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Aspen local Chris Davenport has evolved into a symbol
of respect and inspiration on the IFSA tour. We were fortunate enough to catch up with Chris the day after he won the world freeskiing
extremes in Alyeska. Here is what he had to say: GF: First of all Chris, congratulations on the win. CD: Thanks. GF: We'll keep this short and sweet so you can get back to the festivities. Why don't we start out with an easy question. Where are you from and how old are you? CD: I am originally from Massachusetts but I have been in Aspen for the past seven years. And I am 29 years old. GF: Living in Aspen, what's your take on the "Free The Snow" movement that is pressuring Alta, Aspen and Taos to allow snowboarders? 
CD: First I'll just say that I am not in anyway for restricting freedom in the mountains. I understand free the snow's argument, but I don't understand why they are having it with such a select few areas. I mean, if snowboarders want to have their own mountains to ride, I am sure that most people at Taos, Alta or Ajax wouldn't worry too much about it. My view and that of many others has nothing to do with being anti-snowboarding....But have you seen the bumper sticker about this issue floating around? GF: No what bumper sticker? CD: It says "Ski The Snow…" (laughs) GF: When was your first trip to Alaska? CD: My first time in AK was for the world extremes in 1996. GF: Oh, so your first trip up wasn't to freeride? CD: No. I did get to freeride a little, and the weather was really nice. GF: Not like this year's weather where you had a lot of down time this week? CD: Not at all. The weather wasn't clear like 96, but we also weren't in 'Val-disease'. Down time in Aleyska consists of skiing Pow all-day and lounging in a four-star resort by night. There were all kinds of activities that were sponsored by the hotel and the IFSA. And it dumped! In Aleyska it has snowed 100 inches in the last 9 days. For 5 nights in a row, it pounded over a foot. GF: Sounds like my kind of down time. CD: Yeah, we got to ride chairs at the resort until it was clear enough to compete. GF: And so then it was time to get to business, right? CD: That's right. I felt on it. I had to come from a 2nd place standing after my second run, and then I ended up winning by quite a lot. GF: So was that your most memorable line or day of skiing ever? CD: Oh wow that's a tough question. I would have to say it is one of my best days skiing. Another that comes to mind was back in 1995 at a competition in Las Lenas, Argentina. I won that day on the final run. Right before my final run I told myself I could win this event. I put it together and ended up with the highest single run score at the comp. This was the day I began to think I could actually make something of this freeskiing thing. GF: Who at this year's comp besides yourself put together the best run? CD: Hugo Harrison. He has been skiing strong all season and he is probably the MVP of the tour. He made a few mistakes on his last run, but he is young and will be the one to watch in the future for sure. 
GF: The IFSA has certain standards that it uses to judge a line in competition. What do you feel is the most important aspect of a solid line?CD: I think there should be a little more emphasis placed on the fluidity of the line. If your gonna slow down and poke around looking for a line, it better be damn worthwhile. It is much more appealing to me when someone picks a line and charges it the whole way to the bottom. Anyone can huck, but there is much more to skiing steep, technical mountain faces. GF: So is that the direction freeskiing comps are heading? Towards more fluidity rather than huge air? CD: People are going huge these days, and it is entertaining to an extent, but these people aren't winning the comps. GF: Should there be limits on big air in competition? CD: The level of skiing is unreal and keeps getting better. And people keep going bigger and bigger. This is in part due to a high level of confidence in one another, which is a result of amazing comradery on the tour. This level of respect is also what is sort of controlling the irresponsible behavior out there. We are all responsible for how freeskiing is viewed by the world. If someone is being stupid and giving freeskiing comps a bad wrap in the process, they will hear about it from the others (athletes) on the tour. I don't think there should be anyone limiting how big skiers can go in a comp. It is up to the individual. GF: All right Chris, one final question; have you heard of GravityFed.com before tonight? CD: I've heard of it but I haven't checked it out yet. I'm psyched to see it. You should also check out my web site: www.steepskiing.com. It's pretty cool. GF: Any parting words for the GravityFed viewers? CD: Freeskiing is hot! Go out there and ski lots! Thanks ChrisDavenport MountainSport Free the Snow Alyeska Resort International Free Skiers Association Looking for more skiing resources? Visit GravityDex. What did you think of this interview? Send your Letters to the Editor. |
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