There's Something About McConkey

Extreme skier Shane McConkey is the protagonist of this affably oddball documentary that features some suitably spectacular footage of McConkey casually doing what most skiers can only fantasize about. There are interviews with McConkey, who comes off as the laidback dude one might expect, as well as interviews with his mother and a few friends (one of whom tells a funny story proving that "there's something wrong with McConkey"). And a few comic interludes, including McConkey's attempt to star in a music video, pop up. But the real point to this production is the skiing footage, which is uniformly spectacular. McConkey and others (including Olympic champion Jonny Moseley) go rocketing down absurdly steep mountainsides in footage shot from helicopters, and of course they make it all seem so effortless that you can almost forget how insanely dangerous it is. And speaking of bodily peril, McConkey is also seen flying off ski jumping ramps backwards and gleefully sailing through space. As someone quips, "his radness can't be quantified." Keeping with the athlete-as-outlaw theme, there are also segments on BASE jumping, in which McConkey and others are seen parachuting from bridges, tall buildings, and mountainsides. Some of the film's humor is strained, but this is for the most part an entertaining look at a character who just can't get enough downhill excitement. --Robert J. McNamara

Ten years ago, young renegade ski racer Shane McConkey quit his collegiate team to pursue a career in the small, unglamorous world of freeskiing. Through the '90s, McConkey battled the odds and the establishment as he put "fun" back in skiing. With an unprecedented manner of attacking mountains and a committed effort to appear ridiculous, McConkey opened the doors to a new way of thinking and skiing. As attention to his feats and antics blossomed, so did the sport around him. We've teamed up the raddest skiers of today with the past decade's most influential skier and biggest idiot. So sit back for a wacky, whirlwind tour through a man, a mind and a sport. You may never look at skiing the same way again. 60 minutes.

You might also like:

• Steep
  
• Global Storming
  
• FOCUSED
  
• Seven Sunny Days: Short Stories From A Long Winter