DOWNHILL RACER 1969
It’s time for another installment of Sunday Night Sports Flix. With many of us skiing over the long holiday weekend and the winter Olympics going full force, we thought the “Best of Ski” would be a timely theme. So here goes our top five — click image for preview!
Astonishing alpine locations, action-packed photography, a young Robert Redford and the gorgeous Camilla Sparv, are just a few of the visual splendors of Downhill Racer. Redford plays a ruthlessly ambitious skier competing in Europe for Olympic gold and Gene Hackman is the coach who tries to temper his narcissistic drive for glory.
BLIZZARD OF AAHS 1988
From from famed ski film director Greg Stump comes this iconic 80’s documentary featuring the pioneers and rockstars of extreme skiing, most notably the young mohawked Glen Plake. Most of the footage is shot at Chamonix with other main segments at Telluride and Squaw Valley.
ASPEN EXTREME 1993
A goofball classic but popular favorite, Aspen Extreme is the story of two ski buddies who abandon their blue-collar world to become ski instructors in Aspen, Colorado. There they discover the playground of the rich and famous. Seduced by the skiing, wealth, and lifestyle their friendship is put to the test with surprising results.
VALHALLA 2013
Valhalla is a modern day hippie classic. Described as “the tale of one man’s search to rediscover the freedom of his youth. Feeling the distant heat of its fire still burning in the mountains of the frozen north, he goes in search of those tending the flame—the untamed, the wild, and the outcast dwelling on the fringe.” An appropriate naked skiing sequence is one of the highlights of the movie, in addition to all the spectacularly filmed backcountry skiing.
MCCONKEY 2013
McConkey is a memoir of Shane McConkey, one of the most inspirational and influential athletes the action sports world has ever known. McConkey’s daredevil feats combined BASE jumping with skiing, but in 2009, he died while skiing in the Dolomite Mountains in Italy. After a double back flip off a cliff on skis, McConkey intended to glide away in his wing flying suit, but unable to release his skis, he was killed. Filled with incredible action, his story is told through his peers, friends and family, and most movingly by his wife.
