Early January at W/B, So Far So Good
Submitted by amym on Wed, Jan 06, 2010
2010 has begun at Whistler Blackcomb and it started with a powsplosion of fireworks and blizzards, so this year is sure not to disappoint. Don't believe me? Read more for proof.
Caption photo:
After a snowless post-Christmas week in Calgary, I arrived in Whistler to a chorus of "omg the pow is sick" and "you SHOULD have skied yesterday" and I obviously had to head up the mountain to see what the fuss was about. There were only a few cms of fresh on Sunday and the mountain was a virtual ghost town. All of those traffic-savvy holidayers headed back on Saturday night.
There wasn't much fresh snow but the nearby slackcountry was looking good with no tracks in Corona Bowl and only a few people headed up the skintrack. I was with Ryan McRae, Mike Hashimodo, and Yu. No not you, Yu Sasaki. The man may have small poles but he sure has spunk, as proven by his pillow-slaying powers in magic.
Unfortunately Sam from Surefoot and two of his buddies beat us to Corona, but they chose to take skier's right of the bowl, and as the heavens opened, the clouds scattered, and we basked in glorious sunlight, we decided to take the left side of the bowl. Then the sun kind of went away, but that's okay because there was at least some visibility. And when you're dealing with untouched powder, does it really matter if you can see? You've got chunks of pow hitting you in the face obstructing your view anyway!
Mike Hashimodo trying to see his way down Corona Bowl. Amy McDermid photo.
Yu and Mike and an endless amount of possibilities. Amy McDermid photo
The snow was good and fast and the run finished long before we wanted it to end. Next we traversed over to the Poop Chutes to get some fun fast turns using baby saplings as powder race gates and barely containing our stoke.
Although some of us had one of those annoying things to get to... I think it's called a "job" or something, we still thought it prudent to hit some pillows on the daily commute.
Ryan McRae on his way to work at Can-Ski. Amy McDermid photo.
Yu and Ryan had some serious fun times hitting pillows and I snapped a few on my little camera. Yu has plans to compete in the big air contest at the Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival and if his pillow smashing ability is any indication of his big air potential, he's got nothing to worry about.
Yu and some pillows sitting in a tree... s-t-o-m-p-i-n-g. Amy McDermid photo.
Funny how that snow just flies up in your face all of a sudden and you can't see anything. Amy McDermid photo.
Then we went to work. Bummer. But Tuesday was another magnificent day up the mountain, and I grabbed the big gun (camera) and headed out with Tessa Treadway, Kirsten Lyle, and Sarah Frood to try and find some snow.
First lap, the glacier still had some patches of fresh, and we even performed an immaculate 'flock of eagles' spread-eagle jump train on a windlip, too bad there was nobody there to witness it. Next we hit up Diamond Bowl and finished the morning on Chainsaw Ridge, which has been blasted out of recognition by patrol because the cornices were massive. The entrance to Bushrat is a mandatory 6 foot drop now instead of an easy ski in for those of you wanting to head over that way.
Overall, I'm glad to be back in town and I'll see you on the hill. I swear I'll ski on Whistler eventually...
Kir and Tessa basking in the glorious sunshine on the Darkside. Amy McDermid photo.
Tessa Treadway finding some snow on Blackcomb glacier. Amy McDermid photo.
Crazy! It's like we had the mountain to ourselves or something. Amy McDermid photo.
Tessa and Sarah looking back on the day. Amy McDermid photo.
Once again it was a successful half-day for the Rad Boob Club and we had so much fun we're doing it again on Thursday. Then we'll be selling Rad Boob calendars at the Arc'Teryx Deep Winter Photo Challenge at the Fairmont on Thursday night, see you there!