prepared.
And..the world goes on.
Catch up on what’s happening with the rest of the world by reading the front pages of the World’s Greatest newspapers.
The international Headlines are all at your fingertips:
Our annual Winter Film Festival is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February. See you at The Bottom.
The Times (London
Financial Times (UK)
The Irish Times (Dublin, Ireland)
The Wall Street Journal (European edition)
Washington Post (Washington, D.C.)
New York Times (New York)
The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles)
Daily News Egypt (Cairo)
South China Morning Post (Hong Kong)
The Moscow Times (Moscow)
Le Figaro (Paris)
The Jerusalem Post (Jerusalem)
The Japanese Times (Tokyo)
The Buenas Aires Herald (Buenas Aires)
The Sidney Morning Herald (Sidney)
Deadline Hollywood (Hollywood)
FiveThirtyEight (New York City)
The Fine Print: This post is number 972 for this site.
The Winter Film Festival: "A Fast Piece of Furniture"
Edgework:
Got to love this one. “A Fast Piece of Furniture” is an iceboating film that’s fun from the title to the end.
It’s the story of America’s first 15 Meter Iceboat. The plans (and the sail) came from Estonia and Bill Bucholz was the driving force behind the project. Great ice sailing photography and you will get a real sensation of the speed.
Look into the future and back into the past simultaneously with this excellent film.
This selection is dedicated to our friend Alan Lizee, who is something of an iceboater himself.
Our annual Winter Film Festival, the Fourth one we’ve produced, is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed which takes place every morning. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at You Tube, who have an amazingly large collection of great ski (and ice boating) videos available for your viewing pleasure. Thanks, guys, for sharing. This post is number 971 for this site.
The Winter Film Festival: "Cliffed Out"
Edgework:
How about a morning wake up run?
Try this short video on for size. It’s called “Cliffed Out” and features Owen Leeper. The video was produced/sponsored/supported by Spyder, Bolle’, Icelantic, BOLD Custom Ski Poles, and SnowCru (a free ski tracking for iOS and Android). It was shot and produced in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and you will see some amazing skiing and terrifying drops.
Lots of great footage, sharp editing, expansive aerials, and a jumpin’ soundtrack.
But why talk about it? Watch it. And please support the companies who supported the making of the video. It’s important.
See you at the Bottom.
Our annual Winter Film Festival is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed which takes place every morning. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at You Tube, who have an amazingly large collection of great ski (and ice boating) videos available for your viewing pleasure. Thanks, guys, for sharing. This post is number 970 for this site.
Hunter Thompson on paranoia
“There is no such thing as paranoia. Your worst dreams can come true at any moment….”
The Nightshift: 14 February 2017
Press Clippings:
Good Morning. It’s Tuesday, 14 February 2017. Happy Valentines Day from the morning edition of The Nightshift.
Washington and politics and governance again provided the headlines on Monday. The National Security Advisor resigned (after a whopping 24 days in office) after it was disclosed that he had been engaged in “theoretically” unauthorized conversation with the Russian Ambassador to the U.S. This was bad judgement in a public place and in hours In Like Flynn became Out Like Flynn. The exposure of the contact was known for some time–indeed, the previous acting Attorney General even warned the White House about possible issues–and when the news hit the mainstream electronic media due to superb reporting by The Washington Post and The New York Times, the news cycle was won by The First Amendment. Anyone who questions why a free press is so necessary in this democracy should have received–again–further indication of the check and balance the Fourth Estate provides the country and its citizens.
The next set of questions was and is inevitable: what did the White House know and when did they know it? Expect an incessant drill down.
Not to worry–business as usual in D.C. There’ll be explanations, presentations, excoriations, recriminations, speculations and investigations for months to come. The made-for-TV reality show that is the U.S. government goes on down a very dark and slippery path. Don’t think this is quite what Jefferson, Washington, Hamilton, Adams and Franklin had in mind…..
In other news, the UConn women’s basketball team won their 100th straight game. That program is legendary and the results are amazing.
Today is Valentine’s Day and surely you did all the prep work over the weekend or at least yesterday. Right? If not, be prepared for a very expensive scramble, for everything from flowers to food. Be prepared.
And..the world goes on.
Catch up on what’s happening with the rest of the world by reading the front pages of the World’s Greatest newspapers.
The international Headlines are all at your fingertips:
Our annual Winter Film Festival is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February. See you at The Bottom.
The Times (London
Financial Times (UK)
The Irish Times (Dublin, Ireland)
The Wall Street Journal (European edition)
Washington Post (Washington, D.C.)
New York Times (New York)
The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles)
Daily News Egypt (Cairo)
South China Morning Post (Hong Kong)
The Moscow Times (Moscow)
Le Figaro (Paris)
The Jerusalem Post (Jerusalem)
The Japanese Times (Tokyo)
The Buenas Aires Herald (Buenas Aires)
The Sidney Morning Herald (Sidney)
Deadline Hollywood (Hollywood)
FiveThirtyEight (New York City)
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at Getty Images, who have the photographic history of the 20th and 21st century on file. They remain the independent bloggers go-to source for photos. This visual has not been altered in any way. We thank them for sharing. This post is number 968 for this site.
The Winter Film Festival: How to Select a Pair of Skis
Edgework:
This video is from/sponsored by the French company Rossignol, one of the world’s great ski companies, and it is about the basics: how to select a pair of skis. The film is part of a series that Rossignol has put together called the Rossignol Coaching Program which is actually what it says–an initiative to get the right information into the hands of new skiers, potential skiers and current skiers.
Like the other videos that Rossignol has produced, it’s tight, articulate, specific, and wastes no time. Even if you’ve been a skier for several years, there’s always something new to learn.
We’ll try to round up the other videos in the series before the end of the week.
Enjoy. And see you at the bottom.
Our annual Winter Film Festival is now in progress. The WFF posts will go up after the The Nightshift’s daily international news feed which takes place every morning. The Winter Film Festival posts start at 12:15 PM for the first post.The 2017 Winter Film Festival will conclude on Friday, 17 February.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of our friends at You Tube, who have an amazingly large collection of great ski (and ice boating) videos available for your viewing pleasure. Thanks, guys, for sharing. This post is number 967 for this site.