We arrived in Whistler on a Monday night. After a disappointing result for both of us the previous weekend at the Mont Saint Anne world cup we were looking forward to kicking back on some trails and getting on the booze train. On the first days riding we met up with the scots Paul Smail(Pusher Fame and Freeride extraodinaire) and Ian Cookson (Team Kona UK). Some elite girls from NZ Amie Laird, Olivia Johnstone, Laurin Cambell and XC rider, but should race Elite DH, Anya Mcdonald and Helene Fruhwirth from Austria. The girls had a plush pad in town that we used as our day home. Other kiwis kicking about were Kelly Mcgarry and Brucey from Dunedin was working at Zogs hotdog stand.
Wednesday night saw Me Mavis and Cookson sign up amongst 140 others for the WORCA DH evening event. Pretty relaxed run race with some really funny times popping out. Track was tight and technical at the top and then opened up to fast flowing berms at the bottom with some fairly flat pedalling sections. I came second behind some French Dude with a 4 Min 20, Mavis ate too many pies for breakfast and was 30 seconds off the pace!? Cookson came in 6th. Prize giving was in a bar at the bottom of the hill, Mavis got bounced for being under age and had to sit over the fence! Canadians are very strict on drinking age, if you are under 19 and its past 8pm with or without a guardian you're out.
A basic day at Whistler consisted of- Get Up, Make sure Mavis brushes his teeth and wipes his bum, ride into town, dump our crap at the girls apartment, ride for a couple of hours, swim in the lake(beware of the nuddy beach at Lost Lake, Mavis loved it but a bit much sausage for me), back for more DH in the evening and then pass out after two Coronas.
//WHISTLER BIKE PARK: DH PARADISE
Whistler DH park is Un real, I have done the Morzine, Les Gets, Jason Marsh gravel road tours thing and it just doesn’t compare to Whistler. Don’t waste your time trekking to Europe for it, head to Whistler. There are 2 Quad chairlifts that take you to the top of the hill with around 40 trails to choose from coming down. I recommend riding from the first Quad to start with, from the top first run is fairly steep and full on, good idea to warm up first.
My idea of Whistler before visiting was that of 100% groomed trails. There is a shite load of that but it soon becomes very one speed and one line. A Line and B line are great for working on your inside berm passing manouvers, X ups and whips (Mavis had his down! It still echos in my head “did you see my whip? Did you see my whip?”) These trails become very clustered and can become quite frustrating at times, avoiding masses of sprawled bodies from dead sailors gone bad is the norm. Look out on the landings of blind table tops!
Tracks I recommend if you are limited on time are, ‘Duffman’ and ‘No Duff’, Mavis and I rated this as our top tap it out track by far! ‘Goats Gully’ ,‘In Deep’ and ‘To Tight’ if you can handle the Jandle (fairly steep and rocky) and you cant go past Freight Train for fast flowing bridges and rock slabs.
Transportation- On arrival I was surprised to find very few direct buses and shuttles to Whistler. There is one bus service that charges around $70 one way for each person! We found the best option was to split a large Taxi three or four ways and drive us out direct. This also means you can be dropped directly at your accomadation and not have to find another Transfer. As far as Taxis go avoid the main stream and call resort cabs only, run and driven by a bunch of young guys that are only to happy to show you where the night life is. Other cabs and I quote “are run by dirty old guys that ferment in their farts all day”.
Places to eat- Depends on your budget but the supermarket is always going to be your best bet for value. Meals always seem cheap at first glance but once the waiter/waitress ads their 15% tip and Tax for the outstanding service they just provided, you will be bending over the counter with some Vaseline ready in hand. What ever budget you have planned for eating be prepared to blow it.
Accommodation:
Apartments are available in the village centre at around $700-$1000 a week, about 5 minutes walk to the bottom of the lift. During peak times the village becomes very noisy and drunk at night so don’t expect to get the best nights sleep. We stayed at the UBC Lodge, located 15 mins DH bike ride back towards Vancouver set amongst the bush in the hills. Dorm style accommodation with communal kitchen etc. At $16 per night great value. Be prepared for the local Bear ‘Alpine’ to come sniffing through your undies in the morning. Similar budget accommodation include Shoestring Lodge, see shoestringlodge.com
//THE SHOESTRING LODGE
"Be prepared for the local Bear ‘Alpine’ to come sniffing through your undies in the morning"
An adult lift pass for the day is $46 and a youth is $41. The lifts open at 10am and runs through until 8pm. Best times to ride are first thing in the morning and from 5pm in the evening. There are next to no lift ques during the week, in the weekend try and dodge the main quad at the bottom and head straight for the Gondola. Kelly Mcgarry gave us this hot line and it avoids almost all ques in the weekend. To rent a downhill Bike is around $90 a day, if you feel like lycra cladding your ass its worth while renting some XC bikes and checking out ‘Shit Happens’ about twenty mins ride up the highway from the village away from Vancounver. I recommend a maximum of 4 PSI in the rear tyre for maximum rim drifting action.
All in all whistler is the shizzle, if your under age take two forms of fake ID not one! Take heaps of coin and Vaseline for dinner.
Out
NZRIDE REPORTER: BYRON SCOTT
//ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:
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THE NZ RIDE "WORLD OF NZ DH" TEE
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[BARON]
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*JUST TO CLARIFY, YOU WILL NOT GET A FREE SET OF KNIVES WITH ANY SHIRTS AND WEARING THE SAID SHIRT MAY NOT ACTUALLY MAKE YOU AS COOL AS JAMES BARON, ALTHOUGH IT SHOULD GET YOU PRETTY CLOSE.
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//SPOKE AND MANUAL MAGAZINE
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