A River Runs Through It!
Posted on July 12, 2011 at 3:30 am

A few of us took the afternoon away from the mountain and ventured onto a run called “A River Runs Through It”, a crazy pedal through a flat-ish forest, loaded with wooden features. Skinnys, bridges, teeter-totters, and step-downs are constantly coming at you, faster than you can have second thoughts about whether the next feature is actually sensible to do. A crazy trail, and very unique to Whistler. I don’t think there is anything like it anywhere else.

Leslie is planning on coming back on a lighter bike, his super plush Trek 450 with dual crown forks wasn’t ideal, though still a whole lot of fun.

A beer and a chill out afterwards on Alta Lake at sunset was just what we needed

Airbag madness! Crankworx is nearly upon us, and all kinds of cool stuff is coming to Whistler.
Posted on July 10, 2011 at 8:49 pm

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Whistler Mountain Bike Coaches Camp has begun!
Posted on July 4, 2011 at 8:04 am

The Whistler mountain bike course is under way in a big way. We have had a couple of days getting to know Whistler Blackcomb with some coaches and another couple of weeknend days to shred some more, ticking off as many trails as we could.  Garbanzo zone (the upper lift) has just opened also and has been incredible. Good times!

We spent the first day getting oursleves sorted out in town with gear and season passes and even bought a couple of bikes.

Riding in the park has been a little slick with a bit of rain, but a lot of double blacks and bi drops and jumps have already been sessioned by some. Some hot and dry weather this week will be amazing.

The CTC course starts tomorrow, with a focus on group management and teaching beginner riding skills.

Here We Go! Hometime…
Posted on April 11, 2011 at 1:33 pm

Spring has arrived here in Whistler, though you wouldn’t have guessed it from the weather on the morning the Peak Leaders group made their final departure from the Durlacher Hof. Fresh snow on the ground, and more forecast in the following days.

While in Europe many ski areas have closed early this season, the Coast Mountains of British Columbia couldn’t be more different The mid-mountain snowbase is still over 3 metres, meaning that there could be many more turns made on the slopes of Whistler-Blackcomb this spring (or summer for that matter?). Unfortunately for the Peak Leaders trainees their 12 weeks is up, and while a select few elected to remain for a few more days, most headed off home for work, university, and holidays in the sunshine.

But enough prose… I could blather on all day about what this group of trainees achieved during their 12 weeks in Whistler, and good times, but instead here’s a little ‘review’ of Peak Leaders Whistler 2011 in pictorial form…

Peak Leaders HQ (also known as the Durlacher Hof, or simply The Hof. Not to be confused with David Hasselhoff)

Off to training, to learn from the best.

Cooking from Alan kept us well fuelled for long days on the hill. An absolute kitchen ninja

But there were other occasions for celebration at home (Anyone for delicious Haggis? The Inaugural Whistler Peak Leaders Burns’ Night)

Training with Whistler-Blackcomb’s Snow School meant that as time went on…

…there was less of this…

…and more of THIS…

There’s more to skiing and boarding that just turning left and right though… in this case going Nordic and trying a bit of cross-country skiing

With plenty of snow there was a bit of this…

And a little of this…

And, just for kicks, swapping gear for a day (skiers go snowboarding, snowboarders go skiing) so that everyone felt like complete hackers once again

The business end of the course meant some anxious moments awaiting results…

But with all trainees sitting exams passing their Level 2 and becoming certified and qualified instructors, it was the perfect excuse for dressing up like this…

But if you could sum up what this season was all about maybe it would be with a photo like THIS (Yes… Charlie does have legs, and he is standing up, the snow is actually THAT deep)

Whistler 2011: The season of DIVINE FLUFF

Level 2 and Beyond!
Posted on April 8, 2011 at 6:45 pm

Last week was Level 2 week… a full monday-friday in front of the men in the red jackets, carefully watching every move. So there was plenty of this…

…carving up the pistes, as well as the inevitable snow plough turns (sorry no photos)

With Level 2 done and out of the the way, it was time for such time-honoured post-exam traditions as;

1. Jumping in the pool at the Hilton Hotel

2. Having a couple of pints of Fanta

3. Throwing High-5′s until your hands are burning

4. And of course dressing up like a complete moron (or gorby as it is widely-known in these parts) and going skiing

In the background of the above photo you can see a world-cup level freestyle moguls course (BC Regional Champs) set up on the infamous run Davie’s Dervish, but for the Peak Leaders crew this was their last day together on the hill, and while watching kids throw backflips and smashing bumps was appealing, there was  a dusting of nice dry powder on the north-facing aspects of Blackcomb’s Glacier Chair

Eden had found some second-hand ski poles so bright they threaten to make your eyeballs bleed (it’s advisable not to look straight at them)

And for Captain Catchphrase (Fergus – above) it was a perfect opportunity to re-cap on the season that has been with a non-stop running commentary… he was not only “getting connected” and “in the game”, there was gratuitous amounts of “turning d’legg” (or is that “turnin’ lyehg”?), some impromptu GNAR points were awarded, and all remarked at the truly “divine fluff” that lay on the slopes in the Blackcomb Alpine that afternoon.

Of course a final day on the hill would not have been complete without one last delicious Cinnamon Bun. The LAST piece of the LAST Cinnamon Bun can be seen mid-flight, going to the highest bidder.

Finishing the season with snow just as good as when it started (3rd snowiest year in Whistler history) the trainees headed home to pack their bags…

Oh, Level 2 results… didn’t mention that already? Well, all trainees sitting Level 2 CASI and CSIA courses/exams passed with flying colours, some with truly outstanding feedback on their teaching and skiing/riding, clearly a result of their commitment to training and their hard work throughout the season. Some began training 12 weeks ago as self-described ‘hackers’, and the progress these guys have made and the improvements to their skiing and riding have been absolutely huge Fantastic results for the whole team, and the celebrations on Friday after results were announced were well-deserved

Turn d’legg

Crossover Day
Posted on April 3, 2011 at 2:14 pm

All the trainees here in Whistler have been training hard for their upcoming Level 2 courses, but before stepping out in front of the ‘red jackets’ to earn their stripes, the skiers and snowboarders decided to walk a mile in each other’s shoes… Or to be more accurate, ‘turn da legg’ in each other’s boots.

The recipe is pretty basic: skiers go snowboarding, snowboarders go skiing, everyone looks and feels like a complete hacker, hilarity ensues. Crossover Day this season was part of Matty’s ILM (Institute of Leadership and Management) Level 4 project, which ensured that we were out on the mountain (and this case this meant the bunny hill) early one Saturday after a long week of training, with all the right equipment.

Total Professionals.. obviously

While training usually focusses on fundamental skills like Stance and Balance, during Crossover Day we felt it more important to work on our Steeze and Banter

Borrowing a pair of massively obese powder skis, Charlie did an admirable job of ‘turn da legg’, and grasped the true meaning on ‘pizza’…

And while the snowboarders tried to come to terms with having two separate pieces of equipment on their feet…

The skiers attempted to balance on just one of their edges…

As well as experiencing what it is like to have a wet bum.

With some expert coaching coming from our aspiring instructors everyone quickly found their legs, and made a full run down the mountain (on a green run Woo) by the end of the morning. With exams in just a few short days however, everyone was very happy to switch back to their preferred method of snow sliding at the end of the day

La Nina Delivers
Posted on March 7, 2011 at 3:03 am

La Nina has deliver the goods here in Whistler. Again. During ‘La Nina’ winter Western Canada tends to experience colder and snowier winters than usual – which here in Whistler means powder day after powder day. After a banger start to the season January was relatively dry (by Whistler standards… still epic snow by any other measure) but from mid-February the snow has falling… and falling… and falling. 82cm in the past 7 days! And although the snowbase now sits at 323cm the total cumulative snowfall is 1151cm.  That’s about 3 large male African Elephants standing on top of each other. But I digress. Number schmumbers… What does all this mean? Well for the trainees here, this has meant POWDER. White Gold. The Divine Fluff. This week in Snorkeltown, BC the Peak Leaders trainees have been honing their powder legs in bumps, steeps, pillows, trees and secret stashes.

The skiers light it up down T-Bar Headwall and off Whistler’s West Bowl during training with Kim

With the snow close to the lifts tracked out it was time to “earn some turns”, which meant searching a little further afield, away from the weekend masses. A twenty minute walk to the top of Flute Bowl (on the boundary between Whistler ski area and Garibaldi Provincial Park) meant more of the light fluffy stuff all the way back to Symphony Chair. What an afternoon!