Pique Newsmagazine 3036

WHILE

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Nothing but a number

In an unapologetic sports town, Whistler’s seniors embrace their golden years. - Photos by David Buzzard

14 CORE FOCUS A centuries-old Douglas fir discovered in Whistler is “in a different league”—and suspected to be close to 1,000 years old.

15 INVICTUS FORMING With a board of directors, executives, and contracts in place, the 2025 Invictus Games are beginning to take shape.

16 HAWK HABITAT There are seven known northern goshawk nesting sites in the Whistler Valley, which conservationists say is good news for local habitat protection.

24 ROCK SOLID

A fire behind a Pemberton business complex late last month might have been much worse if not for the quick thinking of business owner Riel Rock.

38 FOND MEMORIES Sea to Sky Olympians Darren Gardner and Chris Spring will be among nearly 6,000 riders in this year’s RBC GranFondo Whistler.

42 FILM

FACE

OFF Whistler filmmaker Janalee

Budge is in the running for CBC’s Short Film Face Off—but she needs your votes to put her over the top.

COVER L to R: Hilary Davison, 56, Scott Brunning, 66, and Larry Falcon, 60, in the Upper Village at the Monday Night Rides event—a social riding group that meets every week, rain or shine. - By David Buzzard // www.davidbuzzard.com

Founding Publishers KATHY & BOB BARNETT

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Contributors G.D. MAXWELL, GLENDA BARTOSH, LESLIE ANTHONY, ANDREW MITCHELL, ALISON TAYLOR, VINCE SHULEY

President, Whistler Publishing LP

SARAH STROTHER - sstrother@wplpmedia.com

Opinion & Columns

08 OPENING REMARKS

Short-term rentals in Whistler aren’t as bad as they might be, thanks to the efforts of local officials—but greed is not going anywhere, writes editor Braden Dupuis.

10 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

This week’s letter writers sing the praises of live music acts in Whistler, and voice appreciation for a remarkable community champion.

13 PIQUE’N YER INTEREST Those aren’t dolls on Brandon Barrett’s desk, they’re action figures. And don’t laugh—they might be worth a fortune some day.

58 MAXED OUT Max is revelling in the sound of summer slammin’ shut this week, as he looks forward to a few merciful weeks of downtime before Whistler’s winter business picks up.

Environment & Adventure

31 RANGE ROVER When it comes to personal actions, there is plenty we can all do to combat the climate crisis, writes Leslie Anthony—even if it’s just talking about it.

Lifestyle & Arts

40 EPICURIOUS Fine-dining upstart Wild Blue is marking its one-year anniversary with an al fresco long-table dining experience.

46 MUSEUM MUSINGS The Roundhouse that sits atop Whistler Mountain today bears little resemblance to the original Roundhouse built during the summer of 1966.

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The long and short(term) of renting in Whistler

WHEN WE WROTE in this space a few weeks back about the incredible highs and disastrous lows of Whistler’s rental market, we heard a wide range of responses from the community.

As one might predict, the responses ran the gamut from good, to bad, to ugly.

BY BRADEN DUPUIS

Though housing has been a talking point at Whistler’s municipal hall for 25 years, the problem has gotten steadily worse, wrote one reader.

“The only conclusion possible is the municipal government is simply incapable of fixing it. There is no other conclusion. They are on the wrong track. Unless the muni does something different than they are doing it will not change,” they wrote.

“Is anyone asking why all the government initiatives for the past quarter century have failed, i.e., led us to where we are? It is a 100-per-cent, government-created problem. Perhaps you could ask your readers why they think the muni and all levels of government are so ineffective on housing. That would be entertaining.”

Well, what do you think? Why is government so ineffective on housing? We await your letters to the editor.

Another reader pointed out the piece, perhaps unfairly, essentially boiled down the rental problem to homeowners being unwilling to rent out their homes.

“As a new homeowner, let me tell you that it was damn challenging to have the municipality approve our house permit with additional rental space. After three years of building, we are now sitting on an $8,000 mortgage,” they wrote.

“Now we need to ask a painful amount of

rent just to break even, and I hate being that person. It is very tempting to gtfo and sell, and I see why spec homes are ever so popular these days. From where I’m standing, the situation sucks on both ends. Please don’t blame one party, the grass is not greener on this side.”

Touché, fair reader, and our intention was never to oversimplify such a complex issue.

And of course, more than one reader pointed out that short-term rentals are still wreaking havoc in Whistler and beyond.

“It’s about short-term rentals: Airbnb, VRBO, etc., that were previously available for long-term rentals, and now the owners can make as much money with one Airbnb weekend as they previously made in a month with a long-term tenant,” one reader wrote.

“Until short-term rentals can be more highly regulated, eliminated, taxed, and enforced, this will continue. Landlords, understandably, prefer the money and the flexibility that they would not have with a long-term tenant. Imagine that: you can make as much money with a few weeks or weekends

clear as day, short-term listings in Whistler’s residential neighbourhoods.

In Whistler, tourist accommodation providers are required to have the appropriate zoning and a business licence.

But according to the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW), there are properties throughout the resort that have tourist accommodation as a permitted use, including in some residential neighbourhoods. (If you suspect an online listing is illegal, you can verify its zoning using the RMOW’s handy GIS tool at webmap.whistler.ca. You can report suspected illegal listings at whistler.ca/bylaw.)

There are also so-called inactive “ghost listings,” in which a new owner has purchased a home, but is unable to get the previous owner’s short-term listing removed.

RMOW bylaw investigates filed complaints, in addition to actively monitoring short-term vacation rental booking sites, a communications official said. RMOW bylaw can issue fines up to $500.

Since Jan. 1, the RMOW has opened

So local officials are doing their best to stay on top of the problem. But how do they feel about those who so blatantly skirt the (very clear) rules?

“We do recognize that the income from [nightly rentals] can be good initially, but it doesn’t pay off for the community as a whole. Illegal nightly rentals affect the livability of a neighbourhood, displace our local workforce and will result in a fine for non-compliance,” the communications official said, adding that it’s important to do your due diligence before you list your property to ensure you’re permitted to do so.

As booking sites provide limited data to municipal governments, it is difficult to quantify their impacts in Whistler beyond hearsay, the official said, adding that a resolution coming to this month’s Union of BC Municipalities Convention aims to rectify the data issue.

Thanks to efforts at municipal hall over the years, illegal nightly rentals are not nearly as big of a problem in Whistler as they might have otherwise been—though they clearly still

of Airbnb, and then have space for your out-oftown family and friends the rest of the time.”

You have to admit—that does sound appealing!

But as one of countless employers in this town struggling to attract and retain good staff because there is simply nowhere to live, it is frustrating to see individual greed win out.

It is even more frustrating to open the maps on sites like Airbnb and VRBO and see,

40 files for illegal rentals—twenty-six are resolved (most of which resulted in a fine), while 14 are actively being investigated.

“As well, it should be noted, our track record is quite strong when we do issue a fine,” the official said. “We do occasionally have people try to dispute their fines, but the case history is strongly weighted in our favour. Since September 2021, 15 notices have been disputed in adjudication and 14 upheld.”

deserve our attention and vigilance. Greed is not going anywhere.

On a related note, if you’re a homeowner who would rather help their community than profit handsomely from it, and interested in housing a Pique reporter (or two), please get in touch.

In the meantime, I’ll be over here reporting every definitely-illegal short-term rental listing I can find to bylaw. ■

An ode to live music in Whistler

Live music has always been a part of Whistler, and some of my first memories of Whistler were live music. I remember helping out at a young age in our family’s lodge, Mount Whistler Lodge, and cleaning up the breakfast table for the bands that played the lodge most Friday and Saturday nights. Later, as a young teenager, my brother and I would go listen to them. They were adults-only events, but we had some pull, and there were no police around in those days. There were some pretty big bands that played there, and it was a place for the community to gather.

After the lodge closed in 1978, the Ski Boot was the place to go for live music. I remember seeing Doug and the Slugs there so many times my friends and I were getting tired of seeing them. Then the village came, and there were many places to see live music—most notably The Longhorn, and even Buffalo Bills on occasion. I remember seeing Edgar Winter playing there, standing 10 feet in front of him. He had a band, but would play every instrument himself, too. It was amazing.

So live music has a real history here. From bands such as Wide Mouth Mason playing on the top of Whistler in the springtime when

they were starting out, to the later World Ski and Snowboard Festival that had big acts like Black Eyed Peas, Big Sugar, etc. Now we have the Whistler Summer Concert Series in Olympic

Plaza that brings in out-of-town acts.

Remarkably, there is a lot of homegrown musical talent that lives in Whistler and the surrounding area. We are very fortunate to

have such great talent here in our small town.

I was at Whistler Blackcomb’s (WB) Mountain Top Feast last Saturday evening, and there was an amazing singer playing who had the whole crowd going. I went and talked to him after to tell him how much I enjoyed his sets, and he told me he’s in a band, but they don’t play together much anymore because there isn’t a lot of places to play. Which is sad, but true.

Red Chair is one of my favourites, and they use to play regularly at Tapley’s and The Longhorn to a lesser extent, but I haven’t seen them for quite a while and even thought they disbanded until I saw them at Art on the Lake/ Rockin’ on the Lake.

There are really only two main players in town now when it comes to bar ownership, Gibbons and WB. WB still has live acts, more so in the winter, but occasionally in the summer. It looks like Gibbons has abandoned live music for canned music to maximize profits, most of which I find quite annoying. Dubh Linn Gate is still great, but seeing a full band is a different experience.

If there is no place for these talented musicians to play, they are either going to disband or leave. There is a lot going on behind the scenes of a band. They have a lot of expenses such as equipment, storage, and insurance. They need time and a place to practise. It’s truly a labour of love that I much appreciate. I hope Gibbons and other places will take note and open their doors to live music again. If they do, we need to support that.

On a positive note, Arts Whistler has always been a big supporter of live music, and Art on the Lake/Rockin’ on the Lake is my favourite community event. New this year was the portable stage set up at Lakeside Park, which had full bands playing both days. The atmosphere was amazing, all types of people and families enjoying themselves in a very laidback atmosphere. I would like to see this portable stage put to more use throughout all our beautiful parks next summer and giving our very talented musicians a place to entertain us.

Ken Mason // Whistler

Appreciating a remarkable community champion

In the wake of James (Jim) Daniel Cook’s passing, we find ourselves reflecting on the indelible mark he has left on our community. On behalf of the Whistler Public Library’s board of trustees, we want to salute a local legend whose generosity has touched us all.

Jim’s last will and testament and legacy shows us his profound commitment to our community and its environment. From his estate’s proceeds he has gifted our community with an enduring funding legacy. This will positively impact countless lives in Whistler and across British Columbia. Jim underscored his dedication to our collective well-being by his actions, not just his words.

The Whistler Public Library, Whistler

Community Services Society, Whistler Community Church, Whistler Museum and Archives Society, Whistler Health Care Foundation, Whistler Search and Rescue Society, Whistler Animal Galore Society, Whistler Adaptive Sports Program Society, Whistler Naturalists Society, and the Whistler Community Foundation stand united in gratitude for Whistler’s 2007 Citizen of the year and his remarkable contributions.

Jim’s generosity is a reminder that a single act of kindness can inspire a tsunami of positive change. As we take a moment to appreciate his generosity, perhaps we can each be inspired to strengthen our bonds, support our most vulnerable, preserve our environment, and pledge to continue building a more inclusive, compassionate and united community for everyone.

Michael Walsh // Library Board Chair, Whistler Public Library n

FOR THE RECORD

An article in the Sept. 1 issue of Pique, “The Mind Mountain offers the Sea to Sky a mental health-focused approach to mountain-bike coaching,” incorrectly named one of the counsellors as Tori Kelly.

The counsellor’s name is in fact Tori Wood (toriwoodcounselling.com).

Pique regrets the error. n

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Collectibles craze reaches new heights of ridiculousness

ANYTIME SOMEONE NEW comes into the Pique newsroom in Function Junction, a brief wave of panic washes over me as I, a 37-year-old grown-ass man, realize I am probably going to have to explain to a complete stranger why my desk is littered with literal children’s toys.

BY BRANDON BARRETT

It’s not that I’m necessarily ashamed of my collecting hobby (OK, a little). It’s just that it can be difficult to persuade an interview subject that you’re, you know, a serious person with an array of shiny, plastic action figures (NOT dolls, OK?) lining my workspace.

If the numbers are anything to go by, however, I’m in fine—and growing— company. Whether toys, art, antiques, sports memorabilia, celebrity ephemera, vintage clothing—you name it—the collectibles market has absolutely exploded globally. The pandemic was a major factor, as people spent more time online, often with savings to burn, and collectibles were increasingly seen as a reliable investment in the face of financial volatility. (A study published last

year in Research in International Business and Finance found that, on average, retired LEGO sets provide a higher return on investment—11 per cent annually—than gold, large stocks, and bonds. Time to clean out that attic.)

But it’s far from the only factor at play.

Increased accessibility of online platforms has widened collectors’ reach, enabling them to buy, sell, and showcase items more easily.

after its first season featured such high-profile names as rapper Drake, Hall-of-Fame boxer Mike Tyson, and influencer Logan Paul, while Barbie, the smash box-office hit of the summer, has, for instance, helped boost the collectible doll market.

The figures are staggering. According to research and consultancy firm Market Decipher, the collectibles market is estimated at US$462

particularly in trading cards, the most popular sports collectible.

Collectible companies are savvy to this trend, too, not content with relying solely on historical memorabilia to drive consumer demand. The latest craze in the sports card world is including game-worn jersey patches, and a card known as the “Triple Logoman,” featuring three NBA logo patches cut from jerseys Lebron James wore with each of the franchises he has played for, set the sports collectible world on fire upon its release this year. In June, a lucky collector sold the card at auction for $2.4 million, setting the record for a sports card released and sold in the same year.

The emergence of blockchain technology, meanwhile, has helped to assuage collectors’ fears around counterfeit items by enhancing authenticity and provenance tracking.

The integration of collectibles into pop culture and mainstream media has also helped to amplify their visibility. Netflix recently renewed the reality show, King of Collectibles, which follows the team behind collectible auction house, Goldin Auctions,

billion in 2023, with forecasts predicting the market will tip $1 trillion by 2033.

Sports memorabilia is a large part of that growth. Online auctions and e-commerce sites have turned the market into big business, valued at $33 billion in 2021 and estimated to reach $227 billion by 2032. With an emerging middle class and rapid urbanization across Asia and the Middle East, there is ample opportunity for growth in these locales,

But of course nostalgia remains the engine powering the global collectibles boom, and no wonder. Between COVID-19, our collective climate crisis, a growing chasm between rich and poor, and the deepening social and political divides infecting our culture, yearning for a bygone era has become de rigueur, and there is no shortage of companies ready and willing to monetize that sentiment.

In an age when it can sometimes feel like we are being dragged headfirst into a future we didn’t ask for, we cling ever tighter to the symbols of a simpler time, artifacts of an idealized youth.

At least that’s what I’m going to tell the next person who asks me about my action figures. ■

[Y]earning for a bygone era has become de rigeur, and there is no shortage of companies ready and willing to monetize that sentiment.

‘Spectacular’ centuries-old Douglas fir found in Whistler is ‘in a different league’

ECOLOGIST ESTIMATES TREE NEAR LOGGERS LAKE IS CLOSE TO 1,000 YEARS OLD

BY BRANDON BARRETT

SOMETIMES THE RAREST treasures have been right under our nose the entire time. In the case of a charismatic old-growth tree recently discovered in Whistler, close to a thousand years.

This summer, ecologist and Whistler Naturalists co-founder Bob Brett cored a sturdy Douglas fir near Loggers Lake, in the Cheakamus Community Forest (CCF), that initially indicated it was about 750 years old. However, Brett said he only got about halfway in before hitting rot.

“I’m still planning to go back and core from another angle with less rot, and hoping to get more rings,” he said. “I’m guessing it’s upwards of 900 years old, or even closer to 1,000.”

Although the tree wasn’t initially discovered by local Dan Raymond, Brett said the renowned trail builder was so “gobsmacked” by the centuries-old Douglas fir that he decided it was worth a closer look— and for good reason.

“This tree … is in a different league,” Brett said. “The bark is unbelievable. This is a really spectacular tree. It’s not even that big. It’s less than two metres in diameter.”

The area had been slated for logging by CCF foresters, but with the moratorium on old-growth logging first implemented in 2021 still in place indefinitely, the tree is protected for now. “I’m just thankful it happened,” Brett added. “You can imagine how magnificent the forests were in Whistler before most of the trees were removed. It’s amazing to me we still have remnants of them.”

Brett has been in talks with the CCF partners to provide them with more up-to-date information on tree ages in the community forest.

“They’re receptive to getting better age data in their mapping because the data is

inaccurate in many places, specifically underestimating ages,” he said. “That will, hopefully, eventually, go in their database and hopefully that [stand will be] off the books for good, but I don’t know.”

The Douglas fir near Loggers Lake is far from the oldest tree in Whistler. The oldest tree Brett has cored in his decades of research, a yellow cedar in the Callaghan Valley, is

In 2019, the Whistler Naturalists published the results of an extensive project that saw the non-profit photographing and coring hundreds of trees around the community that were listed and displayed in a slicklooking map. Part of the goal was to highlight Whistler’s old and ancient trees.

“The reason for all of this and all the coring I’ve ever done is related to trying to conserve old-growth forest,” Brett said at a 2018 AGM offering the public its first glimpse at the mapping project. “It’s hopefully written in a way that is neutral; it does mention logging, but it’s trying to make the case for why you’d want to leave those trees standing.”

around 1,300 years old. Yellow cedars make up the bulk of Whistler’s oldest trees, and Brett said he has “no doubt” there are other yellow cedars even older than that locally.

Before this most recent find, Brett said the oldest Douglas firs he had found were both about 720 years old—one near Spruce Grove Park and the other in the Ancient Cedars area.

“It’s exciting to get a tree that old in this part of the world,” he added.

The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) has also tapped Brett to consult on its Priority Habitat Initiative, a planning guide being developed “to protect biodiversity and improve Whistler’s resilience to climate change through the protection of natural services provided by these ecosystems, while balancing the resort community’s social and economic needs,” wrote an RMOW communications official, in an email. “This Initiative is to identify, protect and restore important natural habitat areas, and will include goals and subsequent recommendations.”

The initiative differs from the RMOW’s Municipal Natural Assets Initiative, which seeks to put a dollar amount on Whistler’s various ecosystems and natural assets. n

STAND-UP GUY Local trail builder Dan Raymond standing next to a Douglas fir tree near Loggers Lake that is estimated to be close to 1,000 years old.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

“You can imagine how magnificent the forests were in Whistler before most of the trees were removed. It’s amazing to me we still have remnants of them.”

- BOB BRETT

T wice the Fun

Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025 starts to take shape

BOARD OF DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVES, CONTRACTS ARE IN PLACE

BY GLEN KORSTROM BIV

WHILE DÜSSELDORF, Germany’s 2023 Invictus Games is set to launch on Sept. 9, organizers in B.C. are already preparing for the 2025 Invictus Games, in Vancouver and Whistler—one expected to be the largest such games ever.

The Latin word “invictus” means “unconquered,” and was chosen as the games’ brand to embody the fighting spirit of wounded, injured or sick veterans, who compete in a wide range of sports events.

While Düsseldorf’s eight-day extravaganza will feature summer sports, the 12-day Invictus Games Vancouver Whistler 2025 is set to focus mostly on winter sports, although there will also be events such as swimming, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby, CEO Peter Lawless said.

The organization hired Lawless last fall, and it last week announced its 22-member board of directors, although that includes one unidentified observer spot for the Canadian government and an unidentified observer spot for the B.C. government.

The four host First Nations have board representation: Lil’wat Nation Chief Dean Nelson, Musqueam Indian Band Chief Wayne Sparrow, Tsleil-Waututh Nation Chief Jen Thomas and Squamish Nation spokesperson and general councillor Wilson Williams.

Some well-known B.C. business executives on the board include former longtime CEO of Teck Resources Ltd. Don Lindsay, who is the board’s chair, and former BC Hydro CEO Dave Cobb, who was deputy CEO of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Cobb’s current day job is managing director of corporate development at the Jim Pattison Group.

Another marquee board member is Natalie Marchesan—a senior vice-president at the Royal Bank of Canada.

The organization has so far hired 22 employees, including some well-known executives, such as chief operating officer Robyn McVicker, who was a vice-president at the Vancouver Airport Authority.

“We’ll be rising to about 100 staff, and we’ll have about 1,600 volunteers,” Lawless said.

Some current hires, and many future hires, are expected to be former military personnel.

The organizing committee is not yet accepting applications from prospective volunteers. It will likely start accepting those applications in February, which would be one year before the games’ Feb. 6 through 17, 2025, launch.

“We’re hopeful that the Duke and the Duchess [of Sussex] will come up and celebrate that one-year-to-go moment with us,” Lawless said of Invictus Games patron Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle. Prince Harry, an erstwhile Royal who has lost his Royal Highness title, founded the Invictus Games

in March 2014.

The games’ overall budget is about $50 million, and it has so far raised $15 million each from the B.C. and Canadian governments.

Another $10 million has come from a variety of other sources, Lawless said.

“We’ve been very lucky to have some substantial private donations,” he said, adding that disclosing the names of those private donors will likely be done at a future date.

Some corporate sponsors include presenting sponsor ATCO, as well as Sport Hosting Vancouver, Teck Resources, Alacrity Canada and Bennett Jones.

The games’ budget is much smaller than extravaganzas such as the Olympics because it uses existing venues.

“We’ve secured all our venues, which is a big deal,” Lawless said. “We’ve got contracts almost in place with the Vancouver Convention Centre, along with the Whistler Conference Centre. We’ve got a contract with Whistler Blackcomb to do all our mountain stuff. All of the venues have been secured. All of the hotels have been secured.”

Lawless said his organization has completed its first-draft operational plan and created its schedule for when the sporting events will take place.

It has also sent invitations to participating countries. In total, Lawless expects 550 competitors from 25 nations to take part.

What makes the Invictus Games different from the Paralympic Games is not only that the participants are military veterans injured or otherwise hurt in service.

Another difference is that it really focuses on what Lawless calls a recovery journey.

“We don’t just pay for the competitor to come,” he said. “We also recognize that when the soldier was hurt, that also impacted their family. So we pay for two friends or family members to come as well.”

The games provide gold, silver and bronze medals to participants who perform well in their events, but the focus is not on winning as much as it is in the Paralympics, Lawless said.

“The main focus is not on the winner,” he said. “Often the biggest cheering, the biggest claps you get are for the person who comes in eighth. It’s about that journey.”

Some countries, such as Canada, limit the number of Invictus Games in which any individual can participate to one, he added.

The international rule is that participants can only compete in a maximum of two games.

Canada selected 31 athletes to send to the Düsseldorf games out of approximately 600 Canadians who applied for those spots, Lawless said.

“It would not be fair to allow the same people to go multiple times,” he said.

Vancouver and Whistler won the bid to host the 2025 Invictus Games in April 2022, when the two cities’ joint proposal beat rival bids from Seattle and from New York City.

-gkorstrom@biv.com// twitter.com/GlenKorstrom n

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Signs of northern goshawks in Whistler a ‘good news story’ for habitat protection

THERE ARE SEVEN KNOWN NESTING SITES IN THE WHISTLER VALLEY FOR THE RED-LISTED SPECIES

BY BRANDON BARRETT

ON HIS WAY from photographing a juvenile northern goshawk earlier this year, local ecologist Bob Brett happened to run into a forester and mentioned the rare sighting of the protected, red-listed species. His response? “Well, that’s bad for forestry.”

But to Brett, a vocal environmental advocate and co-founder of the Whistler Naturalists, it was anything but negative.

“It’s a good news story if we have northern goshawks and those other animals that require specialized habitat,” Brett said. “It’s a sign that we’re doing things well. I would love to have a situation where foresters get excited and happy when we find goshawks, rather than see it as an impediment to logging.”

According to the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW), there are seven known goshawk nests in the Whistler Valley—and likely more, according to Brett.

“I’d be surprised if there were less than two active nests each year in Whistler,” he posited. “Just because we don’t find the nest doesn’t mean they’re not around. There was

an active nest in Whistler last year in the Callaghan and the proof of an active nest this year from seeing a juvenile. A juvenile is about the best sighting you can get, because it proves not only there was an active nest, but that it was successful.”

Like other birds, both subspecies of northern goshawk, their occupied nests, and eggs are legally protected from harm under B.C.’s Wildlife Act. The coastal northern goshawk, the same subspecies spotted in Whistler, and its nests are also protected federally under Canada’s Species at Risk Act.

Preferring interior old-growth forest for breeding and nesting, it’s not unusual for the northern goshawk to reuse old nesting sites long after they were last active. Despite this, there are no provincial measures to safeguard goshawk nests after the birds fledge.

“The funny thing about the province is they protect osprey and woodpecker habitats after they breed and nest in trees, but for some reason they don’t protect goshawk nests,” Brett explained. “Once they fledge, there’s no protection for that tree, which is odd because goshawks will reuse those nests.”

The impact from the lack of formal

protections was clear this summer when Brett said recent logging in the Cheakamus Community Forest (CCF) came as close as 30 metres to a goshawk nesting site.

“They didn’t cut the tree down, but it still

takes the nest out of commission because it’s so close to the edge of the forest. Goshawks nest in interior forest conditions, so farther from the edge of the forest. A red-tailed hawk, in contrast, will nest right on the edge of a forest,” said Brett.

At the height of the Fairy Creek protests against old-growth logging in 2021, and with a dearth of commercially harvestable old growth available, the CCF board decided to hit pause on old-growth logging for the remainder of that year, a measure that has stayed in place as the community forest’s partners develop a long-term approach.

While he acknowledged, given the makeup of the CCF, that both goshawks and foresters are “looking for exactly the same habitat”— that is, low-elevation old growth—Brett feels hope around the seeming paradigm shift that has taken place both on the CCF board and in forest management more broadly.

“I am actually optimistic that the partners in the CCF are starting to see other options and I’m optimistic there will be real change in forest management, not only in stopping the logging of old growth, but also [second-growth management] that leaves room for habitat and doesn’t repeat the error of clear-cutting in the past.” n

HAWK EYE There are seven known northern goshawk nesting sites in the Whistler Valley, partly a sign of Whistler’s efforts to preserve old-growth forest.

PHOTO BY KRZYSZTOF BARANOWSKI / MOMENT / GETTY IMAGES

Whistler Institute brings back revitalized Global Perspectives Speaker Series this fall

DISCUSSION ABOUT CANADA-ASIA RELATIONS SCHEDULED FOR SEPT. 28, WHILE OCT. 26 EVENT WILL EXPLORE CHANGING HIGHER EDUCATION LANDSCAPE

BY MEGAN LALONDE

THE WHISTLER INSTITUTE had an ideal structure in mind for its Global Perspectives Speaker Series before its official launch—but that was before COVID-19 intervened. Now, after nearly four years and about a half-dozen successful speaking events, the series is picking up steam and aligning with that original vision for the first time this fall.

“We’ve had a bit of a hiatus caused by the pandemic, so what we had hoped would be a very regular speaker series is only really getting started this year, as in multiple events,” said Whistler Institute’s executive director Suki Cheyne.

Since its first event discussing the electric vehicle economy in November 2019, the series has brought renowned experts to the resort once or twice a year to delve into topics like tourism, the climate emergency, housing, the Olympic movement and even the potential impacts of autonomous vehicles in Whistler.

The series’ primary goal is “to stimulate discussion and inspire action around global topics with a local impact,” according to Cheyne. It’s a fitting objective for an organization that has worked to develop innovative educational opportunities in Whistler and the Sea to Sky corridor since its establishment in 2015.

So, after the events planned for 2020 were scrapped, “we experimented with various different hybrid and online versions of the events during the pandemic and as we came out, and then we’ve slowly been building capacity to the point where we can actually put on more than one event a year,” she added. “Now we have four planned.”

The idea was always for the series to follow the traditional academic year, said Cheyne, with numerous speaking events taking place between September and June. “It might vary from year to year, but two in the fall and two in the spring would be perfect,” she explained. “This is our first iteration of this plan.”

On tap for the Whistler Institute’s Global Perspectives Speaker Series this fall is a Sept. 28 discussion about “The Asian Century, And What Comes Next,” followed by an Oct. 26 talk exploring “Higher Education: The Next Paradigm.” The 2023-24 speaker series will also include two discussions—set to focus on concussions and health-care, respectively— scheduled for the spring.

First, the institute will welcome Paul Evans, professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia’s School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, to Whistler later this month to discuss how Canada can navigate the economic, diplomatic, and moral challenges stemming from China’s continued rise as a global powerhouse.

Then, Capilano University’s president

and vice-chancellor Paul Dangerfield will take to the Global Perspectives stage to discuss the rapidly-changing landscape of higher education. Audiences can expect Dangerfield to speak to several of the factors bringing about those changes, from artificial intelligence and the climate crisis, to equity and diversity, truth and reconciliation, shifting demographics, and polarized politics.

A committee of Whistler Institute volunteers is responsible for brainstorming, researching, and eventually determining the Global Perspectives Speaker Series’ topics, in addition to securing experts to speak. Despite the fact that both concepts up for discussion this fall have been on volunteers’ radars for “awhile now,” said Cheyne, both are even timelier and more relevant to the corridor than the committee could have predicted.

“Having Paul Dangerfield come and speak about the future of higher education, that’s been on our hit list for a long time—how education is evolving, especially during the pandemic with the introduction of technology, and artificial intelligence post-pandemic, and what does that look like for education?” she explained. That was before Capilano University’s Aug. 16 announcement of its plans to purchase the former Quest University lands and buildings in Squamish, Cheyne pointed out.

As for Evans’ area of expertise, exploring how global influences on the economy could trickle down into tourism had long been a topic of interest for the institute.

Previous speaker series events focused more on identifying actions Whistlerites could take at the local level, “but I think in this case, it’s more informing the local community about what’s happening globally, and then providing a bit more context on what that looks like in terms of local impact,” she added.

Both speaker series events will take place at Whistler’s Maury Young Arts Centre starting at 6 p.m. Each event will include an audience Q&A, followed by a cocktail reception in the lobby where audience members can continue the discussion in a more relaxed setting. Tickets for both events are available online, offered at $30 each for the theatre discussion only, or $135 for anyone who’d like to continue the discussion over an intimate, three-course set-menu at Quattro Restaurant immediately following the event.

The Whistler Institute is currently accepting sponsors for both of this fall’s events, or for the Global Perspectives Speaker Series as a whole.

“The series performs two functions,” Cheyne explained. “One, it’s educational, and it brings thought leadership into the community, but it also acts as a fundraising vehicle for us so that it can fund other programs and research and development that we’re doing throughout the year.”

For more information or to purchase tickets, head to whistlerinstitute.com. n

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Diving deep into Whistler’s wetlands

HOSTED BY THE WHISTLER NATURALISTS AND THE BC WILDLIFE FEDERATION, WORKSHOP AIMS TO BUILD UP ‘A COMMUNITY OF WETLAND STEWARDS’

BY MEGAN LALONDE

EXPERTS ESTIMATE Whistler has lost about 70 per cent of its natural wetlands to development over the decades.

That’s partly why groups like the Whistler Naturalists Society are working to protect the valuable ecosystems like marshes, bogs, ponds and swamps that still cover approximately 2.3 per cent of the municipality.

“What’s remaining is so, so precious,” said Kristina Swerhun of the Whistler Naturalists.

A group of nature enthusiasts had the opportunity to take a closer look at some of those wetlands last month—and learn how to identify them—when the Whistler Naturalists partnered with the BC Wildlife Federation (BCWF) to bring the provincial organization’s “Map our Marshes” workshop to Whistler for the first time on Aug. 19 and 20.

As BCWF’s wetlands education program coordinator Alana Higginson explained prior to the event, the program aims “to restore, enhance, and conserve wetlands across the province while creating a community of wetland stewards who can continue this work.”

Higginson led the sold-out crew of about 23 of those stewards over the two days, ranging from Lil’wat Nation and Squamish River Watershed Society representatives to

locals and visitors from Vancouver looking to learn something new, but the idea to host a wetlands workshop in the Sea to Sky was all former Whistler Naturalists board member Shawn Mason’s.

Only one of those participants fell in, but “she was a good sport about it,” Mason recalled with a laugh.

“The people that came were so keen, and

it was so good,” she added.

Mason, a self-proclaimed “birder by nature,” was initially drawn to attend another wetland workshop taking place elsewhere in B.C. last year. She wasn’t able to make it to that event, but forged a connection with BCWF staff who agreed Whistler would be an ideal workshop location. While Mason handled organizing duties, Whistler Naturalists

co-presidents Swerhun and Bob Brett helped nail down a location.

The workshop began with a classroom session at the Whistler Public Library— including a bonus presentation from local biologist Brett about beavers’ role in forming and maintaining wetlands—before participants ventured out to the Emerald Forest, to a wildlife refuge behind Whistler Cay, the following day. There, the group witnessed the result of all that beaver activity for themselves, and learned more about the various plant species that live in Whistler’s wetlands, before venturing closer to Rainbow, near the shores of Green Lake.

Usually, BCWF workshop leaders “like to go to two to three different sites to compare wetlands,” said Swerhun. “But this one was so big, we could go to those two sites in the same wetland.

“One was a lot more grassy, so people learned about that, and then in the other section, there’s way less nutrients, and we have those sundews, which are carnivorous plants—so that was very cool.”

Typically the program would cost each participant about $100. This time around, BCWF was able to offer the workshop for free thanks to successful grant applications, said Mason.

Though last month’s workshop was focused

MARSHING ON Participants in a “Map our Marshes” workshop held in Whistler last month.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Here’s how you can help build Whistler’s next budget

EARLY INPUT BUDGET SURVEY NOW LIVE UNTIL SEPT. 25

BY BRADEN DUPUIS

AS SUMMER TURNS TO FALL, there’s just one thing on the mind of Whistlerites: municipal budget season is just around the corner! And to a lesser extent, another ski season.

The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) is in the early stages of building its 2024 budget, and there’s no time like the present to get involved.

“Each fall, the RMOW prepares its annual and five-year budgets to manage dayto-day services, operations, projects, and infrastructure investments,” the RMOW said on its website.

“Public input is an important component to developing the budget, as it helps the RMOW to understand community priorities, needs and aspirations.”

Here’s how you can be a part of the 2024 budget process: know the Budget 2024 key dates; browse through the RMOW’s related documents and plans; help shape the early stages of the budget by taking the online survey; attend the Budget Open House later this fall; and stay tuned for updates.

The RMOW’s budget survey only takes about 10 minutes to complete, but it gives residents a sense of all the competing interests at play in the budget—respondents are asked

to prioritize everything from road clearing and infrastructure to active transportation, festivals, climate action and more.

opportunities.

Last year, the RMOW implemented an 8.4-per-cent increase to property taxes, along with increases of three per cent for water, four per cent for solid waste, and five per cent for sewer fees and taxes. This year’s proposed tax changes won’t be revealed until the budget open house in November.

Follow the budget process and take the survey at whistler.ca/budget.

RMOW ISSUES GRIZZLY ALERT FOR RAINBOW LAKE

Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) issued a grizzly bear notice on behalf of the Conservation Officer Service.

“On Saturday, Sept. 2, the Conservation Officer Service received a report of a grizzly bear in the Rainbow Lake area,” the notice read.

“Residents and visitors to the Rainbow Lake area are reminded that this is grizzly bear habitat and to take caution when using trails. Carrying bear spray with you when hiking and hiking in groups of [four or more] can help in a bear encounter.”

Not only that, but they’re given the opportunity to provide reasoning for their priorities, as well as share their thoughts on Whistler’s biggest challenges and

Heads up if you’re planning any hiking trips around Rainbow Mountain—a grizzly bear is reportedly roaming the area.

On Monday, Sept. 4, the Resort

WHISTLER’S WETLANDS FROM PAGE 20

less on fact-finding and data collection and more on education and “building up a group that cares about wetlands,” Swerhun said she hopes the focus on wetlands will translate to formal protections in a habitat protection strategy in the works at municipal hall.

In the meantime, the Whistler Naturalists will “keep pushing for wildlife protection, and defining what that protection means,” said Swerhun.

Bogs, swamps and marshes aren’t the eerie places fairytales so often made these ecosystems out to be, as wetlands education program coordinator Higginson noted during the workshop.

The BCWF events are succeeding in “getting rid of the myth and celebrating everything that wetlands do for us,” said Swerhun.

“We take it for granted that our rivers will

Reports of grizzly encounters in the Whistler area have effectively doubled in recent years, according to stats uncovered by a Freedom of Information request.

Report all sightings of grizzly bears to the Conservation Officer Service: 1-877-952-7277. n

always be full, but wetlands are the sponge that holds water when it’s wet and releases it when it’s dry … the more we destroy our wetlands, there is no more sponge holding the water when things get dry,” she explained.

Head to whistlernaturalists.ca for more information, and mark your calendars for the organization’s next event: the beloved annual Fungus Among Us Festival returns to Whistler on Oct. 13 and 14. n

“Public input is an important component...”

- RMOW

Local hero stops fire caused by ‘doobie’

‘I THINK SOMEBODY PROBABLY GOT TOO BAKED AND FORGOT ABOUT IT’

BY RO ´ ISI ´ N CULLEN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

PEMBERTON PIZZA SHOP owner turned local hero said stopping a dangerous fire last month was a matter of being in the right place at the right time. Riel Rock was leaving work late on Tuesday, Aug. 22 when he discovered something amiss at Portage Station. His quickthinking is being praised by his neighbours, especially the businesses that share the communal space.

The Nest Early Learning Centre took to Facebook to share the close miss.

“We got very lucky last night!” they wrote in a post to the Pemberton Community Forum page. “We are so grateful that Riel, owner of Backcountry Pizza, spotted this fire and put it out last night or this morning could be a very different story for the businesses and residences of Portage Station, and who knows how else it would have impacted our town. He caught it just in time! I can’t imagine the potential consequences.”

However, pizza boss Rock believes he was only lucky to catch the fire.

“I just see it as good fortune above

anything. I just happened to stay a little longer at the shop that night,” he said. “Typically, I go out the front doors, but I chose to go out the back door that night. This led me around to right where the fire took place. I just happened to go by it and notice it.”

Adrenaline kicked in when the business owner spotted the blaze in the planter out on the patio.

Once the fire was under control, Rock’s investigative work began. He was surprised it grew so strong just steps away from his hardworking team.

“I initially thought that it could have been the last customers we had out on the patio. It was quite an established fire by the time I got to it,” he said.

“It had gone quite deep into the flower

it was able to get such strength once it started.”

Rock worries about what could have happened if he had locked up the shop a little earlier in the busy business complex, as the smouldering went undetected for so long.

“One of my staff had mentioned a campfire smell as he was mopping in the front. Even then, he had smelled it. It had been smouldering for at least 50 minutes before I got to it, probably a lot longer.”

Rock explained a combination of flammable materials, fire, and timing could have been a recipe for disaster had he not been there.

“It would have been quite dangerous if it had gone up,” he said. “The main takeaway was seeing how a little careless act could have led to something so severe, especially in the context of the forest fires we have had.”

“When something dramatic happens, you feel like it’s a long moment when it’s actually a quick moment. A lot goes through your head,” he said.

Rock decided to take matters into his own hands just in the nick of time. Luckily, the water hose was right next to the fire.

“It had three big kinks in it, and the water actually didn’t come out,” Rock recalled. “Then there was a comical big spray of water everywhere. I was trying to direct it onto the fire itself. There were a lot of obstacles but it didn’t take long to put the fire out.”

box, deeper than if it had been from a discarded cigarette from the people who had only left 15 minutes earlier.”

Rock pulled out the flower box in case there was a hot spot that could reignite the fire. Here, he found the cause of the chaos.

“In between the flats, somebody had put what I suspect was a doobie in between the horizontal pieces of wood,” he said. “I don’t know if they were a customer of mine who stashed it there thinking to come back. Maybe they were high and forgot about it … It had been smouldering for a long time, which is how

Some local business owners are now calling for security cameras to be installed to prevent incidents like this happening again. However, Rock believes it was likely a simple accident and a reminder of how dangerous a fire can become if left unnoticed.

“Some people are calling for cameras. I don’t think that would have stopped it,” he said. “I think somebody probably got too baked and forgot about it.”

Reached for comment, Pemberton Fire Rescue said it did not attend the fire, as no 911 call was made, adding “the Village of Pemberton would like to stress the importance of reporting all fires to Pemberton Fire Rescue by calling 911.” ■

CLOSE CALL A small fire at a Pemberton business complex last month might have been much worse if not for one business owner’s quick thinking.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

“The main takeaway was seeing how a little careless act could have led to something so severe...”

- RIEL ROCK

When will warming warnings kickstart critical climate action?

CBC RADIO HAS BEEN airing programs

I’ve hosted since the late 1980s. The prescience of the experts I spoke with as early as 1989 for It’s a Matter of Survival is astounding. But it saddens me. Had we taken their warnings seriously we might have avoided the terrible consequences they accurately predicted.

With massive wildfires burning worldwide, floods inundating communities and washing away topsoil, intense hurricanes battering coastlines, ice melting at both poles and in glaciers everywhere and desperate climate migrants fleeing hostile conditions, scientists continue to issue increasingly urgent warnings to the world community.

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Resor t Municipality of

Whistler

TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

The Resor t Municipality of Whistler is seeking a qualified applicant to serve in a voluntary capacity on the Technology Advisory Commit tee (TAC) for the 2023 to 2025 term.

The TAC is a Select Commit tee of Council comprising local stakeholder organizations and community representatives. The commit tee’s aim is to secure, share, and learn from Whistler’s digital ecosystem, while fostering data-driven innovation that enables bet ter decision-making and experiences.

Apply by submit ting a resume and brief statement that reflects your interest in par ticipating on this commit tee in PDF format to bsullivan@whistler.ca. Include ‘ TAC Membership’ in the subject line.

Submission deadline: Friday, September 29th, 2023 at 4 p.m.

Committee Details:

on Antarctic Research Biology Symposium in New Zealand stated, “Antarctica is a crucial component of the Earth system and a sentinel for growing change. As Antarctic scientists, we see the evidence of mounting change, including changes in food webs, rapid change in populations, breeding failure and local ecosystem collapse, with projections of rapid transformation of a region that makes our planet liveable and contributes in extraordinary ways to global biodiversity.”

BY DAVID

In light of the cascading impacts of a warming planet, the Guardian recently asked 40 scientists from all over to assess where we’re at. They didn’t hold back, especially as the global response to the crisis is not nearly enough to meet the challenge.

“We need to stop burning fossil fuels. Now. Not some time when we’ve allowed companies to make all the money they possibly can,” Imperial College London climate scientist Friederike Otto said.

The survey found overall agreement that we’re entering uncharted territory— “flying partially blind.” Climate models are amazingly precise at predicting the rise in global temperatures as greenhouse gas emissions climb, but they aren’t as good at charting increasingly erratic and extreme weather events—nature’s own warnings— many of which are turning out to be harsher than expected. They will almost certainly get worse.

Because polar regions are warming faster than the rest of Earth, the Arctic isn’t faring much better. Rapidly melting sea ice cover is affecting weather patterns and ocean currents, speeding us toward unpredictable planetary feedback loops and new humanrelated threats as open waters entice oil and gas development, mining, fishing, shipping and waste dumping. Scientists are calling for the entire Arctic Ocean to be designated a marine protected area.

Warnings from scientists and Indigenous Peoples aren’t new. From the Amazon to the Arctic, people on the front-lines have been telling us of the extreme changes they’ve been witnessing for decades. Experts working with organizations from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to the International Energy Agency tell us we must curtail rampant consumerism, leave fossil fuels behind and shift quickly to renewable energy.

Scientists from around the world have also issued two “warnings to humanity,” one signed in 1992 by a majority of living Nobel Prize winners and more than 1,700 leading scientists and another on the 25th anniversary in 2018, signed by more than 15,000 scientists. The latter stated, “By failing to adequately limit population growth, reassess the role of an economy rooted in growth, reduce greenhouse gases, incentivize renewable energy, protect habitat, restore ecosystems, curb pollution, halt defaunation, and constrain invasive alien species, humanity is not taking the urgent steps

“Knowing that we will look back on today’s extreme events as mild relative to what lies in our future is truly mind-boggling,”

Andrea Dutton at the University of WisconsinMadison told the Guardian. “The speed at which we make this transition will define the future that we get.”

Rein Haarsma of the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute said, “The extremes we see now happening could induce tipping points such as the collapse of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and melting of the Antarctic ice sheets, that would have devastating impacts.”

Scientists recently issued a warning about those perilous conditions in Antarctica. Their letter from the recent Scientific Committee

needed to safeguard our imperilled biosphere.”

When will we heed the increasing warnings? Why do politicians, media pundits and keyboard trolls with no background in science think they know more than those who have observed and studied every aspect of climate?

We’ve long known what the problems and solutions are, but we’ve put off change to the point of crisis. There’s no time left to lose. We ignore the warnings at our peril.

David Suzuki is a scientist, broadcaster, author and co-founder of the David Suzuki Foundation. Written with David Suzuki Foundation Senior Writer and Editor Ian Hanington. ■

“We need to stop burning fossil fuels. Now. Not some time when we’ve allowed companies to make all the money they possibly can.”

- FRIEDERIKE OTTO

SUZUKI

The Westin Resort & Spa, Whistler is looking for housing for our Staff Associates

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This grom has a date with the World Cup in 2035. Together, let’s make sure she gets there.

But what can I do?

JUNE AND JULY 2023 have now been inscribed as not only the hottest of their respective months in recorded history, but the hottest in 120,000 years.

If this seems abstraction given the almost certain lack of record-keeping by our CroMagnon ancestors, don’t worry: scientists have many ways of understanding past global temperatures, from lakebed pollen samples to glacier ice cores. As for current real-time measurements, the source is unassailable— GISTEMP, NASA’s global temperature analysis, which draws on data collected by

BY LESLIE ANTHONY

thousands of weather and research stations on every continent, as well as by ships and ocean buoys. So, while it’s a coin-toss whether UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ warning that we’ve surpassed global warming to enter an era of “global boiling” is hyperbole or prophecy, the world indeed passed through the eye of a very hot needle this summer, one that has also seen record acreages of wildfire in our own country with attendant loss of property, crops, wildlife and habitat. No surprise that alarm bells are ringing in the UN.

Unfortunately—and also no surprise—no one who should be is heeding those alarms.

One problem is that those bells have been ringing too long. Decades, in fact: according to NASA, the 10 hottest years on record occurred since 2010. Yet by the dictates of Shifting Baseline Syndrome,

we’ve barely noticed because the hottest 20 years on record have occurred since 2000. Along with them have come climate chaos and unprecedented impacts.

We’re losing the chance to make meaningful progress on the climate crisis we’ve created, and, as that slips through our hands, the intertwined biodiversity crisis we’re also responsible for. Forget global boiling, we’ve entered an era of observable global “unwinding” of planetary life-support systems, and the anxiety and paralysis accompanying this is crushing. Enough that many find themselves retreating into that ol’ human fail-safe of thinking there’s nothing to be done individually to fix these existential crises, and so doing nothing. What

Buy Better: Lessen environmental impact by purchasing quality items that last longer, or food grown/packaged closer to home. Buying organic helps, and those few extra cents will save some butterflies. Avoid ingredients that have large-scale impacts such as palm oil—which is literally like eating a rainforest and all its inhabitants.

You don’t have to completely eliminate meat, eggs and dairy, but cutting down and seeking less-impactive sources isn’t hard. And there are plenty of other choices in every grocery store aisle. Two types of parchment paper? Buy the kind you can compost. Buy unbleached toilet paper and paper towels, preferably made of bamboo not boreal forest. Ziploc-style bags have

adds up quickly—as does combining errands to avoid unnecessary trips. On the other hand, carbon-wise driving is still better than flying.

Drive Slower: Folks seem in more of a hurry than ever. And since the muni seems incapable of lowering Whistler’s traffic volume, if we all slowed down and paid more attention things would be better for wildlife. If you can’t avoid a bear, you’re driving too fast.

Lawn Less: Chemicals, fertilizers and endless work to create a carpet of usually invasive and wildlife-unfriendly grass— why? At the very least, do we need so much? Especially where shoreline habitat has been given over to lawns; let shoreline be shoreline and you’ll be shocked what moves in.

Plant Mo’ Better: If you can plant a garden it’s never a bad idea—even an herb box is micro-wildlife habitat. And growing even a fraction of your own food lessens your footprint. There are showy plants you didn’t know you can eat, and edible plants that put on a show. With ornamentals, stick to native plants and avoid invasive species.

such thinking misses is that the only way to effect the global systemic change needed to solve these problems is a critical mass of individuals doing something—even if only caring enough to talk about it.

The most frequent thing I hear when speaking about this topic is But what can I do? Fortunately, when it comes to personal actions, there’s plenty we can all do—and you’re doubtless familiar with most:

Buy Less: We live in a culture of stuff, much of which we don’t need and some of which can be repaired or repurposed. Given the world’s interconnectedness, everything we make, ship, sell and buy has a knock-on effect elsewhere. So buying less is literally the lowest-hanging fruit.

a hundred uses, but did you know they can be washed (even in a dishwasher) and used for years? Dry detergent strips aren’t perfect, but have the same amount of soap as liquid laundry detergent without the waste of water, suspension chemicals and plastic container. Bottled water? Just don’t.

Drive Smarter: What if each of us drove 10 per cent less? In 2017, Americans drove trillions of kilometres and produced ~1,100 million metric tons of CO2—a fifth of the country’s total emissions. A mere 10-per-cent cut represents 110 million metric tons of CO2 the same as taking 28 coal-fired power plants offline for a year. Since more than a third of all car trips are under three kilometres, the effect of walking, biking or taking public transport

Be Active: Volunteer to plant pollinator gardens in your community, join invasive species groups or beach/lake/ditch cleanups, all of which benefit wildlife. Find ways to discuss climate and biodiversity issues with friends and family. Support smart (not dumb) FireSmarting, fight for greenspaces and wildlife corridors, and sign digital petitions (they’re verifiable and politicians respond to numbers).

Maybe the best thing you can do is take regular family walks where you make a point of show-and-telling an amazing plant/animal/ climate fact or two, as piquing an interest in the world around us is what gets most kids caring about it enough to do something— anything.

Leslie Anthony is a biologist, writer and author of several popular books on environmental science. ■

Fortunately, when it comes to personal actions,

there’s plenty we can all do— and you’re doubtless familiar

with most...

ON A ROLL In 2017, Americans drove trillions of kilometres and produced ~1,100 million metric tons of CO2—a fifth of the country’s total emissions.

PHOTO BY ART WAGER / E+ / GETTY IMAGES

Thinking about paddling one of BC’s beautiful lakes located outside the Whistler area?

We offer multi-day rates in the spring and fall, so you can take out equipment overnight and off-site, all for a discounted rental rate.

Starting September 5th, we will have locals’ rates in effect for the remainder of the season, including 20% OFF all our activities

(from $14 per person for our lake rentals and $95 per person for self-guided trips down the River of Golden Dreams)

Lake rentals are provided on a first-come first-ser ved basis, so just make your way down to Lakeside Park to redeem your locals’ rates.

To book a trip on the River of Golden Dreams, please call us ahead of time 604-932-3111 or shoot us an email fun@backroadswhistler.com, and we will get you booked in at this reduced rate

PHOTOS BY DAVID BUZZARD

hey say age is nothing but a number, and Whistler has long proved that theory right.

theory to

In an unapologetically sports-obsessed town, it’s no wonder the resort’s seniors tend to buck convention. Whether speeding down the slopes, ripping up the bike park, or filling up a canvas, they have embraced their golden years with fervour, chasing the same sense of adventure that brought them to this special locale in the first place. had the fortune of catching up with a handful of local seniors living their best life, with award-winning photographer David Buzzard capturing them in action.

park, or filling up a canvas, they have embraced their

Monday Night Riders

Of course, no conversation about Whistler’s aging community can be had without addressing the elephant in the room: although things are improving, at its core, Whistler remains a young person’s town, lacking many of the resources and infrastructure required to accommodate seniors wanting to age gracefully in place. So, while our local seniors are by and large thriving, a testament to the inherent benefits of staying young at heart, if not in digits, we don’t often hear about the folks who have been forced to depart the home they love in search of amenities for seniors.

It’s something the local Mature Action Community has been fighting for for years now, and with their recent push at municipal hall to have Whistler officially recognized by the province as an Age-Friendly BC Community, which, along with an associated grant, would formalize the resort’s commitment

an associated grant, would formalize the resort’s commitment to supporting its senior population into their later years, here’s hoping more seniors will be able to live out their best years with dignity and respect locally. -

Brandon Barrett

LEFT TO RIGHT Hilary Davison, 56, Scott Brunning, 66, and Larry Falcon, 60, in the Upper Village at the Monday Night Rides event—a social riding group that meets every week, rain or shine.

PIQUE What keeps you biking into your later years?

DAVISON “I love being out in the woods and with friends and staying fit and healthy.”

BRUNNING “I moved here because of the mountains. You walk out your back door and you got this.”

FALCON and it keeps you young.”

“The exhilaration. You can’t beat it

Pique

Building Blok

TRIATHLETE JOHN BLOK , 69, maintains a strict training regimen.

Library Board of Trustees Applications

Please apply to join the Whistler Public Librar y (WPL) Board of Trustees (Board)

Trustees are appointed by the Resor t Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) Council

We are recruiting up to three Trustees for a two-year term star ting Januar y 1, 2024, through to December 31, 2025

Inter views will be conducted during the first week of October 2023 Only qualified candidates will be contacted for an inter view

Trustee Eligibility requirements:

• Must be a resident or non-resident proper ty owner of the RMOW

• Must not be a RMOW employee

• Must not be a WPL employee

Board Guidelines:

• The Board consists of eleven members Ten are appointed from the Whistler community and one member from the RMOW Council

• The Board meets at regular inter vals, at least six times a year

• The Board helps to determine strategic priorities, develops policies and has overall fiscal responsibilities for the librar y

• Meetings are generally held on the first Wednesday of each month, except August, from 5:00 p m to 7:00 p m

For fur ther information on the responsibilities of the Board members, please contact us at publicser vices@whistlerlibrar y ca and we will make a WPL Trustee available to you

Application packages will become to be available on August 30, 2023 at Whistler Municipal Hall or on our website at www whistler ca/municipal-gov/committees/whistler-public-librar y-boardtrustees/, and at the Whistler Public Librar y, 4329 Main Street, and on their website at whistlerlibrar y ca/about-us/wpl-board

Please submit your application to: Legislative Ser vices, Resor t Municipality of Whistler, 4325 Blackcomb Way Whistler, BC , V8E 0X5, or by email to corporate@whistler ca

Applications must be received by 4:00 p m on Wednesday September 20, 2023

Action Hero

HOLLY ADAMS , 65, is a freelance videographer, working mostly in news.

ADAMS “I do it because I love working outside. Some of the subject material is usually really interesting.”

PIQUE You don’t do it just because you like the action?

ADAMS “Sometimes.”

Bon Vivant

PAINTER ISOBEL

MACLAURIN , 91, pictured in her home studio, continues to live the good life as a nonagenarian—and, truth be told, she wouldn’t have it any other way.

MACLAURIN “What keeps me going? What a strange question. Good food and living at Whistler with my view. I’m going to be here forever, my darling. I’m never going to move. I mean, how could you miss looking out at that? So, there, put that in your pipe and smoke it.”

Sea to Sky Olympians Darren Gardner, Chris Spring to take on the 2023 RBC GranFondo Whistler

THE POPULAR ANNUAL ROAD CYCLING RACE RETURNS ON SATURDAY, SEPT. 9

BY DAVID SONG

OF THE 6,000-ODD cyclists set to engage in the RBC GranFondo Whistler this Saturday, at least two are world-class athletes: snowboarder Darren Gardner and bobsled pilot Chris Spring. These men have five Olympic Games and boatloads of physical talent between them. What they may lack is high-end knowledge of road cycling, and that could make the upcoming race very interesting for both.

Gardner is easily the more experienced of the duo, having grown up messing around on his bike as kids often do. Upon moving to Squamish a decade ago, he fell in love with mountain biking. In addition, the Burlington, Ont. native took to his road bicycle as a form of supplemental training during his professional snowboard career, well before his first GranFondo in 2022.

PACE YOURSELF

There are more similarities between cycling and snowboarding than one might expect.

For starters, both are individual disciplines with a prominent team aspect. Behind every respectable outing on Gardner’s parallel slalom record is the backing of a solid team, and it’s also key for road cyclists to surround themselves (literally and figuratively) with a good group for encouragement and guidance. Secondly, pace is vital: while slalom

snowboarders usually take about 45 seconds to finish a run, a hasty or ill-timed turn can spell disaster.

Likewise, road cyclists need to manage their fuel tanks conscientiously.

“In the RBC GranFondo, most of the work happens in the final stretch between Squamish and Whistler,” said Gardner in a press release. “You are climbing for most of it, so if you’ve let your adrenaline get the better of you and gone too hard early in the ride … you won’t finish well.

“Trying to stay with a group beyond your ability probably also means your legs will be giving out on you earlier, and you’ll be using up your energy reserves too early.”

That point will be of critical importance to Spring, who is accustomed to fivesecond bursts of unrestrained power to get his 630-odd kilogram sled down the track as expediently as possible. A GranFondo presents the opposite challenge: a six-hour (or 21,600-second) trip spanning 122 kilometres between Vancouver and Whistler.

Throughout his bobsled life, Spring has always fallen back on his training: the knowledge that he, as an extremely hard worker, has done everything possible to ready himself for a given contest. That’s not true here—in fact, while the four-time Olympian enjoys mountain biking as much as any Sea to Sky denizen, he’s never ridden a road bike before.

Spring will lean this time not on preparation, but upon another signature character trait: obstinacy.

“If I set a goal, like finishing this race, I know that I’ll accomplish it because I’m stubborn,” he said with a chuckle. “I’ll play games with my mind in order to take the focus

of pain away from my brain. I’ve never been a part of a mass-start-type race before, so I think the best thing for me to do is to hang back and really enjoy the moment.

“I’m definitely not expecting to be setting any race records or any course records. I just want to go out there and enjoy it, and enjoy the cycling community.”

GOOD VIEWS AND GOOD TIMES

Indeed, what draws Spring towards this gruelling new challenge is the opportunity to tackle it with other riders of varying skill levels and walks of life. There’s also nature itself: he has driven Highway 99 countless times, and the beautiful scenery along the route never fails to captivate him. Spring looks forward to revisiting his favourite views from a fresh new perspective, and he doesn’t expect that any amount of pain in his lungs or rear will dampen the experience.

Gardner feels much the same way. The RBC GranFondo has been on his radar for years, and he cherished his first kick at the can last September—early morning start time and all.

“I’ll never forget crossing the Lions Gate Bridge at sunrise, and the beauty of so many riders enjoying it,” he said. “In a six-hour event where you are really pushing yourself, it can be easy to lose sight of your surroundings, but I try to take in the scenery.

“I know a few people for whom it’s their first time riding. For me, I was a little nervous on my first Fondo last year, so [I want to] be there for those people and kind of talk them off the ledge, making them know that it’s going to be good. I’m certainly looking forward to the beer at the end.”

Having said that, Gardner isn’t too worried about Spring, and has plenty of good things to say about his fellow RBC Olympian.

“I’m excited to be biking with [Spring],” he remarked. “He brings a lot of energy. He is very much a team player and just a great person. I think where he will lack in road bike [experience], his mental capacity will take him over the finish line. Very humble guy and he has a good head on his shoulders.”

The 2023 RBC GranFondo Whistler is shaping up to be as ambitious an undertaking as ever, with thousands of riders making their way up the Sea to Sky Highway in a dedicated lane. Event organizers ask the public for their understanding as speed limits will be capped at 60 km/h and traffic impacted between Stanley Park and Whistler’s Day Lot No. 4 between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m. Further information about the event and related traffic advisories can be found at rbcgranfondo.com/whistler/ traffic-advisories. n

FONDO FUN Darren Gardner smiles for the camera during the 2022 RBC GranFondo.

PHOTO COURTESY OF RBC GRANFONDO WHISTLER

SPRING LOADED Chris Spring astride his mountain bike.

PHOTO COURTESY OF RBC GRANFONDO WHISTLER

Brian Dougherty raises more than $17K for the BC Cancer Foundation

THE 46-YEAR-OLD BEGAN HIS TOUR DE CURE JOURNEY IN WHISTLER AND RODE NEARLY 600 KILOMETRES IN THREE DAYS

BY DAVID SONG

BRIAN DOUGHERTY’S mother passed away in 2000 due to cancer. Her story is, alas, far from rare: statistically speaking, one in two British Columbians will face this unforgiving disease over the course of their lives. Driven by a sense of duty to honour his mom and support others who are fighting (or eventually will fight) against cancer, Dougherty committed to this year’s Tour de Cure cycling fundraiser with the PCL Pedallers.

On Aug. 26 and 27, more than 1,500 riders made their way from Cloverdale to Hope, covering 200 kilometres for the official Tour de Cure. Dougherty, though, went above and beyond the call: he set off from Whistler on Aug. 25 and embarked on a nearly 600-km journey to Merritt. His goals were tied to his fundraising benchmarks, and when generous donors combined to break the $15,000 mark, he knew what he was in for.

As of this writing, Dougherty has raised more than $17,000 for the BC Cancer Foundation.

“This year was a little bit special,” he explained. “I wanted to use this year to push the envelope a bit further.

“Battling cancer is no easy journey, and sometimes it’s a very deadly journey. For us to push our bodies past [certain] envelopes on a physical level when we’re healthy, you know, that’s the least we can do to try and incentivize donations and help keep these things from happening in the future for other people.”

‘ABSOLUTELY SPECIAL’

By no means a professional athlete, Dougherty is chief operating officer for the landscaping firm Horizon Contracting Group. He first became involved with the Tour de Cure more than a decade ago, when it was branded as the Ride to Conquer. At that time, Dougherty’s idea of training for a long event was to get on his bike once or twice a week, but he applied himself more seriously two-and-a-half years ago when he qualified for the UCI GranFondo World Championships via the RBC GranFondo Whistler.

Dougherty is less than a month away from his 47th birthday, but age has not prevented him from levelling up his skills in time for his greatest cycling challenge.

Prior to this year, the Surrey resident’s longest ride was approximately 166 km, and he’d never done that type of distance on consecutive days. This time, he opened with 206 km from Whistler to Cloverdale, following up with a 166-km trek to the Chilliwack Fairgrounds on his second day and a personalbest 220 km on Day 3 to cross the finish line in Merritt.

He won’t soon forget the opening leg of his odyssey down the Sea to Sky corridor.

“There were cyclists coming up the other way as I’m going down and everyone’s waving

to each other,” Dougherty recalled. “The community of sport up in Whistler is fantastic. We don’t have anything else like that in the world, and I think some of us who grew up on the West Coast kind of take it for granted.

“Sometimes, it takes us to leave for a bit and come back to realize what we do have here is absolutely special.”

Alas, the Sea to Sky’s natural beauty was somewhat marred on Friday by smoke. Wildfire-belched haze inundated a considerable area from Horseshoe Bay to Coquitlam, causing Dougherty to ride with an N95 mask for the first time. It elicited a few strange looks from passers-by on Highway 99, but kept his lungs mostly clear of pollutants.

Other challenges came in the form of flat tires, the occasional reckless driver and, of course, fatigue, but it was nothing Dougherty couldn’t overcome with a little help from his support system. His wife Amanda tagged along in a car, bringing food, water and mechanical equipment along with daughters Vienna and Mackinley. Meanwhile, the rest of the PCL team joined in over the weekend.

“[It was nice] to be part of the PCL Pedallers for the actual Tour de Cure with that sense of community and camaraderie,” said Dougherty. “This was a big mental lift and it would have been way harder if I didn’t have them to ride with during the event.”

‘THE LEAST WE CAN DO’

With temperatures in the mid-30-degree range as they clawed their way up the Coquihalla on Sunday, Dougherty and a few dozen of his peers made it past what they later learned was a key cut-off point. About five minutes after they went through, declining air quality convinced race organizers to truncate the event for most riders, who only made it 70 km into the second day.

Fortunately, the skies then cleared enough for Dougherty to make his final push beyond Hope. With family in tow, he rolled into Merritt at about 7:20 p.m. on Sunday night.

A visit to his mother’s resting place in Brookswood was perhaps the 46-year-old’s greatest source of strength over the course of his lengthy undertaking.

“I looked at my mom’s tombstone [and thought about] how many other people in that cemetery didn’t have a fulfilled life, or passed on before they were able to have kids, or passed on before they were able to see their kids get married,” he reflected. “My mom missed out on seeing her grandkids, and she was a huge family person.

“I get it, we will all die, but having your life cut short and not having some of these major milestones in life is just not cool. If I can use my biking to incentivize donations for a great cause, then fantastic. That’s the least we can do.”

Those wishing to support Dougherty and the BC Cancer Foundation can still contribute at tourdecure.ca/participant/2786742/4245. n

Looking for one place to ease those aches and pains?

We keep you playing with both physiotherapy and massage

CALL FOR FUNDING APPLICATIONS

Applications are now being accepted for our October 1st, 2023 Spring Funding Deadline

The Whistler Blackcomb Foundation is dedicated to providing financial support to community groups and charities whose activities provide benefit to residents of the Sea to Sky Corridor in the areas of health, human services, education, recreation, arts & culture and the environment Special emphasis is placed on children, youth and family programs For more information, eligibility requirements and to complete an application, please visit our website at whistlerblackcombfoundation com Or contact Mei Madden, Executive Director at mmadden@whistlerblackcombfoundation.com

Wild Blue marks one year in Whistler with long-table dinner

IT DIDN’T TAKE LONG FOR THE FINE DINING SPOT TO MAKE WAVES IN THE WIDER CANADIAN RESTAURANT WORLD

BY BRANDON BARRETT

THE PREVAILING BELIEF in the alwaysfickle restaurant world is that any new establishment opening its doors is going to have to wait at least a few years before making a significant dent in the market.

In the case of Wild Blue Restaurant + Bar, the fine dining spot that opened a year ago adjacent to the Aava Hotel, that trajectory has come a whole lot sooner than usual.

“It’s been a really successful first year,” said partner and restaurant director Neil Henderson. “We’ve had amazing levels of community engagement and repeat guests, great acceptance from the local community, and a really strong start to our first year in business.”

Opened last August, Wild Blue—the restaurant with a penchant for elevated seafood that draws inspiration from coastal ports around the world—was a long time coming, and was even called Whistler’s most important restaurant opening in a decade.

Given the team of heavy hitters involved—including Vancouver Magazine ’s

2018 Chef of the Year Alex Chen, ex-Fairmont Chateau Whistler executive chef Derek Bendig, Araxi founder and BC Restaurant Hall-of-Famer Jack Evrensel, along with longtime Araxi acolyte Henderson— there was a lot of hype for Wild Blue to live up to. But live up to the hype it did. In May, Wild Blue made its first appearance on Canada’s Best 100 Restaurants list, ranking 66th, as well as being named the

represented—especially when they’re coming to a resort town and a resort such as Whistler.”

But it’s not just the visitor that has taken to the restaurant. When it was offering its prix-fixe menu, Henderson said Wild Blue felt like a Whistler locals’ reunion.

“These menus we offer in the shoulder seasons gained a real sense of community, where it felt like the entire room knows one another. There’s one degree of separation in

the four-course dinner, curated to highlight the best ingredients of the harvest season. “We want to use this opportunity to really fortify what we’re all about,” explained Chen. “It’s about a sense of community in terms of local, in terms of building a relationship with our farmers, being able to be bespoke with a sense of time and place.”

The first course is an heirloom tomato and panzanella salad, followed by a handmade agnolotti made with local corn purée and aged taleggio. The main course is a striploin steak, finished on a charcoal grill and served with broccolini, truffle potatoes, and topped with a port reduction, before an Okanagan fruit tart for dessert.

Chen said the long-table dinner showcases the close relationship, both professionally and geographically, the restaurant has with its suppliers, specifically Brew Creek Farm, a three-acre market garden located just 15 kilometres south of Whistler.

fourth best new restaurant in the country, the only B.C. establishment on the list.

“I think [diners] are always looking for that elevated sense of service, that beautiful menu and dining experience,” Henderson said.

“They’re looking for all three components: kind, thoughtful service, that beautiful, elegant, sexy room, and they’re looking for an exemplary dining experience as far as the culinary items, the sense of place, and the local ingredients from B.C. that are well

the room—and we’ll sell out. It’s very busy, very successful, but, really, what is probably most rewarding is the room becomes this community meeting space. It’s really wonderful to watch.”

On Sunday, Sept. 10, Wild Blue will host its inaugural Alpine Long Table Dinner, an al fresco dining experience at the nearby Whistler Golf Club driving range. Starting off with cocktails and canapes in the restaurant, guests will then move outside for

“It’s a very privileged position we’re in to handpick what we want, because we have a good relationship with them and their proximity to the restaurant is so close,” added Chen. “I thought it was such a fun and unique position to be able to work with a farm that is so close to Wild Blue. That is the closest I’ve ever worked with a farmer.”

The Alpine Long Table Dinner starts at 3 p.m. on Sept. 10. Tickets are $250, plus tax and gratuity, and include wine pairings with each course. Learn more at wildbluerestaurant. com/alpine-long-table. n

BLUE PERIOD Wild Blue executive chef Derek Bendig, left, with restaurant director and partner Neil Henderson.

PHOTO BY DAVID BUZZARD / DAVIDBUZZARD.COM

It’s very busy, very successful, but, really, what is probably most rewarding is the room becomes this community meeting space. It’s really wonderful to watch.”

- NEIL HENDERSON

Whistlerite’s Grandma Lee’s Dress in the running as part of CBC’s Short Film Face Off

JANALEE BUDGE’S ‘FANTASTICAL DRAMA’ CHANNELS HER MIXED-RACE UPBRINGING—AND THE STRENGTH OF HER GRANDMOTHER

BY BRANDON BARRETT

JANALEE BUDGE was hesitant to show her mom the finished version of her latest short film, Grandma Lee’s Dress, which she describes as a quirky “fantastical drama” loosely based on her and her cousin’s mixed-race upbringing.

The 10-minute short, recently named a finalist in CBC’s annual Short Film Face Off, opens with a vivid memory from Budge’s childhood: attending her grandmother’s funeral at the tender age of 10.

“Then, after, a big family feud broke out in a Chinese restaurant in Vancouver. Flash forward 30 years, and the rest of the film was made based on situations that have loosely happened in our lives and shows the power of a grandmother’s spirit,” she explains. “The opening scene, I was nervous to share it with my mom because I didn’t tell her anything about it until it was done. I did share it with her once it was finished, and fortunately she liked it.”

Exploring the complexities of intergenerational conflict in a mixed-race family, Grandma Lee’s Dress premiered last

year as part of the Vancouver Asian Film Festival, and is one of nine films selected— and the only one from B.C.—to compete in the Short Film Face Off. Determined entirely by public vote, the winner will receive $30,000 in production support from Telefilm to put towards a future project.

For a director like Budge working primarily in commercial film and TV, a win

immigration sentiment in British Columbia and stipulated that Chinese people entering the country first pay a head tax equivalent to two years of an average immigrant worker’s salary. The only Chinese family to settle in their small Manitoba town, both Budge’s grandma and mom experienced discrimination and xenophobia as a regular part of their everyday lives.

her Whistler family as well over the years. Cutting her teeth on the locals’-favourite film contest, The B-Grade Horror Festival (which would later rebrand as the Heavy Hitting HorrorFest), Budge counted Whistler filmmaking luminaries such as Angie Nolan, Feet Banks, and the late, great Chili Thom as peers and collaborators coming up.

“We were always making fun little films, and that was my first introduction to doing non-commercial stuff,” she recalls. “It’s such a vast spectrum of people and from different backgrounds, and even though we are a small community, there is a cool arts community here and everyone is super supportive.”

Even with that support, however, Budge recognizes that, at a certain point in their careers, filmmakers will likely have to leave the resort to realize their big-screen dreams.

could offer the kind of resources and exposure that would take her career to the next level.

“I’m recently getting into drama and longer-form documentary stuff, and I definitely love it and want to spend more time telling meaningful stories,” she says.

Budge certainly had no shortage of meaningful stories to draw from in making Grandma Lee’s Dress. Her grandmother arrived in Canada under the guise of the racist and exclusionary Chinese Immigration Act, which was drafted in response to rising anti-

“I always knew my grandma was a really strong woman to go through what she went through: arranged marriage, feet bound, came here with a head tax,” Budge says. “I realized how strong my grandma was, and also my mom, who, at 94, is one of the strongest females, especially from that generation, that I know. I have so much female strength in my family and I’m super appreciative of that. As a result, my sisters and I have been raised to be fairly strong, independent women.”

Budge has channeled strength from

“This film I made in Vancouver, with the whole Vancouver indie crew that were super amazing. There is no longer a film gang in Whistler; pretty much everyone has left that I made films with before. I couldn’t make a film like that here—or, if I did, it would be a lot harder.”

Grandma Lee’s Dress screened on CBC on Saturday, Sept. 2, and is available to view online through CBC Gem at gem.cbc.ca/shortfilm-face-off. Voting for the Short Film Face Off opens Sept. 16, after the final competing film has aired on CBC, and will remain open for just 24 hours. The film with the most votes will be announced on Sept. 24. Only one vote will be accepted per email address.

Learn more, and vote, at cbc.ca/ shortfilmfaceoff. ■

MOVIE MAKERS Grandma Lee’s Dress director Janalee Budge, centre, with writer/ actor Ana Pacheco, left, and producer Bryce Iwaschuk, at the Huntington Beach Cultural Film Festival in California, where the short won Best International Film.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

“I realized how strong my grandma was, and also my mom, who, at 94, is one of the strongest females ... that I know.”

- JANALEE BUDGE

Book Review—Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast, by John Vaillant

BY LESLIE ANTHONY

TO UNDERSTAND Canada’s apocalyptic summer of 2023 and how we got here, eschew the skimmy news reports about heart-wrenching evacuations and wildfireimpacted weddings. Likewise ignore pedantic magazine pieces summing somnolent reports from esteemed scientific agencies. The only thing you really need to read is Vancouverbased author John Vaillant’s latest book, Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast

Not only will you grok how and why coastto-coast fire is our new summer norm, but your head will bob in piqued agreement over how long we’ve known that carbon emissions would deliver us to precisely this point. Blunting any untoward descent into either erudition or anger, of course, is Vaillant’s evocative writing. A big-picture guy celebrated for painterly renderings of minutiae, the book is a terrific read.

Fire Weather uses the 2016 wildfire (nicknamed “the beast”) that consumed much of Fort McMurray, Alta., as a springboard to larger themes of humanity’s relationship with fire. Rich in detail and far-reaching in scope, Vaillant’s trademark blend of research, imagination and contemplation adds another superlative to the list of the Fort Mac fire’s many firsts: no book has laid bare a destructive Wildland-Urban Interface fire with the type of historical, chemical, atmospheric and human precision as Fire Weather

Vaillant’s previous literary non-fiction efforts, The Golden Spruce and The Tiger, are acclaimed benchmarks of the genre (it’s hard to find someone who hasn’t devoured at least one of them). Fire Weather is an equal masterpiece of deep-dive aggregation and integration plumbing a past event, but additionally bears a message from the future— one which, not so unexpectedly, arrived with vengeance as the book launched in May 2023, and has yet to let up some four months later.

To call Fire Weather timely would be the most egregious of understatements.

Much as in real life, the fire takes off fast in the book. And from the first scintillating sentence about its quotidian genesis you’re hooked, aware you’ll come to see things already known to you on one level in new, multifaceted detail and context. The title— referencing conditions conducive to the occurrence and behaviour of wildfire—orients you to the book’s soma, but an early epigraph from 19th-century explorer-naturalist Alexander von Humboldt signals how that body is built: “In this great chain of causes and effects, no single fact can be considered in isolation.”

Cause and effect are at the heart of Fire Weather . Noting that the histories of the petroleum industry, automobile, climate science and wildfire behaviour are currently in a state of confluence—a convergence we’re witnessing and living through— Vaillant successfully gathers these under a single roof where their interrelatedness cannot be ignored.

Of especial interest are the author’s

meditations on fire—its chemical and physical nature, its there and not-quite-thereness, its natural rhythms, and how we became who we are by assuming the role of fire’s main curator and vector. If our relationship with combustion has become a necessity, Vaillant intuits its roots. “Long before we climbed down from the trees, fire was climbing up into them,” he writes.

Another major theme is the Lucretius Problem—an evolutionary defect by which humans assume the worst-case scenario that has happened is the worst-case scenario that can happen, ignoring in our planning that a worst event, by definition, has always surpassed a prior worst event, giving the climate-change-exacerbated forces behind any of today’s natural disasters advantage over those dealing with them.

Vaillant shows that what happened in Fort Mac was nature’s strongest semaphore to that date of an Earth’s surface so prone to fire that every year since has seen records set to be toppled the next, whether in size, phenomena, towns incinerated, people displaced or animals killed. Seven years later, the fire’s shock has been usurped by far worse scenarios. There is no new normal, only an open atmospheric gate through which the climate beasts under our beds—portended decades ago but kept from mind by the moneyed disinformation campaigns of oil companies—charge violently into our lives. As Vaillant sums, “This is how Earth will remember us: thanks to fire and our appetite for its boundless energy, we have evolved into a geologic event that will be measurable a million years from now.”

Leslie Anthony is a Whistler-based science/ environment writer and author of The Aliens Among Us: How Invasive Species are Transforming the Planet—and Ourselves Catch him in conversation with Vaillant at the Whistler Writers Festival on Oct. 13.

This year’s festival runs from Oct. 12 to 16. n

Building

The 2024 Budget

Whistler, we’re looking for your input to develop our municipal budget. This survey will help us understand the community’s priorities for 2024 and onwards, helping staff prioritize and formulate a budget that balances need and scal responsibility. Scan the QR code to:

• Learn about the Early Input Budget Survey

• Complete the survey

Resort Municipality of Whistler whistler.ca

CAUSE AND EFFECT Catch author John Vaillant in conversation with Leslie Anthony at this year’s Whistler Writers Festival on Oct. 13..

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Forest Stewardship Plan #752

Forest Licenses A19214, A19218, A19218 and Timber Licenses TSQ04 (T0744, T0767, T0755 and T0771)

Notice of Exemption from Public Review and Comment for Forest Stewardship Plan Major Amendment #4

Notice is hereby given that major Amendment #4 to Forest Stewardship Plan (FSP) #752 has been approved by the Ministry of Forests, Sea to Sky Forest District. The approval was received on August 23, 2023.

Amendment #4 was limited in scope to updating the names of the holders of the FSP. This amendment does not make any material changes, or changes which would be considered significant.

As a condition for approval of Amendment #4 under section 20(3) of the Forest and Range Practices Regulation (FPPR), the Holders of the FSP are required to post Public Notice that this amendment has been approved without the requirement for a public review and comment period

The approved FSP (approved 2020-12-08) completed a public review and comment period prior to approval. No comments were received during the previous review and comment period which identified any significant public concerns with the content of the approved FSP The approved FSP #752 identified the following four licence holders and the applicable agreements to which the Forest Stewardship Plan applied

Squamish Mills Ltd. - Forest Licence A19214

Halray Logging Ltd. - Forest Licence A19217

Pebble Creek Timber Ltd. - Forest Licence A19218

Western Forest Products Inc. - Timber Licences T0735, T0744, T0767, T0755, T0767, T0771 and T0774.

In October 2021 the agreements applicable to this plan were purchased from the holders identified above and the agreements were sold and transferred to new licence holders, listed below.

Blackmount Logging Inc – Forest Licence A19214

Inlailawatash Limited Partnership – Forest Licence A19218

Lil’wat Forestry Ventures Limited Partnership – Forest Licence A19218 and Timber Licenses TSQ04 (T0744, T0767, T0755 and T0771)

The purpose of this major amendment was to remove the original licence holders from the approved FSP and to add the new licence holders and the agreements applicable to each of the new holders to approved FSP #752.

Regarding the public review and comment period, the new holders of this FSP requested the District Manager of the Sea to Sky Forest District to exempt this amendment from the requirements for a public review and comment period, under section 20(3) of the FPPR. This requested exemption was appropriate as there were no material changes to the FSP or to the Results or Strategies defined in the FSP The new FSP holders will continue to be required to plan and complete all primary forest activities consistent with the approved FSP from August 23, 2023

PIQUE’S GUIDE TO LOCAL EVENTS & NIGHTLIFE

Here’s a quick look at some events happening in Whistler this week and beyond. FIND MORE LOCAL EVENT LISTINGS (and submit your own for free!) at piquenewsmagazine.com/local-events

WEST SIDE WHEEL UP

SEPT8-16

WEST SIDE WHEEL UP

Don’t miss this old-school mountain bike race on the west side trails of Whistler. No membership is required, and the race is open to all. Stick around afterwards for après with great food, drinks and prizes. See the full course map and find more details at trailforks.com.

> Sunday, Sept. 10. Registration 10:30 to 11:20 a.m.; race starts at 11:30 a.m.

> Whistler’s west side trails. Race begins at the bottom of AC/DC off Alta Lake Road

> $20

WHISTLER VILLAGE BEER FESTIVAL

The 10th annual Whistler Village Beer Festival will take place over seven days featuring Oktoberfest, beer cocktail parties, tap takeovers and of course, the incredible main event at Whistler Olympic Plaza. The main event, hosted on Saturday, Sept. 16, will feature 50 craft beverage manufacturers and more than 100 varieties of craft beverages, including beer, cider, and RTD’s to sample. Complete with food trucks, live music, interactive activities and thousands of fellow festival lovers, this event is always an incredible time. Find

more info at gibbonswhistler.com/festivals-events/ whistler-village-beer-festival.

> Sept. 11 to 17; Main Event Sept. 16

> Multiple venues

> Price varies

IMPRINTS: ON NATIVE LAND

Join artist Raven John in a thought-provoking performance exploring your connection to colonization using ink, paper, and space. In this short performance, Raven will share a generational connection to the residential school atrocities while guiding volunteer audience participants in linoleum tile block printing. The piece delves into pain, grief, and intergenerational trauma, leaving participants with a profound sense of self and place.

> Sept. 16, 7 p.m.

> Maury Young Arts Centre

> $5

WHISTLER FARMERS’ MARKET

A feast for your senses, the Whistler Farmers’ Market features local produce, tasty food, local artisans, live entertainment and family activities in the Upper Village. Markets happen every Sunday until Thanksgiving on Oct. 8, with the addition of a Saturday market on Oct. 7.

> Sept. 10, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

> Upper Village

> Free

Join us for brunch on Saturdays & Sundays from 11am - 2pm. Sit on our sunny patio, or inside with air-conditioning!

Children are welcome until 10pm ever y day, kids menu for 12 years old and under available

PHOTO BY MICHAELSVOBODA / E+ / GETTY IMAGES

Expanding the Roundhouse

BY ALLYN PRINGLE

THE ROUNDHOUSE that sits atop Whistler Mountain today bears little resemblance to the original Roundhouse built during the summer of 1966. Based on the design of a similar building in the United States, the “round” structure is easily recognized in photographs from past decades. However, almost as soon as it was built, the lift company began changing and adding on to the Roundhouse.

Following its first season of operations, the lift company began construction of a warming hut to provide skiers with respite from the cold and snow. The Roundhouse featured a huge fireplace in the middle where skiers could warm their feet, though from

with the opening of Blackcomb Mountain for the 1980-81 season looming, there was a lot of work done, especially around the Roundhouse. Quadra Construction was employed to build a new building beside the Roundhouse that was to house extra washroom facilities, a new ski-school office, a ski repair shop and a sewer plant, topped off with a sun deck on the roof. Over the years, this building also housed a snack bar and Jim McConkey’s Alpine Ski Shop, and became known as the Squarehouse. Quadra Construction also levelled the road that led up to the Roundhouse, raising the building eight feet without actually moving the building.

Other work done by the lift company that summer included seeding some runs and widening others, filling in gullies, cutting

stories we’ve heard at the Whistler Museum, only the first ring or two of people around the fire really got all that warm. The building was not designed to include food service or running water, though there were outhouses built on the hill below the Roundhouse.

The next summer, Hugh Smythe remembered being present when a dowser was used to locate water in order to install running water at the site. According to Smythe, water was successfully found using a willow stick as a dowsing rod and a pump was sunk the next spring. The Roundhouse underwent quite a few changes over the next few years as the lift company removed the fireplace, added a kitchen, installed indoor toilets (though they kept the outhouses as well), dug out and enclosed a lower level, and even wired the building for electricity, installing a diesel generator in the basement (which was stolen one winter).

The summer months were an opportunity to upgrade facilities on the mountain for the next ski season. During the summer of 1979,

a new entrance to Green Acres, installing new engines on some of the chairlifts, and replacing the original chairs of the Red Chair (the chairs were sold for $10 and marketing director John Creelman reported they would “make a great conversation piece.”) At the gondola base in today’s Creekside, the bottom of the Olive Chair was remodelled, the Whistler Skiers’ Chapel was moved next to the Whistler Mountain Ski Club cabin, and L’Après and the cafeteria were renovated. According to lift company manager Peter Alder, all of these improvements and maintenance work came to more than $1.5 million (adjusted for inflation, that would be about $5.9 million today).

The new building at the Roundhouse was completed shortly after the 1979-80 ski season began. More changes were made to the Roundhouse area over the years, especially when the Whistler Express Gondola opened in 1988. In 1998, the Roundhouse Lodge was completely rebuilt, retaining the name of the structure but changing the shape. n

Based on the design of a similar building in the United States, the “round” structure is easily recognized in photographs from past decades.

GATHER ROUND The view from the Roundhouse showing the new washroom building under construction in September 1979.

WHISTLER QUESTION COLLECTION, 1979

Free Will Astrology

WEEK OF SEPT. 8 BY ROB BREZSNY

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Aries chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov says war is “more like a game of poker than chess. On a chess board, the pieces are face up, but poker is essentially a game of incomplete information, a game where you have to guess and act on those guesses.” I suspect that’s helpful information for you these days, Aries. You may not be ensconced in an out-and-out conflict, but the complex situation you’re managing has resemblances to a game of poker. For best results, practice maintaining a poker face. Try to reduce your tells to near zero. Here’s the definition of “tell” as I am using the term: Reflexive or unconscious behaviour that reveals information you would rather withhold.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Raised in poverty, Taurusborn Eva Peron became a charismatic politician and actor who served as First Lady of Argentina for six years. The Argentine Congress ultimately gave her the title of “Spiritual Leader of the Nation.” How did she accomplish such a meteoric ascent? “Without fanaticism,” she testified, “one cannot accomplish anything.” But I don’t think her strategy has to be yours in the coming months, Taurus. It will make sense for you to be highly devoted, intensely focused, and strongly motivated—even a bit obsessed in a healthy way. But you won’t need to be fanatical.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Gemini author Ben H. Winters has useful counsel. “Every choice forecloses on other choices,” he says. “Each step forward leaves a thousand dead possible universes behind you.” I don’t think there are a thousand dead universes after each choice; the number’s more like two or three. But the point is, you must be fully committed to leaving the past behind. Making decisions requires resolve. Second-guessing your brave actions rarely yields constructive results. So are you ready to have fun being firm and determined, Gemini? The cosmic rhythms will be on your side if you do.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Journalist Alexandra Robbins was addressing young people when she gave the following advice, but you will benefit from it regardless of your age: “There is nothing wrong with you just because you haven’t yet met people who share your interests or outlook on life. Know that you will eventually meet people who will appreciate you for being you.” I offer this to you now, Cancerian, because the coming months will bring you into connection with an abundance of likeminded people who are working to create the same kind of world you are. Are you ready to enjoy the richest social life ever?

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Author Kevin Kelly is a maverick visionary who has thought a lot about how to create the best possible future. He advocates that we give up hoping for the unrealistic concept of utopia. Instead, he suggests we empower our practical efforts with the term “protopia.” In this model, we “crawl toward betterment,” trying to improve the world by one per cent each year. You would be wise to apply a variation on this approach to your personal life in the coming months, Leo. A mere one-percent enhancement is too modest a goal, though. By your birthday in 2024, a six-per-cent upgrade is realistic, and you could reach as high as 10 per cent.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In honour of the Virgo birthday season, I invite you to be exceptionally distinctive and singular in the coming weeks, even idiosyncratic and downright incomparable. That’s not always a comfortable state for you Virgos to inhabit, but right now it’s healthy to experiment with. Here’s counsel from writer Christopher Morley: “Read, every day, something no one else is reading. Think, every day, something no one else is thinking. Do, every day, something no one else would be silly enough to do. It is bad for the mind to continually be part of unanimity.” Here’s a bonus quote from Virgo poet Edith Sitwell: “I am not eccentric! It’s just that I am more alive than most people.”

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Do you sometimes wish your

life was different from what it actually is? Do you criticize yourself for not being a perfect manifestation of your ideal self? Most of us indulge in these fruitless energy drains. One of the chief causes of unhappiness is the fantasy that we are not who we are supposed to be. In accordance with cosmic rhythms, I authorize you to be totally free of these feelings for the next four weeks. As an experiment, I invite you to treasure yourself exactly as you are right now. Congratulate yourself for all the heroic work you have done to be pretty damn good. Use your ingenuity to figure out how to give yourself big doses of sweet and festive love.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Scorpio novelist Kurt Vonnegut testified, “I want to stay as close on the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge, you see all kinds of things you can’t see from the centre. Big, undreamedof-things—the people on the edge see them first.” I’m not definitively telling you that you should live like Vonnegut, dear Scorpio. To do so, you would have to summon extra courage and alertness. But if you are inclined to explore such a state, the coming weeks will offer you a chance to live on the edge with as much safety, reward, and enjoyment as possible.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): “Where there is great love, there are always miracles,” wrote Sagittarian novelist Willa Cather (1873–1947). In accordance with upcoming astrological aspects, I encourage you to prepare the way for such miracles. If you don’t have as much love as you would like, be imaginative as you offer more of the best love you have to give. If there is good but not great love in your life, figure out how you can make it even better. If you are blessed with great love, see if you can transform it into being even more extraordinary. For you Sagittarians, it is the season of generating miracles through the intimate power of marvellous love.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Capricorn author Alexander Woollcott (1187–1943) could be rude and vulgar. He sometimes greeted cohorts by saying, “Hello, Repulsive.” After he read the refined novelist Marcel Proust, he described the experience as “like lying in someone else’s dirty bath water.” But according to Woollcott’s many close and enduring friends, he was often warm, generous, and humble. I bring this to your attention in the hope that you will address any discrepancies between your public persona and your authentic soul. Now is a good time to get your outer and inner selves into greater harmony.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): In 1963, Aquarian author Betty Friedan published The Feminine Mystique, a groundbreaking book that became a bestseller crucial in launching the feminist movement. She brought to wide cultural awareness “the problem that has no name”: millions of women’s sense of invisibility, powerlessness, and depression. In a later book, Friedan reported on those early days of the awakening: “We couldn’t possibly know where it would lead, but we knew it had to be done.” I encourage you to identify an equivalent quest in your personal life, Aquarius: a project that feels necessary to your future, even if you don’t yet know what that future will turn out to be.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): “Among those whom I like or admire, I can find no common denominator, but among those whom I love, I can: All of them make me laugh.”

Piscean poet W. H. Auden said that. After analyzing the astrological omens, I conclude that laughing with those you love is an experience you should especially seek right now. It will be the medicine for anything that’s bothering you. It will loosen obstructions that might be interfering with the arrival of your next valuable teachings. Use your imagination to dream up ways you can place yourself in situations where this magic will unfold.

Homework: What message has life been trying to send you but you have been ignoring? Newsletter.FreeWillAstrology. com.

In addition to this column, Rob Brezsny creates EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES

In-depth weekly forecasts designed to inspire and uplift you. To buy access, phone 1-888-499-4425. Once you’ve chosen the Block of Time you like, call 1-888-682-8777 to hear Rob’s forecasts. www.freewillastrology.com

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR A PERMANENT CHANGE TO A LIQUOR LICENCE

ESTABLISHMENT LOCATION: 4222 Village Square

LICENSE TYPE: Liquor Primary

APPLICANT: Bar Oso

Bar Oso is a liquor primary licensed establishment with hours of service from 9 a m - 1 a m Monday through Sunday The licensee has applied to the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB) for a structural change to the liquor primary licence to permanently increase the interior capacity of the establishment on the basement (lower) level from 18 to 58 persons

Residents and owners of businesses may comment by writing to:

Climate Action, Planning and Development Services

Resort Municipality of Whistler

4325 Blackcomb Way

Whistler, BC V8E 0X5 planning@whistler ca

PETITIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

To ensure the consideration of your views, your written comments must be received on or before October 8, 2023 Your name(s) and residence address (or business address if applicable) must be included

Please note that your comments may be made available to the applicant and local government officials as required to administer the license process

Resort Municipality of Whistler Notice | Tax Sale Properties

Pursuant to Section 645 of the Local Government Act, the properties listed below will be offered for sale by public auction on Monday, September 25, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. in the Flute Room of Municipal Hall at 4325 Blackcomb Way, Whistler BC unless delinquent taxes plus interest are paid Payment for either the settlement of outstanding taxes prior to tax sale, or purchase of property at tax sale must be CASH or CERTIFIED FUNDS

Those who wish to bid on properties must register between 9:30 a.m. and 9:50 a m. on Monday September 25, 2023 at Municipal Hall. Photo ID is required for registration.

Please note that under Section 648 of the Local Government Act a person authorized by council may bid for the municipality at the tax sale up to a maximum amount set by council. Any person being declared the tax sale purchaser must pay the full amount of the purchase price by 1:00 p.m. the same day Failure to pay will result in the property being offered for sale again.

Property purchased at tax sale is subject to redemption by the registered property owner within one year from the day the annual tax sale began. Redemption price will be the upset price at the time of tax sale, plus required maintenance costs, plus any taxes paid by the purchaser, plus interest at rates established under section 11( 3) of the Taxation Act on the preceding and any surplus bid.

Resor t Municipality of Whistler whistler.ca

RENT SELL HIRE

Fairmont Chateau

Brand-newExecutiveviewhomefor rentinSunstone,Pemberton. Unfurnished.Availablelong-term. Referencesand1yrleaserequired. 2600Sq/ft.4beds,3fullbaths,office, chef’skitchen,hugeoutdoorpatio, largemudroom,garage,parkingfor2 carsandplentyofstoragespace.N/S, N/P$5500month+utilities.Snow removalandyardmaintenanceare included.AvailableSept1st. kristina_waldie@hotmail.com

BeautifulNewStudioSuite

Newmodernstudiosuiteforrentin Sunstone,Pemberton.Privateentry. Unfurnished.Cooktop,W/D.Mt.Currie views.$1600permonthinclusive. Mustprovidereferences.1-yearlease required.N/SN/P.Suitssingle professional.Parkingfor1car. AvailableOct1st.604-905-9723 kristina_waldie@hotmail.com

Whistler Resort is growing its Housing portfolio and sourcing additional Chalet and Condo Rental contracts for our Hotel Team Members. Our leaders are mature, career driven drivers that know the word respect. Contract terms for property Owners are stress free with no commissions and includes representation from our 4 person fulltime Housing Department working with you 24/7; maintaining all aspects of the tenancy including quarterly inspections. A great next move for Whistler property Owners that have tired with the Airbnb game or Property Fees. Let’s see if we can make a match and develop a long-term relationship here. General inquiries please email mark.munn@fairmont.com

Accommodation SEEKING

ACCOMMODATION WANTED

AccommodationWanted Retiredteacherseeksquietsuite for23/24skiseason,pkg,NS,NP, refs.Emailpsutkap@gmail.comor callPaulat416-999-3831.

MARKETPLACE

STEVIE Wag Adoptable

Hi I’m Stevie!

I am a sweet floofy girl, who can be shy and nervous when first meeting new people, but once we are pals I love cuddles on the couch and seek out affection.

Age: Approx. 1 year old

Gender: Female

Breed: Collie/Shepherd Cross

Size: Medium/Large

Energy Level: Medium / High Visit whistlerwag.com for more information or to fill out an application”

Become part of a creative team and surround yourself with art.

Resort Municipality of Whistler Employment Opportunities

• Building Official - Plan Examiner

• Fitness Instructor

• Fitness Trainer

• Library Services Specialist

Resort Municipality of Whistler

• Lifeguard/Swim Instructor

Employment Opportunities

• Program Leader - Myrtle Philip Community Centre

Guards

The Museum is currently seeking: Monitor artwork in galleries, enforce and implement security protocols, and communicate rules and guidelines to visitors.

• Full-Time & Part-Time

• Starting at $23 per hour

• No Experience Necessary

• Benefits Packages Available

For complete job descriptions and to apply visit audainartmuseum.com/employment

Or email applications to bbeacom@audainartmuseum.com

Whistler’s only dedicated wedding magazine.

AVAILABLE ON STANDS IN THE SEA TO SKY

· Legislative and Privacy Coordinator

• RCMP Operational Support Coordinator

· Lifeguard/Swim Instructor

• Skate Host

· Program Leader

· Skate Host

• Youth Leader

· Wastewater Treatment Plant Process Supervisor

· Lifeguard/Swim Instructor

· Solid Waste Technician

• Senior Communications Officer

· Labourer I – Village Maintenance

· Accountant

• Trades 1 - Mechanic

· Youth and Public Services Specialist

Resort Municipality of Whistler whistler.ca/careers

Free Housing

Join our team of Plumbers and Gas Fitters

Hiring 3rd and 4th year apprentice or journeyman candidates with experience in service/repair work.

• Offering competitive wages

• Providing fully stocked truck, tools, and phone

• Extended health plan available.

• We can hire skilled foreign workers and support permanent residency applications.

• Short-term accommodation availablefree of charge. Long term housing options available as well.

Send your resume to: Dough@spearheadsph.com

SERVICE TECHNICIAN

Great opportunity for a super motivated/organized person to excel in the field of lock technician services and access control solutions.

The successful individual will have experience in carpentry and/or building maintenance. Any experience in low voltage electrical and/or hotel card access systems will prove very beneficial. Good communication and customer service skills as well as a strong work ethic are essential to this position. Please reply to Service@alpinelock.com with a resume and cover letter outlining your suitability and qualifications for the position.

No drop-ins or phone calls please, apply only by email.

Group Fitness Classes

Fridays - Gentle Fit

1-2 pm w Diana

Saturdays - Zumba

10:30-11:30 am w Susie

Mondays - Yin & Yan Yoga

9-10 am w Heidi

Tuesdays - Mountain Ready 5:30-6:30 pm w Steve

Wednesdays - Zumba 6:30-7:30 pm w Diana

Thursdays - Strength & Cardio 7:30-8:30 am w Lou

See

EMPLOYMENT

FullTime

SeekingLaborer,apprenticesand carpentersforfulltimeposition buildingcustomhomesinWhistler BCandarea.Noexperiencenecessary,willprovidetraining.Competitivewagesandgreatbenefit packageavailableafter3month probation.Dental/extendedmedical,RRSPcontribution,gasallowances.Ifinterested,pleasefeel freetocontactthroughemailor callAlanat604-849-1304604-849 -1304 bmakconstruction@gmail.com

PHSAisHiring AccountsReceivableClerks! Wehavecasualpositionsforcashiers atWhistlerHealthCareCentrestarting at$26.51/hr!Connectwith careers@phsa.ca.

WhistlerPersonnelSolutions

Full-time,part-time&tempjobs. Nocost,nostrings.604-905-4194 www.whistler-jobs.com

MountainViewAccommodation

FrontDeskAgent

Thisisafull-time,year-roundposition startingearlyOctober.Excellentpay andbenefitpackagesforfull-timeemployees.Previousreservationsand guestserviceexperience.Jobdescriptionincludescheckinginguests,providinglocalinformationandenteringin reservations. christina@mvawhistler.com

WHISTLERTRANSITDRIVER

Full-TimeSeasonalPositionsAvailable(October2023-April2024)validClass1or2driver’slicense withairbrakeendorsementrequired,licenseupgradeswillalso beconsideredforcandidates meetingallothercriteria-pension planandmedicalbenefitstocommittedemployees.$31.06/hour startingwagewithsteppedincreasestoamaxof$35.06/hour. recruitment@whistlertransit.ca www.pwtransit.ca

Community

NOTICES

VOLUNTEERS

TransitOpinionsWanted

Become part of a creative team and surround yourself with art.

The Museum is currently seeking:

Visitor Services Lead

Permanent, Full-Time $25 per hour

• Provide friendly and helpful customer service to ensure an exceptional Museum experience

• Sell admission tickets, memberships, and Shop product

• Maintain and create visually appealing merchandise displays

Please send your cover letter and resume to: Sonya Lebovic, Museum Shop & Admissions Manager: slebovic@audainartmuseum.com

PivotalResearchInc.isconducting asurveytounderstandarearesidentsexperiencewithtransit. Completea5minutesurveyby scanningtheQRCodeorvisit https://www.pivotalresearch.ca/ bctransportation

Mirae Campbell Photography

HIRING WE ARE

Why work for us?

All Departments

Bylaw Enforcement & Animal Control

Communications

Community Planning

Engineering

Public Works

RCMP

Recreation

We offer competitive wages, a comprehensive pension plan and health benefits, and we are driven by our passion to serve community.

• Clerk 2 – Casual/ On-Call

• Community Patrol Officer – Casual/On-Call (Multiple Positions)

• Public Engagement Specialist – Regular Full-Time

• Plan Examiner 2 – Regular Full-Time

• Manager of Environment – Regular Full-Time

• Engineering Technician – Regular Full-Time

• Utilities Technologist – Regular Full-Time

• Detachment Clerk – Casual/On-Call

• Recreation Program Instructor 1 – Biking – Casual/ On-Call (Multiple Positions)

• Recreation Program Leader – Regular Part-Time

As an equitable and inclusive employer, we value diversity of people to best represent the community we serve and provide excellent services to our citizens. We strive to attract and retain passionate and talented individuals of all backgrounds, demographics, and life experiences.

squamish.ca/careers

The Sea to Sky corridor’s top civil construction company.

We are currently recruiting professionally minded people to join our team:

Class 1 Truck Drivers

*Competitive wages, extended health benefits (after 3 months)

Email resume to: info@whistlerexcavations.com

The Pinnacle Hotel Whistler has the following positions available:

• ROOM ATTENDANTS

• HOUSEMAN AM/PM

Please reply by email: parmstrong@pinnaclehotels.ca

Lil’wat Nation Employment Opportunities

Ullus Community Centre

Transition House Support Worker – night shift

Financial Reporting Manager

FireSmart Coordinator

Referrals Coordinator

Accounts Payable Coordinator

Human Resources Generalist

Lil’wat Health & Healing Assistant Health Director Clinical Counsellor Homemaker

Pqusnalhcw Health Centre

Agricultural Assistant Food Centre Assistant

Ts’zil Learning Centre

Indigenous Support Worker

Please

Vacasa’s forward-thinking approach and industryleading technology help set us apart as the largest full-service vacation rental company in North America.

We are seeking individuals with a passion for providing exceptional vacation experiences for our Owners and Guests.

We offer competitive wages and benefits: Travel allowance for Squamish/Pemberton-based employees OR Ski Pass/Activity allowance, Extended Medical, RRSP match, Fun & Safe Work Environment-Great Team, opportunities to grow and more.

**SIGNING BONUS** $1000 (FT)

Guest Service Agent

Assistant Housekeeping Manager

Lead Housekeeper Maintenance Technician

Local Operations Manager (12-month maternity leave coverage)

Full Time all year round

Apply online today!

https://www.vacasa.com/careers/positions or email: paul.globisch@vacasa.com or call to find out more details at 604-698-0520

We thank all applicants for their interest but only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

ARE

JOB FAIR

CIVIL CONSTRUCTION AND SNOW SERVICES

GRAVEL TRUCK DRIVER, Squamish - BC Driver’s License: Class 1 or 3 with Air Brakes, Manual Transmission, Full-time, Monday – Friday.

HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATOR, Squamish - Minimum 5 years or 5,000 hours operating experience on excavator. Full-time, Monday – Friday.

PROJECT COORDINATOR, Squamish - BCIT Construction Management, or equivalent technical diploma or degree required. Full-Time, Monday - Friday.

liz@whistlerdental.co

whistlerdental.com/

ACROSS

Not all tourists are created equal

HEAR THAT? Listen more closely. Now do you hear it? That, my friends, is the sound of summer slammin’ shut. By the merciful intervention of another school year, this town’s about ready to go into sleep-lite mode for the fleeting weeks between now and ski season, with notable exceptions.

It’s time to reclaim the trails and lakes from the ever-expanding hordes of map-clutching, screamin’-kid-toting, boulevard-strollin’, gold-card-flashin’ tourists and enjoy them in their fleeting semi-solitude. The jugglers and

BY G.D. MAXWELL

clowns have packed up their false noses and flaming torches, and we can once more enjoy an uncrowded patio, a refreshing beverage and peace of mind.

Apologies to all those who make their killing, er, living, off the seasonal invasion, but good riddance.

Now before you start writing outraged letters to the editor about what an ungrateful, short-sighted thing that is for me to write, don’t bother. He already knows I’m ungrateful and short-sighted. It’s part of his own bargain with the Devil, one of an uncountable number of compromises necessary to put out a paper each week. Besides, in your hearts you know I’m right.

I’m not unaware of the debt we all owe—myself included—to the many funseekers who choose to spend time and money in Whistler. Bless each and every one of them. Individually, I’m sure they’re all salt-o-the-earth people, except for the loser hoodlums who come up from the Lower Mainland for a punch-up or drag race down the Killer Highway.

But in the same way a single sliver in your finger or a single pebble in your shoe won’t slow you down, a couple dozen of each can become unbearable. Left alone long enough, they’ll fester and aggravate your tender flesh until infectious gangrene sets in and the next thing you know you’re selling pencils from a kneeboard with a sign around your neck that says, “God bless you for your generosity.” Of course, you’re likely to be shooed away by Bylaw for panhandling, but they can’t be everywhere at once.

With the disappearing shoulder seasons and year-round fun being dreamed up by the marketing wizards of Whistler Blackcomb and Tourism Whistler, we just don’t get the respite we used to get from the gawking visitors. And let’s be absolutely clear about one thing: not all tourists are created equal.

I love winter tourists. Winter tourists know what they’ve come to Whistler for. They’re single-minded in their pursuit of fast times, awesome natural features and wild thrills. Most of them also ski or board after having flushed half their brain cells down the stall of one of our many nightlife hotspots.

There’s a camaraderie among winter visitors, a shared passion that bridges the often gaping chasms of language, age, social

class, and physical abilities that would, in any other setting, divide them if not cause outright warfare to break out between them. Mind you, there continues to be animosity between skiers and boarders that defies resolution and will, most likely, one day lead to slide-by polings or worse—but where would we be without some perceived slight to hang our “them and us” dichotomous disposition on?

Summer tourists are a whole different animal, though. While winter tourists generally sift themselves through a simple

catch a fish, whack a golf ball, see a sight, hike a trail and clog a beach... all in the same day... at the same time... without any real understanding of exactly where they need to go to do those things.

Which is why they seem to end up all over the place and in a constant state of confusion. Unlike winter visitors who have the overall decency to stay in the village built for their pleasure, summer tourists know no boundaries. They’re in our neighbourhoods, wandering our streets, even knocking on our doors wanting to know where Rainbow Park is

“C’mon now. You’ve got to learn to ride a bike some day.”

“I don’t want to ride a bike. I hate you.”

“That’s enough out of you, mister. Keep it up and I’ll give you something to really cry about.”

“I hate you. I hate you.”

Did he actually say, “Keep it up and I’ll give you something to really cry about?” Did he hear himself say that and think, in the same moment the words were coming out of his mouth, “Hey, wait a minute. Isn’t that exactly what I promised myself I’d never say to my children?” All the while wondering whether that was him speaking or whether his father had temporarily inhabited his body.

I read with question marks in my eyes the appraisal from Tourism Whistler that visitation was down this summer. Really? Based on what metric? Hotel(sic) occupancy? Perhaps. But a stroll through the village any day I made one this summer sure didn’t seem like there were fewer visitors. The place was packed. The bike park, even without the Fitz lift, was packed. The patios were packed. And, not surprisingly, the parking lots were packed.

screen of warm holiday/cold holiday, summer tourists are torn every which way by offerings as diverse as a cultural sojourn to Europe or staying in their own backyard and sipping beer while sprawled in the kid’s plastic pool, shooing away flies and mosquitoes. Faced with choices as broad as these, it’s a wonder any of them ever decide to come to Whistler.

But come they do, in sheer numbers far greater than in winter. Some of them come to ride bikes, go sightseeing, raft a river,

or where they can see a bear.

Regardless of what many of our summer visitors thought they came for, though, most of them seem to have come to argue with their children and spouses. In public. The children oblige this unusual pastime by throwing temper tantrums, thus upping the ante. It must be a rite of summer. There is an uncomfortable familiarity to many of the scenes I’ve stumbled upon recently, a timelessness of old, familiar tragedies replayed throughout the ages.

For too many years our efforts to bring people to Tiny Town have been driven by the heads-in-beds metric. Perhaps we should begin to measure different things. Like the people waiting to take photos at the Olympic™ rings. Like the number of cars circling the day skier lots. Like the lineup at Cows for ice cream. Empty patio seats.

Frankly, all those things have a greater impact on the sense of busyness than how many overnight rooms are occupied.

Bring on winter. ■

I love winter tourists. Winter tourists know what they’ve come to Whistler for. They’re single-minded in their pursuit of fast times, awesome natural features and wild thrills.

PHOTO BY HADI ZAHER / GETTY IMAGES

#219 – 2050 Lake Placid Road: Lake Placid Lodge 3 bed / 2 bath fully furnished condo Walk to Whistler Mtn Gondola, nearby pubs, shops, parks and lakes. Enjoy owner use and excellent nightly rental option too! $2,599,000 + GST

Kathy White PREC*

604-616-6933

#204 - 4360 Lorimer Road: Looking to make a move in Whistler or Pemberton? Whether you’re buying or selling, whether it’s an investment property or your full time residence, it can be a challenge to negotiate the jouney Call or email and I’ll explain how I can help $1,175,000 Laura Wetaski

604-938-3798

#307 – 2109 Whistler Road: Minutes from Creekside Gondola

similar with no Tourism

9112 Corduroy Run Court: Best priced lot in Whistler + great views & privacy Over 1 acre, a size that is usually unavailable in this town Build an up to 5,920 sq ft dream home + large coach house. www.kenach.com. $1,399,000

Ken Achenbach

604-966-7640

1360 Collins Rd, Pemberton: Custom 4,404 sq ft home with stunning views & mature landscaping on 10 acre retreat

Zoned for garden nursery, horse riding academy, green housing, brewery/cidery, agritourism, B&B, home business and limited weddings $3,999,900

Carmyn Marcano & Suzanne Wilson prec*

604-719-7646 / 604-966-8454

1307 Eagle Drive, Pemberton: Newly built 4br/6ba home with unobstructed views up the Pemberton Valley 30’x40‘ roof top patio for gardens, hot tub and entertaining; 1br suite, large flex room, radiant heating, workshop, double garage and much more! Call to view or learn more $2,590,000

Rob Boyd – Boyd Team

604-935-917 2

#47 - 4000 Sunstone Way, Pemberton: Beautiful 3 bed/3 bath duplex boasts designer finishes, A/C & sun drenched deck with mountain views Open concept is perfect for entertaining & a double garage is fully outfitted to organize all your tools and toys $1,459,000 GST Exempt Janet Brown 604-935-0700

1990 Dowad Drive, Squamish: This home features a gourmet kitchen with high-end appliances, a heated swimming pool, and a double-car garage Additional perks include security cameras and a two-bedroom suite, all within close proximity to schools and trails $2,698,000

Angie Vazquez prec* & Peter Joudaki prec* 7 78-318-5900

2939 Strangway Place, Squamish: Experience ultimate luxury in this eco-friendly, post-and-beam home Large windows, panoramic mountain views, 10x10 fir beams, red oak flooring, a natural stone fireplace and high-end kitchen amenities Includes a legal one-bedroom suite $2,299,500

Angie Vazquez PREC* 7 78-318-5900