The best of Whistler’s best, as decided by Pique readers. - By Pique staff
06 OPENING REMARKS As Pique’s longtime columnist G.D. Maxwell prepares to ski off into the sunset, editor Braden Dupuis reflects on the end of (yet another) era.
08 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR This week’s letter writers share thanks for another amazing Whistler Film Festival, and call for more accountability at B.C. ski areas.
11 PIQUE’N YER INTEREST Will future historians view 2024 as one of humanity’s worst years? Columnist Andrew Mitchell thinks they just might.
74 MAXED OUT Say it ain’t so: after 29 years and more than 1,500 columns, G.D. Maxwell offers hope for the future in his goodbye column.
12 FUTURE OF THE FORESTS Whistler’s Cheakamus Community Forest is shifting from an ecosystem-based management approach to a climate resiliency plan as it heads into 2025.
13 BUDGET BACKTRACK Mayor and council settled on an 8.25-per-cent tax increase for 2025 at the last council meeting of the year.
54 PROOF WITHIN LIFE One year after a calamitous training incident, Whistler’s Broderick Thompson is skiing again.
60
ON
THE FARM
Whistler’s perennial favourite band The Hairfarmers reflects on a quarter-century of rocking the resort.
COVER Who needs a stinkin’ theatre!? Why am I not bowling right now? - By Jon Parris // @jon.parris.art
Publisher SARAH STROTHER - sstrother@piquenewsmagazine.com
Founding Publishers KATHY & BOB BARNETT www.piquenewsmagazine.com
When eras end
I’VE LOST TRACK of how many times I’ve heard, or said, the phrase, “it’s the end of an era” in recent years.
I suspect COVID has a lot to do with that. Prior to the pandemic, many things felt much more stable, or certain. Pique’s little newsroom had seen minimal turnover for
BY BRADEN DUPUIS
years, and we had grown comfortable in our respective lanes. Then one day we all went home and never came back—at least not in the
Friends were laid off. Others quit, moved home. And I’ll never forget the exact moment I realized, laying there on my couch in the middle of a workday, in week three or four of pandemic unease, that things would never be the same—that it was the end of an era.
As humans, we are naturally averse to change. It’s uncomfortable and makes us anxious; forces us to adapt or think on our feet; find new ways of existing safely and soundly in our surroundings.
Wouldn’t it be great if, once we found our nice little corner of the universe to exist, we could just keep it like that forever? Sure. But life doesn’t work that way.
The announced retirement of Pique’s former editor, Clare Ogilvie, in late 2021, was another watershed moment in our recent history. And again the phrase was bandied about: It’s the end of an era.
And it was. And if you think it wasn’t scary for me to consider the prospect of stepping
into her shoes—of putting out this paper each week without her—well, you’re wrong.
But we adapt. Learn, grow, evolve, and before long our new situation, so abjectly terrifying at first, isn’t so scary. It becomes the new normal, to borrow another overused phrase of recent years.
And so when I heard someone recently refer to the departure of longtime Pique presence Alyssa Noel, who is moving back to Alberta to be closer to family, as “the end of an era,” I wasn’t surprised, or phased. It’s no doubt true, and Alyssa will be dearly missed. But eras end. They wouldn’t be proper eras if they didn’t.
This week, longtime Pique columnist, the inimitable G.D. Maxwell, pens his final piece for the paper, after more than a quarter century and an astounding 1,500 instalments of his back-page column, Maxed Out.
In that span, Max has informed us, enlightened us, entertained us, and ruffled
to upload his column to Pique’s website on time—his readers will let you hear about it).
Pique reporter Brandon Barrett has a favourite anecdote, of a time he was working out of the Squamish Chief offices, and a man walked in, picked up a Pique, tore out Max’s column, and left the rest of the paper on the stand. You can’t buy that kind of reader loyalty.
Love him or hate him, his learned local insights regularly sparked valuable community discussion inside the Whistler bubble, as he publicly challenged the questionable or outright bad decisions often made behind closed doors here in Whistler. Every town needs a little bit of informed rabble-rousing every now and then.
But he also knew when it was time for something lighter, something irreverent, or when our officials deserved praise, and was never afraid to call out his own mistakes, rare as they might be.
As far as eras go, the one that included
and even more time for skiing.
The flipside of the phrase, “it’s the end of an era,” is that (barring an end-of-days, Earthdestroying meteorite), another era must follow. And while change is unsettling, it also carries with it an air of excitement and possibility, and the question of what comes next.
In Pique’s case, the plan is to add to our roster of local voices.
Beginning next week, you’ll find our weekly Pique’n Yer Interest column relocated to the back page, and in the weeks to come, a whole rotation of new and familiar faces will be tasked with filling the space that was Max’s for so many years.
As legend has it, Max earned his column from Pique’s founding editor Bob Barnett after consistently sending entertaining letters to the editor for publication in the paper. Bob apparently liked Max’s letters so much, he offered him his own column.
Is there another Max out there in
As an editor, there are few things as comforting as a solid, reliable hand, and Max’s was as steady as they come. So thank you, Max—and here’s to a well-earned retirement, and even more time for skiing.
more than a few feathers at Whistler’s municipal hall and beyond, no doubt compiling a long list of haters and enemies. But the number of loyal readers who would list themselves as fans is immeasurably greater, both here in Whistler and far beyond our borders (and if you ever need proof, just forget
Thisbrightupgradedone-bedroom townhome isaquintessential Whistlerproper ty! Withitsprimelocationin Creekside,skiersand bikerswilllove the two-minute walk to access thegondola,whileashortstrollwillput you infrontofthebustlingshopsand restaurants Creeksidehas to offer. Thenewwindows offer plenty ofnaturallightandsouthwestmountain viewsintheopen-conceptmainlivingareas. Unlimited ownerusewithnightly rentaloption Asking-$799,000 2-2150 Sarajevo Drive
Max’s weekly words here in Whistler will be difficult to top, or even match, and his byline will be dearly missed on Pique’s back page.
As an editor, there are few things as comforting as a solid, reliable hand, and Max’s was as steady as they come. So thank you, Max—and here’s to a well-earned retirement,
Whistler? An incisive, informed mind, with a quick wit and a way with words? Our letters section is always open, if you think you’ve got what it takes.
For now, here’s to Max, and the end of another era.
On to the next. n
Thank you, Whistler, for another incredible WFF
On behalf of the Whistler Film Festival Society, we would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the Whistler community for helping us celebrate the 24th annual Whistler Film Festival. This year’s festival was a true reflection of the magic that happens when creativity, collaboration, and community spirit come together.
As a charitable arts organization, we are deeply grateful for the enthusiastic support received from residents, businesses, and organizations that helped make this year’s event a success. A special thank you goes to our Whistler-based community partners whose contributions played a vital role in creating memorable experiences for our guests and audiences.
From the tireless efforts of local volunteers to the generous support of Whistler businesses that provided venues, accommodations, and services, your dedication to fostering a vibrant cultural scene is inspiring. Key partners helped us showcase the best in Canadian and international film and welcome industry and special guests (including this year the Irish Ambassador to Canada for our Country of Focus) while continuing to position Whistler as a hub for arts and culture (find a full list of sponsors at whistlerfilmfestival.com).
The festival relies on community support throughout the year and welcomes donations, particularly as the year draws to a close. Donations can be made via whistlerfilmfestival. com/donate.
A special shoutout to Ann Chiasson who was the driving force behind this year’s Rock the Fest Fun*raiser that raised more than $50,000 to support the Whistler Film Festival Society.
The festival’s success belongs to all of us, and we couldn’t be more proud to be part of such a supportive and passionate community.
Thank you, Whistler, for joining us on this journey, and we look forward to celebrating our 25th anniversary with you next year!
Angela Heck // executive director, Whistler Film Festival Society
B.C. ski hills must take accountability
I wanted the opportunity to convey three very distinct messages with this letter to your readers...
The first of course is to thank editor Braden Dupuis and Pique Newsmagazine for their
continued excellent coverage on mountain safety. I’ve skied pretty much my whole life, 50-plus years. I have a love and passion for downhill skiing. My children were on skis at the age of three, we skied as a family every weekend and it’s why my husband and I retired to British Columbia five years ago—for the love of skiing B.C.’s beautiful mountains. We typically ski 50-plus days a year, and I would have accumulated more than three million vertical feet in 2023, just at Whistler Blackcomb in the last four to five years.
I grew up understanding that skiing responsibly is a “given”—you would NEVER endanger the safety of another person on the hill. You ski to your abilities, you ensure downhill skiers are clearly avoided, especially beginners and children as they can be unpredictable, and if conditions are sketchy and/or the hills are crowded, you ski to the conditions! Specifically meaning, of course, you reduce your speed, you go over knolls and blind spots with care, you are constantly aware of those around you and especially in front of you. The slopes are not just for your personal enjoyment, but for the enjoyment of everyone on the hill.
The Alpine Code of Responsibility is a very simple and clear, 10-rule document that if followed, minimizes accidents on the hill. Unfortunately, the man (35 to 45 years) who hit me was ignorant of his skiing responsibilities—in following the Alpine Responsibility Code. He clearly felt he was entitled to ski as fast as he possibly could, on a busy hill, out of control and skiing way
beyond his abilities. My guess… he was racing his buddy and I had just started my ski-run line, third turn and there was absolutely no one around me. For whatever bizarre reason, he decided to not safely avoid/pass me, and actually stated “he had only brushed me” at 65km/hr if you can believe this, as if this was perfectly acceptable. My injuries are significant, looking at 12 to 18 months of rehabilitation with a fractured tibial plateau and badly fractured right clavicle. He also left the scene without identifying himself, denied any accountability or offering any kind of help. Definitely not the Code, and frankly, not even ethically human as family/ friends have shockingly stated, “who would actually do this?”
Which leads me to my second message— the bigger issue now of accountability and consequences. Reckless skiing literally appears to be out of control on the mountains—it became shockingly clear, after my Facebook post on Whistler Blackcomb Skiers and Snowboarders with more than 200 responses, that mine was sadly one of many collisions happening on the slopes. And after reading more on this topic, it appears to be an epidemic—North America, Europe—where accidents are tracked
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
and recorded, up 30 per cent, with collisions, and reckless skiing being a major factor (U.K. Telegraph). Fatalities and serious injuries are happening to the point where hospitals/clinics are becoming overwhelmed, not to mention the cost. I do believe the government/industry needs to start re-assessing and putting audits and controls in place.
Resorts need to take more action, put more controls in place and become more accountable and responsible for this escalating and serious safety issue on their hills. So again, government/ industry needs to start re-assessing.
Resorts are ultimately accountable for safety on their mountains. If safety is not No. 1 on their list, if there are no controls or accountability for reckless skiers/boarders in place, no efforts to ensure these skiers/ boarders are removed from their hills as soon as possible, then we as consumers need to start making better decisions. If I’m going to take my family skiing in B.C., I will want to see Sun Peaks, Big White, Whistler Blackcomb, Fernie, etc. safety stats, number of safety marshalls and patrollers on their slopes first… let’s see if industry changes can be made here.
Lesley Broadhurst // Whistler n
Backcountry Update
AS OF WEDNESDAY, DEC. 27
If you’re gearing up for a winter adventure in the backcountry, Avalanche Canada’s online trip planner can help you decide if a trip is appropriate for the day’s avalanche conditions. Whether you’re planning to skitour, splitboard, snowshoe, snowmobile, hike, or travel in any other mode, it’s a helpful tool.
You can find the Trip Planner at avalanche. ca/planning/trip-planner. Once you select your destination, it automatically combines the current avalanche danger rating for the region with the Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale (ATES) and places the trip in the appropriate position on the Avaluator chart. This colourcoded chart suggests to users that they travel with caution, extra caution, or that travel is not recommended.
ATES is a system of rating backcountry terrain as simple, challenging, or complex based on slope steepness, exposure to avalanche paths, and the consequences of an avalanche in that area. Remember, terrain is the constant factor in your calculations to minimize avalanche risk, while the weather and the snowpack are always changing. Improving your skills in evaluating terrain can do a lot to mitigate the influence of those two variables.
The online trip planner includes the ATES ratings for mapped areas, the location of major avalanche paths, main access trails, and key decision points. You can download the ratings so you can use them offline with a mapping app or GPS device, and see when you’re transitioning between simple, challenging, and complex terrain.
Popular backcountry destinations with ATES ratings in the Sea to Sky region include the Spearhead Traverse, Garibaldi Lake, Brohm Ridge, the Sea to Sky Gondola, Brandywine, Rutherford, Marriott Basin, and Tenquille Lake. These ratings provide a valuable starting point for evaluating your route. If you’re planning a trip where there is no ATES rating, you will need advanced training to make your own judgment regarding how exposed the terrain is to avalanche hazard.
The online trip planner can be an important part of your preparation for backcountry travel, alongside essentials like reading the avalanche forecast, carrying essential avalanche safety gear (transceiver, shovel and probe) and knowing how to use it, and checking weather conditions. Remember, the backcountry is a dynamic environment—staying informed is key. n
CONDITIONS MAY VARY AND CAN CHANGE RAPIDLY Check for the most current conditions before heading out into the backcountry. Daily updates for the areas adjacent to Whistler Blackcomb are available at 604-938-7676, or surf to www.whistlerblackcomb.com/mountain-info/ snow-report#backcountry or go to www.avalanche.ca.
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.
I IMAGINE it’s hard to be an optimist these days, never having been one myself.
It’s not that I’m a pessimist either, I just believe there’s a middle ground between hope and despair where realists live to rain equitably on parades and pity parties. We’re the skeptics, stoics and insufferable “well, actually” types who can seemingly argue all sides of every issue.
BY ANDREW MITCHELL
With that disclaimer out there, I really do believe future historians will consider 2024 to be a crux year for civil society, up there with humanity’s worst years... 1929... 1939... and whatever year Elon Musk was born.
It will be remembered as the year where misinformed and angry people around the world voted for oligarchs, fascists and propagandists to save them from made-up threats.
Yes, I know what those words mean. No, I don’t think I’m being dramatic.
It didn’t happen organically. The current tense situation is the culmination of years of plotting behind the scenes to create an alternative narrative within society, with alternative facts to rile up all those imaginary victims of progress. Manufacture a big
enough fake crisis and it turns out people really will enthusiastically vote against their best interests.
In short, we’re being duped. Media and politicians have us laser-focused on a fractional number of struggling trans kids or the price of eggs instead of critical issues like climate change, wars, the growing wealth divide, and so on—all things that have far more effect on prices than “woke” liberalism or the beleaguered carbon tax.
The instigators of our current discontent have bought up most of media and social media, stoked fear and anger, normalized gross incivility towards political opposites, and turned people against governments and institutions that have served us well for generations. The one media outlet they can’t buy, our CBC, is being slated for defunding despite the fact that 70 per cent of Canadians oppose that.
One recent example of weaponizing a false narrative came courtesy of a recent University of Calgary study that proved carbon taxes had a negligible impact on inflation or food costs, despite conservative politicians and editorialists across this country loudly insisting otherwise for more than a year.
Before the carbon tax it was China’s interference in our election, but that scandal faded when the intelligence came out and all parties were implicated. Before that it was the housing crisis, but conservatives lost interest after government announced billions for
housing programs—programs conservatives aren’t allowed to support even if it helps in their ridings. Tomorrow we will probably be back to immigrants, although this time it will probably be about how there’s not enough people to ease the worker shortage.
We live in one of the highest-functioning, most educated and most prosperous countries on the planet, yet almost half of people think it’s broken because it’s not working perfectly for them. We have real problems, no question, but it’s nothing that can’t be fixed without blowing everything up.
Which brings me to 2025. Buckle up, hosers. Trump, incredibly, will be president again. If we take him and his cabinet of billionaires and multimillionaires at their word, we’re going to see new tariffs on trade, the possible dismantling of institutions like NATO, the reversal of climate change measures, possibly a migrant crisis, and more. Canadians will struggle. The cost of living will rise, our dollar and purchasing power will drop, unemployment will creep back up, and we will be in our first recession in 16 years.
Why would billionaires start a recession, you might ask? Because when you have money, recessions create opportunities to buy up companies, eliminate competition, privatize services, and make people and government more dependent on them to provide taxes and jobs. That’s what happened in 2008 when the U.S. went from five major investment banks to three and hedge funds
bought up tens of thousands of private homes to repurpose as rentals.
There’s even a threat to our sovereignty as Trump “jokes” daily about making Canada the 51st state. (He’s not joking.)
The mayo on the poop sandwich is that 2025 is an election year in Canada, probably sooner than later given the current climate. At a time where the country needs to be unified against coming hardships, our politicians are going to be at one another’s throats. You wouldn’t think it could get any worse than our provincial premiers—including B.C. Premier David Eby—galloping madly off in all directions in response to tariff threats instead of coming up with a united Team Canada approach, but somehow it will be. It’s going to be bad.
This is easily the darkest New Year’s Eve column I’ve written in 25 years contributing to Pique. Sorry. But realists know that hoping for the best is no substitute for preparing for the worst.
Right now, the best way to prepare is to celebrate the new year. Party with friends and family. Go skiing. Make resolutions to learn things and improve yourself—and keep them. Push down that uneasy feeling that’s probably growing in your gut. Unplug for a few days. Come into the new year energized and ready to push back against terrible ideas.
And who knows? Maybe 2025 will become known as the year that sanity returned and people took their countries back. n
Cheakamus Community Forest plans big changes to local forestry
THE COMMUNITY-OWNED FORESTRY OPERATION IS SHIFTING TO CLIMATE RESILIENCY PLANNING, AIMING TO PROTECT FORESTS FROM WILDFIRES AND TREE MORTALITY
BY LIZ MCDONALD
THE CHEAKAMUS Community Forest (CCF) is adapting its approach to managing community-based forestry assets.
Shifting from an ecosystem-based management (EBM) approach to a climate resiliency plan for the coming years, the new approach will incorporate wildfire and climate change risks that increasingly threaten the CCF’s forests, which weren’t as prevalent when the previous plan was created more than a decade ago.
The CCF, which consists of three stakeholders, the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW), Squamish Nation and Lil’wat Nation, held an information session Dec. 3 at the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre (SLCC). In attendance were representatives from the Nations, the RMOW and members of the public.
Heather Beresford, executive director of the CCF, said the information sessions are helping inform community members.
“I’m really pleased with the response we had in November 2023 and this one, people seem to be getting a lot more out of it. I’d like to think that we are gaining trust in the community because they’re learning more about what we’re doing,” she said.
On deck for the evening were three professionals presenting three pieces of
planning and research: Nick Soverel from Frontera Forest Solutions spoke about the first step, creating a risk assessment. Dr. Lori Daniels, UBC Koerner Chair of Wildfire Coexistence, spoke about how her research in in B.C. and Whistler on tree-thinning young and mature second-growth forests can reduce devastating crown fires. Lastly, Andy Kwan from Chartwell Resource Group touched on 2025 thinning and logging projects.
CLIMATE RESILIENCE PLANNING
Soverel’s presentation centred on how climateresilience planning requires identifying the top threats to Whistler’s forests from climate change with a risk assessment. Using the RMOW’s research on climate change in Whistler, the top three impacts for forests are wildfire activity, forest stress and tree mortality, and forest health impacts from insects and diseases.
For tree mortality and stress, the CCF is exploring a program called the Climate Change Informed Species Selection Tool (CCISS). The provincial web-based application anticipates climate-related impacts on trees as ecosystems change, exploring what species can thrive and which ones may not survive in Whistler by 2100. Using this data, the CCF can find refugia: survival areas during unfavourable conditions.
Impacts on forest health were quite visible this year during an outbreak of spruce budworm, caterpillars that eat tree needles, turning their deep green an unsettling red. The CCF’s maps showed the outbreak extent in 2022 was light-to-moderate, growing in 2023 to include severe sections, and by 2024,
severity worsened when Whistlerites could see it from above White Gold, Function Junction, Sproatt and Rainbow Meadows.
The solution for the pest is spraying Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (Btk), which kills the caterpillar and other species of insects.
Beresford said they’re continuing to monitor and it’s up to the province to respond.
“We have hope that they are going to be able to get their pest management plan, which is in draft form now, finalized in 2025, so if and when we have to take any further action like spraying Btk, they will have their advice,” she said.
Operationally, the risk assessment will inform next steps for managing the forest. There are three available approaches: resistance, resilience and transition. Resistance means largely leaving a forest as-is because it’s likely to withstand climate change, usually old-growth groves. Resilience is earmarked for tree-thinning to reduce a wildfire’s spread, and transition would create new forest types, planting trees that are resilient to climate change and wildfire.
INCREASED THINNING FOR WILDFIRES
Daniels began her presentation with the realities of wildfires. From the 2021 heat dome which caused Lytton to burn down, to 15 million hectares burning in Canada during 2023, and Jasper’s devastating fire in 2024, the reality is inescapable.
For wildfire behaviour, she said three factors matter: topography, weather and fuels. The one that’s controllable is fuels. Daniels proposed removing forest fire fuels by thinning in young and mature forests, which her modelling shows
would cut active crown fires in half.
The treatment mimics the appearance of mature forests, with more spacing between trees.
However, not everyone in the audience was supportive of her proposal. Rhonda Millikin, a local ecologist, published an independently funded, peer-reviewed study this year that showed forest-thinning was increasing fire risk by creating “warmer, drier and windier fire environments.”
“Trees actually do create the moisture. So, they create the moisture, and they retain the moisture,” she said in an interview after the meeting. “If you stand in a place in Lost Lake, for example, where they fuel-thin, it feels warm and dry. Walk into the spot where they have not done that, and it feels cooler and humid. So that’s because the trees are retaining that humidity, and that humidity is what will stop the fire.”
She also touched on how overgrown forests are a byproduct of forestry, because of over-planting practices, which leads to the need to thin them, compared to naturally regenerating forests.
Beresford said the CCF won’t dismiss Millikin’s research outright.
“I view Rhonda’s work as being something that says, ‘You might want to look at this,’ but at this point, it isn’t enough to change our program entirely, but it does make us want to research this more thoroughly,” she said.
For a look at proposed fuel-thinning and cut blocks in 2025, check out the CCF’s plan at cheakamuscommunityforest.com.
The CCF’s Phase 1 risk assessment is slated for completion in March 2025, Phase 2 operational strategy end of 2025, and monitoring and adaption from 2026 onward. n
FRIENDS OF THE FOREST Attendees take in a presentation at the Cheakamus Community Forest’s information session Dec. 3.
PHOTO BY LIZ MCDONALD
Whistler council settles on 8.25% tax increase for 2025
OFFICIALS
WARY OF ADDING TO RESIDENTS’ FINANCIAL STRAIN— BUT BIG COSTS
LOOM IN FUTURE YEARS
BY BRANDON BARRETT
WHISTLER’S MAYOR and council have settled on an 8.25-per-cent increase in property taxes for 2025, down from the 9.5 per cent originally floated by municipal staff.
The decision came at the Tuesday, Dec. 17 council meeting following weeks of back and forth between elected officials, who wrestled with how to pay for several major upcoming costs facing the municipality without creating undue sticker shock for the public.
“We’ve heard from some of the community members that times are tough right now. We’re seeing businesses being forced out, people who are having to defer taxes, people who are tightening their belts everywhere,” said Councillor Jessie Morden. “If we can slow that burn to them any way we can, I think we should.”
In October, Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) staff floated a 9.5-per-cent hike, before coming back earlier this month with a proposed 9.1 per cent.
While the lower tax rate should come as a salve to Whistlerites in 2025, it doesn’t lessen the burn in future years. With the approved 8.25-per-cent hike next year, municipal staff projected increases of 8.1 per cent in 2026, followed by three years of 7.9 per cent through 2029. Those projections, part of the RMOW’s commitment to delivering a fiveyear financial outlook annually, are just that: projections, and are likely to be higher when all is said and done.
“All of these numbers assume no additional spending is added,” explained municipal CFO Carlee Price. “Spending added in Year 1, if it’s operational, affects every subsequent year [of the five-year financial plan], and spending in Year 1, if it’s related to projects, brings that reserve balance down and increases the hurdle that needs to be overcome in those out years.”
It’s a hurdle both officials and RMOW staff hope stays surmountable in the coming years. Council directed staff to reduce next year’s contribution to the RMOW’s general capital reserve by roughly $436,0000 in order to account for the lower 8.25-per-cent tax hike, which didn’t sit well with everyone around the
council table.
“I’m not very supportive of continuing to dip into reserves to fund these,” said Coun. Jeff Murl. “I’d love to have someone table a decrease, but that directly allocates that funding from what they’re going to cut, or where that’s going to come from, other than reserves.”
Officials are especially conscious of reserves as the RMOW stares down three so-called “big rocks”—major costs that are unavoidable in the coming years. The first and most costly surrounds policing: once Whistler’s population hits 15,000, an inevitability in the 2026 census, the municipality’s share of the roughly $5.4 million in annual policing costs will rise from 70 to 90 per cent. The second major looming cost is for firefighting, a large chunk of which will go towards staffing the No. 3 Fire Hall in Spring Creek full-time, a decision council greenlit in January. The third big rock is for transit, with staff anticipating the Canada-B.C. COVID Safe Restart grant reserve to dry up by early 2027, foisting another roughly $1 million back onto the RMOW.
“Increases in policing, fire and transit are real costs,” said Mayor Jack Crompton. “They are our costs. We should pay our bills and not kick this down the road for someone else to deal with.”
At the Dec. 3 council meeting, officials passed an amendment asking staff to return with insights into how an 8.1-per-cent tax rate would impact next year’s budget, as well as the five-year financial plan. At the Dec. 17 meeting, Crompton introduced an amendment that wound up passing asking instead for an 8.25-per-cent tax hike. That slight bump accounts for an upcoming $25,000 study looking into the feasibility of a valley-bottom gondola, and a $50,000 contribution to the Pemberton Commuter bus service.
“This is a very welcome, I think, contribution to [Pemberton’s] transit system,” said Coun. Jen Ford. “I would love to get to a place where there is one transit system that goes up and down the highway, all the way to West Vancouver. But I would say this is a good start to helping get cars off the road from Pemberton and support them in a way that we can.” n
NUMBERS GAME Mayor Jack Crompton and Whistler’s council walked back a 9.5-per-cent tax increase for 2025.
PHOTO BY BRADEN DUPUIS
WHISTLER’SPRESTIGIOUS BAXTERCREEK
‘A double whammy’ of food this year for bears in the Sea to Sky
LOCAL BEAR RESEARCHER MICHAEL ALLEN ON HIS ANNUAL FALL BEAR COUNT, AND WHAT LED HIM TO HIS NEVER-ENDING FASCINATION WITH THE MISUNDERSTOOD MAMMAL
BY LIZ MCDONALD
MUCH OF THE RUGGED terrain in the Coast Mountains is only intimately known to animals who range between its peaks.
But for Michael Allen, who spends countless hours monitoring grizzly and black bears, the backcountry is like an old friend.
Allen is an independent bear researcher who has been monitoring black and grizzly bears for 31 years. Each spring and fall, he gives an update on the number of bears he’s identified in the Squamish and Elaho River valleys, Whistler, Upper Lillooet River, and Upper Birkenhead River valley. But what drew Allen to his pursuit of bears in the first place?
A LIFE-LONG PASSION
Growing up in the West Kootenays, Allen felt at home outside. At 10 years old, he would head out alone to search for the animal that fascinated him, and while it concerned his mother, he never heeded her or anyone else’s warning.
“I identified with bears,” he said. “I was just drawn to the outdoors, and I grew up on the edge of a mountainside. I didn’t really like school, and I was just pulled into nature.”
He grew curious about bears despite what his culture taught him: bears are aggressive killers and people should shoot them.
“I was nervous but nothing really bad was happening, so I kept going. I remember seeing the first one by myself when I was probably 12 or 13,” he said. “What I saw was not what everybody was telling me that bears were, and
it just clicked.”
After the first encounter his interest “soared.” He kept coming across more black bears near Trail and Rossland, and as they ran away, he would follow, hiking further and further into the alpine, eventually giving up as bears’ aversion to humans won out. That passion has continued to this day.
While he’s not a biologist, and is quick to stress that point, Allen has studied bears all the same while also working various environmental jobs. He worked as a bearviewing guide for 19 years at Whistler Blackcomb, has given talks to school kids since 1997, and also delights travelling adults with his talk for international tour groups from Australia and New Zealand.
“I was a very shy person, so I kind of broke the barrier with school kids. If you can handle kindergarten and Grade 1 class for 30 minutes, you can pretty much handle anything,” he said.
FALL BEAR UPDATE
Attendees of Allen’s sold-out free public talk at the Whistler Public Library Dec. 3 became enthralled with his footage, watching sows and their cubs rub on trees, seeing grizzlies’ incredible claws as they wander by and sniff at his camera or laughing as bears get overwhelmed by the number of fish in a stream. But aside from the fun videos, Allen is capturing a massive amount of data on the mammals and the changing climate they live in.
CAUGHT ON CAM Bear researcher Michael Allen’s cameras are in locked boxes and can stay there year-round, with lithium-ion batteries that can withstand -40 C temperatures.
PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHAEL ALLEN
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“Nobody’s really put in the time that I have out there. And I think a lot of people in the beginning thought it was kind of nuts and a little bit obsessive,” he said. “But it’s my 31st year. I’m still doing it… largely, I do it for me, and I think it’s important. I think bears are indicators of change.”
He monitors the interplay between scarce food sources in years with berry crop failures or fewer salmon, and how many cubs a sow has each year. Weather data and proximity to humans are other important data points that impact bears’ behaviour and survival.
“If it’s good berry season you get lots of fat females, and you got more cubs. But if it’s a bad berry season, those bears living in Whistler and Squamish, they know that there’s alternate food sources [in the Village], but that’s risky, those moms with their offspring trickle into the valley, and then they get shot,” he said.
This year’s berry crop and salmon run in the Sea to Sky provided a “double whammy” of sustenance. Black huckleberry, dwarf and oval leaf blueberries were highly productive. Chum, pink and coho salmon are another important source for bears to put on weight before denning over winter. Allen explained pink salmon run every other year in late August and September, and they weren’t around this year. Coho are winter fish. That leaves chum as an integral part of bears’ diet before they slumber.
“The bears only really fish October,
November, December, and then they got it shut down and hibernate,” Allen said. “November is kind of an effortless month to get fish. You don’t have to battle cold temperatures and snow. But, if there’s no chum, and this could very well be the future, then bears are forced to stay out into December and fish more for coho and even into January.”
This fall, streams and rivers around Squamish were thick with chum, so much so that one mother grizzly’s belly was dragging on the ground.
Allen’s fall count followed 13 grizzlies in the Squamish River watershed—five adult males, three immature males, and four adult females including one with one cub from this year.
In the Upper Lillooet River and Upper Birkenhead River, he observed 12 grizzlies—
three adult males, three immature males, three adult females, and three immature females.
He captured a minimum of 108 black bears from remote cameras in 2024— fifty bears in the Upper Squamish River watershed, 10 bears along the lower Cheakamus and 48 bears at Whistler.
With his cameras at Upper Squamish River, black bears he identified included 29 adult males, seven adult females and four cubs, with 10 sub-adults. Lower Cheakamus River had four adult males and three females, two cubs born this year and one sub-adult. Because his cameras near rivers are seasonal, Allen said they don’t reflect the abundance of bears over all seasons.
Observed Whistler black bears included 18
adult males, 11 adult females, nine cubs from this year and 10 sub-adults.
THE BEAR WHISPERER’S TECHNIQUE
Allen’s trail cameras are in strategic locations based on rub trees and food sources—berries, wetlands and salmon. Rub trees are what he calls “the key” to sampling bear populations. Bears use rub trees to mark their territory and communicate their presence, leaving their scent as they wiggle their backs against them. They also make for good measuring sticks.
“You’ll see how the bears change in size. The bear stands up and you can see his sex and his neck and chest mark. You see how tall he is, and you think he’s big, and then a huge grizzly comes in and kind of overshadows that,” he said.
Another solid place for permanent cameras is wetlands, so rich in food that bears often don’t need to leave to stay fed as they gorge on skunk cabbage.
Allen’s cameras are in locked boxes and can stay there year-round, with lithium-ion batteries that withstand -40 C temperatures.
“Most of my camera sites, it’s hell getting to them,” he said. “It’s harder for me, but most years, I’ll get animals and no humans. That’s what I want.”
For those who missed Allen’s talk at the Whistler Public Library Dec. 3, keep your eyes peeled for a spring update in 2025. There’s little doubt he’ll have more to share.
“Nothing’s more interesting than following a bear for 25 years across a changing landscape,” he said. n
CHANGING LANDSCAPE An adult male grizzly bear.
PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHAEL ALLEN
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NHL star Quinn Hughes presented with commemorative helmet
THE HELMET WAS COMMISSIONED TO HONOUR THE CANUCKS CAPTAIN’S TEAM 43 PROGRAM
BY DAVID SONG
WHISTLER FIRE CHIEF Thomas Doherty has been on the job for 36 years, and in that time he’s met NHL players Ryan NugentHopkins, Rod Brind’Amour, Dwayne Roloson and Ryan Walter. This fall, he added Quinn, Jack and Luke Hughes to the list.
On Oct. 30, Doherty made his way down to Rogers Arena to present Quinn, captain of the Vancouver Canucks, with a customized firefighter’s helmet at a home game. Doherty’s design sports the organization’s distinctive “flying skate” logo and the number 43 because Hughes is the progenitor of Team 43: a community initiative to thank first responders and raise money for the BC Professional Firefighters’ Burn Fund.
Reigning Norris Trophy winner Quinn launched the program in tribute to his grandfather Marty, a 31-year firefighting veteran and ex-New York City Fire Department (FDNY) battalion chief.
“I think it’s fantastic that [Quinn’s] using his platform and influence to shine the spotlight on firefighters and first responders,” said Doherty in a press release. “It really shows, even for the younger kids growing up, what it means to always contribute back to the community. There are so many different avenues out there, and this is just one of them.
“There’s sometimes an expectation as firefighters that this is the role we signed up for and just part of the job, so when you have somebody of this stature that’s very wellfollowed providing support and highlighting the work we do, it goes a long way. I think that it’s critical that kids growing up see that, and maybe it will inspire them to pay it forward.”
A FIREMAN AND AN ARTIST
Art has long been a part of Doherty’s life, whether he’s teaching himself airbrushing via YouTube or making some sketches with a pencil and notepad. Over time it has become a healthy escape from the demands of his career—a career that has taken him from his native Ladysmith to Big White, Kelowna and Campbell River before July 2022, when he moved to Whistler.
Doherty crafted his first custom helmet, a rendition of the 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park fire, exclusively by hand. It was donated to a BC Training Officers Association fundraiser and was auctioned off twice, raising more than $1,500 each time. He’s made other helmets to honour retiring colleagues.
About his creative process, Doherty explained in a release: “I usually try to get a sense from whoever I’m creating it for, what the theme is and if there’s any sort of personal things I can incorporate. It usually starts with an existing helmet, so this one [given to
Quinn] was a service helmet in Kelowna.
“Sometimes they come with a lot of nicks and whatnot, and that can add a bit of prep time. The majority of the work is just prepping the helmet and making sure the substrate is all cleaned off and sanded and smooth.”
After that, Doherty puts down a base layer and applies the desired graphics before using commercial automobile clear coat paint to armour his finished product against wear and tear. Some helmets can be finished in 10 to 20 hours, but others take considerably longer.
‘THE HELMET ITSELF IS A SYMBOL’
Twenty years after the destructive Mountain Park conflagration, Quinn toured several fire halls in West Kelowna to support the men and women battling last year’s McDougall Creek blaze. Touched by his gesture, a number of firefighters expressed to Doherty (a former deputy chief in the area) their wish to thank the star athlete tangibly.
Doherty finished the Team 43 helmet before the most recent NHL postseason in April, but elected not to gift it at that time. He and his Kelowna-based peers didn’t want to generate some kind of superstition in the Canucks locker room, so they waited.
Lo and behold: Oct. 30 turned out to be the franchise’s Firefighters Night. Quinn’s younger brothers Jack and Luke (both top-four NHL
draft picks) rolled into town with the visiting New Jersey Devils. It was an ideal opportunity. The game itself? Less than ideal for the home team. Jack notched a goal and an assist as his Devils ran roughshod over Vancouver 6-0. Afterwards, Doherty and his fellow firefighters were ushered down to ice level where team officials gave him a microphone.
Once the Hughes family showed up, Doherty presented Quinn with the helmet after briefly explaining its origins.
“It was a real whirlwind where everything just came together at the last minute, but definitely an experience I won’t forget,” said Doherty. “The helmet itself is a symbol, but it’s about the things Quinn and other folks around the world are doing.” n
Happy New Year
CANUCKS CUSTOM NHL star Quinn Hughes (right) accepts a custom helmet from Whistler Fire Chief Thomas Doherty on Oct. 30.
Whistler giving circle donates $15K to Lil’wat food program
100
MEN WHO CARE WHISTLER HELD THEIR FIRST QUARTERLY DONATING MEETING NOV. 27
BY LIZ MCDONALD
THE RECENTLY LAUNCHED 100 Men Who Care Whistler chapter reached its first giving milestone last month.
The group formed this summer and held its first quarterly meeting Nov. 27 at the Hilton Whistler Resort and Spa, where members voted to decide which Sea to Sky organization would receive a donation. The contenders included Arts Whistler, the Lil’wat Nation and the Whistler Institute.
The group ultimately awarded the Lil’wat Nation $15,400 for the First Nation’s youth centre’s community food program.
According to a release by 100 Men, the Nation’s hot meal program provides valuable connection opportunities and food security for youth in attendance.
“This program provides an incentive for them to come to the centre where they build positive relationships with the skilled staff team,” the release said.
The youth centre provides cultural activities, homework help, gardening and a food program. The $15,400 will help the centre assist youth for at least a year.
Chris Patrick, founder of Whistler’s 100 Men chapter, said the growth in membership of his chapter has been exponential, with 154
members in less than a year.
Further, 100 Women Who Care Whistler’s recent quarterly meeting raised $14,600, bringing the grand total to $30,000 for this quarter from the men’s and women’s chapters.
“None of this stuff would have happened without Ashlie. She is the driving force of the whole thing. I hate giving her all the credit because I’m competitive. She deserves it, I could have never done it without her,” Patrick said, referencing Ashlie Girvan, who started Whistler’s women’s chapter in 2019.
He also thanked the sponsors, who ensure the group can function with all funds raised going towards recipients instead of overhead.
The biggest lesson he’s learned through the process concerns the administrative duties involved.
“I’ve learned that getting people to reply to emails is one of the most difficult things on Earth,” Patrick joked.
Members of Whistler’s 100 Men chapter function much the same as 100 Women, but
with a tiny difference. Members nominate Sea to Sky organizations and add them to a list to be considered for a donation. Each quarter, three names are drawn at random. Then, the chosen groups present their case at quarterly giving meetings. Patrick explained the women’s group learns who the top three charities are at their meeting, but the men went in a different direction.
“The men decided they wanted to have information so they could do a little bit of research before going, and especially if they were giving a proxy, then they could tell them who to vote for,” Patrick said.
If the chapter gets enough members, they would consider giving second- and thirdplace money.
“If we get to 200 members, we would certainly give it some consideration because I know there are people that would like to see that,” Patrick said.
Patrick also noted that even if certain charities don’t win the big ticket that evening, locals with deep enough pockets may consider also giving to the second- and third-place candidates.
“I’m a bit of a bully for telling people, ‘Look, this has only cost you $100 to do this tonight, so buck up some money for the other people too,’” he said.
To join the men’s chapter, visit their website at 100menwhistler.com. n
CARE IS IN THE AIR The 100 Men Who Care Whistler chapter at their first quarterly giving meeting, Nov. 27. PHOTO BY BRAD KASSELMAN / @KASSELMANCREATIVE
happy holidays
Give the gift of environmental protection this holiday season
THE ASSOCIATION OF WHISTLER AREA RESIDENTS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT IS HOLDING A HOLIDAY FUNDRAISER TO ASSIST WITH ORGANIZATIONAL CAPACITY IN 2025
BY LIZ MCDONALD
WITH THE SEASON of giving underway, one Whistler organization hopes residents will keep environmental advocacy in mind.
The Association of Whistler Area Residents for the Environment (AWARE) aims to raise $10,000 in a holiday campaign to support operations going into the new year. From December to the second week of January, they ask for donations for organizational flexibility.
“It allows us not only to build organizational capacity but program development as well,” said Pegah Pourkarimi, executive director for AWARE. “So it enables us to strengthen our foundation, expand our outreach, and, most importantly, continue to work towards building a more sustainable future for Whistler.”
Unrestricted funds ensure AWARE has appropriate staffing and outreach workers, which are valuable assets for education and awareness programming.
Pourkarimi highlighted a wide array of programs AWARE put forward in 2024 as reason enough to donate.
Over the last year, the group’s zero-
waste campaigns resulted in 4,000 kg of waste diversion from landfills. Through the Zero Waste Heroes Program, which has been ongoing since 2013, AWARE attends community events and provides valuable
primers for event organizers, ensuring they know how to avoid producing waste and how to appropriately sort recycling and organics. Post-event, they analyze outcomes, which provide tangible feedback for future events.
Their GROW program gives residents access to garden boxes to cultivate fresh, healthy vegetables, improving food security and reducing carbon footprints. More than 300 residents grew 5,200 kg of food this summer alone.
Then, AWARE’s support for GoByBike weeks saw 632 riders clock 21,393 kilometres by bike, saving 4,638 kg of greenhouse gas emissions.
Work within the circular economy through clothing swaps, meanwhile, diverted almost 1,000 kg of clothes from landfills.
The group also partnered with Green For Life Environmental to divert compost from the Nesters and Function Junction waste depots.
Of course, that’s just short-term. In 2024, AWARE released a new strategic plan for 2027, aiming to enhance programming, advocacy, research innovation, and operations.
All of this requires planning, staff, and boots on the ground. However, AWARE’s funding comes from grants for specific outcomes. Unmarked funds provide flexibility to move money where it needs to go and help ensure AWARE’s mission—protecting Whistler’s natural environment—stays on track.
Find more info, or donate to the cause, at awarewhistler.org. n
KEEP IT CLEAN People flock to Whistler for pristine nature, like the Cheakamus River, but without work from environmental groups, threats of environmental harm loom.
PHOTO BY ASCENTXMEDIA / GETTY IMAGES
Naturespeak: Feathers, Friends, and Farewells—Whistler’s 2024 birding highlights
BY KARL RICKER
THIS REPORT HAS to open with sad news; our prime birder, Chris Dale, passed away on Nov. 10. Chris was the backbone of our Monthly Bird Counts and Christmas Bird Counts for several years. Always very friendly, he shared his astute observations with everyone, and it follows that there is a lot of Chris Dale’s input into this report.
It was basically an average year when looking at the number of species seen. However, abundances of individual birds are probably below average except for Coots and American Wigeon, which again showed up in big numbers at “Rebagliati Bay” on Green Lake (the bay across the highway from the Rainbow neighbourhood).
Over the year, two species were added to our checklist, which now stands at 274 and includes the extirpated Spotted Owl (last seen in 1946) and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (seen only in 1927!). The new additions are a Sanderling Sandpiper, photographed by Ellen Ramsey and identified by Ken Wright, and a Rock Wren seen by Melissa Hafting (the B.C. eBird reviewer for six regions, including ours) on the High Note Trail on Whistler Mountain.
Not to go unmentioned are the plethora of songbirds seen by Maeve and Nicole at Cheakamus Crossing, which is developing
into a hotspot to replace the lost hotspot at Tapley’s Farm (a property where many feeders used to be). Ellen Ramsey with her telephoto lens continues to find the toughto-see species on her Monday-to-Friday daily walks at our valley-bottom lakes. Look for her bird calendar, which is released
yearly in December.
Bird walks are organized each month by Kristina Swerhun who, in addition to the monthly Alta Lake Bird Walks (first Saturday of the month), added Green Lake to the mix from April to September (third Saturday of the month). Attendance is generally good on all,
but November has had astonishing numbers of new recruits.
Shawn Mason continues as the Christmas Bird Count organizer and is doing an excellent job. Heather Baines, who organized the monthly bird walks for 20 years, is now in retirement mode while one of our best, Dea Lloyd, has moved away. For the stats I struggle to keep up, and it is time for a new volunteer on the job. So, the following is hopefully my last hurrah.
Seasonal counts for 2024 (with averages over 19 years in brackets):
Winter (Dec. to Feb.): 62 species (61.8); Spring (March to May): 135 species (135.4); Summer (June to Aug. ): 125 species (120.6); Autumn (Sept. to Nov.): 110 species (106.3); Year (Dec. 1, 2023 to Nov. 30, 2024): 178 (174.2).
There was no record, one-day high count for individual species, but we came close. Some exceptional records are: American Wigeon (350) on Oct. 31, 2002; Coots (455) on Oct. 27, 2022; and Canvasback ducks (20) on Nov. 12, 1912!
Join us at our monthly bird walks, at Alta Lake on the first Saturday of the month, year round, or at Green Lake (third Saturday) in the spring and summer. Who knows, it might be a record day for something.
Naturespeak is prepared by the Whistler Naturalists. To learn more about Whistler’s natural world, go to whistlernaturalists.ca. n
BIRDS WITH FRIENDS Elder birder and mentor Karl Ricker (left) with some of Whistler’s birding crew during an Alta Lake bird walk.
PHOTO BY KRISTINA SWERHUN
Lil’wat Forestry launches oldgrowth forest research project
THE
OLD-GROWTH STEWARDSHIP PROJECT AIMS TO CATALOGUE THE BIODIVERSITY OF LIL’WAT’S PROTECTED FOREST AREAS
BY LUKE FAULKS
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
LIL’WAT FORESTRY Ventures (LFV) is leading a data-collection project to assess old-growth areas within the First Nation’s traditional territory. The Old Growth Stewardship Data Collection Project will give the Nation a snapshot of the forest to help promote wildfire management, wildlife habitats and the growth of traditional plants.
The key to the project is old-growth forest management. Decades of fire suppression policies preventing forest fires have led to unnaturally dense forests that don’t leave enough space for native plants and wildlife to thrive.
“I’m sure if you live in the Sea to Sky, you see how thick some of the forests are,” said Klay Tindall, general manager at LFV. “That’s not normal.
“Normally, a lot of our Lil’wat Nation forests without fire suppression would see fires every, let’s say, five years, and the forest would be more open.”
The solution to that prohibitive forest density, says Tindall, is to promote regular thinning and burning practices to reduce the
availability of fuel for wildfires and allow other plant species to flourish.
“The traditional way the Lil’wat Nation would manage their forests would be to have cultural burns, which would basically thin the forest out,” said Tindall. “So what we’re looking at is the opportunity to do forestthinning areas as well as cultural burning, to bring back a lot of those ecosystems that the Nation would have managed up to a hundred years ago.
the province announced old-growth logging deferrals back in 2021. The B.C. government launched the deferral plan in November 2021, allowing some areas to temporarily pause forest harvesting to “create space for discussion on holistic, long-term management approaches for old growth forests.”
“It brought attention to the Nation that they don’t really have a good grasp of what is currently being protected for old growth,” said Tindall.
“In the past, the forest was their garden ... now that’s gone, because all the forests are just trees.”
- KLAY TINDALL
“In the past, the forest was their garden, [where] they could explore and pick what they needed ... now that’s gone because all the forests are just trees.”
Currently, between 15 and 20 per cent of Lil’wat forests are managed for timber harvesting trees and can be legally cut down by LFV crews. The remaining 80 to 85 per cent is protected and, therefore, unmanaged; it’s that protected space the stewardship project is studying.
This project has been in the works since
So LFV, in partnership with Stillwater Consulting, Chartwell Resource Group ltd., and the Lil’wat Nation’s Lands & Resources Department partnered on a multi-year research project to examine the extent of old growth within the protected area.
The endeavour, funded by the Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program (REDIP), began with training provided by Stillwater Consulting for LFV staff in early 2024. Tindall says it gave LFV the “knowledge to assess old-growth criteria,”
which his team then paired with cultural and wildlife values.
Data collection began in mid-October after the risk of wildfires diminished. Teams of three to five ventured out into pre-determined plots of land, angling to get a representative sampling of old growth. Tindall estimates about a third of the plots were completed before the weather turned. The remaining ones will be completed in spring 2025.
Once the data is compiled, LFV hopes to have definitive findings on the health of the old growth.
Over time, Tindall says the team’s intended use for the data has shifted.
“Back [at the start], we were looking at harvest to lower the damage to traditional plants, and now we’ve really changed our mindset to, ‘how can we do forest management practices that are going to increase the amount of good value of those plants?’” he said.
“[We’re also] looking at any of the cultural values that might be on the site,” Tindall added. “So [the team] have Lil’wat Nation cultural texts with them, helping to identify any cultural values.”
The LFV said in a press release it hopes the project will not only inform old-growth forest management for the Nation moving forward but help provide a template for other First Nations to “assess forest health in their territories to make more informed landmanagement decisions.” n
GENTLE GIANTS Lil’wat Forestry Ventures research teams will head back out in spring 2025. PHOTO COURTESY OF LIL’WAT FORESTRY VENTURES
Zero-emissions vehicle registration trending down in Pemberton
THE
OVERALL TREND FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES IN THE AREA REMAINS UP, FROM 2017 TO 2024
BY LUKE FAULKS
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
NEW QUARTERLY DATA released from Stats Canada reveals zero-emissions vehicle (ZEV) registrations are falling in Pemberton in 2024, despite an overall uptick in adoption of ZEVs in the village since 2017.
According to the Canadian government, ZEVs are vehicles that either have no tailpipe emissions or have the potential to do so. This includes electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, and vehicles with a hydrogen fuel cell.
The data released shows a decline in new ZEV registrations in Pemberton for the first three quarters of 2024 after a peak of 14 new registrations in the last quarter of 2023.
Nevertheless, the overall trend is up for new ZEVs among the village’s residents. Those owners said they’re happy with their purchases.
Imogen Farren bought an EV in 2022. She drives into Whistler from Pemberton twice a day to drop off and pick up her kids from daycare and makes the trip down to North Van for her work once every two weeks. With a plug-in charger installed at home, she said the EV just made sense.
“Gas prices were rising, and it actually saves us money each month having an electric vehicle,” she said. “[A]nd it was also an ethical decision we made.”
Other EV owners echoed Farren, saying fuel savings drove their choice to purchase a ZEV while environmental ethics came in a close second.
Still, not everyone is sold. The age-old problem of range anxiety—concern about how far a ZEV can make it before needing a charge—still resonates for some.
Pemberton is remote. Off-the-grid work and living precludes higher adoption of the vehicles, said some residents.
In September, two new fast chargers were installed in Pemberton at 7444 Frontier Street. Farren said they’re often available. The chargers were installed as part of a BC Hydro project to increase EV coverage in rural communities and decrease range anxiety.
A 2024 study of EV uptake found range
anxiety is mostly a thing of the past, but more so for newer EVs. Another 2024 study, this one by the U.S. Department of Energy, found EVs now have a median range of 434 kilometres or more on a single charge, which rivals many gas-powered vehicles; still, the cost of newer, higher-performing EVs remains prohibitive.
EY’s Mobility Consumer Index report, released in November, shows while six per cent more Canadians were looking to purchase a car compared with last year, two per cent fewer (52 versus 50 per cent) were considering a fully electric, plug-in hybrid, or hybrid vehicle over the next two years. That number falls further when respondents were asked about purchasing a fully electric vehicle—down to 15 from 18 per cent in 2023.
The report cited limited driving range, lack of charging infrastructure, the up-front cost of EVs and expensive battery replacements as impediments to purchase.
Other Pemberton residents expressed concerns about the environmental impact of ZEVs, questioning whether the term “zeroemissions” is accurate due to emissions associated with mining the materials required for the EVs. In 2021, the International Energy Agency estimated EVs require 173kg more minerals like lithium, nickel and copper than internal combustion engines, when ignoring steel and aluminum.
Tina Buchan lies in the middle. She and her husband commute to Whistler every day of the week during ski season in a hybrid 2023 Toyota RAV Prime. She said her decision to go hybrid was driven by wanting to contribute to the environment while managing range anxiety.
“[The car] has a hybrid engine and an EV option,” said Buchan. “We wanted something more environmentally responsible, but did not feel this area of B.C. has enough chargers to go fully EV.”
While Buchan noted the vehicle was expensive, she also said it has been worth it for the cost savings and environmental consciousness.
“We probably only fill the gasoline tank every three months and primarily rely on the EV engine,” she said. “We love this SUV and would buy it again in a second.” n
IN FLUX Stats Canada reports a sharp decline after 2023’s biggest-ever increase in new registrations.
Pemberton seeks citizen approval for water treatment facility loan
THE
LOAN’S REPAYMENT WOULD INCREASE ANNUAL WATER FRONTAGE RATES FOR MOST PEMBERTON RESIDENTS FROM $71.19 TO $147.52
BY LUKE FAULKS
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
THE VILLAGE OF PEMBERTON is seeking public input on a proposed loan repayment plan that would increase annual water rates for most residents.
On Nov. 5, council proposed borrowing up to $1.69 million from the municipal finance authority to help pay for a new water treatment facility. That loan will be repaid over a maximum term of 25 years.
To help pay back the loan, staff estimate average water frontage rates—an annual service charge for some property owners connected to the new water treatment services—will increase by $76.33 per year, from $71.19 to $147.52.
“This fee is calculated based on property frontage and specifically funds water treatment services, unlike general property taxes, which are based on property value and fund a range of public services,” said Michelle Fernandes, communications and engagement advisor for the Village of Pemberton.
According to the B.C. Community Charter, municipalities must obtain approval from the electors to borrow funds over a period of more
than five years. The VOP can do so through an assent vote or by an alternative approval process (AAP). At the Nov. 5 council meeting, the village settled on the latter.
“Because an assent vote is costly and timeconsuming, staff recommend that council direct staff to follow the alternative approval process,” read a report presented to council.
“Under the AAP, if more than 10 per cent
of the electorate submits a response indicating opposition to the loan authorization bylaw, council may decide not to pursue the proposed long-term borrowing or may proceed with an assent vote.”
The AAP will run from Dec. 16 to Jan. 31 at 4 p.m. The eligibility requirements to vote are included on the response form.
Most Pemberton residents are eligible
to vote. However, the industrial park area and its residents, located seven minutes from downtown Pemberton, have been excluded from the AAP.
“Because the Industrial Park is supplied with water purchased from Lil’wat Nation, property owners will not benefit from the water treatment facility and will not be subject to increased water and frontage rates put in place to recover the long-term borrowing costs,” said a Dec. 5 staff report.
A 2020 annual water system report revealed elevated levels of manganese and iron in two crucial Pemberton wells, spurring the plan for a new water treatment faacility. While those levels were within Health Canada’s maximum acceptable concentration limits for drinking water, they exceeded aesthetic objectives that address taste, odour, and colour. The report confirmed the elevated levels did not pose a health risk to residents.
After drilling two test wells in the Pemberton aquifer that showed insufficient yield and similarly poor water quality, the village opted to develop a new water treatment facility.
Eligible residents can submit their vote on the elector response form. The form is available at pemberton.ca, at the Village office or by emailing admin@pemberton.ca. n
GAUGING INTEREST The Village of Pemberton is seeking the public’s approval to borrow up to $1.69 million for a new water treatment facility.
PHOTO BY BET_NOIRE / GETTY IMAGES
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B.C. housing minister’s threats put municipal autonomy to the test
BY ROB SHAW
DOES THE WEAKENED BC NDP government really want to go to war with municipalities over housing? It’s a question worth watching in the tiny municipality of Oak Bay on Vancouver Island, where Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon is ramping up to pick his first real fight with a mayor and council over housing approvals.
Oak Bay has only built to completion 16 of 56 housing units, or 29 per cent of its yearly target, according to statistics Kahlon released on his social media accounts this week.
The District of West Vancouver also lags, at only 26 per cent of its 220 target housing units.
Both councils were sent sternly worded letters by Kahlon, demanding they show his staff how they can get moving on their targets within the next 30 days.
Or what?
That was the immediate response from the mayors of Oak Bay and West Van, who appear ready to call Kahlon’s bluff.
“We informed them a year ago that we didn’t have enough projects in the pipeline to meet year one targets, so it’s hardly a surprise today to be 40 units short,” Oak Bay Mayor Kevin Murodch told Black Press.
“It is somewhat concerning that the minister has chosen to single out the two smallest of the first 10 communities, when seven did not meet their first-year targets.”
West Vancouver’s mayor was similarly dismissive.
“This is just theatre,” Mayor Mark Sager told CBC News.
“We now turn around building permits in under six weeks. Good luck finding another community that does that,” he added.
“So you know, Mr. Minister, let’s get
“This is just theatre.”
- MARK SAGER
together and have an intelligent discussion.”
Kahlon, though, continued sabre-rattling.
it doesn’t succeed. The end result would salt the earth for future New Democrats in and around Oak Bay.
Kahlon’s also threatening to take legal action against the District of Sooke, on southern Vancouver Island, which refused to approve new provincially required bylaws to allow quad-plexes on single family lots. The new NDP MLA for that riding, Dana Lajeunesse, comes from Sooke council.
Bigfooting municipalities has been at the core of Premier David Eby’s housing strategy since he took office in 2022. He first offered carrots, in the form of extra money for transit and infrastructure, for municipalities who embraced his density dreams on single-family lots and near transit hubs.
But he also crafted a very sharp stick, in the form of legislation that allows him to override councils who refuse to meet his arbitrarily set housing targets, allowing the province to step in and take over approvals.
That was pre-election Eby though, when he was moving at warp speed with unwavering confidence. After his government got spanked by voters in October and came within 22 votes of losing its majority, it’s not clear if the premier or Kahlon still strike the same fear in the hearts of municipalities.
Since then, Eby has promised to slow down, consult more and bring British Columbians along with him on solving the big problems of the day. Overthrowing duly elected municipal councils seems like the opposite of that.
Still, the NDP is under pressure to show results. Housing starts are down 11 per cent from last year, according to the second quarter financial results released this week. Singlefamily housing starts dropped 21.9 per cent in urban centres.
Finance Minister Brenda Bailey attempted to put a good spin on the numbers, noting
they remain above the 10-year historical average, even with declines.
“Within the legislation, I’ll have the ability to either bring in an advisor that can look at decisions the council has made, look at the processes local governments have in place to improve housing in a quicker way. So that’s one route,” he told Black Press.
But residential building permits, which financial officials describe as a leading indicator of future home construction, declined 8.5 per cent—as much as 13.1 per cent for detached dwellings. That doesn’t bode well for the future.
“And the other route is I have the ability to step in and make changes at the local government level, if those changes are needed, to be able to improve housing quicker.”
The lacklustre housing starts may be one reason the NDP seems intent on threatening municipalities. But can it, and will it, follow through? All eyes are on Kahlon for his next move.
It would be quite a thing for the housing minister to sail into Oak Bay and steamroll the council.
Kahlon would have to contend with fallout affecting his seatmate, Oak Bay-Gordon Head MLA and Jobs Minister Diana Gibson, who’d quite likely become the subject of a recall petition. MLAs who have been through that process can tell you it is unpleasant, even if
Rob Shaw has spent more than 16 years covering B.C. politics, now reporting for CHEK News and writing for Glacier Media. He is the co-author of the national bestselling book A Matter of Confidence, host of the weekly podcast Political Capital, and a regular guest on CBC Radio. rob@robshawnews.com n
Happy Nonfiction (and Schneeschlagern)!
THE OTHER DAY, at loss for a word to describe that greatest of Canadian winter sports—kicking the snow out of your automobile’s wheel wells—I asked ChatGPT to make one up. In German, of course, since it wouldn’t be grammatically possible in English. It offered up Schneeschlagern, which I immediately added to my vocabulary. Combining schnee (snow) + schlagen (to strike or hit), the “ern” ending brings a more verb-
BY LESLIE ANTHONY
Ich muss das Auto schnell schneeschlagern, bevor wir losfahren (I need to kick the snow out of the car’s wheel wells
This is the kind of thing ChatGPT is good at. Reviewing books, not so much. Which is why I read them for you and post one of these non-fiction reviews every Christmas and every spring. This year’s may be a little late, but it’s just in time for post-Christmas sales.
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, Vintage 2006
Winner of the 2006 Pulitzer Prize and inspiration for the blockbuster 2023 movie Oppenheimer (seven Academy Awards, five Golden Globes), this monumental biography
explores the life of the enigmatic physicist at the heart of the Manhattan Project, America’s secret Second World War gambit to develop the atomic bomb. Delving into Oppenheimer’s personal complexity—immensely gifted, charming, driven, deeply conflicted about his work’s consequences—his internal struggle as both “American Prometheus” and a tragic figure who unleashed a power he couldn’t control provides an unsettling emotional core captured in the portrayal of post-war life amidst the political witch hunts of the McCarthy era.
Why Fish Don’t Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life, by Lulu Miller, Simon & Schuster 2020
This national bestselling blend of memoir, science and philosophical perambulation (reviewers called it “magical” and “perfect”) uses the life of David Starr Jordan—a venerated but ultimately flawed taxonomist possessed with bringing order to the natural world—to unpack not only the argument of why fish don’t actually exist as a unified biological category, but broader existential questions about the nature of life, the universe, grief and loss, and the human urge to overcome perceived chaos. The idea that “fish don’t exist” evokes the arbitrary ways we structure knowledge and rely too heavily on classification systems that can obscure complexity and richness in both the world— and ourselves.
The Great River: The Making & Unmaking of the Mississippi, by Boyce Upholt, Norton 2021
This compelling exploration of one of the world’s most iconic watercourses combines historical context, scientific insight, and on-the-ground reportage in examining how humans have reshaped the Mississippi
for better and worse, and what it means for the river’s future. Created eons ago by continental forces, the great river has been additionally shaped by countless societies, from Indigenous communities to European settlers to modern-day engineers and politicians. Damming, levee-building, industrial agriculture, and urban development dramatically altered the river’s natural course and ecosystem, often with unforeseen and devastating environmental, structural and social consequences. But the question of what can be done—or undone—remains.
Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping the Future of Our Planet, by Ben Goldfarb, Norton 2023
Grand Prize Winner at the 2024 Banff Mountain Book Festival, Crossings offers an insightful look at the understudied effects of human infrastructure on wildlife through the emerging science of road ecology. At the intersection of infrastructure development and conservation lies the biological reality of how roads fragment natural habitats, creating barriers both genetic and physical that become death traps for wildlife of all types and sizes. Goldfarb’s wealth of factual info and engaging storytelling takes readers on a journey through various global efforts to mitigate these negative impacts.
Meet the Neighbours: Animal Minds and Life in a More-than-human World, by Brandon Keim, Norton 2024
A thoughtful and engaging exploration of human biophilia—our desire to understand and connect with the natural world through the lives of animals—Keim explores how we tend to place ourselves at the centre of the world (anthropocentrism), leading us to view animals through a lens that both diminishes
their complexity and undermines our ability to empathize with their reality. Part scientific inquiry, part philosophical reflection, Keim draws on recent discoveries in animal cognition and behaviour to show how a range of animals have more sophisticated understandings of their environment and rich social interactions than we assume, challenging the received view of animals as mere creatures of instinct.
Into the Silence: The Great War, Mallory, and the Conquest of Everest, by Wade Davis, Vintage 2011
I’ll finish with the best book I read this year. Though all his works open eyes to the human condition, in this meticulously researched magnum opus 12 years in the making, anthropologist, author, and former National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, Wade Davis also proves himself a historian of note. Weaving exploration, history and war psychology, this page-turner combines the adventure of high-altitude mountaineering with the haunting legacy of the First World War. Centred on George Mallory, who famously disappeared during a 1924 attempt on Everest with climbing partner, Andrew Irvine, the mystery of whether they summitted before their deaths has captivated mountain historians for decades. The book expands the narrative by delving deep into the devastating impact of war and how the profound psychological scars visited on Mallory and contemporaries transmogrified into an urge to summit the world’s highest peak. ( Postscript: the finding of Mallory’s body in 2009 and what is probably Irvine’s in 2024 only amplifies the importance of this treatise .)
Leslie Anthony is a Whistler-based author, editor, biologist and bon vivant who has never met a mountain he didn’t like. n
THE GREAT RIVER The Mississippi River is one of the world’s most iconic watercourses.
PHOTO
ISTOCK
BEST OF WHISTLER 2024
BY PIQUE STAFF // PHOTOS BY BRAD KASSELMAN @KASSELMANCREATIVE
BRAD KASSELMAN has been photographing the community since 1992, and is a former owner of Coast Mountain Photography. His freelance photo/video production company works around North America for charity, commercial and corporate clients. Find more of his work at kasselmancreative.com
Quintessential Whistler
Favourite Whistlerite
It’s the stink that just won’t wash off.
For the second consecutive year, Jeremy
“Stinky” Peterson is your favourite Whistlerite.
“It blew my mind away. Wow,” Peterson said between hearty coughs, when reached by phone (“sorry, I’m smoking a joint,” he said—but no apologies necessary).
“It’s pretty cool to be Whistler’s favourite local. Pretty humbling, if you will say, because I’m just a simple guy, having a lot of fun doing what I do, and just trying to make a lot of people happy.”
It hasn’t been all fun and games this year for the owner of Village Stroll sports bar Stinky’s on the Stroll, though—with rent on the rise Peterson’s business is now up for sale, after enduring “probably the worst November I’ve had since COVID,” he said.
“It’s the shittiest thing ever, because I’ve done so much to try to do it, and it’s not me that’s failing, it’s the town,” he said. “It’s the greed of landlords who think that they are entitled
to charge as much as they want.”
But even in hard times, Stinky isn’t letting it get him down.
“It is what it is,” he said, still coughing. “I can’t be upset about it. I’ve done a great run, and nobody can ever say I didn’t do anything good for the community.”
And when asked what comes next in 2025, Stinky said he’s not ready to give up the ghost just yet.
“I’ll be honest, I’d love to try to keep Stinky’s, and if it goes, then well I dunno,” he said. “I’m looking for a new place … maybe a Stinky’s 2.0, maybe a Stinky’s in the Creek—so I’m not saying no to anything, I’m just trying to do the best I can with what I got, and the cards I’m being dealt.”
Mayor Jack Crompton came second, while DJ Ace Mackay-Smith (a.k.a Foxy Moron) and local plumber Lee Carter tied for third.
Favourite Volunteer
Consider it a dynasty: for the fourth straight year, Denise Wood is Whistler’s favourite volunteer, according to Pique readers.
“That is hilarious. Really?” Wood said. “That’s so nice, and lovely, but I am surprised, yeah.”
It shouldn’t come as a surprise—Whistler is well known for being a town of passionate doglovers, and Wood has served as a board member at local animal shelter Whistler Animals Galore (WAG) for 15 years.
She’s also well known for her fundraisers for the shelter, including selling her handmade dog bandanas at Whistler Happy Pets in Function Junction.
“I try to get the word out there about [WAG],
and I volunteer and actively promote the animals through my own social media and that kinda stuff,” she said. “And yeah, I’m a real advocate for WAG, and passionate about all the animals there, so I don’t know if that’s why.”
The shelter is running its matching campaign through the holidays, supported by Zog’s and Moguls—there’s still time to donate at whistlerwag.com—and in 2025 will look to find loving homes for some of its long-term residents.
“Good old Lola is still there, still looking for a home,” Wood said, referring to the six-year-old pitbull who has become something of a social media star over the years. “Things are overall going well, but we’re definitely fundraising and looking for that support.”
Why should people volunteer?
“Obviously it gives back to the community, and it helps any non-profit—whatever your interest is, it helps them, because non-profits … I would say most are always financially challenged, so whatever you can give back in your expertise [is helpful],” Wood said.
“Obviously I love animals and I really care about animal welfare, but I think it’s good for people to find what their passion is [and volunteer in that area].”
Ashlie Girvan came second, while Toni Lochrie, Kevin Mikkelsen, Donna Savage and Paul Dorland all tied for third.
This category has been dominated for years by Whistler Animals Galore—another testament to Whistler’s love for dogs—but in 2024, the crew at the Whistler Community Services Society (WCSS) earned the top honour as Whistler’s favourite non-profit.
Maybe because more people than ever before are accessing its services.
November was another record-breaking month for the WCSS-operated Whistler Food
FEATURE STORY
Bank, with 2,262 visits, up 35 per cent from the same period last year.
If you’re looking for ways to give back, WCSS— and all non-profits, really—can always use cash.
Perennial champions WAG placed second this year, followed by Zero Ceiling, the Whistlerbased organization dedicated to ending youth homelessness.
Best decision by council
It was another busy year at Whistler’s municipal hall, and as is usually the case, council’s commitment to building housing was the best decision made at the council table in 2024, according to Pique readers.
Since 2018, the municipal subsidiary Whistler Housing Authority (WHA) has opened five new resident-restricted rental apartment buildings, bringing its inventory of non-market rental housing to 818 beds. Between ownership and rental, more than 7,300 Whistlerites now live in below-market WHA housing.
Council’s decision to enact higher fines for short-term rentals was your second-favourite move, while bringing back the Whistler Village Canada Day parade, sidelined since 2020, came third.
Worst decision by council
But for all the work on housing, it’s still not enough for many Pique readers, as rents increase and availability remains scarce.
“Not moving fast enough on housing” was voted worst decision by Whistler council in 2024.
The controversial decision to end the Whistler Waldorf School’s lease at Spruce Grove came second, followed by the decision to hike building permit fees by 30 per cent.
Biggest news story
In mid-July, keen-eyed observers of Whistler’s forests noticed something concerning—trees turning red on the mountainsides.
According to the Cheakamus Community Forest, an outbreak of western spruce budworm is to blame.
In a post on its website July 24, the CCF noted red trees are showing in the areas above White Gold, Function Junction and along Sproatt and Rainbow Mountains. The outbreak is reportedly happening across the Coast/Interior transition forests from Whistler to Hope, and seems to be restricted to the band of higher elevation forests (about 800 to 1,100 metres), the post said.
“Currently, the only viable management option is to aerial spray with Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (Btk), a biological agent that kills the caterpillar when it eats the treated tree needles and is harmless to other species,” the CCF said in a blog post.
The effectiveness of the treatment—and the impact of spruce budworm on fire risk in the resort—will be one to watch in 2025.
A drop in visitation to the resort after a poor snow year was voted the second-biggest story of the year, while a pair of on-mountain skier deaths came third.
Biggest environmental concern
No surprises here, given the challenging snow year of 2024: climate change is the biggest environmental concern of Pique readers.
The ongoing threat of wildfires—no doubt exacerbated by the devastation seen in Jasper, Alta., this year—came second, followed by logging in Whistler’s old-growth forests.
- BRADEN DUPUIS
Restaurants and Cafés
Araxi
than lunch or dinner, breakfast is all about familiarity, nostalgia. Devotees of the first meal of the day know what they want and exactly how they want it.
for the second year in a row, knows full well.
“I’ve been cooking here since 2013 and I keep the food the same way as I was showed,” said Haselbach, who took ownership of the Function Junction diner in 2020. “Our food has always stayed the same.”
That consistency is what keeps Wild Wood’s loyal regulars coming back—and they can be set in their ways. Haselbach likes to joke the only time he gets his regulars to try something new off the menu is when he offers it for free.
It also doesn’t hurt that Wild Wood serves up its classic breakfast plates and bennies until 3 p.m. daily, a welcome schedule for a town that loves to keep the good times rollin’ late.
Even as the restaurant, like many others in Whistler, has struggled with rising costs and a downturn in sales—the owner estimates business is down about 40 per cent over the past two years—Haselbach has strived to keep prices affordable for the little guy.
We have lots of really good soup and lunch specials, and all the construction guys working in Cheakamus, for them to go to the village and get a Quarter Pounder meal is more expensive than some of our menu items—and ours are made with love,” he said.
Brunch is known as the bane of a line cook’s existence, with its endless parade of poached eggs and hash browns. If he had his druthers, Haselbach would focus more on his true culinary passion: barbecue.
“Ideally, if we went back to pre-pandemic volumes, it would be nice to have my guys take care of breakfast and lunch and then I’d do barbecue a few nights a week,” he said. “Out of all the food I’ve cooked, barbecue is the one I’m more passionate about and enjoy cooking. It feels less like work when I’m doing it.”
Maybe it’s time to add a Favourite Barbecue category to Best of Whistler?
- BRANDON BARRETT
Twenty-one years of 21 Steps
ohn McMillen cares about how a roll-up is done. That’s not something you can say about every restaurant owner, but not every restaurant owner is as hands-on as McMillen and Allie Warner.
for choosing us as Whistler’s Best Grocery Store as voted by readers of Pique Newsmagazine
At Creekside Market we work hard everyday to provide our community with the best groceries and freshest produce. As a locally owned and operated grocery store, serving Whistler since 1988, we are honored to win this award voted for by you, our customers.
Thank you Whistler, from your Creekside Market Family!
FEATURE STORY
“We’re in the trenches with the rest of the staff. I bartend. Allie will run the door. I’ll be doing roll-ups and polishing glasses with the staff,” said McMillen, who, alongside Warner, owns and operates 21 Steps Kitchen + Bar, voted Best Casual Dining and Best Customer Service in this year’s poll. “If you think of yourself as a guest coming into the restaurant and sitting down, we may be serving out 60 plates of garlic chili prawns a night, but when that person sits down that’s the only thing they’re gonna see, that one dish. We put care into every dish.”
Even calling 21 Steps casual dining can feel like a misnomer. While there’s no doubt the ambience cultivated by the village restaurant’s highly trained staff is warm and inviting, the service and menu, packed with generously portioned modern comfort food, is elevated to such a quality that it feels like fine dining— without all the fussiness.
“That is one thing we are always striving for. We want that fine-dining level of service where tables are clean and waters are filled and the
steps of service are impeccable, and we want the personality of our servers to shine through and make it a comfortable experience,” McMillen said.
Taking over the restaurant six years ago after serving as longtime staff, Warner and McMillen know first-hand that a restaurant is only as good as the employees who make it all work.
“Our goal is to make sure we get return customers all the time and to make sure we have happy staff that feel respected and care about the work they’re doing,” said Warner. “We hire extremely qualified and professional staff. We are so blessed with the team we have. We are who we are because of them.”
21 Steps will celebrate an important milestone next year: its 21st birthday. Warner said the restaurant has a few things planned to celebrate, including a to-be-announced anniversary party and a special beer brewed by Coast Mountain Brewing to mark the occasion.
We aredeeplyhonuored to berecognized by theWhistlercommunityastheBestHotel inWhistler.Thisdistinctionis atestament to thededicationandpassionofourentire teaminprovidingexceptionalserviceandcreatingunforgettableguest experiences.
We extendourheartfeltgratitudetoour valuedguests fortheircontinuedsupport and forchoosingFairmontChateauWhistlerastheirhomeawayfromhomeinWhistler.
THAN KYOU
All in the family at the Dubh (even if you’re not Irish)
ou don’t have to hail from the Emerald Isle to work at Whistler’s cherished Irish pub—but it certainly doesn’t hurt.
“I think we’re pretty authentic. We do get a lot of that feedback from our Irish clientele, and a number of our staff, believe it or not, are Irish, and they often find their way here when they land in Whistler,” said Louise Oliver, operations manager at The Dubh Linn Gate, voted Whistler’s Best Bar for the fifth time since this category was introduced in 2018.
Clearly, the Dubh is doing something right, and that authenticity is built into its foundation— literally. The pub was designed, crafted, and transported piece-by-piece from its native Ireland across the pond to the Pan Pacific Whistler when it opened in 1997.
Then there’s the Guinness. The Dubh imports and pours more pints of the iconic Irish stout than any other bar in Western Canada, and the bar staff is very particular about doing it the proper way.
For the uninitiated: A perfect pint of Guinness starts with an imperial, 20-ounce Guinness glass, poured at a 45-degree angle, without the glass touching the tap, until it hits the harp of the Guinness logo, then it should be left to settle so there are no bubbles on the head before the rest of the pint is poured.
“It is a very rare day we’ve had someone say this isn’t poured correctly,” Oliver said. “Usually, our mandate here, no matter what happens, is to never run out of Guinness.”
Add in one of the busiest live music lineups in the resort, a bountiful menu of après favourites and hearty Irish classics, and you’ve got the recipe for a proper pub outing that would make James Joyce swoon.
For Oliver’s money, the one thing that puts Dubh Linn Gate over the top year after year is the family vibe the staff have cultivated.
“Most of us know how it feels to be so far away from our families, so we do our best to create family here,” she said.
- BRANDON BARRETT
Arts, Media and Culture
Favourite Artist/ Artisan:
1) Andrea Mueller
2) Vanessa Stark 3) Dave Petko
Favourite Major Art Show
1) Art on the Lake
2) Dirt Diaries
3) Andrea Mueller: Inconsistent Memory
The dubh Linn Gate
Favourite Arts and Culture Event
1) Crankworx
2) Whistler Summer Concert Series
3) Art on the Lake Favourite Photographer
1) Logan Swayze/Rob Perry
2) Joern Rohde
3) Blake Jorgenson
Favourite Filmmaker
1) Kris Dontas
2) Ryan Kenny/Mike Douglas
3) Sandy Ward
Favourite Music Artist/Band
1) The Hairfarmers
2) Ruckus Deluxe
3) Red Chair
Andrea Mueller
‘Can I opt out next year?’
hen Andrea Mueller learned she’d been voted Whistler’s favourite artist—again—her knee-jerk reaction was: “We need a new winner around here.”
Now, folks can’t exactly be faulted for noticing Mueller as one of the Sea to Sky area’s more prolific talents. She touched off the year with a notable exhibit in the Maury Young Arts Centre named “Inconsistent Memory”: an out-of-the-box series of visual reflections on her own childhood.
If you checked out that exhibition in January, it probably stuck in your mind.
“A lot of people were surprised, because [Inconsistent Memory] was totally different from what I usually show,” Mueller recalls. “But overall I think it was really well received, and people understood that it was a more personal subject matter. For me, it was nice to showcase some other work that I do … installation art and some of my photography.”
Mueller also partnered with the Whistler Youth Centre, utilizing grant money from the Whistler Real Estate Association to deliver a custom paint-bynumbers project. Local teenagers worked on filling it out all summer, and as of this writing the fruits of their labour await display in the Youth Centre.
Demand for child and adolescent-focused programming is tangible, so Mueller plans to establish some more creative initiatives for them at her own Creekside store: Art Pop.
“You only know what you are exposed to,” says Mueller. “In a town that’s very heavy on sports, I think the more arts programming we can have [the better]. There are so many awesome, talented musicians and artists who are doing that right now … and seeing it is actually very encouraging for me.”
On that note, Mueller encourages her fellow Sea to Sky creatives to persevere. Theirs is not an easy career, but she believes if your real passion is to make art, that passion is worth hustling for.
She’s also good with taking a break from the limelight.
“I definitely feel the love and I’m excited that the community is supportive of me,” Mueller says. “I do wish there were more artists able to stay in Whistler, so we would have different people winning this award. Can I opt out next year? Let someone else have a crack?”
- DAVID SONG
‘The essence of the
song’
t’s not easy being a cover band. That line of work means you’re inherently judged on your ability to replicate someone else’s content. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but flattery alone won’t pay the bills— especially in an arts environment like Whistler where standards are high.
Cover bands come and go. The Hairfarmers are here to stay.
Now entering their 25th season, “Guitar” Doug Craig and “Grateful” Greg Reamsbottom have redefined the meaning of the term “workhorse.” They play more than 200 gigs a year, from intimate private venues to grand arenas. They’ve opened for or co-headlined with musical royalty: the Tragically Hip, Our Lady Peace, and Tom Petty, just to name a few.
Perhaps most amazingly of all: Craig and Reamsbottom do not rehearse for any of their shows. They go in with their fingers firmly on the pulse of their audience, confident that their experience and raw talent will help them perform any song requested—even if they’ve never played it live before.
“We can’t be going back to practice and thinking about how to make things perfect,” explains Craig. “We’ve got a very distinct sound.”
The Hairfarmers song list includes more than 2,500 tracks, and their website bills it as “everything from Johnny Cash to Jimi Hendrix and U2, Bob Dylan to Led Zeppelin and Coldplay, Willie Nelson to the Grateful Dead, the Black Keys to Taylor Swift.” Not every show is perfect, but more often than not they do their source material justice.
“The challenge of our format is we basically [have] an acoustic guitar, a tambourine, a pair of conga drums and some harmonicas,” Reamsbottom says. “It’s sometimes harder to pull off a Pink Floyd song where they’ve got a much bigger ensemble playing it originally … but even though we have a limited scope as far as the tools we’ve got to work with, we always try to capture the essence of the song.”
Adds Craig: “We have to feel it. We’ve got to actually believe the song, feel the song and put ourselves in the songwriter’s shoes.”
- DAVID SONG
The passion burns
ot every teenager can speak eloquently about their sport, nor does every teen approach their craft with a mature mindset. Jude Oliver does both, and he fully deserves to be known as Whistler’s favourite junior athlete.
At just 15 years old, Oliver was named to the Freestyle BC High-Performance Park Team this April. He has never failed to podium at a Timber Tour event, won the provincial Style Matters award in 2023 and clinched a pair of Junior Nationals medals (big air gold, slopestyle bronze).
Oh, and just so you know: the kid netted slopestyle silver at home during Senior Nationals in April, coming within two points of 18-year-old victor Mattheus Heslop’s score.
Oliver’s humility, work ethic, talent and respect for people convinced the Sarah Burke Foundation to award him its Up & Coming Scholarship, which will help fund a season that includes travel to Europe and the United States. He brims with gratitude for their
Jude Oliver
support—and the backing of his fellow Whistlerites.
“It’s amazing. I’m really grateful to everybody that voted for me [in the Best of Whistler poll],” said Oliver. “And just to stand in Sarah Burke’s name is such an honour. It’s crazy to be associated with one of the greatest of all time. She was such a big influence on our sport.”
Six-time X Games medallist Burke passed away in January 2012 from a tragic head injury at
age 29, but had she lived to meet Oliver, she might have been proud of his passion for freestyle skiing.
His mom, Louise, certainly is. “I’m proud of Jude every day, not just skiing-wise. I don’t know how, but we got lucky to have such a great kiddo,” she remarked. “He’s had some incredible coaching, no question, but Jude puts the work in. He goes to the gym, wakes himself up at 6 a.m., and that’s all on him.”
As of this writing, Oliver’s arsenal of midair manoeuvres includes double 1440s with grabs, a triple-cork 1440 and a switch triple 1260. He next aims to master a switch 1800, and for him, the process of learning any given trick is almost as fulfilling as the moment of success.
“I love progressing in my skiing, and especially being able to do that with all the people on the mountain who are my best buddies,” Oliver said. “The fact I’m around all that culture and travelling around the world to see more just with my sport really contributes to why I love it so much. That feeling when you land a new trick keeps me going, and my passion just keeps burning and burning.”
- DAVID SONG
PHOTO BY JOSEPH ROBY
RE-USe-IT Centre
fanatics, combined with the low price point offered, as reasons why Whistlerites voted for the Centre.
Some favourite finds she’s seen people go home with include high-end cookware, retro ski suits and electronic gaming systems. Visitors can pop in for a can opener and end up finding a whole new winter wardrobe. Heck, you could stock an entire kitchen cupboard with enough visits.
The Centre is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, and accepts donations from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
A full list of what the Centre accepts is available on their website at mywcss.org.
Caparella highlighted all proceeds from the Centre go back into programming for WCSS, from the food bank that has seen use increase by 34 per cent by the end of 2024 financials, to outreach services. WCSS’s outreach team is available for no-cost support to community members undergoing challenges to mental health, finances, housing, physical health and injury, substance use, and more. The team can meet folks where they are, and services are also virtual.
- LIZ MCDONALD
for the perfect outfit or voting in Best of Whistler. But one store rose above all others: The Beach in Town Plaza.
Fashionistas looking for the newest finds will often end up here, where they’ll find great clothing and advice only a best friend would give.
Store manager Louise Heyman said the reason they often end up on the top three list for Best of Whistler comes down to offerings and service.
“We get a variety of stock in store. Our buyer is ahead of the trends, so our clothes are a little bit different. And we also try to give customer service that is honest and make it feel like they are shopping with their friends,” she said. Their buyer is an avid traveller and takes inspiration from Europe, while keeping up with trends in fashion news through social media. And just as a good friend wouldn’t let someone leave the store with an outfit that isn’t quite right, the staff at The Beach won’t, either.
Community Services Society (WCSS) offshoot won best used, vintage & consignment in the first year Pique has run the category.
Louise Caparella, director of social enterprise for WCSS, said she appreciates the community’s support.
“It’s very exciting—there are quite a few other thrift stores in Whistler, so it’s nice to be recognized,” she said.
Caparella pointed to the variety of items the centre has on hand for deal-seekers and vintage
Like going shopping with your best friend
ith big names in the fashion industry calling Whistler home, there are so many options to choose from when searching
While some clothing stores only offer one brand to choose from, variety stands out at The Beach, with companies like Ray-Ban, Lune Active and Fjallraven to name a few, and despite the store’s name, they cater to clothing offerings for almost any occasion. There’s even a small vintage section to search for treasures from days gone by.
But they are The Beach, after all, and understand just how important the perfect swimsuit is. Swimwear brands come from Australia, America and Colombia, with brands people can’t find elsewhere in the ski town.
- LIZ MCDONALD
Whistler VillageStroll
Health and Fitness
1)
Favourite
1) Whistler 360 2) Creekside Health 3) Sea to Sky Orthopedics
Favourite
Parlour
Tattoo
1) Death Proof Tattoo & Barber
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A sports complex for everyone
histlerites love to move and groove, whether it’s on a mountain or in the gym. But their favourite place for healthy indoor activity is the Meadow Park Sports Centre (MPSC).
Roger Weetman, manager of recreation at the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW), said in an email the centre appreciates Whistlerites’ vote.
“On behalf of all the staff at the Meadow Park Sports Centre, we would like to thank the community for voting for MPSC as favourite fitness activity provider,” he said.
“We are all very proud of the work we do and the amenities and programs we get to provide for our guests. As a bonus, we love the opportunity to connect with our community and be a part of their
lives at all ages and stages. Thank you, Whistler!”
The RMOW-run facility offers a one-stopshop for fitness. Swimming, a gym and personal training, skating, squash and basketball are all in the same complex.
Specialized programming for cardiac rehab, a cancer exercise program and a Parkinson’s Disease exercise program are offered based on request and interest.
With tight budgets for pretty much everyone these days, the accessible prices are another benefit of using the facility.
Community nights on Tuesdays and Fridays offer 50 per cent off rates after 6 p.m., and there are discounted membership prices on the same days. Then, there’s off-peak pass discounts midweek, providing discounted access during less-busy hours.
The space is open daily from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., excluding holiday hours.
- LIZ MCDONALD
A personalized hiatus from life’s stress
fter a long day skiing and riding, or a stressful week at work, Whistler residents and guests have their eyes on the perfect place to decompress. This year, they’ve chosen The Spa at Nita Lake Lodge for a hiatus from life.
Rebecca Mullan, spa manager, said what sets the Lodge apart comes from the nexus of amenities and environment.
We aredeeplyhonoredtohave been votedBestDentalPractice2024in theannual"BestofWhistler" awardsonceagain.T hisrecognitionmeans theworldtoallofusatCreeksideDental,andit’s atrueprivilege toserve suchanincrediblecommunity.
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“At The Spa at Nita Lake Lodge, we offer a personalized experience that connects guests with the natural beauty of our surroundings. Our treatments are customized to meet individual needs using highquality, locally sourced products,” Mullan said.
“Our serene lakefront location offers a peaceful escape from the hustle of Whistler Village, providing the perfect retreat for those seeking a more intimate and calming experience.”
Relaxation is built into the decor, with rustic and modern elements made from natural materials and earthy tones which reflect Whistler. The ambiance is designed to calm guests, with soft lighting, tranquil music and mountain views.
With an average visitation of 15,000 guests each year, Mullan said they have many returning customers, a testament to the quality of
personalized service they provide.
“I believe Whistler voted for The Spa at Nita Lake Lodge because of the exceptional talent and dedication of our team. They focus on crafting personalized treatments that address each guest’s individual needs, creating an experience that is both revitalizing and restorative,” she said.
“Whether it’s a relaxing massage, a refreshing facial, or specialized treatment, our team is committed to delivering outstanding service with a personal touch. This dedication ensures that every guest feels truly cared for, leaving the spa feeling rejuvenated. We are deeply honoured by the recognition, which reflects the professionalism and passion our therapists bring to each treatment.”
- LIZ MCDONALD
THE BEST OF MAXED OUT
n case you haven’t heard the news, Pique’s longtime back-page columnist, the incomparable rabble-rouser G.D. Maxwell, is retiring at year’s end.
For 29 years—nearly as long as the paper has existed—Max has provided cutting insights, shone light on pressing issues, and provided more than a few big laughs along the way.
Whether your love him or hate him, his influence is undeniable—and he will be dearly missed.
Of course, there is an endless list of highlights you could pick out from his 1,500-plus columns published
over nearly three decades. But in the interest of saving us all some time and space, here are just a few of Max’s greatest hits. You can find most of them online with some incisive Googling, or at the Whistler Public Library in Pique’s printed archives.
- THE ANNALS OF GREED. A threeweek dive into greed and sustainability. Aug. 21, 28 and Sept. 11, 2003. Why the week delay before part III? “Surgery on my hand, itself a very amusing look at one man’s experience with the Canadian health-care system,” Max says.
- THE J.J. CHRONICLES: Aug. 29, 2002—J.J. heads south with his idea for the World Trade Centre monument. March 24, 2006—The Holy Panini Sandwich Bar, Yoga Studio, Esthetics and Wellness Centre. Dec. 8, 1995—J.J.’s first appearance in the pages of Pique
- COWBOYS AND INDIANS: A twoparter in October 1999.
- KILLING THE GOLDEN GOOSE: Another two-parter, published in the last two weeks of July, 2001, in which Max delves into the difference between condo hotels and real hotels in Whistler.
- PEACE IN OUR TIME: Published Aug. 11 and Aug. 18, 2014, this two-parter outlined Max’s plan for peace in the Middle East. “That’s right, give Israel Florida, peace in our time and the thrill of watching Arabs go back to fighting each other,” he says. “The fact this got me called a Nazi by one reader is a bonus!” n
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‘I believe in proof within life’
ONE YEAR AFTER A CALAMITOUS TRAINING INCIDENT, WHISTLER’S BRODERICK THOMPSON IS SKIING AGAIN
BY DAVID SONG
BRODERICK THOMPSON is grateful to be alive. He has also resolved to make the most of his life going forward.
Part of that means going back to his lifelong passion, despite all expectations to the contrary.
Let’s not mince words here: Thompson’s accident on Nov. 29, 2023 could have killed him. It may also have paralyzed him or permanently damaged his cognitive abilities, rendering him unable to follow basic instructions or care for himself independently.
That’s the frightening thing about neurological afflictions: their long-term effect upon a human being is not easily predicted or quantified.
As a two-time Olympian and veteran of the FIS World Cup circuit, Thompson is familiar with the spectre of risk looming over his every move. He’s got plenty of intestinal fortitude (one must in his profession) but the previous year has shaken him in ways no other year can replicate. Nobody would question him for retiring, or for altering his lifestyle in the name of protecting his embattled brain.
Yet when Thompson speaks of his decision
to return to snow—announced initially on Oct. 27 via social media—there is nary a hint of doubt in his voice.
“I believe in proof within life,” said Thompson. “If I can show what’s possible, having gone through a severe traumatic brain injury and recovered from it, then I’m setting a precedent for others who are going through the same thing.”
‘A LOT OF RED EYES’
Thompson does not remember the crash and won’t view footage of it, but knows it’s one of the most violent his coaches have ever witnessed.
The Canadian national team was in Beaver Creek, Colo., training on the Birds of Prey venue for a trio of World Cup races that were ultimately not held due to adverse weather. The course has claimed other victims: Norwegian World and Olympic champ Aksel Lund Svindal broke facial bones in 2007, while Erik Arvidsson of Team USA ruptured his ACL and LCL on the same day Thompson went down.
But the Whistlerite had it worst of all.
“It rocked us,” admitted Brodie Seger, Thompson’s longtime friend and teammate. “The most difficult part was having very little direct information … beyond knowing that whatever happened to him was serious enough to require an immediate evacuation to Denver. It was a sombre moment for our team when we had that meeting the night after the accident.
“The coaches were there and I could see on their faces that our head coach [John Kucera] had already given them an update from the hospital. There were a lot of red eyes in the room and it just hit all of us. It feels like a rock in your stomach as you think, ‘what the hell are they about to tell us?’”
Intel was scarce at first. Minor updates (that Thompson was awake, that he’d spoken a few words, that he’d been eating on his own) generated feelings of ambivalence within friends and family as they longed for confirmation of something more definitively positive.
Seger called Thompson’s younger sister Tess
at one point. She informed him that more than a week after the crash Thompson was still not lucid. His pain was ever-present, his speech a series of mumbled words, and on one troubling day he failed to recognize his own fiancée.
“Tess painted a little bit more realistic picture of how it actually was in that hospital room for Broderick, and I kind of broke down hearing it because that was the first time I had to face the more gruesome details of the situation,” he said.
‘ZERO TO 100’
Thompson figures he spent roughly a week in Denver before being airlifted to Vancouver General Hospital (VGH). After 10 days there, he was transferred again to the GF Strong Rehabilitation Centre—which became his home for more than two months.
“I was in a neck brace for 10 weeks. I had a lot of stiffness, broken bones and things that I had to work around as I was getting back on my feet,” Thompson recounted. “But GF Strong is an amazing place. It’s something we as Canadians should be very appreciative of. I think heroes work there, from the doctors and the physios to the [occupational therapists] and the psychologists.”
Even as his body began to heal, Thompson’s mind remained fractured. Seger saw him on Jan. 2 for the first time post-accident, at which point Thompson admitted his memory was just starting to coalesce. For weeks he was
TURN BY TURN Broderick Thompson skis in Whistler on Dec. 1, more than a year after a severe crash in Beaver Creek, Colo.
PHOTO COURTESY OF BRODERICK THOMPSON
EMBRACING RISK Broderick Thompson during a World Cup race in Lake Louse, Alberta.
PHOTO BY MALCOLM CARMICHAEL/ALPINE CANADA
HappyNe wY ear!
SPORTS THE SCORE
unable to accurately place the events of the previous day, and he had outright forgotten about reassuring texts sent to loved ones.
“It was this weird experience of communicating with Broderick even though he was not all there, but seeing him in person was such a relief … to find that his personality was still [intact],” Seger said. “That just took a weight off my heart.”
Don’t be fooled by the numbers, though: it wasn’t easy to perform under those auspices.
“If you just looked at the results on paper, you might not realize how everyone was affected … but in the later part of the season it was difficult to find the drive and motivation to take risks and send it again,” revealed Seger.
Thompson is no foreigner to physical ailments. He tore virtually every ligament in his knee during the 2018-19 preseason, and three years later won World Cup bronze in Beaver Creek. However, trauma to the nervous system is a different ball game entirely.
“I would almost rather hurt my knee infinitely more times than hit my head this hard, which is a crazy thing to say,” remarked Thompson. “Obviously I was wearing all the protection I needed, but I still was going 130 kilometres an hour on sheer ice downward. The sport is risky. I don’t blame anything for it, as I chose to push out of the gate.
Thompson added: “I was proud of [my team] to keep pushing. It helped that I could watch them do what I wish I was doing— which I didn’t feel bad about. They’re friends before teammates.”
‘I HAVE ALWAYS GIVEN MY ALL’
Despite everything, Thompson has resolved to embrace risk. He’s back to lifting in the gym and hitting home runs in slow-pitch baseball, but knows that strapping on his skis will require a prudent approach. His immediate goal is to enjoy the mountains with family and friends while seeing how his body responds.
“But head injuries are difficult in a sense that your brain controls your life and your body, and it can be zero to 100 real quick. Not a lot of people know how you’re going to recover. The darkness is a hard thing to overcome, but as progress takes place and you go through your steps to recovery, I think that’s what you gauge your future on.”
AN EXPECTATION OF HEALING
The Thompson family is more than acquainted with bumps and bruises sustained in the pursuit of athletic greatness.
Broderick’s father Rod grew up playing hockey and baseball on the open plains of
Some might view Thompson as gritty, tough or even valiant, while others could be worried for his long-term health. Either way, the man has made his choice.
“There were times when people close to me in my life [assumed] I wouldn’t ski again, and I don’t think it was necessarily a fair assumption as they should have been like, ‘what can we do to help you reach where you need to be?’” he said. “I have always given my all to sport, whether it’s figure skating or baseball or skiing, so I’m excited to prove people wrong.
“Even if it’s just clicking in my boots and going down the Magic Chair, that’s an accomplishment.”
Time will tell if Broderick Thompson has already raced his final World Cup race, but his contributions to skiing are undeniable. The Whistler native blossomed as a young
“Even if it’s just clicking in my boots and going down the Magic Chair, that’s an accomplishment.”
- BRODERICK THOMPSON
Moose Jaw, Sask., while his mother Pam spent lots of time on the soccer field and the ball diamond. Tess is a gifted figure skater.
Older sister Marielle is the most decorated member of the clan, with two Olympic ski-cross medals, four Crystal Globes and 70 World Cup medals on a resume she’s not done building.
“Injuries happen and we don’t expect them, but we overcome them pretty easily,” Thompson said. “Everyone stays positive and knows we’re going to get better. This doesn’t need to be a big ordeal even though it was a big deal, right? There’s an expectation of healing … it takes time, obviously.”
Thompson spent much of his down time alone. Marielle had a World Cup season to race, as did his teammates. He didn’t want them dwelling on his hardships, and thus he decided to be independent during rehab.
Canadians were evidently able to compartmentalize Thompson’s predicament during the 2023-24 campaign. Jack Crawford, Cameron Alexander and Jeffrey Read all broke into the top 10 during a Dec. 15 super-G event in Val Gardena, Italy, with Alexander winning downhill bronze 13 days later in Bormio.
pro under Canadian Cowboys like Erik Guay, Jan Hudec and Manuel Osborne-Paradis, and now at 30 years old he’s the elder statesman to Seger, Crawford, Alexander, Read et al.
If nothing else: Thompson is a cornerstone of his generation. Alpine Canada recognizes this fact by naming him to the 2024-25 national squad.
“Broderick has always been extremely dedicated, hardworking, and thoughtful,” Seger said. “Even in his off time, he’s thinking about what he can do to better himself. Not a lot of people successfully come back from [his knee injury], at least not to a high level in sport again.
“Our entire team just wants to do whatever we can to support him in this entire journey, through the Canadian Sport Institute and all the resources available to a national team. We want to put everything behind one of our own. Broderick has always been a leader on our team—an incredible example to younger athletes. I would want him to feel very proud of what he has done.”
On Dec. 1, Thompson posted an Instagram photo of himself skiing at Whistler Blackcomb. His caption reads: “Not much to say.” His actions continue to do all the talking. n
SHOP IN-STORE
Whistler’s newest restaurant, Balam, transports you to the heart of South America
INFINITY GROUP’S ADDITION TO WHISTLER VILLAGE OFFICIALLY OPENED DEC. 14
BY BRANDON BARRETT
WHEN THE MINDS behind Whistler’s newest restaurant were still deciding on the concept, they landed on the jaguar as a potent symbol for what they wanted to accomplish.
Named Balam, the Mayan word for jaguar, the Village Stroll restaurant by Infinity Group channels the best of Latin and South American cuisine. And like the jaguar, Balam transforms at night.
“When researching Latin and South America, one of the things that tied the region together is how revered the jaguar is and how it was found from the southern [United] States all the way down to South America,” explained Sarah Coghlan, regional restaurant manager for Infinity Group, the same company behind Whistler’s La Cantina and The Mexican Corner. “It’s also about that transition from day to night. The jaguar sleeps during the day and is quiet, relaxed and calm, and comes alive at night to do its hunting. We run services from brunch and lunch all through to late night, so we felt the jaguar best represented what we’re trying to do.”
Led by executive chef and Colombian native Fabio Milan, Balam is designed to embody the spirit of Latin America, with a vibrant menu that counts influences from
Peru, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and beyond. And while the dishes themselves may be familiar, it’s the ingredients, sourced from afar, that make Balam a distinct dining experience for Whistler.
“Some dishes people will know quite well, but they will have a spin on them because we’re using ingredients from all over,” Coghlan said.
Take the croquette, a French side dish that, at Balam, gets the Mexican treatment, switching out the typical fried potato for the sweeter plantain, wrapped in Oaxacan cheese and salsa roja.
for the vegetarians, a South American grilled asparagus with celeriac purée.
But the showstoppers, undoubtedly, are Balam’s specialty dishes, each highly localized and unlike most other dishes you’d find in Whistler. There’s the Amazonian fish, black cod cooked in a banana leaf with sweet chili sauce and black tiger prawns. The Buenos Aires ribeye channels Argentinians’ love of beef, a 10-ounce AAA cut served with chimichurri and Loche squash purée. Coghlan highlighted another specialty dish, the Inca duck, as a favourite. It’s a dry-aged duck breast alongside coriander rice, Peruvian
“We’re hoping to elevate the dining experience in Whistler and create a really fun atmosphere...”
- SARAH COGHLAN
Balam specializes in ceviche, with both a truffle ceviche, served with Hamachi, white truffle tiger’s milk, and chulpi corn, and a Nikkei ceviche, which draws on Peru’s Japanese influences, served with tuna, scallops, calamari, and a ponzu rocoto tiger’s milk, on offer.
“Its super fresh and light, with a little bit of chili for spice,” said Coghlan.
Balam also features a selection of popular Latin American street foods—the Colombian beef arepa is a must—as well as some items off the grill, like a Pacific salmon antichuco and,
steamed mussels known as chalaca, and the ubiquitous Peruvian chili pepper, aji.
“They’re traditionally quite bright in colour, either yellow or orange, and we use a lot of those chilis that are sweeter throughout the menu,” said Coghlan.
On the dessert side, Coghlan can’t resist the picarones, a traditional Peruvian doughnut made from pumpkin and sweet potato and drizzled with chancaca, a warm, sweet sauce from cane sugar that is common in Bolivia, Chile and Peru.
The cocktail menu takes a lighthearted
spin on tropical favourites. The Fernando Colada is a play on the classic pina colada, combining it with a traditional Argentine drink. Along with five-year Flor De Cana rum, it features Fernet Branca, an herbal liquor, coconut, pineapple, mint, and cherry cola syrup. Coghlan likes Life is a Beach, featuring a house-made blend of three rums, banana liqueur, curaçao, lime, Tonka bean falernum, and a banana sand rim. Balam caters to the no-lo drinkers as well, with a menu of four different zero-proof cocktails, including a Brazilian creamsicle made from raspberry nectar, orange, coconut and soda, and the Cream Mate, a brewed yerba mate with cardamom and salted cream.
Designed by Daniel Meloché, who also designed Mekong and Rockit Coffee in Creekside, the décor at Balam aims to create “an atmosphere that’s bold, transformative and deeply evocative, celebrating South America’s vibrancy and mystique,” Coghlan explained.
Sprawling plants adorn the ceiling. Blue tile imported from Turkey. Gold leaf throughout. Light fixtures in the shape of palm trees. The goal, Coghlan said, is to transport you.
“It’s a fun and unique space,” she added. “We’re hoping to elevate the dining experience in Whistler and create a really fun atmosphere for people to go out with vibrant textures, colours and sounds. Balam is really an immersive experience all about the five senses.” Balam is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to midnight. It is located in the Crystal Lodge at 13-4154 Village Green.
Learn more at balamwhistler.ca. n
SENSORY FEAST The team behind Balam wants the South American-leaning restaurant to offer a feast for the senses.
PHOTO BY JOERN ROHDE / COURTESY OF BALAM
MEADOW PARKSPORTS CENTRE
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F FLEXIBLEREGISTRATION Flex-reg’classeshavea separate feeand allowyou to register for classesonthedays that fit your schedule
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‘Two
guys who found a niche that made them both happy’
THE
HAIRFARMERS CELEBRATE 25 UNFORGETTABLE
BY DAVID SONG
DON’T LOOK NOW, but The Hairfarmers are commemorating their 25th anniversary this winter.
In 1999, “Guitar” Doug Craig and “Grateful” Greg Reamsbottom began taking their act on the road. Their nigh-infinite repertoire spans genres and generations of music, from Johnny Cash to Taylor Swift and everything in between. They’ve consistently been voted Whistler’s favourite band since 2001—but still didn’t expect to be doing this as long as they have.
After all, no wise person takes longevity for granted.
“I think most bands are lucky if they can make it a couple of years, but somehow we’ve managed to put on 1,000 seasons,” Craig says somewhat hyperbolically. “I don’t know how to explain … it’s probably got a lot to do with the fanbase. Our fans have a life of
YEARS
their own. There’s a whole community out there, apparently, that communicates to one another to set up where they’re going to meet next [for our] shows.”
Reamsbottom adds: “Every day you’re thankful that you get up in the morning and can ski if you want to. You’re alive, healthy and above ground, and you get to do a job you love. That’s winning in my book. I guess it’s a testament to two guys who found a niche that made them both happy and stuck with it.”
If you’re unfamiliar with The Hairfarmers’ legacy, all you would need to do is ask another Sea to Sky talent what they think. Chances are, most everybody would be generous in their praise like Erik van Meerbergen was.
“It’s incredible on a lot of levels,” remarks the Big Love Band frontman. “As any musician knows: it’s a grind and it’s not easy keeping bandmates together. I tip my hat— Doug and Greg are some of the best to have [performed] in this town, absolutely.”
‘YOU CAN’T HAVE ALL YOUR EGGS IN ONE BASKET’
The fact that Craig and Reamsbottom still enjoy playing live music after a quartercentury is itself a small miracle, given their relentless pace.
Indeed, The Hairfarmers are workhorses who commit to 200 shows a year or more. They’ve graced every type of venue, from a private party of 50 to a stadium of 40,000. Far from being limited to the Sea to Sky corridor, they have flown across oceans to perform in Australia, New York, Jamaica, Hong Kong, Mexico, and more.
That kind of mileage adds up, both physically and emotionally, so what’s the key to avoiding burnout? For these guys, it’s balance and variety in life.
“We both find it really necessary to unplug 100 per cent to pursue hobbies that keep us still in the creative flow, but going right away from any kind of live environment and getting more connected with nature,” explains Craig.
The Montreal native is an avid surfer and motorcycle enthusiast who keeps himself fit at the gym. Reamsbottom is more likely to spend his off time hunting, fishing and restoring classic cars. Both love nature and can be found hiking and biking.
“There’s 100 different things we’re both interested in that we really take the time to pursue off stage, because you have to,” Reamsbottom says. “You can’t have all your eggs in one basket for what your life is.”
Those 200 annual shows mentioned earlier? The Hairfarmers cram all of them into 10 months, because they spend the other two
months investing in their mental health—one at summer’s end and another in spring. This lifestyle makes their touring schedule busy as all heck, but it’s worthwhile.
Along the way, Craig and Reamsbottom have tried to help other deserving musicians build their own platforms in Whistler.
“The Hairfarmers were instrumental in helping me get onto the scene here,” says Whistler musician Taylor James. “Whenever they were stepping out of a gig, they were adamant [telling the venue owner to call me]. And it worked. Here I am now, busier than I ever could have imagined.”
ABSOLUTELY ZERO PREPARATION
Readers who have yet to witness a Hairfarmers gig need to understand: these men don’t just play. They wing it, and somehow they don’t crash and burn.
Craig and Reamsbottom do not premeditate any of their shows. Instead, they aim to gauge the mood of their viewers and respond accordingly.
“There’s absolutely zero preparation whatsoever,” affirms Craig. “It keeps us right in the zone … unless there’s a specific piece a client has requested. But someone
FARM FRESH The Hairfarmers: Doug Craig (right) and Greg Reamsbottom.
PHOTO COURTESY OF GREG REAMSBOTTOM
could request a song in the audience—we [might] never have played it live before, but we know the song in our heads. We can put together an arrangement on the fly with Greg’s superb memory for lyrics, which surprises a lot of people.”
A game plan would be highly beneficial to 99 per cent of musicians, but Reamsbottom feels having one would only drag down The Hairfarmers.
“If anytime you’re playing over 200 shows a year with the same group and were locked into the same 50, 60, or even 100 songs, I personally would lose my mind,” he says. “We’ve got a repertoire of well over 2,500 songs, and during the winter season we try to add at least one per week based on audience requests.
“That’s a huge part of the equation. If you want to stay connected to your audience, you’ve got to listen to them. We’ll talk to a lot of our fans during set breaks because they’re fun people and they’re supporting us. We try to support them too by giving them what they want to hear.”
Sea to Sky denizens want to hear talent, as do the region’s hordes of visitors. Between Craig’s dauntless guitar style and Reamsbottom’s unique percussion method (two conga drums and a tambourine in the right hand), they go away happy—but imitators usually come up snake eyes.
“Some people have tried to emulate the Hairfarmers formula right down to Greg’s brand of congas and the brand of guitar I play, but it’s really hard,” Craig points out. “I’ve never seen anyone come even close to mimicking Greg on drums. [When we switch instruments], it’s a joke. I can’t make it work.”
In van Meerbergen’s opinion, the duo’s musical approach is a key part of their secret sauce and path to longevity. They have a unique ability to be very present in the room, not unlike excellent DJs who play songs that fit the vibe of any given moment.
ARTS SCENE
time ago.
“The most important thing is: never take yourself too seriously,” Reamsbottom says. “People are people, whether they’re a huge international touring artist or the lighting technician you’re working with. Just treat people the way you would like to be treated. Always do your best and don’t overthink it.”
Remarks Craig: “At the end of the day, we’re all humans sharing a quick ride here on this spinning ball of blue. When we do get to interact with these [famous] cats, it’s kind of an unspoken vibe where we go with the energy in the room. We’re humble minstrels and we’re so very lucky to be able to perform for a living.”
Ultimately, the most important art practised by The Hairfarmers is compromise.
Craig and Reamsbottom have learned mutual respect. They have picked up on each other’s quirks, traits and weaknesses to a greater extent than anyone else, including possibly their significant others. They understand the legacy they’ve built is worth immeasurably more than any singular disagreement.
Reamsbottom calls his friend “fearless”: a musician who’s not afraid to try the kind of song most other acoustic acts would never do justice. Craig always pushes the envelope, which involves pushing him in the healthiest of ways.
Meanwhile, Craig describes Reamsbottom as a loyal bulwark of a man who loves both family and job. He’s got the physical and psychological fortitude necessary to front thousands of shows with a smile on his face and appreciation for everyone.
Several cohorts of people have grown to love The Hairfarmers as a result. There are Generation Xs who followed Craig’s solo career in the 1980s and who now bring their kids and grandkids to shows. Tourists and seasonal employees might spread word of mouth in their own home nations or cities
“You’ve got to keep delivering the goods ... because guys can always tell if you’re going through the motions.”
- GREG REAMSBOTTOM
“It’s one thing to say, ‘we can go into a room without a set list,’ and another thing to [do that] but still have an airtight set,” van Meerbergen elaborates. “What they do is so technically impressive: the musicianship, the vocals, the harmonies, all of it.”
HUMBLE MINSTRELS
The Hairfarmers have shared stages with big names galore.
Longtime locals won’t soon forget their 2008 show at the Pemberton Music Festival alongside Tom Petty, The Tragically Hip and Coldplay. They’ve also ridden shotgun with Our Lady Peace, Wide Mouth Mason, Bif Naked, Chantal Kreviazuk, Bob Marley’s Wailers and Tom Cochrane.
If Craig and Reamsbottom were ever truly starstruck, they grew out of that phase a long
upon leaving Whistler.
The Hairfarmers don’t intend to quit anytime soon, and they’ve proven immune to the fickle evolutions of pop culture. Social media-driven trends come and go, but the soul of their artistry remains authentic— much to the delight of many.
Reamsbottom’s nickname “Grateful” originates from his love of the Grateful Dead, but he’ll never run out of gratitude for the fans.
“It’s humbling in a lot of ways because [support] is never expected,” says the Vancouver native. “There’s so much talent in our neck of the woods. You’ve got to keep delivering the goods … because guys can always tell if you’re going through the motions. Every band has good days and spectacular days and not-so-good days, but Doug and I always try to over-deliver.” n
Laugh Out LIVE! presents ‘Resting Grinch Face 3!’
THE
NEWEST EDITION OF THE LOCAL COMEDY SHOW RUNS FROM DEC. 27 TO DEC. 30
BY DAVID SONG
LAUGH OUT LIVE! plans to close out 2024 with a bang.
“Resting Grinch Face 3!” is a four-night comedic extravaganza billed as “Saturday Night Live meets Whose Line Is It Anyway? meets The Price is Right meets Whistler.” Not unlike Laugh Out LIVE!’s more well-known Marquee Variety Show, this gig will have a bit of everything: stand-up comedy and sketches to complement new improv games, novel films and a brandnew game show with hefty prize giveaways.
Usual suspects Ira Pettle and Rebecca Mason are of course back, but they’ll ride alongside a lineup of emerging talent: Jonny Fleet, Julie Farr, Brandon Barrett, Chris Quinlan, Mark MacIver and Emma Strong.
“We’ve got some short films made by Jonny, who is one of Whistler’s better-known filmmakers,” Mason elaborates. “Julie’s bringing back her ‘old lady’ character, which has become a fan favourite. Chris is a local legend and a favourite at our Improv Battle. [Pique reporter] Brandon is going to be making an appearance. We get audience members up on stage … never a dull moment in a Variety Show [or Resting Grinch Face].”
Adds Pettle: “It’s really this new, expanded group of people that’s been working on the
show for the last three months. We’re poised and ready to present the best work we’ve done. When people first gave Laugh Out LIVE! a chance during the pandemic and we had just started, we were at a certain level of ability. Now, three years later, I can say with confidence that we’ve evolved.
“I want to encourage people who haven’t been out to see us in a year or two to check out how far we’ve come.”
‘THERE’S
GOING TO BE SOMETHING FOR YOU’
Hefty goals are ahead for Laugh Out LIVE!, not just in terms of material but also in terms of box office.
According to Pettle, “Resting Grinch Face”
is the first time he and his troupe have ever attempted to sell 1,000 tickets: 250 per night. They’ve also never performed for four consecutive days at the Whistler Conference Centre (WCC) and know it’s going to be a long haul.
Previous shows have been held in the WCC’s Sea to Sky Ballroom, but cast members are excited to test out the Rainbow Theatre as their new venue.
Moreover: don’t forget about the pre-show.
Each night officially begins at 8 p.m., but doors will open at 6:30 p.m. for a lively pre-party involving drinks, additional entertainment and a chance to socialize with friends or anyone you brought. Tickets will get you into both the opening act and the main event.
“No matter what type of comedy you’re into, there’s going to be something for you,”
says Mason. “If you’re a stand-up aficionado, we’ve got that. If you’re a huge fan of improv, we’ve got that. If you like to see what writers in a ski town write about and make movies about, we’ve got that. At the same time, our humour is also global.”
In several ways, “Resting Grinch Face” is a culmination of years of passion from Pettle, Mason and their backers. They believe comedy doesn’t just make you laugh—it can have a lasting impact, too, which is why they offer various workshops throughout the year.
Some of their protégés have improved their public-speaking skills, listening abilities or customer service aptitude, while others have simply built relationships or discovered a way to walk through life with more confidence.
“And from a performance standpoint, these students who are coming in as firsttimers and beginning to grow within the Laugh Out LIVE! family are our future performers,” Pettle remarks. “Our farm team has been born, and we have this consistent opportunity to start grooming future talent.”
For tickets and more details about “Resting Grinch Face”, visit laughoutlive. com/events-collection/resting-grinch-face3-p4yp5. Don’t forget about other Laugh Out LIVE! events such as the Improv Battle and Stand-Up Standoff, which will both return in January. n
LAUGH ATTACK Laugh Out LIVE! presenting Resting Grinch Face 2! at the Whistler Conference Centre last year. PHOTO BY JOERN ROHDE / COURTESY OF LAUGH OUT LIVE!
PIQUE’S GUIDE TO LOCAL EVENTS & NIGHTLIFE
Here’s a quick look at some events happening in Whistler this week and beyond. FIND MORE LOCAL EVENT LISTINGS (and submit your own for free!) at piquenewsmagazine.com/local-events
NEW YEAR’S EVE
CLIENT APPRECIATION CHRISTMAS PARTY
Join in a day filled with art, music and fun! This event is dedicated to showing gratitude to all the amazing clients who have supported the gallery throughout the years. Enjoy complimentary drinks and appetizers while mingling with fellow clients and talented artists.
> Dec. 27, 5 p.m.
> Whistler Contemporary Gallery, Hilton
RESTING GRINCH FACE 3
With a merry mix of high energy improv, side-splitting sketch, and uproarious stand-up comedy, Laugh Out LIVE! is back with its all-new holiday show. The perfect blend of humour and entertainment that promises something for everyone, locals, seasonal workers, and visitors alike, it’s Saturday Night Live meets Whose Line Is It Anyway? meets The Price is Right meets Whistler.
> Dec. 27 to 30, 8 p.m.
> Rainbow Theatre
MONDAY NIGHT SPECIAL AT WHISTLER OLYMPIC PARK
Take advantage of discounted tickets and rentals on Monday nights. Spend time on the well-lit trails or light up your journey with a headlamp. Explore under the beautiful starry skies of the Callaghan Valley and when you need a break, stop by the fully-licensed café in the Day Lodge and indulge in delicious specials.
> Dec. 30, 3 to 9 p.m.
> Whistler Olympic Park
> $10
NEW YEAR’S EVE CELEBRATIONS IN WHISTLER VILLAGE
Usher in the new year with a sense of wonder, connection and the magic of a non-alcoholic celebration. This all-ages New Year’s Eve celebration offers a diverse range of activities catering to various interests. Join the crowd along the Village Stroll to catch the Luminosity Parade and be sure to follow the excitement to Skier’s Plaza for the Fire & Ice show!
> Dec. 31, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
>Whistler Village
DJ DANNY’S CREEKSIDE HOUSE PARTY
Get ready for the ultimate party. Dance the night away with great music, drinks and a lively crowd in Whistler’s Creekside.
> Dec. 31, 10 p.m.
> Nita Lake Lodge
NEW YEAR’S EVE GLITTER SKATE
Step into a winter wonderland where the ice comes alive with vibrant beats and dazzling lights. Glide alongside disco characters as they reflect the pulsating colors that fill the rink. The atmosphere is set for a fun afternoon of winter magic. So, grab your skates, don your most fabulous winter attire, and join for an afternoon of frosty festivities on the dazzling disco ice!
> Dec. 31, 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.
> Whistler Olympic Plaza
OUR LADY OF THEMOUN TAINS WHISTLER CATHOLIC CHURCH
www.whistlercatholicchurch.ca
Email: olomwhistler@rcdk.org
2024/25New Year ’s
MassSchedule
OurLadyoftheMountains,6299LorimerRoad,Whistler, BC St.Christopher’s,Highway99,MountCurrie,BC St. FrancisofAssisi,1360 Pemberton Farm W., Pemberton,BC
New Year ’s Eve:5:00pmWhistler,OurLadyoftheMountains
New Year ’s Day:9:00amWhistler, OurLadyoftheMountains 11:30amMt.Currie,St.Christopher’s 1:00pmPemberton,St.FrancisofAssisi
WHISTLER MOUNTAIN has seen quite a few races over the past six decades, but only one (as far as we’re aware) involved pitting a Crazy Canuck on two-by-four planks against a novice skier who had first skied around a gate just the month before. On Monday, April 22, 1985, however, crowds gathered to watch Dave Murray and Doug Sack go head-to-head, or at least ski-to-plank.
After issuing the challenge in December, Sack used his column in the Whistler Question to build up interest in the race and keep the readers updated on his progress as he learned to ski. Various rumours were in circulation by the day of the race, including one that Murray could complete the race course on the twoby-fours in only 30 seconds. As the fateful date approached, Sack was heard to say, “as far as I’m concerned, there are presently seven wonders in the world. If I beat Murray Monday, you can make that eight.”
The day of the race, Sack headed up Whistler Mountain at opening, describing the journey as “the longest, loneliest ride of [his] brief skiing career.” After a couple of runs down to the Orange Chair to calm his nerves, Sack ran into Murray on his way up and the two decided to take a run together. Murray hadn’t skied much on his “Crazy Canuck Demos,” but the run proved that a Crazy Canuck on two-by-fours was equal to a rookie racer, promising an interesting race. According to Sack, “we knew the race was a toss-up and we also knew that we were doing something totally hilarious because everyone was laughing when we got back up the Orange to the race start.”
The race consisted of three runs. As the pair waited at the starting gates, Sack heard Murray say, “have a good run, Doug,” just before the countdown, and then they were off. In his recounting of the race, Sack wrote, “it
doesn’t matter what level skier you are, when you go for it, you go for it. So I went for it… and fell down trying to make the third gate.” Not disqualified, Sack got back up and managed to catch up with Murray, who tried to gain speed ahead of the flats and wiped out. The first run went to Sack.
Riding up the chair together before the second run, Murray and Sack discussed the pressures of the second run and what it felt like on an international stage with much higher stakes. Feeling more confident having completed a run, Sack made an aggressive start to the second run, made it through the first two gates, and lost a ski in the third, somersaulted, and passed the fourth gate on his back. The second run went to Murray.
Tied heading into the third run, Murray and Sack spent their ride up discussing their ambivalence about winning and their determination to have a clean run where both made it to the finish line. Following Cate Webster’s advice not to worry about speed until after the third gate, Sack was in front as the skiers approached the first waterfall. Assured by the crowd that Murray was right behind him, Sack managed to maintain the lead. He was officially proclaimed the winner of The Great 2x4 Race and was presented with a pair of national ski team racing gloves and a gold ski pin from Murray, though Sack still gave Murray a gold nugget because “there were no losers in the race.”
While reporting on the dedication of Dave Murray Downhill in April 1991, Sack looked back on the race and credited Murray with the development of his alpine race reporting. Following the race, Sack spent a couple of years covering local and Nor-Am races with the support of Murray, and then in 1987 Murray set Sack up with Glenn Wurtele, who arranged for him to go to Europe and cover the World Cup circuit. According to Sack, the twoby-four race remained “the funniest thing I’ve seen on skis” and a feat only Dave Murray would have attempted. n
GOOD LUCK WOOD Dave Murray’s “Crazy Canuck Demos” made their debut at Whistler Mountain’s Media Appreciation Day at the end of the 1984 ski season, but did not become a regularly used piece of equipment.
WHISTLER QUESTION, PHOTO COURTESY OF ROB MCQUADE
ASTROLOGY
Free Will Astrology
WEEK OF DECEMBER 27 BY
ROB BREZSNY
the coming months.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): In 2025, I would love for you to specialize in making new connections and deepening your existing connections. I hope you will summon extra creativity and panache as you regularly blend your beautiful energies with others’ beautiful energies. I predict you will thrive on linking elements that should be linked but have never been before. What do you think, Aries? Does it sound fun to become a playful master of mixing and combining? Would you enjoy generating splashy unifications that serve your dreams?
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): “Confidence is 10-per-cent hard work and 90-per-cent delusion,” declared Taurus comedian Tina Fey. But I believe you will disprove that assessment in the coming months. The work you do will be unusually replete with grace and dynamism. It will be focused and diligent work, yes, but more importantly, it will be smart work that’s largely free of delusion. That’s why I’m inclined to revise Fey’s formula for your sake. In 2025, your brimming levels of confidence will be primarily due to your fine, conscientious, effective work.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): In the 1960s, a Swedish journalist tried an experiment. He wanted to see if art critics could distinguish between abstract paintings made by skilled artists and those created by a four-yearold chimpanzee whose pseudonym was Pierre Brassau. Surprise! Many of the critics treated all the paintings with equal respect. One even gave special praise to Pierre Brassau, describing his strokes of colour as having “the delicacy of a ballet dancer.” I’m authorizing you to unleash your inner Pierre Brassau in the coming months, Gemini. Be an innocent rookie, a newcomer with great instincts, an exuberant amateur who specializes in fun experiments. Do you know what beginner’s mind is? You approach every experience with zero assumptions or expectations, as if you were seeing everything for the first time. For more, read this: wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoshin.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): People in India were the first to discover diamonds buried in the Earth. Most historians believe it happened in the 4th century BCE. For the next two millennia, India remained the only source of diamonds. Finally, new stashes were found in Brazil in 1725 and in South Africa in the 1870s. Let’s use this 2,000- year gap as a metaphor for your life. I suspect that far too many months have passed since you have located a fresh source of a certain treasure or bounty you crave. That will change in 2025. Here come long-delayed blessings!
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In my vision of your life in 2025, you will dramatically enhance how togetherness works for you. Below are four questions to help guide your explorations and breakthroughs. 1. Is it feasible to change yourself in ways that enable you to have a more satisfying relationship with romantic love? 2. Will you include your intimate relationships as an essential part of your spiritual path—and vice versa? 3. What work on yourself can you do to heal your old wounds and thereby make yourself a better partner and collaborator? 4. Can you help your best allies to heal their wounds and thereby become better partners and collaborators?
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In Japanese, the word for “frog” sounds similar to the word meaning “to return.” That’s one reason frogs have been lucky in some circles of Japanese culture. They symbolize the blessing that occurs when travellers return home safely, or when health is restored, or when spent money is replenished. I bring this to your attention, Sagittarius, because I suspect 2025 will be a time when satisfying and enjoyable returns will be a key theme. Consider keeping the likeness of a lovable frog in your living space.
3418BlueberryDrive
4Bdrm/5Bath 4,890SQFTChalet Builtin2017 IncredibleViews of Whistler &BlackcombSkiSlopes EnergyStar Certified Home
CANCER (June 21-July 22): Ohio’s Cuyahoga River used to catch on fire regularly. The cause was pollution. For a hundred years, industries had poured their wastes into the waterway. The surface was often dotted with oil slicks. But after a notorious river fire in 1969, the locals decided to remedy the situation, aided by the newly established Environmental Protection Agency. Today, the Cuyahoga still isn’t 100-per-cent clean, but it’s far better. It hosts kayaking, fishing, and paddle boarding. I propose we use its rehabilitation as a symbol for you in 2025. You will have welcome opportunities to clean up messes that have lingered for far too long. Please take full advantage of these cosmic invitations to sweep karmic debris out of your life.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Steve Jobs, founder of Apple computers, said, “The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” I propose that you make this one of your mottoes in 2025. More than ever before, you will have exceptional power to transform the environments you share with others. You will have an enhanced ability to revise and reinvigorate the systems and the rules you use. Don’t underestimate your influence during the coming months, Leo. Assume that people will be listening especially closely to your ideas and extra receptive to be affected by you.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I will give you four related terms to describe your key motif in 2025: 1. Your Soul’s Code. 2. Your Master Plan. 3. Your Destiny’s Blueprint. 4. Your Mission Statement. All four are rooted in this epic question: What is your overarching purpose here on Earth, and how are you fulfilling it? The coming months will be a time when you can make dramatic progress in formulating vivid, detailed visions of the life you want to live. You can also undertake robust action steps to make those visions more of a practical reality. I encourage you to write your big-picture, long-range dreams in a special notebook or a file on your tech device. Keep adding to the text throughout
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Since 1985, musician David Gilmour has led Pink Floyd. The band has sold more than 250 million records. He’s in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in both the U.K. and the U.S. But my favourite thing about Gilmour is that he’s a passionate activist who has crusaded for animal rights, environmentalism, poverty, and human rights. A few years ago, he auctioned off 120 of his guitars, raising more than $21 million for an environmentalist charity. In accordance with astrological omens, I propose we make him one of your inspirational role models in 2025, Capricorn. May he mobilize you to use your stature and clout to perform an array of good works that are of service to your world.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Aquarian author Virginia Woolf extolled the virtues of cultivating a supple soul that thrives on change. She pledged to be relentless in her commitment to be authentically herself and not succumb to groupthink. I recommend you make these two of your featured themes in 2025. To inspire your efforts, I will quote her radical perspective at length: “Movement and change are the essence of our being; rigidity is death; conformity is death: let us say what comes into our heads, repeat ourselves, contradict ourselves, fling out the wildest nonsense, and follow the most fantastic fancies without caring what the world does or thinks or says.”
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In 1992, two friends promised each other that if either of them ever won the lottery, they would share it with the other. Twenty-eight years later, that’s exactly what happened. In 2020, Thomas Cook bought a ticket that turned out to be the winner of the Powerhouse jackpot in Wisconsin. He called Joseph Feeney with the good news. After paying taxes, both men were $5.7 million richer. I am not predicting the exact same sequence for your future, Pisces. But like Cook and Feeney, I expect you will glean pleasing rewards generated from seeds planted in the past.
Homework: Make the most positive prediction about your future that you can dare to imagine. 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
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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
• 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!
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Position Overview: The Family Preservation Worker, part of the Child and Family Services team, implements culturally appropriate programs to support family development. They coordinate resources to enhance family collaboration and provide support services aimed at promoting children's safety, reducing vulnerability, and assisting caregivers.
Qualifications:
• A Social Service Diploma/or equivalent in Social or Human Studies Discipline (or in process) or a combination of experience, education and training 3-5 years.
• Knowledge of the Child, Family and Community Services Act
• Experience working with vulnerable children, youth and families.
• Experience and ability to work with family groups
• Demonstrated cultural competency and sensitivity of First Nations Peoples
• Support Prevention and Early Intervention programs to minimize child care placements, emphasizing family preservation and reunification.
• Provide access to supportive services like parenting workshops, counseling, treatment options, and cultural healing activities for family well-being.
• Promote collaboration among family members, interim caregivers, MCFD, specialized services, and community resources for a cohesive support network.
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
JOB POSTING
Clinical Services Nurse
Salary: $100 000 - $125 000
Position Overview: The Clinical Services Manager provides leadership of a comprehensive range of nursing programs within community and public health, home care and patient travel in four First Nations communities of N’quatqua, Samahquam, and Skatin
Primary Responsibilities:
Qualifications:
• Develop policies and guidelines for treatment services.
• Manage community, public health, primary care, and home care programs.
• Ensure nursing care standards and best practices.
• Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from a recognized university
• 5+ years nursing experience, including:
• Public health (maternal, infant, child, youth, mental wellness, addictions)
• Provide leadership, mentoring, and guidance to staff.
• Home care (elder health, chronic disease management, injury prevention)
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to enhance community health.
• 1+ year management experience
• Supervise nurses and administrative staff.
• Manage health facility operations, including scheduling, prioritizing, and evaluating performance.
• Current RN registration with BCCNM
• Current CPR (HCP) certification
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
See full job posting on the careers page/website: sshs.ca/careers/
Apply now by sending your resume and cover letter via email: julia.schneider@sshs.ca
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
Child & Family Services
Child & Family Services
Child & Family Services
• Administrative Assistant ( ($38,038 to $53,599 per year)
• Social Worker ($80,371.20 - $91,673.40 per year)
• Social Worker ($80,371.20 - $91,673.40 per year)
• Social Worker ($80,371.20 to $91,673.40 per year)
• Transition House Support Worker ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
• Transition House Outreach Worker ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
• Transition House Support Worker ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
Lil’wat Health & Healing + Pqusnalhcw Health Centre
• Transition House Support Worker ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
Lil’wat Health & Healing + Pqusnalhcw Health Centre
Lil’wat Health & Healing + Pqusnalhcw Health Centre
• Custodian ($17.40 to $20.90 per hour)
• Custodian ($17.40 to $20.90 per hour)
• Program Manager ($57,330 to $64,610.00 per year)
• Program Manager ($57,330 to $64,610.00 per year)
• Health Care Assistant ($38,038 to $53,599 per year)
• Program Manager ($57,330 to $64,610.00 per year)
• Operations Manager ($59,878.00 to $73,564.40 per year)
• Family Mentor ($38,038 to $53,599 per year)
• Operations Manager ($59,878.00 to $73,564.40 per year)Would you please highlight/emphasize this position?
• Operations Manager ($59,878.00 to $73,564.40 per year)Would you please highlight/emphasize this position?
• Early Childhood Educator ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
Ts’zil Learning Centre
• Family Mentor ($38,038 to $53,599 per year) - Would you please highlight/emphasize this position?
• Family Mentor ($38,038 to $53,599 per year) - Would you please highlight/emphasize this position?
• Program Mentor – Early Childhood Educator ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
• Early Childhood Educator ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
• Early Childhood Educator ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
Land and Resources
Xet’òlacw Community School
Xet’òlacw Community School
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Territory Specialist ($46,683 to $60,515 per year)
Xet’òlacw Community School
• Elementary School Teacher - Grade 3 ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
• Elementary School Teacher - Grade 3 ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
• Elementary School Teacher - Grade 3 ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
• Camp Counsellor ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
• Camp Counsellor ($20.90 to $29.45 per hour)
• High School English and Humanities Teacher ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
• High School English and Humanities Teacher ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
• High School English and Humanities Teacher ($60,015 to $109,520 per year)
Community Development
Community Development
Community Development
• Cultural Camp Supervisor ($46,683.00 to $63,973.00 per year)
• Band Social Development Worker Assistant ($17.40 to $20.90 per hour)
• Cultural Camp Supervisor ($46,683.00 to $63,973.00 per year)
• Cultural Camp Supervisor ($46,683.00 to $63,973.00 per year)
Please visit our career page for more information: https://lilwat.ca/careers/
Please visit our career page for more information: https://lilwat.ca/careers/
Please visit our career page for more information: https://lilwat.ca/careers/
OFA III, (or equivalent) CPR / First Aid Certification
• Knowledge of BC regulatory framework of health, safety and environment
• Leadership: creative, innovative, demonstrates initiative and leads change
• Organizational management, partnership and community development skills
Brand new affordable staff accommodation
Competitive $70,000/year
Lifeguard/Swim Instructor
Term position starting at $27.57 an hour
RCMP Detachment Clerk
Permanent part-time position starting at $31.98 an hour
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.
The Museum is currently seeking:
Marketing Coordinator
Support with advertising, social media, content creation, media relations, sales, and digital engagement.
• Full-Time
• $55,000 - $57,500 per year
• Health Benefits
• Transit Allowance
• Wellness Benefit
Apply and learn more:
The Maxies: Hope for the future
“We’ll drink a cup of kindness yet For the sake of auld lang syne.”
-traditional
THIS WAS A YEAR it would be easy to dismiss as, well, dismal. Cup half full; cup half empty; no cup at all, spilled whatever was in it. It was a year when everyone in the world seemed to be dismayed and/or pissed off. Inflation here and everywhere else in the world left so much of the population feeling poor, beleaguered, downtrodden, angry and hopeless.
BY G.D. MAXWELL
The politics of many countries drifted toward totalitarianism, chaos or gridlock. Leaders fell from grace; graceless, cowardly strong men ascended.
In Tiny Town, it seemed every issue of Pique carried news of one or another shakedown by the Resort Municipality of Whistler, raising fees anywhere fees could be raised, culminating in the final gift of budgets that would see annual tax increases pushing nine per cent as far as the fiscal eye could see. “But hey, there’s nothing we can cut, they said.”
It seems harder and harder to swallow a cup of kindness, assuming you can still afford one.
Which brings me to the year’s Maxies. For 29 years they’ve been my look back at the high and low points of life in Whistler. Achievements, both noteworthy and dubious, have been the theme.
Not this year.
This year there are only two Maxies. If I followed the general theme of these awards, I’d need more pages than I’m allotted. So I’ve distilled things. And here they are.
HOPE FOR THE FUTURE
Inadvertently, words were spoken this year that, at least for me, encapsulate the state of our town. In the brief history of Whistler, pie in the sky has often seemed the limits. But like any growing entity, size, success and inertia often temper the vision and reach of any enterprise as it matures and approaches the event horizon of entropy. Knockin’ on heaven’s door.
And so, when discussing this year’s Canada Day festivities, which had gone from cancelled to reimagined, Bob Andrea, village animation and events manager, comparing and contrasting what used to be and what was to be, said of the choices facing our decision makers, “neither one is going to suck, that’s for sure.”
With neither malice nor irony—because he’s not a malicious or ironic guy—Bob captured the zeitgeist of Whistler today. Paraphrased, whatever we do, it’s not going to suck.
In a time when consensus seems impossible, when no matter what decision is made, shrill voices will be heard to criticize
the choice, perhaps not sucking is the best we can hope for. I prefer to think not but it’s at least a target worth shooting for in a world where so much does suck.
I think a well-stitched sampler at the entrance to muni hall might be in order. Or one of those highway signs that express the spirit of towns: Whistler! Whatever we do it ain’t gonna suck!
Because whatever we do, it won’t. Sucking isn’t, and shouldn’t be, in our DNA.
BEST AUDIENCE EVER
An award of thanks to Pique readers, past, present and future. For a shade over 29 years—not a typo—you’ve enjoyed, hated, tolerated and looked forward to whatever
paid isn’t bad either.
But all things must end. So it is with Maxed Out. This, the 1,504th edition, is the last one.
Sometime in August of 1994 when Bob Barnett wandered in to where I was working and asked if I’d be interested in writing a column—a weekly column—for Pique, I thought he was nuts. I’d written letters to the editor. I’d written a few features to enjoy some of what Whistler had to offer without having to pay. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to face a weekly deadline. And I couldn’t imagine not running out of things to say after a couple of weeks.
But I’m a firm believer in embracing an offer that makes me uncomfortable, okay, that scares the crap out of me, challenging
So I’m going to do something I haven’t done in 29 years. I’m going skiing on Tuesday morning instead of looking at a blank computer screen and trying to fill it with words.
grabbed my attention and made it to the back page. Many of you have developed a weird habit of turning to the back page first. Many of you have agreed with what I had to say; many of you were not shy about letting me know how much you disagreed. Either way, you read. And having someone read is the best and only reward someone who writes can wish for. Getting
what I think is possible. At least as long as I can keep my clothes on and stay alive.
Still, 29 years! A gig that led to calls from magazine editors filtering through town who asked if I’d be interested in writing for them? Free heliski trips! Seems like only yesterday. But I’ve got a burgeoning file and way too many birthday candles that say it was a long time ago.
So I’m going to do something I haven’t done in 29 years. I’m going skiing on Tuesday morning instead of looking at a blank computer screen and trying to fill it with words. This Tuesday and all the Tuesdays after that.
Thanks for the opportunity. Thanks for voting me Whistler’s favourite writer so many times they dropped that category from the Best of Whistler, something I’d begged them to do. Thanks for the emails and letters to the editor. I’m in your debt. Okay, figuratively, not literally.
I suspect my byline will pop up every now and then. Writing’s not the easiest addiction to shake off. Sometimes opinion— old habits die hard—sometimes more factual storytelling. But it’s time to put a final period on this column. Maybe past time.
Some people who have known about this decision have said, “Who’s going to speak out? Who’s going to take the RMOW or Whistler Blackcomb or whomever to task?” I hope the answer is you. All of you. This town was built on the brash dreams, ideas and efforts of people who wanted it to be everything it could be. Whatever happens in the future will take place because of the same force, the force of the people who live here. It’s not an exclusive club. It’s a collective we’re all part of. Don’t like what’s going on? Speak up. Write. Agitate in the face of indifference. It’s the only way things get done. Indifference, apathy, fear of reprisal accomplish nothing.
The future is as hopeful as you decide to make it.
