Agritourism divides a rural Washington county. - By Rebecca Dzombak / High Country News
06 OPENING REMARKS How can B.C.’s newest government support tourism? Local and provincial business leaders weigh in.
08 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR This week’s letter writers weigh in on the potential destruction of the Gebhart/Hillman cabin, and float creative ideas for raising revenues in the resort.
11 PIQUE’N YER INTEREST Learning to sew is more than just an act of reclaiming traditional skills, writes Liz McDonald.
46 MAXED OUT Max provides a full-day play-by-play on another Earth-shattering election south of the border.
12 WORKER WOES A new report highlights how temporary foreign workers are ripe for abuse in Whistler.
16 LEST WE FORGET Hundreds are expected to attend Whistler’s annual Remembrance Day ceremony on Monday, Nov. 11.
28 ALL CROSSED UP Breaking down the functional value of CrossFit, the prefect dead season fitness pursuit.
32 STORY TIME The Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre is set to host a Story Pole awakening ceremony Nov. 8.
COVER If too much of a good thing is bad, then what does too much of a bad thing mean? - By Jon Parris // @jon.parris.art
Publisher SARAH STROTHER - sstrother@piquenewsmagazine.com
Founding Publishers KATHY & BOB BARNETT www.piquenewsmagazine.com
Taking tourism’s temperature
THE DUST HAS FINALLY settled, and it’s official: the NDP will once again form a majority government in British Columbia, slim though the margins may be.
Putting aside the fact this instalment of Opening Remarks was written prior to Tuesday’s U.S. election (which represents
BY BRADEN DUPUIS
an entirely different set of what-ifs), what might the B.C. election mean for business and
The BC Chamber of Commerce and other provincial business associations wasted little time weighing in, issuing a public letter Oct. 30 urging all of B.C.’s new elected representatives to work together to improve the economy.
“The province has lost 12,400 manufacturing jobs since 2017, and the lack of investment in the sector is ‘nearing crisis levels,’ according to the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters,” the letter read, in part.
“Forestry has shed over 10,000 direct jobs in just four years and hundreds of millions of dollars of lost investment. Zooming out, B.C. has seen effectively no growth in private sector employment growth between 2019 and 2023. This is unprecedented and unsustainable.”
The letter pointed to the $7.9 billion operating deficit projected in B.C.’s most recent budget, and highlighted some of the very expensive promises floated by all parties in the recent campaign.
“Overall, B.C.’s fiscal and economic trajectory is deeply concerning. As you shape the next government and plan your work in the upcoming legislative sessions, we urge you to give serious consideration to the state of B.C.’s economy,” it read.
“We live in a province that has all the building blocks necessary to support a
strong economy: an abundance of resources, a well-educated and skilled workforce, and a reputation for stability, and the rule of law. From cutting-edge technologies and innovations to the natural resources needed to create them, British Columbia has the assets that position us as a leader in the global economy.”
Where does tourism fit into the puzzle?
According to Walt Judas, CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of BC (TIABC), stats presented at the recent Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association Summit show tourism is bouncing back internationally.
“Year-over-year growth is roughly four per cent, which is down from the average annual growth rate of seven per cent between 1950 and the start of the pandemic, but is nonetheless a good sign,” Judas said in a Nov. 1 TIABC newsletter, adding 2024 “will realize a staggering 1.1 billion international arrivals.
“And while domestic travel led the way after COVID, international travel is surging but not yet back to 2019 levels, largely
(according to 2022 provincial stats).
As has been the case across the board, inflation and higher interest rates have meant increased costs for tourism businesses, in turn putting pressure on pricing.
“Canada’s GDP growth is currently hovering at a modest one per cent, below the projected two-per-cent inflation, so interest rates may come down even further to stimulate the Canadian economy,” said TW president and CEO Barrett Fisher in an email.
“The good news for tourism is that Canada/ B.C./Whistler will remain affordable to the U.S. market, whose economy is comparatively buoyant, and whose exchange rate is currently hovering around $1.40 CDN, and it may encourage Canadians to stay closer to home.”
That said, tourism needs ongoing investment, and some necessary provincial support TW identified includes: Ensuring taxation levels remain competitive and affordable for businesses; ensuring B.C.’s MRDT is protected for tourism to stimulate consistent and long-term tourism experiences
support fall into the federal government’s jurisdiction, such as removing the Underused Housing Tax from tourist-zoned accommodations, as these properties are zoned for tourist usage, not residential usage; and supporting the tourism industry with foreign worker programs, such as the PostGraduate Work Permit program, to which the fed government just announced that hospitality and restaurant operations will no longer be included in the eligibility list for graduating international students, substantially reducing the flow of trained professionals who can work in the tourism industry,” Fisher said.
From the Whistler Chamber’s perspective, the key issues facing businesses are both economic and social, said executive director Louise Walker.
“The accumulation of costs—supplies, labour, rent, property tax, employer health tax, etc.—is a huge burden for businesses, many of whom operate with small margins,” Walker said in an email, adding the Chamber looks forward to working with MLA Jeremy
“[W]hile domestic travel led the way after COVID, international travel is surging but not yet back to 2019 levels, largely because airline seat capacity is still catching up.”
- WALT JUDAS
because airline seat capacity is still catching up,” Judas said.
B.C.’s newest government would be wise to keep investing in tourism.
According to Tourism Whistler, the industry is one of the top drivers of British Columbia’s economy, generating $18.5 billion annually and $7.2 billion in GDP, contributing more than $2 billion in provincial and municipal taxes, and consisting of more than 150,000 jobs
and visitor demand; providing stimulus funds for communities to invest into festivals and events that drive visitation in need periods; providing stimulus funds for communities to invest in weather-independent tourism infrastructure (like attractions, or conference centres) to support year-round viability; and providing housing grants for affordable employee housing projects that directly benefit tourism workers.
“Other issues requiring government
Valeriote and the government to advocate for increased affordability, workforce development and business-friendly policies.
“The provincial government can support local businesses by helping to create more affordable housing, funding regional transit and developing programs and policies that grow the economy, all of which in turn supports people and communities,” she said.
Here’s hoping tourism lands high on the list of priorities for B.C.’s next government. n
Toad Hall… one more time
The following is an excerpt from the Whistler Museum Archives: The Story of the Toad Hall Poster:
“Toad Hall was slated for demolition later that summer (1973). One sunny spring day, whoever was milling about was asked to convene out front with their ski gear, but wearing nothing else. The photographer, Chris Speedie, orchestrated the photo simply to provide residents with a memento before Toad Hall met its demise. The completely uninhibited and playful posing perfectly captured the spirit of the times…”
I was greatly dismayed to learn that 51 years after the iconic photo was taken the original Toad Hall is slated for demolition, furthermore, at the hands of a developer and with the blessing of the Resort Municipality of Whistler ( Pique , Sept. 25, “Whistler council supports plan to demolish one of the community’s oldest buildings”)!
If Mayor Jack Crompton has “deep roots in Whistler” they are certainly not planted on the west side of Nita Lake where the building is still standing.
Perhaps he might reach out to the original Toad Hall poster folks, their descendants and the Whistler community as a whole to join him wearing only skis and boots for one more
memorable photo. Skis are optional.
The developer may be so moved and shamed that they will convert the home into a Valley Trail historical attraction.
Sarcasm aside, Whistler is drastically different from what it was in the ’70s.
The Gebhart/Hillman house may not be architecturally significant but it most certainly represents the spirit of those times and that of the people who built it and lived it. If we are to preserve the memory of that era we must preserve the building.
“A generation which ignores history has no past and no future.” -Robert Heinlein Michael Stein // Oakville, Ontario
Getting creative with revenues in Whistler
A 9-per-cent-plus tax increase for Whistler?
Wow. How about we look at how we can raise revenues? We are a RESORT municipality, so let’s be creative.
Valley Trail Passes: We already charge for Lost Lake cross-country use in the winter because
of the maintenance needed. Let’s create a pass system for the summer too! Like a toll road, everyone who wants to use the trail is given an RFID which automatically processes the payment.
Eco-Friendly Snowball Fights: Charge for snowball fights in dedicated “combat zones,” complete with safe areas, snowball vending machines, and team registrations. Bonus revenue from custom-made, biodegradable snowballs (available in themed colours).
“Powder Tax” for First Snowfall Viewing: Enforce a “powder tax” for the first snow day of the season. People pay a small fee for the honour of being part of the first snowfall sighting—and get a complimentary hot chocolate to sweeten the deal.
“VIP Stoplights”: Install “VIP Stoplights” that turn green immediately for a small fee, allowing people to skip the wait. Perfect for those in a rush on those powder days.
Rent-a-Town Mayor for a Day: Let people “rent” the mayor for a day, where they can suggest minor town policies, take selfies in the mayor’s chair, and enjoy a ceremonial ribbon-cutting. Local influencers get an official certificate declaring them “Honorary Mayor.”
Pothole Naming Rights: Let locals and tourists sponsor potholes for a fee. Their name or a quirky title can be painted nearby: “The Dip of Doom” or “Hole-y Moses.” Offer a bonus package where they can throw a ceremonial gravel handful to celebrate “fixing” it.
Selfie Tax: Place picturesque signs throughout town encouraging tourists to take
selfies—then charge a small “Selfie Tax” to anyone caught snapping a pic in front of the “official” sign. For a little extra, they get a printed certificate declaring their participation.
Of course, we could be austere and look where we can trim expenses.
Patrick Smyth // Whistler
Thank You from Tapley’s Neighbourhood Halloween
Thank you to everyone who took part in the 41st annual Tapley’s Halloween festivities. Our wonderful neighbourhood once again pulled out all stops from the artistically carved pumpkins to the themed houses and fabulous costumes with 46 neighbours participating. We welcomed more than 1,000 local children and parents to trick or treat on a lovely dry night. It was encouraging to see so many kids and families dressed up, and that we were able to gather to celebrate Whistler’s longest-standing community tradition.
We greatly appreciate the generous candy donations from Nesters Market, Your Independent Grocers, Creekside Market, The Grocery Store, and Fresh St. Market, which enabled us to provide 350 pieces to each household this year. We collected more than 16,000 pieces of candy through local donations and estimate that more than 40,000 pieces were distributed as neighbours always generously enhance donations to meet the demand. Thanks to everyone who donated at our collection boxes around town as well as the support of Myrtle Philip Community School, Spring Creek Community School, Waldorf, Whistler
FOR THE RECORD
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Children’s Centre and Teddy Bear Daycare.
A big shout out to Bruce Stewart and Nesters Market for their continued sponsorship of the spectacular fireworks display and hot chocolate. Special thanks to the Whistler Fire Association and its members for safely igniting the fireworks and handing out hot chocolate, to the RCMP officers for their ongoing support, and to BC Transit, Whistler Marketplace, Fastpark and the Resort Municipality of Whistler for organizing the free parking and shuttle, and to Waldorf School for decorating the bus. Also thanks to Pique Newsmagazine, Mountain FM and IHost for your generous promotional support. A huge thank you to the Whistler Community Foundation for the Small Neighbourhood Grant to support the entrance and Whistler Balloon Works for the display.
Thank you to the Whistler Secondary Community School Leadership Team and the 20 enthusiastic student volunteers coordinated by Vice Principal John Hall for manning the entrance and supporting our “We Scare Hunger” campaign. Together, we raised $4,025 in cash donations and 174kg of non-perishable food donations for the Whistler Food Bank, which were gratefully received by Whistler Community Services Society.
Thanks to our amazing Tapley’s volunteers including Sue Hargrave, Ilesa McAuliffe, Dianne Foster, Linda Gustafson, Jordan Kobelka, Christine Dennstedt and Christine Cowan.
Our Whistler spirit is alive and well in Tapley’s neighbourhood! See you next year for our 42nd edition!
Amanda Wilson & Shauna Hardy // On behalf of Tapley’s Neighbourhood n
Last week’s Maxed Out contained the sentence, “Our Green MLA earlier referred to himself as the ‘only adult in the room.’” The actual quote in question was this: “Our record in Victoria shows that we are the adults in the room”—referring to the Green Party, not Valeriote himself.
Further, the headline on last week’s budget story stated the Resort Municipality of Whistler is floating a 9.5% tax hike over the next five years, referring to the municipality’s five-year financial plan.
The increase does, in fact, reflect the proposed tax increase for 2025. n
Write to us! Letters to the editor must contain the writer’s name, address and a daytime telephone number. Maximum length is 450 words. Pique Newsmagazine reserves the right to edit, condense or refrain from publishing any contribution. Letters reflect the opinion of the writer and not that of Pique Newsmagazine. Send them to edit@ piquenewsmagazine.com before 11 a.m. on Tuesday for consideration in that week’s paper.
or visit www.macleanlaw.ca MacleanLawisheadquartered inVancouverwithofficesacross BritishColumbia.
Stitching a new future
IN LAST WEEK’S Opening Remarks, Pique editor Braden Dupuis jokingly floated the idea that Whistlerites could take up sewing during the dead season.
Little did he know this reporter did just that throughout October. My motivation was not inspired by the slow season, though stitching certainly makes for a good indoor
BY LIZ MCDONALD
activity. My choice was driven by a desire to slow down consumerism and reclaim a skill that was once a part of everyday life in Canada.
The group lessons I attended are taught by Barbora Vanickova and run in Whistler and Squamish through her business, Muse Lab. Over four weeks, I learned how to use a sewing machine, from threading a bobbin to installing zippers. I came away with a finished project at the end of each two-hour lesson, and she helped answer any questions we eager and occasionally frustrated students had.
While I won’t pretend to be a seamstress now, I do think I learned the basics and built a bit of confidence in taking on a new creative task. But it’s more than that.
Sewing is both an act of reclaiming
traditional skills and a choice which turns my back against climate-change-driving consumerism.
I grew up in a consumerist era that is still so prevalent today: I buy instead of making, and I throw away instead of repairing what’s broken. Paying the low cost of a T-shirt saves me time and money. Yet when I throw away that cheaply made and cheaply bought T-shirt, it doesn’t disappear into thin air.
households. Non-household textile waste is 659 kilotons annually. In 2021, we Canucks consumed 1.3 million tonnes and threw out 1.1 million tonnes of textiles.
What an insane amount of waste. These numbers don’t even dig into the environmental impact from water, energy and chemicals used, shedding microfibers or global carbon emissions from textile industries, nor do they speak to the horrific working conditions in
If Canadians are throwing out textiles at almost the same rate as we’re
buying, do we really need them? And if what we buy is made to last only a season, why are we buying it at all?
According to Environment and Climate Change Canada’s estimates, textile waste makes up six per cent of all discarded plastics in Canada. In the government consultation document titled Addressing plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector, researchers estimate Canadian households threw out 480 kilotons in 2018 alone. One kiloton is equal to 1,000 tons. And that’s just
offshore textile factories.
But before I chase you away with my frustration at a system I’m admittedly highly complicit in, I want to point my prose towards a few solutions. I’m not here to say we shouldn’t ever buy a new piece of clothing or that I think the fashion industry is going to suddenly change overnight. But I do genuinely believe you and I can make different choices that
impact the world.
An easy example comes from the Association of Whistler Area Residents for the Environment (AWARE). The group’s zero-waste events in October saw residents attend community garage sales, repair cafés and clothing swaps. The clothing swap alone had 140 people come out with 471 kilograms of used items that went to new homes or headed to the Whistler Community Services Society, according to Charlotte Reid, program manager at AWARE.
In addition to getting clothes secondhand, we can choose to repair what we already have. I’ve had a pair of sentimental holey socks growing dusty in a drawer for about a year. If I didn’t care much about the socks, I likely would have pitched them in the bin. But because I bought them locally from a friend who designs socks inspired by the Sea to Sky, I’ve formed an attachment that can’t be bought when I grab a pack from Costco.
And this October, I repaired them. One rainy evening, I sat down with a cup of tea and stitched my socks back together again.
Which brings me to my last thought on our consumerism.
While we can reuse and repair, we can also reconsider whether we need to buy something in the first place. If Canadians are throwing out textiles at almost the same rate as we’re buying, do we really need them? And if what we buy is made to last only a season, why are we buying it at all? n
New report shows temp foreign workers ripe for abuse in Whistler
WAGE
THEFT, CONTRACT BREACHES, HOUSING INSTABILITY, AND CULTURAL BARRIERS AMONG KEY CHALLENGES UNDERSCORED IN WORKER
INTERVIEWS
BY BRANDON BARRETT
A NEW REPORT compiled through interviews with dozens of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) revealed a federal program littered with challenges and a workforce ripe for abuse in Whistler.
Produced by the Whistler Multicultural Society (WMS), the report’s findings were gathered through in-person interviews between the springs of 2023 and ’24 with 70 TFWs currently or formerly on closed work permits. Underscoring the precarity of TFWs’ experience in a resort community that heavily relies on their labour, the report identified several key challenges, including gaps between worker and employer expectations, fear of job loss, housing instability, cultural and language barriers, and underpayment.
Raj Soni, resilience coordinator and migrant support worker for the WMS, said the TFW program is “especially” primed for misuse in Whistler “because housing is such a key component of the whole dynamic.”
Many TFWs land in Whistler with the understanding housing is part of their employment contract, however, upon arrival, they can find their accommodations are either unavailable, shared with more people than expected, or “significantly deteriorate” over time, the report said. Sixty-five per cent of interviewees said their promised housing was either not provided or below the expected standard.
“In an ideal world ... this is what you want, affordable employee housing. That gives them the opportunity to complete their term and not stress about a lot of other factors,” Soni said. “The unfortunate fact is things that happen outside of work can affect people inside of their work.”
Soni, who assists migrant workers with complaints, often compiling evidence for federal authorities to investigate, highlighted the blurred lines that can exist when a worker’s employer is also their landlord. One interviewee reported their employer had active CCTV cameras in staff accommodation, “meaning they were being watched at all times,” the report stated. Soni has also heard of employers drastically increasing rental rates for workers to cover their costs after other tenants move out.
In another case, photos the WMS provided to Pique showed unsafe and unsanitary work and living conditions at one Sea to Sky worksite.
In what is already a volatile market for the average Canadian, foreign workers find themselves in an even more unsure position in Whistler if they end up losing their housing, an effect the report noted is more pronounced for racialized workers. Forty per cent of respondents said their housing situation changed unexpectedly within the first few months of their contract, leaving them to seek alternative accommodation at high costs in a tight rental market.
THE EXPECTATION GAP
A worker’s job expectations laid out in their contracts can vary from the reality on the ground, the report noted, with more than 60 per cent of respondents reporting discrepancies, such as longer hours or additional duties.
B.C. employment regulations stipulate any variation in job duties must be mutually
agreed upon by both the worker and employer. Enforcement, however, is “often lacking or falls within a grey area,” the report said.
TFWs’ job duties are also spelled out through their corresponding National Occupation Classification code.
Discrepancies in pay, set through an employer’s Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) application and unchanged for the duration of a worker’s closed permit, typically two years, are another issue faced by TFWs. Pique reviewed documents provided by the WMS showing one worker was paid 28 per cent less per hour than the rate listed in their contract, constituting wage theft. Others have reported not being paid for overtime.
Because of that fixed pay rate, Soni has heard of instances where TFWs are given a “promotion” without a corresponding pay rise.
“In essence, they say you have a promotion with more responsibilities, but there is no pay rise because your salary is a lock for two years,” he added.
CULTURAL AND LANGUAGE BARRIERS
Cultural, religious and language barriers can add to the challenges faced by TFWs, who can find themselves in a ski town with far different social norms than they’re accustomed to.
The WMS said some workers noted their shared accommodations often lacked the privacy or cleanliness required for religious practices.
Language barriers can contribute to a TFW’s sense of isolation as well, both on the job and in social settings. Slang, technical terms, and differing communication styles can contribute to miscommunication at work, while TFWs can feel excluded from Whistler’s social scene, “heavily driven by group recreational activities,” the report noted.
Accessing services such as health-care and housing assistance becomes more difficult due to language barriers as well, the report continued.
MAJORITY OF TFWS RELUCTANT TO REPORT CONCERNS
Though prevalent in the WMS survey, which maintained respondents’ anonymity, the issues laid out by the society are almost certainly underreported locally, given TFWs’ fears of speaking up.
“Whistler has this thing everyone comes for, skiing, the essence of the town,” Soni said. “But for a lot of these temporary foreign workers signing contracts, they come here to support their families back home, so they’re really scared. It’s a lot of emotional stress, so they don’t want to speak out about these problems.”
More than 70 per cent of interviewees expressed hesitance to raise concerns about workplace issues, primarily due to fear of losing their job, which would “automatically impact their ability to remain in Canada, not constrained by immigration status but the inability to work and support themselves financially,” the report said.
That fear is exacerbated for workers on closed permits. Losing their job would require them to secure a new employer willing to apply for a LMIA on their behalf, a process that is lengthy and costly, during which a worker may have to leave the country.
Although protected by Canadian labour laws, TFWs’ temporary status often leaves them vulnerable, with advocacy groups saying the closed permit system creates an imbalance of power between worker
WORKER WOES The hospitality and restaurant sectors make up the bulk of Whistler’s temporary foreign workers. A new report underscores a federal labour program that is ripe for abuse in the resort.
PHOTO BY
NEWS WHISTLER
Invictus Games organizers lay out plans for Whistler
RESORT
WILL PLAY HOST TO THREE SPORT VENUES AND FOUR FAN ZONES THIS FEBRUARY
BY BRANDON BARRETT
IF YOU NEED CONVINCING of the lifealtering influence the Invictus Games can have, take it from a Nigerian service member who visited Whistler earlier this year for his first taste of snowsports and, well, snow.
Peacemaker Azuegbulam was one of the athletes in town for last winter’s participating nations’ training camp, a prelude to the 2025 Invictus Games, which will be held in Whistler and Vancouver from Feb. 8 to 16, welcoming hundreds of wounded, injured and sick service personnel and veterans competing in 11 sports. Azuegbulam, who lost a leg in a firefight with terrorist group, Boko Haram, first tried out adaptive skiing. After his run down Whistler Mountain, Invictus CEO Scott Moore asked him how it went.
“This is the best day of my life,” the Nigerian beamed.
The following day, Azuegbulam tried skeleton at the Whistler Sliding Centre. Again, Moore asked him what he thought. “ Today was the best day of my life,” Azuegbulam said.
Moore then asked him which sport he liked best. He picked skeleton, because in skiing, you need skill, but in skeleton, you need courage.
“Think about that as the mantra for these Games,” Moore said to elected officials during a presentation at the Nov. 5 council meeting. “All you need is courage to have served your nation. All you need is courage to have put up your hand and say, ‘I need a little bit of help.’ All you need is courage to get to the starting line.”
As Invictus organizers approach the starting line, just three months away from the Games, they told mayor and council about how Whistler will factor into operational plans. The resort will play host to three
TFW ABUSE FROM PAGE 12
and employer, making it difficult to assert their rights. A report this year from United Nations’ special rapporteur Tomoya Obokata called Canada’s TFW program a “breeding ground for contemporary forms of slavery,” institutionalizing “asymmetries of power” that favour employers.
Asked what improvements could be made to the program, Soni recommended opening TFWs’ permits, tying them to their NOC code and a specific location instead of a single employer.
“That way employees can freely move within that market,” he said. “If they have the option to leave, the employer might treat them a bit differently and try to retain them. When you’re guaranteed employee retention, there’s less incentive to treat them well.”
The WMS said 508 LMIAs were approved
competitive locations, and four fan zones throughout the event. Whistler Mountain will host adaptive skiing and snowboarding; Whistler Olympic Park will host biathlon and cross-country skiing; and the sliding centre will host skeleton.
Olympic Plaza, Mountain Square, Village Square and the Maury Young Arts Centre will be home to the fan zones. The Squamish and Lil’wat Nations, two of four host Nations for the Games, will host cultural activities at the arts centre, which will also have arts and crafts and other family-based activities on offer. Village Square will serve as another key area, with a concert stage hosting local and Canadian musicians, soon to be announced.
Taken together, the fan zones comprise the Invictus Village, open Feb. 9 to 13 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and featuring daily concerts, live sport viewing locations, and a range of activities.
All events in Whistler, sporting or otherwise, are non-ticketed and free.
As it was for the 2010 Olympics, the legacy of the Invictus Games will last far beyond the event itself. Thanks to provincial and local grants, including $368,000 from the Whistler Blackcomb Foundation, the resort will be the benefactor of new adaptive gear, including alpine and Nordic ski equipment, as well as improved accessibility at several local venues. That includes new paving at several sites, including the Whistler Sliding Centre, and the replacement of a large venue tent for Whistler Sport Legacies.
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“We’re just thrilled there’s a big contribution from [the] Whistler Blackcomb [Foundation] and hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment that’s going back to the community, also from the province of B.C.,” said Invictus COO Robyn McVicker.
The Games also received $260,000 through the municipality’s Festival, Events and Animation department, funds sourced from local MRDT reserves.
Learn more at invictusgames2025.ca. n
for Whistler in 2022, and estimates that, including other labour mobility programs, there are between 1,000 and 1,200 employees on some form of closed work permit in Whistler at any given time. The hospitality and restaurant sectors comprise the bulk of the resort’s temporary workers.
The Whistler Chamber of Commerce did not respond to requests for comment by press time. The Restaurant Association of Whistler, on Pique’s deadline day, requested more time to review the report, which will be shared with the board, before commenting.
Pique will have more on this issue in the coming weeks. Tips can be sent to bbarrett@ piquenewsmagazine.com.
The WMS provides free, confidential support to migrant workers. Learn more at wmsociety.ca. n
Asthewinter seasoniswithusagain, we’d like to take thisopportunity to remind owners,propertymanagersandmerchantsoftheimportance of keeping walkways, roofs,stairsandlandings adjacent to theirstoresandpropertiesfreeof iceandsnow.Itisessentialthat customersandguestsvisitingourVillage feel safe and comfortableinbeingable to travelfreelyaboutthearea.
Youare required to clearsnowandice from walkways, roofs,stairsandlandings adjacent to storesandproperties by10a.m.daily.
DownloadthePropertyMaintenanceBylaw at www.whistle r.ca/bylaw inthe FrequentlyRequestedBylaws section.
Resort MunicipalityofWhistler whistler.ca/bylaw
SCANTOVIEW MENU +TOB OOK
FINA LW EEKS
Sonya McCarthy loved Whistler—but she loved people more
THE DEDICATED VOLUNTEER, COUNCILLOR AND 1991 CITIZEN OF THE YEAR DIED LAST MONTH IN NOVA SCOTIA
BY BRANDON BARRETT
SORTING THROUGH her mom’s papers after her passing last month, Teresa Klassen found something she hadn’t seen before: a list of her mother’s life goals that perfectly encapsulated the woman Sonya McCarthy was.
She strove to “experience life to the fullest, love deeply and make the biggest, most positive impact on the planet and people worldwide,” lofty principles the longtime Whistlerite and former Citizen of the Year put into direct action.
“Whatever she could do to make the world a better place, that’s what she would work towards,” Klassen said of her mother, who died Oct. 21 due to complications from surgery at 71 years old.
From the time she first landed in the resort from her native Nova Scotia nearly half a century ago, McCarthy exemplified what it meant to be a Whistlerite. She was an avid adventurer and traveller. She worked a multitude of jobs to make ends meet, all the more essential as a single mom of three. She had an abiding love for the community, manifesting in the countless hours she spent volunteering and her time on council. She also cared deeply about where Whistler came from and where it was going, always striving
to make it—and the people who call it home— even better.
“She was always encouraging people to push themselves,” remembered Klassen. “She believed in people when they didn’t believe in themselves. She encouraged them to be brave and try new things.”
McCarthy certainly wasn’t afraid to try new things. Her career path hit many different stops along the way, from deli clerk to housecleaner, educator to life coach; at the local chamber of commerce, the Re-Use-It Centre, and for the Rocky Mountaineer—anything that afforded her the chance to show off her community.
“She loved doing jobs where she could introduce people to Whistler and show them how amazing it was,” Klassen said.
Named 1991’s Citizen of the Year, McCarthy was a tireless volunteer; a 2003 letter to the editor from Pique’s archives called her one of “Whistler’s all-time great volunteers.” Donating her time to a multitude of organizations and causes, she served as director of the local Lions Club and was the first woman to be named Lion of the Year. She was honoured through her role as representative for the Heart and Stroke Foundation. She gave her time to KidSport, an organization providing children with financial assistance for sports registration and equipment costs. She was an early Whistler Arts Council (now Arts Whistler) member.
COMMUNITY CHAMPION Longtime Whistlerite and former Citizen of the Year Sonya McCarthy was committed to making the community she loved, and the people who called it home, even better.
“She was very, very community focused, more so than just about anybody I knew,” said friend and former Mayor Nancy Wilhelm-Morden.
McCarthy also spent two years on council, from 1986 to ’88. Then Mayor Drew Meredith remembered a woman who had “a huge heart and time for absolutely everybody,” he said. “She was always there and always helping out—and generally doing it for nothing in return.”
McCarthy’s love for Whistler was rivalled only by her love of children, her own and others included. She was involved from the earliest days of the Whistler Children’s Festival, the resort’s longest-running event, and housed numerous international exchange students over the years.
“She had tons of kids around the world who called her momma and she still checked in with,” Klassen said. “Everything that makes a childhood special, she loved to be involved with, not just for us, but all the kids of Whistler.”
McCarthy had strong ties to Whistler’s past, too, counting late, great resort luminaries Florence Petersen and Myrtle Philip, who was Klassen’s godmother, as close friends.
“Myrtle and Florence used to hang out with us all the time growing up, so she really valued the heritage of Whistler as well,” said Klassen.
Leaving Whistler seven years ago to return to her East Coast roots, McCarthy left an indelible mark on a community that was undeniably better for having had her in it.
“Her love for the community and her love for people was just outstanding. For everybody,” Meredith said.
A celebration of life is tentatively set for Nov. 30 in Whistler. Those wishing to attend can email Klassen at teresa.klassen@gmail.com for more details once they are confirmed. n
ENFRANÇA POSTES ENÉDUCATION AIS N ÉDUCATION
Hundreds of Whistlerites expected to mark Remembrance Day this year
NOV. 11 PARADE SETS OFF FROM TED NEBBELING BRIDGE BEFORE SERVICE BEGINS AT WHISTLER CENOTAPH
BY BRANDON BARRETT
ON NOV. 11, hundreds of locals and visitors are expected to gather in Whistler Village to pay their respects to the Canadians who have fought for the Maple Leaf and made the ultimate sacrifice to their country.
Last year’s Service of Remembrance saw roughly 400 attendees, and organizer and RCMP Reserve Cst. Steve LeClair expects a similar turnout for this month’s service. Now in his seventh year organizing, LeClair has been moved by the resort’s longstanding support for the event in a community without much of a military history.
“It shows that people still have respect for our veterans, and this is especially important as we’re seeing fewer and fewer vets able to attend as they’re getting older,” LeClair said. “Certainly, we lose some each year and it’s just important to the community to be able to honour those people and the vets who are still around.”
Attending again this year will be members of Vancouver’s 39 Signal Regiment, an army reserve regiment that provides secure communications technology support to units
within the 39 Canadian Brigade Group.
The Veterans’ Parade and Colour Party will set off at 10:45 a.m. from the Ted Nebbeling Bridge down the Village Stroll before stopping at the Whistler Cenotaph in Olympic Plaza. The Whistler Singers
and Whistler Children’s Chorus will then perform songs of remembrance before leading the gathering in the singing of “O Canada.” That will be followed by “The Last Post” before two minutes of silence are observed at 11 a.m. and then a bugle
call of “The Rouse.” The service will then commence, followed by the presentation of wreaths and the Whistler Singers and Children’s Chorus closing things out with “God Save the King.”
With several devastating wars ongoing across the world, from Gaza and Lebanon to Ukraine and Sudan, LeClair said this year’s service takes on added significance. “It’s certainly on everybody’s mind the fact there are wars going on in other places and we’re so fortunate in Canada to not be involved in that currently but have a military that is prepared to serve if necessary,” LeClair said.
While not in active conflict, Canada is currently involved in multiple domestic and international operations, and provides support troops to several United Nations missions, including in the Palestinian Authority, South Sudan, Iraq, and Syria.
Any organizations or individuals wanting to lay a wreath on Remembrance Day can order one from the Squamish Legion, or make one of their own design. Contact steve.leclair@ shaw.ca to place a wreath or to volunteer at the service.
The service will also be livestreamed at whistler.ca. n
LEST WE FORGET Close to 400 attendees are expected at this year’s Whistler Service of Remembrance. FILE PHOTO BY BRADEN DUPUIS
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‘It could have been us or it could have been our families’: Whistlerite in Spain
ARNICA WIGHT, SPENDING YEAR IN VALENCIA, ORGANIZING FUNDRAISER FOR REGION DEVASTATED BY FLOODS
BY BRANDON BARRETT
HAVING GROWN UP in Whistler, 25-yearold Arnica Wight knows first-hand what a tight-knit community looks like. So, when she landed in Valencia City this September, she couldn’t help but see the similarities between her native Whistler and the coastal Spanish city.
“Even though Valencia is a big city, it has this strong community feel, and I know that Whistler is similar in that sense,” said Wight. “From the first step I took outside the train station when I got here, I felt right at home.”
Wight said locals have welcomed her with open arms since arriving for her year abroad, drawn by the language and, ironically, the mild weather. Just a few short weeks into her stay, the region was rocked by catastrophic flash floods that have, at press time, claimed the lives of more than 200 people and left many communities in southeastern Spain without power, water and aid.
Living in the centre of Valencia City, Wight and other residents were spared the kind of devastation the surrounding areas have endured, thanks in part to a rerouting of the city’s main river, The Turia, after deadly floods in 1957.
“Some of those towns directly south of
us, I haven’t been yet, but just seeing photos from not only the news but friends who spent time volunteering there over the weekend, it was just insane,” Wight said. “You can’t really understand the effect of the damage
unless you see it with your own eyes: bridges broken and washed away, whole buildings taken down, piles and piles of cars, debris. And with that, of course, come people swept up in the debris.
“It’s hard to grasp being so safe where we are.”
(It’s worth noting Valencia City is the capital of the hard-hit Valencia province, which contributed to Wight’s loved ones’ worries and confusion in the immediate aftermath of the floods.)
Seeing the harrowing footage on the news, as well as hearing from friends and fellow Valencians who have been impacted by one of Spain’s worst natural disasters in generations, Wight and her roommate, Fanny Larsson, got to work. They have organized a GoFundMe campaign to raise much-needed money for essential items such as clothing, food, and bedding that will be donated to a local café-turned-distribution-centre. Wight and Larsson are also visiting towns around Valencia City to help with debris clean-up.
With a modest starting goal of €1,000, Wight and Larsson reached nearly half of their target within hours of launching the campaign.
“It’s incredible so many people have contributed to this fund and it’s definitely motivating Franny and I to be creative in how to disperse it,” said Wight, adding they
are working with local organizations to best understand how to distribute the aid.
Already moved by the community spirit she felt before last week’s floods, Wight has seen it on full display in the days since, when hundreds of residents eager to help packed buses to the surrounding towns.
“Right away there was no hesitation from anybody in the community to jump forward and support, to get in there, get their hands dirty and start helping,” she explained.
That civic support has had to fill in gaps left by local authorities that have been heavily criticized by Spaniards for their lack of response. On Monday, Nov. 4, the Spanish government sent 10,000 troops, police and civil guards to the region, the largest peacetime deployment in the country’s history.
Wight said she and her roommate are happy to help a community they know would do the same if the roles were reversed.
“We just feel like we’re part of this community and if we’re living here for this year … why wouldn’t we contribute when something like this happens?” she said. “It could have been us or it could have been our families, if this happened somewhere local to us. We would ask for it from other people if the situation was reversed, so it’s important to maintain that sense of community.”
Donate to the fundraiser at gofundme. com/f/valencia-needs-our-help. n
AS EA SO NOFG IVIN G SO
Aheartfeltinitiativededicated to fosteringcommunityspiritand supportinglocalnon-profits.
FLOOD WARNING Cars piled up in the aftermath of the worst floods Spain has seen in generations.
PHOTO BY SEBASTIAN DE LA CERDA
Broughttoyouby
MP Patrick Weiler pushes for vote on Trudeau leadership of Liberal Party
THERE IS GROWING CONCERN AMONG CONSTITUENTS AND FELLOW PARTY MEMBERS THAT JUSTIN TRUDEAU WOULD LOSE THE FEDERAL ELECTION NEXT FALL, WEILER SAYS
BY NICK LABA North Shore News
ONE LOCAL MEMBER of Parliament is among a group of vocal federal representatives calling for a change of leadership from within the Liberal Party.
West Vancouver–Sunshine Coast–Sea to Sky Country MP Patrick Weiler is advocating for a secret ballot in caucus on whether Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should run in the federal election next fall.
Weiler says there is growing consensus among his constituents and fellow party members that Trudeau won’t be able to lead the Liberals to victory in the next election, and should step down to allow for fresh leadership of the party.
Weiler is not alone. Several other Liberal MPs have gone public with their disaffection, including Etobicoke Centre MP Yvan Baker and Saint John-Rothesay MP Wayne Long.
In their view, a secret ballot in the Liberal caucus—where their identities would be kept private—would allow all the party members to express their opinions without fear of retribution for their dissent.
“What I and a number of my colleagues have supported is to have a secret ballot
so that members of the caucus can express their own views, and particularly the views of their constituents, on who would be best placed to lead our party into the next election,” Weiler said.
“To do that in a forum where there isn’t that fear of retribution for speaking their mind would also be a way to bring a resolution, and also to bring unity and that level of consensus on the best way to move forward.”
Currently, the ball on potential leadership change lies in the court of national caucus chair Brenda Shanahan and Trudeau himself, because the Liberals don’t have a formal mechanism for leadership change.
“The Conservative Party, for instance, adopted the Reform Act, where if you have 20 per cent of caucus members asking for a leadership review, that moves forward,” Weiler said. “We don’t have that.”
So far, Shanahan and Trudeau have claimed there is an overwhelming majority of support for the prime minister, and therefore leadership shouldn’t change, Weiler said.
But that doesn’t match the private conversations Weiler has had with other MPs on the subject, he added.
“The prime minister’s office holds a tremendous amount of power,” Weiler said.
“There are people that are not always wanting to rock the boat. They might be concerned about what that might mean for them, personally or professionally.”
That’s why the secret ballot is the best method to gauge the appetite for change, Weiler said.
“It’s a way to give people that freedom … to honestly share their view [expressed in] conversations that are very much happening privately,” he said.
Weiler said he listens closely to what his constituents tell him. He’s heard that voters support what the federal government is doing on child care, dental care and housing.
“They’re also telling me that they’re very terrified of the thought of Canada having a right-wing, populist government led by Pierre Poilievre and what that would mean for services that they rely on, and progress on things like climate change,” he said.
“But they’ve also overwhelmingly made it clear to me that they don’t support the prime minister and they don’t want to vote for him,” Weiler continued. “Essentially, they’ve been telling me that they’re looking for change. And if we don’t deliver it, they will.”
That’s why he’s going public with his call for leadership change, Weiler said, “even if it does come at a personal toll, because that’s
what they elected me to do.”
The MP said changing the head of the Liberal Party would leave plenty of time for a successful campaign before the federal vote in October 2025.
“A year in politics is an eternity,” he said. “It’s really hard to say what the outcome would be, but … in any event, we’re going to have our work cut out for us.”
Weiler also acknowledged there has been notable interest from sitting Liberals and other candidates who provide “compelling” choices as to the next party leader.
“I think there are lots of great options for our party and for our country,” he said.
Ultimately, Weiler said he’s very concerned about what a Poilievre government would look like.
“That’s what got me into politics—what the Harper government did during their majority years, how they completely gutted all of Canada’s environmental laws, they started trying to create two classes of Canadian citizens, going after different immigrant communities,” he said.
“One of the key motivating factors for me is to ensure I do everything I can to prevent that from happening. Because if I didn’t do that, I would regret that for the rest of my life.” n
Whistler’s AWARE takes on waste diversion
THE GROUP IS PARTNERING WITH GFL ENVIRONMENTAL TO TACKLE ORGANIC WASTE IN WHISTLER’S WASTE DEPOTS
BY LIZ MCDONALD
THE ASSOCIATION OF Whistler Area Residents for the Environment (AWARE) is partnering with Green For Life Environmental (GFL) on a new campaign to divert organic waste from local landfills.
Landfill stream audits at the Nesters and Function Junction waste depots found compostable organics make up 31 per cent of Whistler’s residential garbage. Pegah Pourkarimi, executive director for AWARE, explained the campaign will focus on collaboration between the public, local government and the private sector.
“We’re in very early stages; it’s about having everyone around the table bring their input, come up with a set of goals and targets that we want to move towards, and then strategize from there about how that’s going to play out,” she said.
But what exactly is a landfill audit? If you have visions of someone getting their hands dirty, you’re right.
“I sat in on some audit training a few weeks back, and it was really insightful, because I’ve sat there and I’ve read these reports, but when you actually go through the training, and you get your hands in there and you get dirty, it really puts things into
perspective,” Pourkarimi said.
Landfill audits are highly technical composite studies that examine different waste streams, determine what is where and how much is in the wrong location. Then, auditors determine how the waste can be diverted.
It’s not the first time AWARE has partnered with GFL, having worked with the company diverting organic waste at events through the Zero Waste Heroes Program.
Organic waste produces methane, a greenhouse gas. While much discussion around climate change relates to
carbon, according to the United Nations Environment Program, over a 20-year period, methane “is 80 times more potent at warming than carbon dioxide.”
Denise Imbeau, general manager for GFL, said in a press release they partnered with AWARE because of its values and impact.
“Businesses, individuals, and community organizations all play a crucial role in driving change,” said Imbeau. “We chose to partner with AWARE because of its community impact and commitment to preserving the environment. AWARE has a long history of
exemplary community involvement and broad connections with both residents and businesses.”
The Resort Municipality of Whistler has its sights on diverting 95 per cent of organic waste from landfills along with the community’s 2021-26 Zero Waste Action Plan that aims to cut 80 per cent of waste volume and weight using 2019 levels by 2030.
In a press release, Mayor Jack Crompton said the campaign aligns with municipal priorities.
“This is critical work, and it’s great to see it being furthered by this growing partnership in our community,” said Crompton. “At the municipal level, our Big Moves Climate Action Strategy is broken down into many small steps. Enhancing education strategies around proper organics disposal in our community means we’ll hopefully see less compostable material in our landfills, which ultimately advances our community’s zero-waste goals.”
Pourkarimi highlighted that as Whistler’s environmental group, AWARE has the tools for outreach and education to put action to the municipality’s policy goals. They’re well-suited to the task, considering they first tackled recycling programs in Whistler.
“We’re the mob that brought recycling to Whistler. That’s where our roots are,” she said. “So it’s ironic that we’ve ended up right here again.” n
WASTE WARRIORS AWARE is partnering with GFL Environmental on an organic waste disposal campaign.
Twin grizzly yearlings shot on Lil’wat reserve
THE ORPHANED GRIZZLIES WERE TRACKED BY RESIDENTS AND A NON-PROFIT SPECIALIZED IN HAZING THEM
BY LIZ MCDONALD
A PAIR OF TWIN grizzly yearlings travelling through the Pemberton area were shot and killed Nov. 4, according to multiple residents Pique spoke with and confirmed in a release by the Lil’wat Nation.
The Lil’wat Nation posted about the grizzlies’ death on Facebook, saying that “due to personal safety the bears have both been killed.”
“A ceremony and a tobacco offering were made, and the bears have been buried. We have a responsibility to all living species in our environment, we must work together to regain the balance,” the statement read. “This message is to bring comfort and reduce the fear our community has been experiencing with the presence of the grizzlies in our community.”
Pique reached out to Lil’wat Nation Chief Dean Nelson, but did not receive a response before press time.
It’s an end community members and a local NGO hoped would be avoided.
The yearlings were tracked by community members and the Coast to Cascades Grizzly Bear Initiative (C2C). C2C holds permits to haze the grizzlies, which conditions them to change their behaviour. According to C2C, the technique works well for areas with secured attractants. However, as the yearlings moved into more populated
areas in Mount Currie and Pemberton, attractants were more available.
While many residents raised concern that the yearlings were acting strangely, the team at C2C stressed they were responding naturally as orphans and to the environment around them during hyperphagia.
Hyperphagia is a single-mindedness to eat as much as possible before hibernation.
Overseeing the project was Dr. Lana Ciarniello, a leading expert in grizzly bear behaviour and conflict management. She said while she and the team don’t know what preceded the twins’ death, they were not aggressive.
“What we can comment on is these yearlings’ behaviours that we are aware of prior to the incident, and we have never once recorded these bears ever be aggressive towards humans. And I think that’s a really important point to get across,” she said.
“We have the ability ourselves to dispatch these bears if we thought at any point that they were going to be aggressive. That was included in our permits. We would never compromise human safety and leave what we considered a dangerous bear on the landscape. These were little yearlings that were just trying to make a living in a very difficult and risky environment.”
Some fearful community members were vocal that they wanted the grizzlies relocated. It’s a technique that used to be popular, but grizzlies will return to their initial habitat if it’s close enough, and if it isn’t, they’re dropped into a landscape with other predators and no knowledge of where to find safety or food.
C2C is awaiting permits that would allow them to trap and move a grizzly within their territory as a last resort, which would give
the team precious time to secure properties before the grizzlies return.
The team stressed it is more effective to remove attractants than trying to move the bears.
LACK OF TRANSPARENCY AROUND GRIZZLIES’ DEATH
Lil’wat Nation member Mekisiso (Maxine Shanoss) spoke to Pique about the grizzlies’ death, and said she wants transparency and an investigation into what happened.
The yearlings visited her property in late October, and she scared them away with loud music and yelling. She questioned why they would need to be shot, and reiterated that community members need to take more actions removing attractants.
“I don’t understand why anyone would have to shoot them. I don’t know what happened. If they were aggressive, wouldn’t one run away when the other was shot? I want an investigation,” Mekisiso said.
She has worked with C2C to put up a bear fence, and said the number of pumpkins laying around outside in her community was problematic. She attributes the lack of respectful co-existence to colonization.
“We’re colonized living in homes with no care for the bears,” she said. “We’re a broken people shooting bears now.”
She said the notice published by the Lil’wat Nation lacks transparency, and in the absence of an investigation the bears’ death becomes a case of murder mystery. And while the Nation posted about a ceremony taking place, it didn’t include everyone.
“I would have liked to see a ceremony that is not just for the elite band office workers. We are all cultural, spiritual people
here,” she said. “Those bears are meant to be our ancestors walking. To kill them goes completely against everything.”
HOW TO REPORT BEAR CONFLICTS
Pique reached out to the COS for comment on the grizzly situation prior to the Nov. 4 incident.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy wrote in an email that the COS is aware of grizzlies in the Pemberton area, and while bear sightings are common in rural areas, grizzly sightings are becoming more commonplace in the region.
Conservation officers are meeting with the municipality and local groups about bears to try and communicate how people can reduce bear conflicts.
Rural property owners are encouraged to install electric fencing for farm animals and secure attractants like garbage.
Residents should leash pets and not approach any bears. Bear conflicts can be reported to Report All Poachers and Polluters (RAPP) at 1-877-952-7277.
The ministry said COS is monitoring RAPP reports for the area and will respond as necessary to keep people safe.
Residents can also contact C2C to learn about how to secure their property and to report grizzlies. They can respond during the day and are reachable at 1-250-344-0115.
Pique followed up with a second request for information following the Nov. 4 incident, but did not receive a response before press time.
Check back for more at piquenewsmagazine.com as this story develops. n
TRAGIC END Two orphaned yearlings were killed after captivating and concerning residents from Mount Currie and Lil’wat to the Pemberton area.
PHOTO BY ERICA VAN LOON
Sea to Sky forest fertilization project underway
THE PROVINCIALLY FUNDED PROJECT INVOLVES HELICOPTERS
DROPPING FERTILIZER ON FORESTS TO IMPROVE CARBON SEQUESTERING AND TIMBER VOLUMES FOR HARVESTING
BY LIZ MCDONALD
A NEW AERIAL forest fertilization project in the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) aims to sequester carbon dioxide in forests and improve timber volumes for harvesting.
From now through November, helicopters will drop urea, a nitrogen fertilizer similar to what goes on lawns, on forests in Electoral Areas B, C and D near Lillooet, Pemberton and Squamish, and signage will be placed on roads to inform the public of safety hazards or delays, according to a notice posted by the SLRD. The plans have been approved by local First Nations, the Ministry of Forests and forest licensees.
The project is funded through the province’s Forest Investment Program and administered by B.A. Blackwell & Associates, a forestry consulting and environmental management company.
Jeff McWilliams, a senior associate with B.A. Blackwell, said programs like this have occurred in the Sea to Sky since the early 2000s. The program will start in the north and work its way south. McWilliams explained the program works by trucking fertilizer to designated areas for spreading, where it is loaded onto a helicopter that spreads it similarly to a lawn fertilizer.
“The helicopter has precise navigational direction,” he said. “They’ve got the maps where the fertilizers will be applied, and they have to stay within those boundaries so that we make sure the fertilizer ends up where we planned it to go.”
Anyone recreating in these areas will see similar industrial activity to other industries. Radio communication, warnings at the bottom of roads and signage are posted, and drivers need to check for oncoming traffic.
For anyone hiking in the fertilized areas, McWilliams explained they aren’t at risk of injury.
“What they would experience are tiny bits of fertilizer that you would see put on your lawn in the spring, and that’s same material and that would fall,” he said. “They’re all small enough that they don’t hurt anybody physically if they land on them; typically they land on the trees, the branches above, and then they get knocked down through wind and rain to the ground.”
Significant health impacts would only occur if someone ingested a massive amount of the fertilizer.
Information published by the SLRD notes the benefits and objectives of fertilization.
The first objective is sequestering carbon dioxide to mitigate climate change. Fertilizer improves nutrients for tree growth and subsequent atmospheric carbon storage.
The second objective is “to improve timber volumes and value for future harvesting.”
B.C.’s chief forester recommends fertilized
stands grow for at least seven to 10 years before harvest, but some harvest can happen in five to seven years “with appropriate rationale.”
Forest licensees are informed before fertilization, so it does not conflict with harvest plans.
Increased forest volume “can be up to 30 cubic metres per hectare in a 10-year period.”
Economic benefits of fertilization include employment and GDP, with “4.5 full-time equivalents (FTE) and $2.7M per 10,000 hectares of treatment, respectively.”
FOREST FERTILIZER IMPACTS
According to a pamphlet from the province included in the SLRD’s notice, forest fertilization has been used since 1981 in B.C. The application improves growth of Douglasfir, western redcedar and spruce, but also impacts forest ecology.
Application avoids streams and bodies of water, and water-quality tests are performed to ensure run-off, if detected, is below maximum levels set by the Ministry of Environment for drinking water and aquatic life.
McWilliams noted streams, lakes and wetlands have buffer zones and are monitored, and adhere to MOE standards.
“If anybody’s out drinking water from streams in the areas where we treat, they really shouldn’t be worried that there’s any significant health concerns,” he said.
Fertilization’s impact on “non-timber
“The helicopter has precise navigational direction.”
- JEFF MCWILLIAMS
forest products,” otherwise known as “plants, wildlife and fungi,” shows Canadian undergrowth improved for certain herbs and shrubs, like Saskatoon berries, whereas dwarf shrubs like twinflower and dwarf blueberry declined from increasing competition.
Studies on the impact of mosses and lichens from forest fertilization show decline “in repeatedly fertilized stands,” though the pamphlet notes when forests are fertilized infrequently “these reductions in mosses and lichens are not as pronounced.”
Woodland caribou can be affected through lack of food when lichens decline from fertilizing, which they rely on for foraging in winter.
Wildlife can be affected from direct exposure and shifts in plants growth which “favours some mammal species over others.” n
NOTICE IS HEARBY GIVENunderSection467oftheLocal GovernmentActthat theVillageofPembertonCouncil willconsiderfirst,second,andthirdreadingfor “ZoningAmendmentBylawNo.975,2024(HAFInitiatives– SSMUH –Density–Parking)”duringtheRegularCouncil Meetingtobeheldat9:00amon Tuesday, November19,2024.CouncilisauthorizedunderSection135ofthe Community Charter andSection480ofthe Local GovernmentAct,togivetheBylawuptothree readingsatthis meeting.
Purpose: Theproposedbylawamendments willupdateVillageofPemberton ZoningBylaw832,2023,andproactivelypre-zoningselectedareasfor more densityandamendparkingrequirements withtheintentionofpermitting more housing.SmallScaleMulti UnitHousing(SSMUH)isintroducedtoalignwithfuture legislativerequirementsthatwillallowforuptofour(4)housingunitsonproperties insingle-familyneighbourhoods.Higherdensityisproposedonselectedlarge parcelsclosetodowntown,and workforcehousingisproposedtobeallowedon publiclandswithintheVillage.Proposedchangestooff-streetparkingregulations includereductionsforeligibleaffordableandrentalhousing,sharedparkingand transportationdemand managementconsiderations,andreduceddimensionsfor parkingspaces.
Time to tackle the scourge of online anonymity and political intimidation
ON HALLOWEEN night when no one could see, a coward, and maybe more than one, sprayed graffiti on the garage doors of Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim’s house. In English and Chinese, it was coarse and any reasonable person would feel threatened.
BY KIRK LAPOINTE
I know Sim is a hardboiled businessman, but I also know he has a legitimate personal vulnerability as a man of colour and an entrepreneur who has had to compete in commerce as few of us have. The climb up the ladder came with detractors he had to face down. And now, as opposed to earlier, he has a family to protect from what he has to face frequently in the office he won two years ago. It deserves nothing of this garbage.
And let’s remind ourselves: he won in a landslide. The party he led took every seat it contested on council, park board and school board. He bested candidates with political experience. There was no division in the city. He was and is the legitimate choice of the citizens of Vancouver to serve this term, and if you don’t like it, lump it. Try harder in 2026, live with 2022, and mind your manners meantime.
The spray painter or painters ought to suffer every available consequence. Problem is, this isn’t taken seriously in society for several reasons. We treat our politicians as piñatas. We show up at their homes to rage. We find their phone numbers to bombard. We stop them in the streets, or stalk them, and vent like children who need their naps. We have cultivated a society that feels it owns a politician like a puppy it can kick. And
when we uphold the safety of those who are elected democratically and conduct their work without fear. We need an amendment to the law to signal to the idiots of the world that their day is done.
My first stop today would be to ban any social media platform in this country that permits anonymous accounts. How we let this poisonous genie from the bottle nearly two decades ago defies logic, but it changed the game and enabled anyone, anywhere, anytime to pour toxins into civil society with no legal response. It permitted cowards a free shot, as if the targets were assailed while blindfolded, without serious consequences.
The absolute spinelessness of those accounts ought to be a crime, nearly as seriously as stalking and child pornography online are.
My second stop would be to make some public examples of the offenders. Subject them to defamation laws, make them pay tens of thousands of dollars and tie up their businesses as they appear in court to defend their 280-character or other post, and make them lose and pay much, much more than they ever anticipated. Make this a legal mission. Show their faces as they face justice. Let’s know in the community who these people are. Take their assets away as if they were drug dealers or money launderers.
Maybe then, they’d recognize that the vast, broad, absurdly open social platforms— as opposed to the teensy dark web—are off-limits to their juvenility and vulgarity. The message would be: if you want to criticize, stand up and be counted and be civil; otherwise, we’ll treat and penalize you as the loser you are. Maybe then, we could start to reset the relationship with our institutions to better and more safely balance critique with accountability. Maybe then, the people our communities have elected wouldn’t face
We have cultivated a society that feels it owns a politician like a puppy it can kick. And then we wonder why so few of the best and brightest won’t run…
then we wonder why so few of the best and brightest won’t run, why we at times attract peripheral people to public office when so many significant community members won’t come within a country mile of the pursuit.
Lawyers I’ve asked said the graffiti likely does not constitute a hate crime—more like mischief under the Criminal Code—but I’d argue we need to fix the law if lawmakers cannot be insulated from this growing cesspool of citizens who need to learn a lesson.
It is obvious that today’s conditions offer few guardrails on what is an acceptable critique of an elected official. It is time we recognize that democracy is only upheld
nearly as much debasement, and we could chart a path back to a time when we could have respectful disagreements.
The graffiti on Sim’s garage doors is a metaphor for an enabled society that does not fear more than a tiny slap on the wrist in exchange for publicity (mine included here, I suppose). It’s a symptom of a system that shrugs at personal responsibility and views an attack on an elected official as part of a game. It’s not a game. It’s our democracy.
I’ve had enough.
Kirk LaPointe is a Glacier Media columnist with an extensive history in journalism. n
Tales of the overstoke, early season edition
A LESSON I’VE LEARNED after about 20 ski seasons in Whistler is that at this time of year, one should avoid counting their chickens. I like to think I’m an optimist, but I’ve been burned too many times by the early November snowfall peaking early then sputtering out.
BY VINCE SHULEY
You can look at all the long-range weather predictions you want, but when the rubber hits the road, big snow is all up to the gods.
If the mythology is more or less correct, the gods are quite indifferent about the plight of the folks sliding around on our mountainous plane of existence. A recordbreaking snowstorm likely could have meant the difference between life and death in the pioneering days of British Columbia. Now it determines whether seasonal ski bums walk away with a lifelong memory of back-to-back pow days. Or not.
While I’m not a fan of borderline superstitious weather predictions, I do have respect for the laws of statistics. And in my 20 years of skiing in Whistler, I’ve experienced three dismal snowfall seasons: 2004-05, 2014-15 and 2023-24. Generally,
these seasons fell flat due to increased temperatures and rain, bookended by either Pineapple Express or atmospheric river events. However, the seasons following these three dismal ones were nothing short of amazing.
You can dive further into the snowfall stats if you want, but I’ve always found raw snowfall numbers to be a bit misleading. Eighty centimetres of 99-per-cent water content snow (followed by rain to top it up to 100 per cent) might be great for pushing up the season average, but it doesn’t necessarily mean the skiing is awesome. The best indicator of a great season is consistency; cold temperatures, breaks in the weather for alpine visibility and a solid early season base to fill in the creeks and holes. Bonus points if the backcountry snowpack behaves itself
(until the base thickens up to an acceptable standard for actual skiing), I admire the dedication. Skiing is better than not skiing. But just like the opening day overstoke, the urge to turn 10 good turns into 20, or turn a small hit into a medium-sized air, is ever present. Even on the strongest early season snowfalls, the hazards persist. And it’s the overstoke that will get you into trouble.
I believe it was the 2016-17 opening week for Whistler Blackcomb where I declined to listen to my own advice and was caught up in the overstoke. Whistler Mountain had already opened to much fanfare, but Blackcomb’s opening was the one to watch. About a metre and a half of unconsolidated snow was on the ungroomed trails. It was so deep snowboarders and skiers alike struggled with any amount of flat terrain. It was on.
The best indicator of a great season is consistency; cold temperatures, breaks in the weather for alpine visibility and a solid early season base to fill in the creeks and holes.
without forming dangerous crusts and weak layers. But hey, you can’t have it all at once.
The early season skiers are already at it, touring and booting through barely-covered ground vegetation for some low-angle, lowhanging fruit. While it’s not my cup of tea
Crystal Chair opened on Blackcomb’s first day of operation, and I knew where some great turns were waiting. I knew better than getting into trouble in the gladed runs, which despite the amazing opening conditions, were not ready. Ridgerunner was
groomed and I traversed high to get some of that great rolling pow terrain on the skier’s right of the run. Visibility was low, but I wasn’t about to let that stop me getting the best turns of the day. I dropped in and got my five glorious turns, the flat light and terrible visibility blurring my horizon. I decided to push for another couple turns despite the uncertainty and suddenly dropped off a snowbank wall onto the groomed run.
This would normally have been a relatively low-consequence crash, but because there was no skier compaction anywhere, I fell right into a small creek. I tumbled forward, my right ski hung up in the creek and my binding failed to release. I felt a sudden shooting pain as my calf muscle stretched beyond its allowable range. I was lucky to not snap a tendon or overextend my knee, but had to limp off the hill.
That torn calf muscle followed me for the next month as I desperately returned to my physio in need of a quick return to full-tilt skiing. Even with the healing, the vibration of skiing fast would send shooting pain up the back of my leg. I was back to nominal skiing by the holidays, but not without the regret of my opening day overstoke.
The lessons of the resort are the same as those seeking early season backcountry turns. Ski conservative. Call it early. Don’t push it. There’ll be plenty of time for sending it on a safer mountain.
Vince Shuley is getting primed for Whistler Blackcomb’s opening day. For questions, comments or suggestions for The Outsider, email vince.shuley@gmail.com or Instagram @whis_vince. n
By Rebecca Dzombak / High Country News
The residents of western Washington’s Skagit County, which stretches from the Cascade Mountains to Puget Sound, are proud of their county’s agricultural heritage. Throughout the region’s idyllic patchwork of fields and country roads, crop identification signs tell visitors exactly what’s being grown, while family farmstands offer fresh produce.
The amount of farmland, however, has declined over the past century. Now, only seven per cent of Skagit County is agricultural. And as crop prices fluctuate, costs rise and extreme weather becomes more common, some farmers are turning to more elaborate forms of “agritourism” to make ends meet, opening event venues and expanding their roadside offerings. To some residents, the new buildings and parking lots mean traffic jams, tipsy guests and other disruptions to traditional farms. Others see special events and nontraditional agritourism as the only way to preserve their beloved farmland.
“People are really focused on protecting our natural resource—the soil,” said Jessica Davey, who runs a farm and wedding venue in Skagit County. “That’s our farmland. It’s rich. It’s fantastic. But who works that resource? Farmers. Why aren’t we focusing more on supporting the farmers?”
EACH YEAR, SKAGIT County’s nearly 900 small and large farms produce about $350 million worth of berries, tulips, apples, potatoes, dairy products and other commodities. Agriculture is both a significant local employer and the heart of the county’s identity. But while some locals feel that agritourism should limit itself to activities directly related to farming, others want a broader definition that includes event hosting.
“We want options available for creative revenue streams—to keep our farms in business, to keep farming,” said Amy Frye, who runs a 14-hectare produce farm.
“To have a business that is absolutely dissociated from farmland seems kind of antithetical to the whole idea of agritourism,” countered Peter Browning, a Skagit County commissioner who grew up on an organic farm. “We don’t want to completely thwart any sort of business. But if it’s not related to farmland, stay away from the farmland and do it someplace else.”
Disagreement has been fierce at times, leading to raised voices at public meetings and souring relationships between once-friendly neighbours. And people’s opinions are unpredictable; for example, local farmers big and small, young and old, are found in all camps.
Last year, the county’s Agricultural Advisory Board proposed changes to the county code which, if approved by the county commission, would clarify the definitions of agritourism and “agricultural accessory use.” The suggested language states that “celebratory gatherings, weddings, parties, or similar uses … are not agritourism.” The changes, which would reduce the number of events permitted for each landowner from 24 to 12 per year, would also mandate that they be related to farming activities on the property.
The agricultural board hoped the changes would provide clarity, but they only created more confusion. Many found them ambiguous; some complained that they could prohibit existing farmstands or impact farms that weren’t even engaging in agritourism. And residents already operating event venues in compliance with existing codes were alarmed by the proposed restrictions.
THE SKAGIT RIVER VALLEY WITH MT BAKER IN THE BACKGROUIND
In early 2023, Davey purchased a rambling, long-vacant estate near Mount Vernon—Skagit County’s “big city”—and revitalized it as both an event venue that specializes in weddings and a working farm that produces hay, a variety of produce and landscaping trees. Given her background in construction lending, she said she was rigorous in her planning and permitting process: “I devoured the county code.” But she fears that the proposed ordinance will put her first-generation farm out of business.
The proposed changes in some ways ran counter to the results of a 2021 county survey, in which many residents cited the benefits of agritourism while noting that traffic and parking were becoming a problem. About 78 per cent said restaurants, breweries and tasting rooms qualified as agritourism, while just under 50 per cent of respondents agreed that weddings and other temporary events did, too.
“The recommended changes were vastly different from the direction of that (report),” Frye said. “A lot of people felt like, ‘Whoa, what happened?’ There was whiplash.”
MICHAEL HUGHES , a Skagit farmer and chair of the Agricultural Advisory Board, said the changes reflect existing county and state protections for agricultural lands. Hughes fears that if those protections are weakened, “we’ll see more accelerated erosion of agricultural lands and the agricultural economy,” he said. The biggest concern, he added, is the conversion of agricultural land to other uses, such as parking lots and non-farm buildings.
Approximately 20 event venues are currently operating on agricultural lands in the county, according to Will Honea, Skagit’s chief civil attorney. The extent of agricultural land in Skagit County has shrunk from an estimated 60,700 hectares in the 1940s to roughly 35,000 today. But the county has not published a formal inventory of agricultural land converted to event venues and other non-farm uses.
Davey and others said that without such an inventory, it’s irresponsible to treat agritourism as an enemy of agriculture.
“Agritourism has been the poster child for why we’re losing ag land,” Davey said. But that oversimplifies matters: “There’s industry pressure, housing pressure … a lot of different aspects go into that.”
The current debate is not unique to Skagit County. King County, home to both the city of Seattle and the traditionally agricultural Sammamish Valley, has been embroiled in a yearslong legal battle with the state over the regulation of bars, tasting vineyards and other event spaces on agricultural land. In a 5-4 opinion issued in September, Washington’s Supreme Court affirmed the state’s ability to limit the uses of agricultural lands, writing that “agricultural land must be conserved, by maintaining or enhancing the land, and by discouraging incompatible uses.”
Back in January, the Skagit County commissioners adopted a six-month moratorium on permit applications for new business uses, including events, on agricultural land. They have since extended it through next April and sent the code changes back to the county’s planning commission to be reconsidered. That leaves dozens of small farms facing economic uncertainty—and county residents still at odds.
“It’s definitely stressful to be in this limbo,” Davey said. And with so much ire focused on event venues, she said: “I feel kind of like a leper in my own community.”
This article appeared in the November 2024 print edition of High Country News.
Rebecca Dzombak is a science writer covering the intersection of environment, conservation and agriculture from her home in Olympia, Washington. @bdzombak. n
PHOTO BY JEFF HUTH / ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS
‘Helping people get fit for health, life and sport’
OPUS ATHLETICS OWNER JORDAN GLASSER AND MEMBER CRYSTAL-ROSE LEE BELIEVE IN THE FUNCTIONAL VALUE OF CROSSFIT
BY DAVID SONG
PICTURE THIS: it’s shoulder season and your mountain bike is stowed away. There are weeks to go until you can break out the skis or snowboard. You want to move your body intentionally, but you’re not quite sure what to do.
Maybe you could go for a run—even though the days are getting shorter, colder and greyer. Perhaps you could hit up Meadow Park Sports Centre and watch as packs of mullet-sporting hockey boys occupy every machine you wanted to use.
Would CrossFit enter your mind?
A lot of you might hesitate, or outright laugh. You may think CrossFit is a gimmick, or you may be under the impression (as I once was) that all who participate are blessed with Olympic-calibre athleticism and bodies which look like they’re sculpted from granite.
Those elites represent merely part of the picture, as local CrossFit affiliate owner Jordan Glasser wants people to know.
“Nothing’s really come around that I’ve seen more effective than CrossFit at helping people get fit for health, life and sport—from weekend warriors all the way through to Olympians, professional mountain bikers and budding athletes,” said Glasser, who founded Opus Athletics in 2006. “We train in groups, and it’s fun.”
He added: “I’ve seen countless professional athletes get pushed because a mom is outworking them, and they’ve got to pull up their bootstraps and go to that extra level in an
area that may not even be their forte. All of that really breeds, I think, an environment to help people get fit for all of their sports.”
Crystal-Rose Lee concurs. The ex-professional freeskier has been an Opus regular for four years, with experience in alpine ski racing, ski cross, pole vault, javelin and sprinting earlier in life.
“CrossFit is functional training—not just one movement up and down or left to right, but a full-body experience,” she said. “There are very knowledgeable coaches at most CrossFit gyms, especially Opus in Whistler. A lot of people at our gym love to play outside. The programming really sets them up to bike and ski faster and longer, to climb mountains and land big cliffs if they want to.”
‘WE’RE ALL HERE TO LIFT EACH OTHER UP’
Although Glasser is one of the fittest men in his late 40s you’ll probably meet, he’s never been a top-flight athlete. He did play all kinds of sports in his youth, and discovered CrossFit in 2004 during the regimen’s early days in Seattle. Glasser then resolved to bring this new fitness philosophy home to Whistler—a place he loves for its mountains and potential for adventure.
Two of CrossFit’s main pillars, according to Glasser, are establishing a robust base of overall fitness and working out in a practical manner.
“[People] who want to get good at a specific sport sometimes think of training only for that sport, and that’s wrong for kids and adults,” Glasser explained. “It leads us down a path with way too many overuse injuries. Smart training always involves periodization [of exercise]. It always involves timelines and progressive overload. And the strength you build in the gym is going to
apply to the real world.”
CrossFit workouts draw from many other disciplines like Olympic weightlifting, gymnastics, high-intensity interval training (HIIT), powerlifting and more. Glasser and his fellow coaches mix in exercises relevant to the Sea to Sky’s most popular sports: isometric strength work for skiing and snowboarding, and an Opus original spin-style class dubbed “RideFit” for biking.
Lee knows first-hand skiing is dynamic. You have to be willing and able to navigate constantly changing terrain, poised in the face of the unknown. CrossFit helps her to do just that: lateral box jumps improve side-toside mobility, while squats, power cleans and wall ball throws develop muscular endurance so she can carry a 60-pound backpack on a multi-day ski-touring trip.
One somewhat-infamous October class featured a 10-minute wall sit. Each time you needed a break, you had to do 10 goblet lunges. Four gym members made it through the entire ordeal unbroken, proving their legs to be ready for the grind of a double-black diamond trail.
“As crazy as that is, it was only possible because of the group environment,” remarked Glasser. “Someone decided that they were going to try it, and three others said: ‘I’m going to try it too.’ So much magic happens because we’re all here to lift each other up.”
All CrossFit movements can be modified to accommodate less physically-gifted or experienced individuals—including the elderly. For instance, pull-ups can be done with resistance bands and gruelling HIIT circuits can be scaled down in time or intensity. Those who are nursing a short-term or long-term ailment can also benefit from quality coaches who teach them how to move in a safe and beneficial manner.
FOUNDATIONAL TRAINING
You might think shoulder season would bring a temporary but noticeable influx of new clients to Opus, but attendance trends are more nuanced than that. The gym’s culture may help explain why.
“Generally speaking, our clientele will just change the frequency of which they’re here [throughout the year],” noted Glasser. “What we hope to do is capture someone who’s looking to get ready for ski season and change their mind about what training is. Perhaps they spent the summer mountain biking. They’ve got a window of opportunity that they feel is time to get fit for skiing.
“They give us a call, we take them through our Foundations program and they see themselves get exponentially fitter. They’re kicking butt skiing, and we really hope they don’t want to lose [that progress]. We definitely have seasonal members that don’t come to the gym during bike season or vice versa, but our goal is to help them realize we offer something special they can use all year round.”
Opus’ client base also includes pre-teens aged 10 to 12 and teenagers between 13 and 18 years old. The idea of youngsters lifting weights has long been viewed in a negative light, but Glasser doesn’t believe the stigma is warranted.
“There’s a lot of myths tied into exercise being dangerous for kids,” he posited. “In training kids, we ask: ‘what’s their body awareness level?’ When their body awareness is rather low, we’re looking for fitness adaptations often based around jumping or plyometrics. This is a really good stress on the body that does make it want to improve, as stress is the key for improvement. As their understanding of their bodies increases, then
PERFECT FIT Three Opus Athletics members perform box jumps in Whistler.
PHOTO BY JUSTA JESKOVA
‘Everything comes down to consistency’
ELLY HOSKIN MANAGES A SECOND STRAIGHT RUNNER-UP FINISH IN THE ENDURO WORLD CUP OVERALL
BY DAVID SONG
SQUAMISH HAS PRODUCED many talented mountain bikers over the years, including Elly Hoskin—although she doesn’t always view herself that way.
Nonetheless, Hoskin’s performance speaks for itself.
The 20-year-old finished second in UCI Enduro World Cup overall rankings for a second consecutive year, podiuming at four of six races. Her 787 points came by way of gold in Bellwald, Switzerland and silver in Finale Ligure, Italy to go with two bronze medals from Loudenvielle, France and Bielsko-Biała, Poland. Only Slovakian contender Simona Kuchyňkova, with 882 points, placed better than her among U21 women.
For Hoskin, it’s a worthy follow-up to a 2023 season that also saw her vault into second overall despite injuring her foot and missing a race.
“[This achievement means] more than I can say, but I think it just confirmed that everything comes down to consistency, showing up and working hard,” she said. “That’s what I take into my everyday life and it has paid off for two years, so I’m planning to keep on doing that.”
Hoskin was introduced to mountain biking at a young age by her parents Nicole and Tim. She tried it all: cross-country, marathon, downhill and even triathlon, but found enduro to be the most natural fit.
“What I liked about [cross-country] and [cross-country marathon] was the suffering, the long days and the adventure,” explained Hoskin. “I think enduro plays to my strengths in that sense, but is more fun and more social. I didn’t want to sacrifice the big days out because that’s what I’m good at.”
About what it’s like to represent her hometown on the global stage, she remarked: “It’s crazy because I’ll go to what feels like a quiet quarter of Europe and be like, ‘yeah, I’m from B.C.’ People are like, ‘oh my gosh, I’ve been to Squamish!’ and they know exactly what I’m talking about. I’ve always thought this was a really small town which no one ever comes to, but it’s so cool that people know about Squamish.”
CROSSFIT FROM PAGE 28
we start introducing weights. It can vary from person to person.”
CrossFit is by no means the only viable option for Sea to Sky denizens hoping to whip themselves into shape for Whistler Blackcomb’s opening day, but it does provide a balanced fitness menu that translates to all kinds of progress. Whether you give it a shot or choose a different training method, be wise in your approach and consistent in your effort.
Lee emphasizes that some form of legitimate coaching is vital for success on the
‘IN A GREAT SPOT’
Hoskin launched her first full enduro campaign in 2022. After sticking her nose into every Canadian race possible, she was invited to the Trophy of Nations and deemed it an unexpected personal breakthrough despite Team Canada’s failure to finish that event.
The following year introduced a measure of uncertainty. Hoskin had to face her first World Cup races without direct familial support because her father remained home due to illness. She amassed one silver and three bronze medals and did not place lower than fifth at any point.
Enter 2024. The aforementioned foot ailment forced Hoskin to get a late start, training-wise, but she resolved to prove to herself she could bounce back. Another injury (this time to the other foot) didn’t help, but grit and athletic tape pushed the Squamolian through her final three rounds of the year.
“My first group of five races [from Finale Ligure to Bellwald] was really, really hard,” Hoskin admitted. “That’s the longest time I’ve been away from anywhere, especially home, and I was just over there privateering with my friends. I’m proud of my win in Bellwald because it was my best yet and it was under some really not-ideal circumstances.”
A home-soil triumph at July’s Canadian Open Enduro represented a bonus feather in Hoskin’s cap. She describes Whistler as both her favourite venue and her nemesis, and rose to the top in convincing fashion.
Hoskin has her sights set on next year’s Enduro World Championships, and wants to ride well there despite acknowledging victory may not be realistic at this stage of her career. Overall, she believes there’s plenty of reason to get excited about the future of ladies’ enduro.
“The level of competitiveness in the women’s field right now is so deep,” she said. “There’s 15 women within striking distance [of winning] every stage and it’s amazing. We’re in a great spot right now to put on a show.
“And the women who race enduro are some of the kindest people I’ve ever met. It is truly amazing just how positive they are and how resilient they can be, persevering through multiple seasons. For them to ride that long is truly inspiring. They’re so knowledgeable, and I hope to take in as much as I can from them.” n
slopes, as is the ability to give yourself grace.
“Take it slow, be kind to yourself and set small goals,” she advised. “Falling is part of it, and getting fit to take the falls is part of it. Leave your ego at the door … and take a lesson from a professional. Don’t have your partner or your best friend teach you if they’ve never taught skiing before.
“At the end of the day, you probably won’t keep up with the sport if you feel like you’re trying to survive the entire time. Skiing is leisure—it’s supposed to be fun, so don’t take yourself too seriously.” n
PATRIC KW EILE R
Who knew?
THE BEST—AND CHEAPEST—HOUSEHOLD TIPS ARE RIGHT AT OUR FINGERTIPS
ONE OF THE GREATEST pieces of advice my mom’s ever given me since I left home was this: The best thing for cleaning is the back of your thumbnail.
You know, like when some unknown, darkish brown bit is stuck on your fridge handle. Or a wee piece of gunk won’t come off the edge of your sink. Or how about those little bits of tape on our windows after taking down all the spooky Halloween spiders and pumpkin decorations. Forget the spray cleaners or fancy cleansers, even if they’re green and not so bad for the environment. Just
dishsoap, kitty litter, wood shavings or Coke. Let it sit for 10 minute and rise away.
Actually, we never use Dawn for dishsoap around our place—way too strong, and hard on your hands. But it’s good in small doses for other cleaning apps, especially when grease or oil are involved and even stronger chemicals would be a worse alternative, namely outdoors.
Remember, as Fisheries and Oceans Canada and other agencies remind us, roadside storm sewer drains are not part of local sewage systems and can feed directly into fish-bearing waterways and other natural habitat. That’s why we see painted yellow fish and other cautions near them.
In the good ol’ days, like even a few years ago, daily newspapers had household tip columnists, plus readers would write in with their most practical solutions. One of the best collections was put out by the Regina LeaderPost, the daily newspaper that has served Regina readers for more than 140 years. Household Hints, started in 1988, is sadly no longer published, but you can find secondhand copies online.
BY GLENDA BARTOSH
use the back of one of your handy thumbnails and rub.
You can’t beat it for so many household applications, including cleaning those dreaded glass-top stoves we’ve all come to hate. (More on that another day.)
But besides your thumbnail, there are a million other good household tips around. A bit of baking soda once in a while to brush your teeth. (My dentist even advises this once in a while. Believe it or not, she says, it’s less abrasive than toothpaste.) More of that baking soda and some boiling water to clear a clogged drain. And another favourite: Remove grease from your driveway by applying Dawn
BOILING WATER AND BAKING SODA GURUS
Since we’re all trying to save money and be respectful of all the other precious life forms around, the great beauty is that the best household solutions are usually nothing posh or extraordinary. They’re often the simplest, cheapest things we have on hand, and many have been used for generations—ages before social media or even TV existed.
Sure, there’s CleanTok à la TikTok, and other social media influencers, but frankly the ones I’ve researched push people towards so many expensive, overly-scented, chemically-based cleaners I cringe just looking at them. User beware. (You can’t help but wonder if there’s not some financial influencers backing them.)
But no worries if mom, dad or other practical pals and relatives didn’t teach you about some of the classic tried and true household solutions— or maybe you just weren’t paying attention. There are still a lot of good, reliable, often free resources you can tap.
Lucky me. I still have my dog-eared copy. “Save time! Save money! Save energy!” the cover touts, with tips inside like saving the comic section from newspapers—yes, they still exist—to wrap kids’ presents with. (I’ve actually done that. Fun!) Or using your old socks or underwear for cleaning rags instead of just chucking them out then buying new disposable ones as needed.
Another favourite of mine is Reena Nerbas’ Household Solutions series, which you can still buy new or used online. Reena, who’s based in Manitoba, became a national sensation, appearing on radio and TV shows across Canada, from Breakfast Television to CBC Radio’s BC Almanac show, where I learned about her when Mark Forsythe was
KEEP THINGS FLEXIBLE
Did you try mom’s easy puffed wheat square recipe last instalment? I’ve been making it, and loving it, for years, as was posted. But guess what? Hawkeyed mom, who’s almost 97 and still an avid Pique reader, says really it should be two tablespoons of cocoa, not two teaspoons in the recipe. Tastes great either way.
host. “The household solutions guru,” Charles Adler of Corus Radio Network calls her. I especially love her third book in the series, Green Alternatives, featuring 1,500 quick, Earth-friendly fixes. They work! Mainly because she’s got a background in science and ecology. Reena’s the queen of “boiling water” and “baking soda” solutions, like the clogged drain one above. Here’s another similar one of hers: Got a nasty blueberry, raspberry or other fruit stain on clothes or whatever? Just put the item flat in your sink, boil up a kettle of water, and pour it slowly onto the stain from a ways up. Be careful not to splash yourself. Works without a chemical in sight.
WHO KNEW?
But don’t think for a sec these kinds of household-tip gurus are a thing of the past or only Canadian. Whistler Public Library, and I bet a lot of other libraries around, have this excellent resource on their shelves—Bruce and Jeanne Lubin’s Who Knew? 10,001 Household Solutions. The Lubins, who are based in New Jersey, have written a lot of similar books and figure they’ve saved thousands of dollars applying simple, practical tips to solve common household problems. They’ve also got a good website and a number of podcasts. From placing celery leaves in the pan to keep bacon grease from splattering all over your stove (you won’t even have to use your thumbnail!), to using the cooking water from your potatoes, instead of milk, to make mashed potatoes, the Lubins have you covered, just like those other helpful experts. Check ’em out and have fun.
Glenda Bartosh is an award-winning journalist who enjoys using quirky little hacks around the house. n
PHOTO BY GLENDA BARTOSH
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Story Pole awakening ceremony slated for Nov. 8 at Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre
THE NEW POLE WAS CARVED BY LIL’WAT NATION MEMBERS NKWEL ’ ÁNK JONATHAN JOE, REDMOND Q ’ ÁWAM ’ ANDREWS AND WESTA7 TODD EDMONDS
BY DAVID SONG
AFTER MONTHS of meticulous effort, Lil’wat Nation Master Carver nkwel ’ ánk Jonathan Joe and his apprentice Redmond Q ’ áwam ’ Andrews will have their labour commemorated.
Joe and Andrews’ Story Pole, which was finished with help from westa7 Todd Edmonds, has its official awakening ceremony on Nov. 8 at the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre (SLCC). Depicting and honouring the Declaration of the Lillooet Tribes signed in 1911, the new pole has been erected next to a House Post made last year by Squamish artisans Master Carver Xwalacktun and Brandon Hall.
An SLCC press release explains: “together, the Sister Poles represent a deep connection to the land, the original peoples, bringing authenticity to traditional carving practices and storytelling in the shared territory of the Squamish [Sk_wx_wú7mesh] and Lil’wat [Lil’wat7úl].”
Even though Joe has been carving for four decades, he is still familiarizing himself with various aspects of his ancestral heritage— like the awakening ceremony. On this topic, Andrews has become the master.
“This is the part I’m still learning about,” Joe admits. “I asked Redmond about the ceremony and he said, ‘it’s for your spirit to come out of the pole—all your feelings and your thoughts—to separate them from it so we don’t keep on living in that way.’ [The ceremony] lets me continue to be me, and that pole is there to tell a story for whoever wants to listen.”
Substantial portions of Indigenous cultural knowledge have been eroded over time. Residential schools played a major factor in this unfortunate process, as has the trend of First Nations artifacts being whisked away to
museums around the globe.
“A lot of our culture is lost,” says Joe. “I would like to learn more about it so I could replicate some of the older [carvings] that were made hundreds of years ago. It’s very important to tell the story about who we are, what we did, where we come from and our spirituality.”
‘WE’RE A TEAM’
Having carved for roughly 12 years, Andrews is a practiced storyteller in his own right. He’s the first mentee Joe has taken since 2009.
“Redmond takes a lot of pride in his work,” Joe remarks. “He doesn’t rush, and patience is one of the most important things you have to have—and, of course, the willingness to do it. There’s not many people who are willing to do anything in life. I’m very proud of him … he has his own style.
“I always bounce ideas off of people and I kept telling him: we’re a team. We’re going to decide what goes on the pole. When I’m carving by myself, it’s different. It tends to take me a little longer as I keep changing my ideas.”
The Story Pole carving process began on July 11 with a cedar log blessing ceremony. Despite originally being scheduled to end at the beginning of September, it rolled on until Sept. 21 to grant the artists more time to wrap things up.
One notable image on the pole depicts a blue heron eating a fish—made on Day 1 by Andrews. Herons have, on occasion, choked to death swallowing prey that was too large, thus the moral of Andrews’ art is: take what you need, but not more. It’s a lesson heeded by generations of Indigenous folk.
Joe hopes passers-by who look at the Sister Poles will learn something valuable, or at least recognize the distinctions between Lil’wat and Squamish culture. He’s humble about the role he plays in sharing said heritage with others.
“People call me a ‘Master Carver,’ but I’m just me,” he says. “The creator gave me this gift. I’m grateful for it, and grateful for Redmond.”
More details about the Story Pole Awakening Ceremony are viewable at eventbrite.com/e/ story-pole-awakening-ceremony-tickets1060398994939?aff=oddtdtcreator. n
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STORIED HISTORY The Story Pole carved by Jonathan Joe and Redmond Andrews (right) stands outside the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre next to the House Post by Xwalacktun and Brandon Hall.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SQUAMISH LIL’WAT CULTURAL CENTRE
Polka and Pilsner returns Nov. 15 to the Point Artist-Run Centre
THE CZECH-ORIENTED DINNER AND DANCE NIGHT HAS BEEN ANTICIPATED SINCE ITS FIRST EDITION IN 2019
BY DAVID SONG
IN 2019, MEMBERS of the local Czech demographic converged on the Point ArtistRun Centre (PARC) for a night of revelry dubbed “Polka and Pilsner.” That same event returns Nov. 15 at 6 p.m. for another go-around thanks to PARC leadership and the Whistler Multicultural Society.
An official press release reads: “More than just a night out, Polka and Pilsner is a celebration of community, culture, and connection. Whether you’re reconnecting with your heritage or simply exploring something new, this event offers a chance to experience the richness of Czech traditions in a fun, festive, and welcoming atmosphere. So bring your appetite and dancing shoes and join us for a night to remember!”
Chef Petr Cagásek is on hand to prepare an authentic Czech dinner. As guests appreciate these time-honoured flavours, they’ll be serenaded by Veronika Mauricová and her elegant piano melodies.
Polka is a staple of any proper Czech social gathering, and those who feel like they’ve got two left feet need not worry. Andrea Valčeková will guide you through an accessible crash course in this traditional form of dance.
“I think it’s a fairly straightforward, fairly simple dance, so you don’t need to be any kind of expert,” opines PARC artistic director Stephen Vogler. “Speaking personally, last time I ended up feeling like I could totally polka after learning a few simple steps.”
Patrons will be equipped to hit the dance floor from there, as violinist Radim Koppitz and accordion player Thomas Studer keep the energy high all night long.
“I’ve always really liked when food, art and music cross over,” Vogler says. “They’re in any culture. They’re really entwined, you know? We eat, we celebrate …and I think when it’s knit together like that, you get a very full experience.”
‘A REALLY STRONG COHORT’ Were it not for COVID-19, the PARC might have hosted quite a few Polka and Pilsner evenings by now.
Cagásek reached out to Vogler, expressing his desire to bring back the successful event. Numerous others in Whistler’s Czech community echoed that sentiment, and Vogler was happy to oblige.
The PARC is a good venue for the task, with its fully-equipped kitchen and spacious wooden dance floor.
“I was kind of blown away by how many people of Czech and Slovak origin live in Whistler and how many are young,” Vogler says.
“It’s a really strong cohort and that’s one of the things I love about Whistler. You discover these things about people moving here from all over the world and it really adds so much to the fabric of the community.”
Vogler also believes this year’s performing lineup is more than equal to the task of making a great night for all.
“I’ve played music with [Radim] and he’s one of the finest musicians in town,” he says.
“He’s really an accomplished violinist, plays other instruments, and is steeped in Czech culture. Veronika is an excellent piano player who doesn’t like gigs so much, but when I heard her play last time, I was like, ‘wow. These people have grown up with a good musical background.’
“It’s great having Thomas in town as well. He’s always playing with different people around town. I’ve hired him many times to play at the Point for different things, and he asked me to connect him with Radim so he can learn the appropriate songs for this polka event.”
Dinner tickets have already sold out as of this writing, but you can still check out the music and dancing portion of the night for $15 apiece. Learn more about Polka and Pilsner at thepointartists.com. n
POLKA FOLK Czech musicians Radim Koppitz (left) and Veronika Mauricová.
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
PAINT & SIP
CORNUCOPIA’S CELLAR DOOR
Step into a world of wine exploration at Cellar Door, where the finest bottles are uncorked for you to sip, savour and enjoy. Whistler Cornucopia’s intimate Cellar Door event offers a captivating collection of red and white wines, including California Wines as a featured region. Your all-inclusive ticket lets you experience elevated tastings from more than 25 international and regional wineries with pouring bottles valued at $35 and above. Local culinary delights, from sweet treats to savoury bites, will complement your tastings, but you are encouraged to enjoy dinner at one of Whistler’s restaurants prior to arrival. Whether you’re new to wine or a seasoned oenophile, our curated “cellar” invites you to discover new and distinctive flavours.
> Nov. 8, 8 to 11 p.m.
> Whistler Conference Centre
> Packages start at $109
PAINT & SIP WITH CASS DICKINSON
Includes all supplies and a glass of wine. This wine and paint night is catered to people of all artistic abilities—beginners included and encouraged! Taught by local artist Cass Dickinson.
> Nov. 10, 7 p.m.
> Point Artist-Run Centre
> $40
WIM HOF METHOD FUNDAMENTALS WORKSHOP
Join Certified Wim Hof Instructor Laura Douglas in a workshop which dives into the three pillars of the Wim Hof Method. Learn about the benefits of breathing, cold exposure and commitment.
> Nov. 10, 10 a.m.
> ALGN Whistler
> $121
CORNUCOPIA’S WEST COAST BEST COAST WINERY DINNER
Indulge in a five-course tasting experience expertly paired with wines from British Columbia and California. Savour the latest signature dishes, blending familiar flavours with a creative twist.
> Nov. 13, 7:30 to 10 p.m.
> Milestones Whistler
> $169
CORNUCOPIA’S MEKONG: TANTALUS WINE MAKER’S DINNER
Join Mekong for a four-course, Thai-influenced dinner crafted by Chef Bonnie drawing from traditions that have stood the test of time and brought to life by Executive Chef Angus An. Tantalus Vineyards from the Okanagan Valley will pair each course with the perfect wine.
> Nov. 14, 6 to 9:30 p.m.
> Mekong
> $215
YOGA AT THE AUDAIN
Revel in the stunning architecture of the Audain Art Museum every Thursday as you work through a calming one-hour practice with rotating instructors. Classes emphasize breathing, alignment and ease as you stretch and strengthen your body and mind. Registration includes access to the galleries on the day of from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
> Nov. 14, 9:30 a.m.
> Audain Art Museum
> $5 for members, $22 general adult admission
PHOTO COURTESY OF CASSIE DICKINSON
An early break in Alta Lake
BY ALLYN PRINGLE
WH ISTLER
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A BROKEN bone and accompanying cast are not an uncommon sight in Whistler during any season and are likely to become even more common as the mountains open and we begin another winter. While these days most injuries are treated by medical professionals at the Whistler Health Care Centre, a few stories from our archives show residents of the Alta Lake area, prior to the development of Whistler Mountain, sometimes had to take a more hands-on role in treating themselves.
Louise Betts is the daughter of Jenny Jardine, whose family first came to Alta Lake in 1921 when Thomas Neiland, Jenny’s stepfather, started a logging business. Jenny and her brothers grew up in the area and she married Wallace Betts, who had been working at one of the logging camps in the area, in 1937. Though the couple and their children did
Alfie and Louise got on the train (Louise could not remember if it was a passenger or freight, though she thinks they waited for the passenger train) and headed for Vancouver. Luckily for Alfie, the doctors there concluded Jenny had done a good job splinting his arm and after putting a cast on they were able to return to Alta Lake.
Like the Jardine-Neilands, the Kitteringham family also came to the Alta Lake area because of the forestry industry. Olie and Eleanor Kitteringham and their children Ron, Jim, and Linda, lived at Parkhurst from 1948 to 1956 and, unlike many of the people who worked at the mill, stayed at Parkhurst year-round.
With no doctor in the area, Eleanor told her family, “If you are going to get sick it has to be on a Wednesday, Friday or Sunday,” as those were the days when the passenger train came through from Lillooet to Squamish. When Ron was about nine years old, however, he became sick
“If you are going to get sick it has to be on a Wednesday, Friday or Sunday,” as those were the days when the passenger train came through from Lillooet to Squamish.
later move away from Alta Lake, Louise would often visit her grandmother Lizzie Neiland at her house in what is now Function Junction. A story from one of her visits would make anyone who has a bone set in Whistler today appreciate the care they receive.
Louise and her cousin Alfie were playing in the field near their grandmother’s house. As Louise described it, “We’d go to the top of these little humps and lie down and roll to the bottom.” On one of these rolls, Alfie broke his arm. The pair ran to find Louise’s mother (according to Louise, “I can remember he just came screaming up,”) and Jenny “grabbed him by the shoulder and straightened his arm out. Like that, thank you!”
After creating a splint for his arm, Jenny,
and delirious for three days with a high temperature. Eleanor consulted her “doctor book,” which said it might be bronchial pneumonia, and used the phone in the mill office to call up Dr. Kindree in Squamish and ask that he put some penicillin on the train for her. The penicillin was “thrown off by the next freight at [the] station,” and Ron soon recovered.
Not all of the stories in our archives have such fortunate endings, and accidents at the mill could have life-altering results, as could untreated illnesses. In 1980, Dr. Christine Rodgers and Dr. Rob Burgess both set up practices in Whistler and began seeing patients, providing the first full-time, yearround medical care in Whistler. n
HANDS-ON Louise Betts with her brother Sam and grandmother Lizzie Neiland at the garden at 34 ½ Mile (today the Function Junction area), in about 1943.
ASTROLOGY
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): I rarely recommend acquisitive behaviour. But my analysis of the astrological omens tells me you now have cosmic authorization to indulge in a sublime version of voracity. We might also refer to it as a license to practice a spiritually correct variety of greed. Here’s the fine print: You should NOT interpret this as permission to amass materialistic treasures and status symbols. Instead, the things you gather will be rich feelings, encounters with inspiring beauty, epiphanies about your divine purpose, and exquisite states of consciousness. You can also ask for and receive colossal supplies of love and affection.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): The last time I ate a hamburger was in 1994. I doubt I will ever eat another. Why? The taste is not enjoyable to me, and no matter how well I chew it, my stomach always rebels. There’s an additional problem: For several reasons, cattle farming is a significant factor causing the climate crisis. I would rather not contribute to that decimation. Does my attitude toward hamburgers mean I am a judgmental, close-minded zealot? No, it doesn’t. I don’t proselytize to those who relish burgers, especially if they take other measures to reduce their carbon footprint. In this horoscope, dear Taurus, I am illustrating an approach I hope you will cultivate in the coming weeks. Be extra zealously devoted to your ideals and proclivities without condemning and dismissing those who don’t share them.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): There are numerous approaches to getting good results from meditation. One is to sit silently and still in a tranquil sanctuary. Another is to lie on the ground under a dark sky and beseech the stars to bestow inspiration. One of my personal favourites is to sing rowdy hymns to birds, insects, and trees while hiking vigorously in nature. How many other varieties can you imagine, Gemini? The coming weeks will be a favourable time to develop and expand your meditation skills. Here’s a key consideration: How can you achieve maximum fun while meditating? I recommend you free your mind to experiment with a host of interesting approaches.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): If there was ever an appropriate time for you to indulge in creatively rowdy thoughts and inspirationally unruly behaviour, it would be now. Life is giving you license to de-emphasize decorum and formalities—and to emphasize boisterous enthusiasm and plucky adventures. For the sake of your mental health, I believe you need to engage in experimental improvisations that include maverick expressions. What areas of your life need liberation? What feelings need to be released from their constraints? What worn-out old theories and opinions should be abandoned?
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Are your talents even slightly underrated and overlooked by others, Leo? Have your gifts received less than the full appreciation they deserve? Could you be of greater service and inspiration to your fellow humans if only your offerings were better known? If you answered yes to any of those questions, I’m pleased to tell you that the coming months should bring remedies. Life will be conspiring with you to help spread your influence and boost your clout.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I wish it were true that the forces of darkness are lined up in opposition to the forces of light. Life would be so much easier for you. But I’m afraid it’s not that simple and clear. In my view, a more accurate metaphor might be that the energies of smoky grey are squaring off with the energies of dusky beige. Each side has a touch of both wrongness and rightness, a bit of ugliness and beauty. So what is the most honourable role you can play in this showdown? My suggestion is to develop a third side, an alternate way.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In the early part of his career, Libran author Mario Puzo wrote short stories and novels, but never a screenplay. At age 49, he was asked by director Francis Ford Coppola to co-write the script for the
BY ROB BREZSNY
film The Godfather. It turned out to be a sensational rookie effort. He was ultimately awarded an Academy Award for it, and later garnered another Oscar for his screenplay for The Godfather Part II. It was only then that Puzo realized he had found his calling and decided he should study the art of screenwriting. In the first chapter of the first book he bought about the subject, he read with great amusement that the ideal screenplay was the one by Mario Puzo for The Godfather. I bring this story to your attention, Libra, because you are approaching a time with resemblances to Puzo’s situation before Coppola solicited his work. Trust your rookie instincts!
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In the life cycle of a butterfly, the earliest stages are larva and pupa. As a larva, the future beauty crawls around as a caterpillar, cramming itself with nutritive substance. After it transitions into the pupa state, it’s inert for a while, working on the inside of its cocoon to transform itself into its ultimate form. I don’t want to be too literal about the comparison, but my sense is that your time as a larva will last another two months, whereupon you will begin your pupa phase. When will you emerge as a winged creature? It depends on how earnestly you work as a pupa, but I expect no later than March 2025.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Brian Wilson, co-founder of the Beach Boys, is one of the most innovative and imaginative songwriters ever. Many of his compositions have become bestselling hit tunes. But he had a rough start in his craft. The first song he ever wrote was “Surfin.” He submitted it to fulfil an assignment in his high school music class, but his teacher gave it an F, the lowest possible grade. Fifty-eight years later, Wilson returned to the school for a visit, and the new principal changed his original grade to an A. I foresee a comparable event occurring in your life sometime soon: a vindication, restitution, or reparation.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Earlier this year, 79-year-old rock singer Rod Stewart performed his greatest hits during a multi-city tour in many countries. “I shall never retire!” he proclaimed. Can you guess what astrological sign he is? Capricorn, of course. Many members of your tribe age very well, displaying stamina and vitality into later life. I bring this to your attention because I think you are close to discovering new secrets and tricks that will serve you well as you ripen. Here are some meditations that might be helpful: 1. What haven’t you been ready to do before, but might be soon? 2. What fun things would you love to be doing years from now, and how could you seed their future growth?
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Scientists have discovered the fossil remains of more than 700 dinosaur species buried underground. But the experts agree there are many more down there. Previously unknown species are still being unearthed every year. Let’s use these facts as a metaphor for your life in the coming months. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, you could learn a host of fresh truths about your history. You may have imagined that your past is finished and finalized, but it’s not. I encourage you to have fun hunting for revelations and investigations that will transform the story of your life.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You haven’t fully tapped into all of your vast potentials, Pisces. Latent talents and aptitudes within you may still be at least partially dormant. It’s even possible that some of your future powers are so foreign to your self-concept that they will feel like magic when they finally come into full expression. Now here’s the very good news: The coming months will be an excellent time to figure out what you need to do to express a more complete version of yourself.
Homework: Maybe it would be beneficial to narrow your range of choices in one area of your life. Testify! Newsletter. FreeWillAstrology.com.
In addition to this column, Rob Brezsny creates
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
Getyourfreesnowflake reflector. Attach a Whistlersnowflake reflectortoyour packor jacket toincreasevisibility atnight.
Our team of people is what sets us apart from other builders. As we continue to grow as the leader in luxury projects in Whistler, our team needs to expand with us.
We are currently hiring:
Labourers ($20 - $30 hourly)
Carpenters Helpers /Apprentices 1st to 4th year ($25 - $35 hourly)
Experienced Carpenters ($30 - $45 hourly)
Carpenter Foremen ($40 - $50 hourly)
Rates vary based on experience and qualifications. Red seal a bonus but not mandatory.
EVR is committed to the long-term retention and skills development of our team. We are passionate about investing in our team’s future.
We offer:
• Top Wages
Whistler for over 25 years
• Drywall • Painting
• Finishing
• Minor Electrical & Plumbing
Wiebe
604.935.2432 Pat Wiebe
604.902.9300 raymondo99.69@gmail.com
• Training & Tuition Reimbursement (Need help getting your Red Seal?)
• $500 Annual Tool Allowance
• Extended Health and Dental Benefits for you and your family
• Flexible Schedule - Work Life Balance. (We get it. We love to ski and bike too.)
• Assistance with Work Visa and Permanent Residency (We can help!)
• Positive Work Environment
We promote from within and are looking to strengthen our amazing team. Opportunities for advancement into management positions always exist for the right candidates. Don’t miss out on being able to build with the team that builds the most significant projects in Whistler.
Send your resume to info@evrfinehomes.com We look forward to hearing from you!
NOW HIRING
HEAVY
DUTY MECHANIC
Permanent, Full-Time Cardinal Concrete, A Division of Lafarge Canada Inc is the leading supplier of ready-mix concrete in the Sea to Sky Corridor. We are currently seeking a career oriented individual to fill the role of Commercial Transport/Heavy Duty Mechanic at our Head Office Location in Squamish, BC.
This is a skilled position which primarily involves preventative maintenance and repair of a large fleet of commercial transport vehicles including concrete mixer trucks, dump trucks, trailers, forklifts and light-duty trucks.
Minimum Qualifications:
• B.C. Certificate of Qualification, and/or Interprovincial Ticket as a Commercial Transport Mechanic, and/or Heavy Duty Mechanic Ticket
• 3-5 years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience
Compensation $45.57 to $49.07
To view a full copy of this Job Description visit: www.cardinalconcrete.ca/about/careers
• Director of Community Programs ($93,475.20 to $101,556 per year)
• Financial Reporting Manager ($59,878 to $74,564 per year)
• Capital Projects Manager ($59,878 to $73,564 per year)
• Executive Assistant to the GM Community Services ($38,038 to $53,599 per year)
Xet’òlacw Community School
• High School English and Humanities Teacher ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
• Elementary School Teacher - Grade 3 ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
• Education Assistant ($38,038 - $53,599 per year)
• Food Program Assistant ($17.40 to $20.90 per hour)
Lil’wat Health & Healing + Pqusnalhcw Health Centre
• Early Childhood Educator ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
• Nurse ($41.42 to $52.81 per hour + $2.15 hourly premium)
• Family Mentor ($38,038 to $53,599 per year)
• Program Manager ($57,330 to $64,610.00 per year)
Child & Family Services
• Transition House Outreach Worker ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
Position Overview: SSHS is seeking a self-motivated, autonomous Community Health Nurse to provide care to adult community members (19+) of three (3) remote First Nation communities by being responsible for full scope nursing care to a variety of clients, constantly promoting health and wellness education, and aligning care out of community
Qualifications:
• Current practicing registration as a Registered Nurse with the BC College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM)
• Current CPR course for Health Care Providers (HCP)
• Completion of specialty nursing certificate/certified practice (BCCNM) as applicable and two (2) years’ recent, related public health nursing experience including experience related to the population applicable to the job or an equivalent combination of education, training and experience
See full job posting on the careers page of our website: sshs.ca/careers/
Knowledge and Abilities:
• Provide care for clients with acute, chronic, palliative, mental health, and substance use needs.
• Deliver direct care, care management, and navigation support.
• Collaborate with clients, families, and healthcare teams to establish realistic wellness goals.
• Utilize knowledge of: Disease management and selfmanagement support, Community resources, Public health nursing theory, practices, and procedures, Assess safety and risk in home settings
Special:
• This position is requires travel to indigenous communities served by SSHS, accessed by Forest Service Road
• SSHS offers a competitive benefits and employment package to full time employees
Now Hiring
Sales & Reservations Coordinator
Company Overview
Bella Coola Heli Sports operates in the glaciated wilderness of BC’s central coast. We provide world-class skiing in the winter, and connect our guests with incredible wilderness adventures in the summer. Our enthusiastic team is dedicated to perfecting the travel experience through the highest standards of hospitality. With our central office located in Whistler, our Sales and Reservations team works hard to support the operations and our team out in the field. The Sales and Reservations Coordinator will be responsible for providing guests and travel agents with the highest level of customer service and creating a personalized experience throughout the reservation and pre-trip planning process. Exceptional communication skills, strong organizational skills and effective time management are a must for this position.
About the Role
• Full time position is 40 hours per week with potential flexibility in scheduling once training is completed to enjoy Whistler’s winter and summer activities.
• Access to extended health benefits. Fun, team-oriented office environment.
• Potential for heli-skiing trips and summer visits to the lodge.
Essential Job Functions
• Reservations: Guest communications, booking schedule management, and Webrez Pro.
• Sales: Responding to Travel Trade inquiries, achieving sales targets, and driving bookings.
• Guest Invoicing: Billing and Flywire invoicing.
• Guest Services: Guest communications, lodge coordination, and post trip-follow-up.
Apply now by sending your resume and cover letter via email: julia.schneider@sshs.ca
PEOPLE & CULTURE SUPERVISOR, HOUSING
Four Seasons Resort and Residences Whistler is seeking a People & Culture Supervisor to support our Housing operations What we offer:
• 31.50/hour
• Ski Pass
• Comprehensive health, dental and retirement savings plans
• Employee meals, wellness benefits and engaging employee events
• International Travel Benefits with Four Seasons
• Career Development Opportunities
• Fun, Engaging work environment
• Housing available!
If this exciting opportunity sounds like a fit for you, please apply directly on the Four Seasons website www.fourseasons.com/careers Or through the QR code below:
To apply email employment@bellacoolahelisports.com.
NOW HIRING!
Full Time Meat Manager
($64,480 – $76,960 (+ benefits) depending on experience)
Full Time Assistant Meat Manager
($54,080 – $70,720 (+ benefits) depending on experience)
Our Team enjoys:
ü Flexible schedules
ü Training and experience
ü Substantial Employee Discount Card & Benefits
ü Prime location in Pemberton
ü Short commute = less time, more $$$
THE WHISTLER HOUSING AUTHORITY IS SEEKING:
Building Maintenance Technician will complete a variety of repairs, maintenance, and inspections at Whistler Housing Authority (WHA) tenanted properties and grounds including carpentry, painting, plumbing, electrical, and drywall remediation to ensure WHA properties remain safe, secure and in proper working condition for residents and visitors. A valid BC Driver’s License is
Download or fill out our online application at https://www.pembertonsupermarket.com/ about/employment/ or stop by the store and we will give you an application to fill out. You can also email us at jobs@pembertonsupermarket.com or call us at 604-894-3663. BUILDING MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN A full description of required responsibilities, skills and experience is available at www.whistlerhousing.ca
Interested candidates are encouraged to submit a Resume and Cover Letter in one document by email to mail@whistlerhousing.ca
for proposals is November 18, 2024 at 4:00 p.m.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Employee Health & Wellness Plan available
HYDROVAC OPERATOR – Valid Class 1 or Class 3 with air brakes required. Manual transmission. Ground Disturbance II. 2 years operating hydro excavation equipment preferred. $35-$40.45 per hour.
HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATOR, Squamish– Minimum 5 years or 5,000 hours operating experience on excavator. Full-time, Monday – Friday. $33-$42 per hour.
HEAVY DUTY EQUIPMENT MECHANIC - Commercial Truck & Transport, Transport Trailer, Class 1 or 3 air brakes preferred. 4x10 or 5x8 schedule. Red Seal certi ed receive $200/month tool allowance. $39.70- $47.90 per hour. 5% premium on hourly wage for Lead Hand position.
CONSTRUCTION LABOURER – Great opportunity to learn on-the-job. Stamina for physically demanding work and perseverance to brave inclement weather required. Previous experience preferred but not required. Training provided. $25-$32 per hour.
SNOWPLOW OPERATOR, Whistler – Valid Class 5 BC Driver’s Licence required. Must be available from November 15 through March 31. On-the-job training provided. Wage depending on experience. $28-35.02 per hour.
BLACKCOMB CHIMNEY
LTD.
Life will go on until it doesn’t
TUESDAY, NOV. 5
5 A.M. PST
NORMALLY I’d be looking at a blank screen and figuring out how to fill it with words, ideas and entertainment. But this is election day down south and a weak vein of hope and optimism fill me with a desire to put off sending this week’s piffle in until Wednesday after I see how the drama plays out. Hope for the best; plan for the worst. What am I saying, can there be any plan for the worst?
BY G.D. MAXWELL
Voting just started in the Eastern U.S. Somewhere in the hurricane and flood-ravaged hinterlands of North Carolina, one of many “important” swing states, determined hill folk are making the journey to vote. They’re voting for Trump because he told them his opponent had diverted their FEMA recovery money and given it to illegal immigrants so they could have sex reassignment surgery.
Meanwhile, in Charlotte, N.C., soccer moms are loading into minivans to get out the vote for Harris. They’re finally happy to have a chance to vote for a woman who isn’t Hillary Clinton. None of them have had abortions but, really, it’s the principle of the thing. Our bodies, ourselves. They’ve bought into the hope, the message of unity, the desire not to go backwards. They think Trump’s a pig.
8 A.M. PST
In the urban jungles and freedom-loving backwoods of the Eastern Seaboard, Proud Boys everywhere are locking and loading cleaned and oiled weapons. They’re checking and posting last-minute messages on Telegram urging their believers to be ready to fight the yoke of tyranny and oppression if their candidate loses. Clearly the only way he can lose is if this election is stolen, too. If that’s the case, they’re ready to roll. Lawlessness to maintain order... natural order.
In the urban centres, busy people are hard at work. Many have voted early, dropping off ballots and mailing them. No time to be distracted from the business of business. A mixed bag with New York, New England, the Eastern Seaboard and Virginia pinning their hopes on the Democratic candidate while another important swing state, Pennsylvania, figures out who it’s going to anoint king or queen.
12 P.M. PST
Early exit polls from CNN do nothing to relieve stress. Things seem to be breaking toward an Orange Wave but at least not crush. But exit polls have become increasingly inaccurate. Probably the distrust of media and ingrained orneriness of people leading them to be less than truthful when accosted by someone asking how they voted.
This isn’t working for me. Worse, pundits and newsfolk are coalescing around the
notion we
until tomorrow... at the earliest. Time to find some other distraction. This isn’t healthy.
2 P.M. PST
There is a Zen quality to bread-making. Hmm... do I need a smoother transition to jump into bread-making from a political death watch? Probably. Oh well. Time and long-rising, highhydration dough wait for no projected results.
Loaves aren’t fussy enough to tap off the stressful energy building up inside me so I make baguettes instead. They’ll go with the charcuterie I’ve offered to bring to this evening’s watch party. Attending a watch party is a leap of faith. The last one was 2016. We all know how that ended. Whimper, not bang. No party in 2020. No one had a house large enough for more than four people to be socially distanced. It was a watch party in 1980 when I realized I might be in Canada longer than I imagined. Still, forever? Thank Reagan.
A quick peek at the non-results coming in—okay, the rampant speculation and
6:20 P.M. PST
Arrive at watch party. Look at television. Want to poke my eyes out with a nearby knife. But it’s just CBC, what do they know? Just as bad on PBS. Quick Watson, the needle.
6:35 P.M. PST
What would we do without wine? Well, whisky is the obvious answer and it looks like this evening is going that direction. I had the presence of mind to bring along a bottle of cask-strength—67.3%ABV—single malt and hide the bottle of bubbly out in the car... just in case things break toward sanity.
8:30 P.M. PST
STOP WATCHING!!! It’s like a slasher movie. I can only watch through narrow finger openings, hands over eyes. This can’t be happening again. Do my former fellow
How could you be so reckless? How could you hand the reins of power—not to mention the nuclear football—over to a wannabe tyrant…
unreliable exit polls—is all cloud, no silver lining. Nuts to this.
5:30 P.M. PST
A brief detour to council chambers for a driveby comment in support of keeping an open mind regarding wildfire mitigation techniques, something about which I know next to nothing.
countrymen and women have no depths to their depravity? Growing realization suggests that’s a rhetorical question.
10 P.M. PST
I give up. My circadian rhythm hasn’t yet adjusted to standard time and there’s no end in sight. Harris has told everyone to go home.
So I will. As Scarlett said, “Tomorrow’s another day.” Or was that Annie? Whatever.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 6
4:30 A.M. PST
Op. cit., circadian rhythm. Oh shit! Yer kidding? Again? Seriously? I call the New York Times to cancel my subscription. They’re not open yet. I can’t bring myself to read the results, look at all the red states, places I’ll never visit again, even assuming they’ll let me in the country.
How could you be so reckless? How could you hand the reins of power—not to mention the nuclear football—over to a wannabe tyrant, a man some of his former closest advisors called a fascist, a bootlick to strongman dictators around the world, a pussy grabber, an ally in name only, a felon, a cheat, a man who lies every time his lips move, a racist, misogynist and hater. Oh sweet Jesus, how could you?
7:30 A.M. PST
Time to channel my inner John Prine. Blow up my TV, throw away my paper, move to the country. Fortunately I moved to the country, Canada, 45 years ago. I have a wonderful wife. I live in an amazing bubble, two actually. I have close, warm friends. I have secure housing. I have more than one pair of skis. I have four marvellous grandchildren. I am no longer a U.S. citizen, a blessing now more than ever. Life will go on until it doesn’t... something I think about more with each passing year. But I can’t get the final scene from Planet of the Apes the original—out of my head. The one where Charlton Heston rounds the corner of the beach and sees the upper torso, head and arm of the Statue of Liberty lying in the sand, realizes he’s back on Earth, falls to his knees and screams, “You maniacs! You blew it up! Ah, damn you! God damn you all to hell!” What he said. n
won’t have a clear winner
Standard operating procedure.
PHOTO BY DOUGLAS RISSING / ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS
