I walked away from the Red Bull Cold Rush this season with a few new injuries. Initially I thought my left shoulder was the main problem, recently I discovered my right may be just as bad if not worse. I’ve been away from home for most of the season. In fact since the new year I have been in Tahoe for about 6 nights. Finding a good place to rehab when away from home isn’t always the easiest.

The past 6 weeks I’ve been spending most of my time here in Åre, Sweden. Luckily enough Reine got me in touch with Åre Naprapaterna, Sports medicine and Orthopedics. Magdalena Waller Dahlgren who specializes in shoulders has been able to help me rehab my shoulder with massage, acupuncture and more!

If you find yourself in Åre, Sweden and you are in the need of some rehab check out Åre Naprapaterna!

www.arenaprapaterna.se                      

Well it’s been a while since I’ve updated my own site. For those of you that haven’t been following me on hellyhansen.com is been a great winter. I’ve had some up and downs but I think the ups have over weighed the downs. It felt really great to get back on my skis feeling confident again this winter.

Once again I’ve walked away from the Red Bull Cold Rush with some injuries that have made the rest of my season a bit difficult but it’s nothing I can’t handle.

Since the contest season has ended for me I made my way back to Are, Sweden with Reine Barkered. There was a part of me that was looking forward more to going to the beach for some warm sun but it was important for Reine to get back home after his recent victory.

Here in Sweden it’s felt more like mid winter than late spring. So we’ve managed to get some good skiing in still. A few weekends a go I decided to take a trip to Bakvattnet to visit my good friend Marja Persson. I had been there last fall and it was a great time but we were pretty unlucky with the weather. This time it was a different story. I couldn’t of asked for better weather!

This time instead of hiking in we got to snowmobile in. After setting up the cabins we went out again to meet up with Marja’s father and set up salt licks for the local Moose in the area. I’ve spent some time on a sled but never really had my skills tested like on this trip. It was definitely easier than deep powder but instead I had to maneuver through tight tree’s and melting water crossings. It was a little stressful since it wasn’t my sled but still so much fun!

After every salt lick was set back we made it back to the cabins for some dinner and a beautiful sunset. Marja and I decided to ditch the sleds and cross country ski back to the cabins. This was something I hadn’t done in years! To make it even more interesting I had Marja’s dog harnessed up to me. I thought I knew what I was doing, as it turns out I didn’t. Apparently I really need to brush up on my XC skiing skills. I’m pretty sure the dog did more than I did.

The next day we woke up to another sunny day in Bakvattnet and headed back to the main cabin where I had my first try at ice fishing. We set up some lines and then headed off again on the sleds for some lunch and exploring.

After lunch Marja showed us around the area. We got some great views of a beautiful place. It was so clear we were able to see pretty far off into the distance and where able to get a chance to check out some mountains that I hope to head to one day with Marja for some ski touring!

It was another great weekend in Bakvattnet with Marja and friends! I can’t wait to get back there again!

It’s been a bit of a road trip since the contest in Chamonix took place. Right after the Chamonix I found myself packing once again to head to Courmayeur to watch the men’s third stop of the Freeride World Tour. I wanted to cheer on Reine and my friends. It’s always a good time to be able to watch all of the men’s runs!

Reine getting interviewed after his run in Courmayeur

After Courmayeur we had to some how make our way to Munich for ISPO. For those of you that don’t know what ISPO is it’s a much larger version of SIA the winter sports trade show that is held in the U.S. However we soon realized the morning after the contest that we had no actual plan for getting to ISPO. We had a crew of four, myself and Reine, fellow American Matt Annett’s and another Swedish Freerider Erik Sunnerheim. After many hour of trying to work out a plan and seeming to come up short the whole time we were fortunate to find help from the French! Julien Lopez, Seb Michaud and Carl Guichon were kind enough to squeeze us and all or luggage in three cars so we could make our way to Chamonix to pick up a rental.

Since it took much longer than expected to get on the road we all decided to brake up the trip a bit and get some skiing in Engelberg, Switzerland. It had been snowing there and were hoping to get some good powder skiing in!

The snow was great but visibility was far from good. We did find one spot that was so much fun even though we found ourselves lapping the same area over and over. It was nothing crazy but it felt so good to get some freeskiing in. Despite the high costs of Switzerland Engelberg seems like a great place to come back. I recommend you check out The Ski Lodge for a place to stay, or if your like me and that’s a bit rich for your pocket it’s worth stopping by for a some Apre Ski…

http://skilodgeengelberg.com/

A few days later we finally found ourselves in Munich, Germany for ISPO. I personally am not the biggest fan of cities but it’s sometimes nice to get a change of scenery. At ISPO I had a chance to check out the sweet new Kastle skis for 2013 as well as get to meet some of my new sponsors. Over at Helly Hansen I was able to get a look at their new line. I’m definitely looking forward to getting some of the new gear!

Happy models at the Helly Hansen fashion show!

After ISPO it was straight to Garmisch, Germany for the night to say hello to my good friend Marja Persson. Then off again the following day to Innsbruck to stay with one of Reine’s friend Floh. Next stop after that was to Lech, Austria. Reine had to meet up with Dynastar to try out some new skis. I got to do some amazing powder skiing as well as check out the Kastle Mountain Museum that just happened to be at the top of the mountain in Lech!

Kastle Mountain Museum, Lech Austria

Chris Davenport, Kastle Pro Team

After a great day in Lech it was back to Innsbruck to pick up some new skis from Kastle. I’m pretty excited to try them all out and play around on some new skis! They all look like a ton of fun! We spent some days in Innsbruck and checked out one of the local ski areas called Kuhtai. Despite the extremely cold temperatures it was a great time. We found some good snow and saw some amazing views down in the valley. The mountains around the resort look like they will make for some great touring. I definitely want to make my way back to that area sometime soon. The friends we were with told us that area is known for some great touring and is only accessible by human power, so despite a few skin tracks the area remains

pretty untouched.

The view from Kuhtai

Now I find myself in the Zillertal valley in Austria. It’s a down day and the plan is to head out tomorrow to get some jumping in at Mayerhofen and a chance to try out my new back country freestlye skis from Kastle, the West’s!!

I would be fooling myself if I said I didn’t want to win the first comp of the season. I’m a competitor and I would of loved to win Revelstoke, but sometimes it’s just not your day. Yes, some disappointment sets in and I go over and over in my mind where my run went wrong. Did I pick too challenging of a line? Should I have just sent that cliff and hope it was good to go? Could I have made the turn towards my original plan and been okay? The reality is it’s over and dwelling on what I did wrong is not going to help me for the next comp.

Getting ready to watch the finals

I’m trying to look at the positive side of things. What went well? Well, my first hit I came into with no hesitation which has been something that’s really important to me. Also, I would rather be here healthy and ready for the season because I skied smart and was cautious in an unknown area to me instead of just sending it into what could of been rocks. Even though a long pause on the top is a little embarrassing it’s a lot better than jumping blind and ending up hurt.

Of course I wanted to ski this venue. Look at it!

At the end of the day all that really matters for me is if I’m still having fun and if I’m still working towards my goals. For me skiing is about pushing myself to be the best I can be and having fun. I know I have a lot of work ahead of me to get where I want to be but every little step helps get me there. When I do have my next victory it will feel so good because it will be with a line that looks fun and challenging. So I’m going to keep chasing the guys

Beautiful B.C.

This season I’m very proud to announce two new sponsors. For outerwear I’ll be working with Helly Hansen. You can follow my adventures this season here and also at:

You can also visit Helly Hansen’s You Tube channel where you can find product reviews from the great group of Pros at Helly Hansen:

And last but not least for eye wear, helmets, body armor and poles I’ll be working with SCOTT!

I’m very excited to be working with one of The Freeride World Tour’s sponsor as well.

I’m currently in Bellingham, WA hoping for the weather to change back to snow while in route to Revelstoke for the first stop of the Freeride and Freeskiing World Tours for the 2012 season. It should be a fun and exciting season! I can’t wait for it all to go down.

A few weeks ago when I arrived in Sweden Reine and I went to check out Tannforsen, waterfall. It’s located in Jamtland region of Sweden where Reine is from. It also happens to be one of Sweden’s largest waterfalls with Sweden’s largest volume of water flowing though it.

Reine and Stella

Tannforsen

Reine and Stella out on the overlook

Tannforsen from below

The other day I flew to Sweden to have some down time and meet up with Reine before the winter gets way. We’ve been getting out o a few adventures. Recently we went to Valadalen and the Blankt Tjarn Lakes. The tjarns are mountain lakes or pools, formed in a cirque excavated by a glacier. The best part is the water in these lakes was such an amazing green color.

Heading down the Esker to the Blankt Tjarn

I love the color of the water!

These signs mark snowmobile trails for the winter

Last weekend I took part in my first DH race in I over ten years! In high school I spent my summers traveling from resort to resort every weekend for dual slalom, down hill and cross country races. It was a great time, but after a few accidents I decided to take some time off from racing.

Some time turned to over ten years! Bikes are expensive and mom and dad are no longer buying them!! Ahhh getting older, anyways this summer I finally made the move and bought a new mountain bike. My XC bike is a little out dated and I was over due for a new one. Perhaps some rear suspension as well? Ya, I think so.

A few weeks ago I ran into my friend Adrienne Schneider. She had been saying we should go riding for a few years now and the thought of following her around on my Moots soft tail did not really sound like a good time. This time I had a new bike and I decided to take her up on her offer and try to keep up. For those of you who do not know Adrienne, she just happened to have qualified for the World Cup for DH, in other words she’s fast! Very, very, very fast! Luckily for me a great coach too!

Adrienne convinced me to take part in the Karpiel race last weekend at Northstar. Apparently Karpiel is one of the toughest trails on the mountain and not many ladies wanted to show up that day. This section shown below being one reason why;

Adrienne making her way down the waterfall

Adrienne moving on past the waterfall

I cleared this section four times in a row before the race. Of course that was not the case during the race. Here I am right before I lose my line in the waterfall.

Myself in the waterfall

After the waterfall came another section called Vietnam. That one gave me some troubles in practice yet I was able to clear it and was feeling pretty confident. Unfortunately I had some troubles there and between that and the waterfall probably lost at least twenty seconds off my time. Oh well It was still a good time.

Adrienne, myself and Dennis getting ready for awards!

Adrienne of course came out on top!! Securing her spot on the top for the Northstar 2011 DH race series! I came in second and I have to say in the end I was pretty happy with my first Pro DH race in long time!

The big pay day!

This weekend I gear up for the Race for Tara at Northstar. I’m hoping there’s an expert class so I can warm up a little before I try and compete against a World Cup racer again! If you’re in Tahoe this weekend check out the action up at Northstar for the Race for Tara. Tara Llanes was a champion DH racer who was paralyzed in a crash a few years ago. Read more about her road to recovery and how you can help out at :http://www.tarallanesclassic.org/

I’m excited to announce one of my new sponsors! Sheex Performance Sheets. I’ve been sleeping on them for a few months now and I have never slept better! If you want to try them out for yourself visit:

www.sheex.com

How do they work?

Temperature Control
Transfers body heat 2X better than traditional bedding for cooler, deeper sleep
Moisture Transport
Wicking properties keep you dry and comfortable
Breathability
Breathes nearly 50% better than cotton
Precision Fit
Flexible microfibers offer optimum fit on all mattress types
Superior Feel
Ridiculously soft and luxurious to the touch for unrivaled comfort
Durability
Advanced fade, wrinkle and shrink resistance

SLEEP BETTER, PLAY BETTER
Better Sleep Leads to Better Performance. That’s why we have created Sheex, the world’s first luxury performance bed sheets. Sheex were inspired by the finest professional-quality athletic fabrics, offering a superior level of comfort and performance to help you sleep better.

-Sheex

So it’s been a while since I posted the first day of my trip down in the high Sierra’s earlier this summer. All I can say is that I live in Tahoe and it’s been sunny all day everyday so I’ve been out enjoying summer! So I’ve got a few adventures to write about but I’ll start with day 2 of the shootout.

We started out on Tioga pass right before the West Entrance to Yosemite National Park.

Me and the boys started skinning up to the Dana Plateau. Our crew got a bit of a late start, the day before was a long one and I know I was personally a little worn out. However it was a beautiful day and I was happy to be out in the mountains.

It was pretty hot and the snow starting to get sticky. A big difference from the slightly overcast day we had the day before. This day the sun was out in full effect and it was finally starting to feel like summer.

The lines that are up there look like so much fun. I’m definitely coming back to this area again to do some more exploring.

This weekend was my first day back skiing in California in a few months. It was nice to meet up with a few of my Tahoe friends, like Mr. Mike Vaughn.

I have to admit my run down was not the greatest. I was pretty worn out this day, and the snow was not ideal. However any day on the mountains is a great day!

relaxing after a great weekend of skiing