We at the Whistler Museum would like to thank our wonderful community for making our winter 2012 Speaker Series a complete success. Every event featured compelling presentations from great speakers, all of whom spoke in front of a sold-out crowd!
Roger McCarthy started the new year off with a bang with his fascinating talk about his experiences running the show at the new ski hill being built near Sochi, Russia for the 2014 Winter Olympics. We got everything from great insights into the local terrain to the rather frightening amount of security one must pass through to speak to a Russian oligarch – Roger’s boss on the high-pressure job. I’m sure his new gig with Whistler Municipal Council is less stressful!
The next month, fellow municipal councilor Jayson Faulkner opened our eyes to the possibilities of the Spearhead Huts Project, for which he is the committee chair. Jayson’s extensive experience as both a mountain guide and backcountry gear retailer set him up nicely to present his answer to the rhetorical question “Backcountry Huts: Why now, more than ever?”
In March we welcomed the always-entertaining “Garage Sale Frank” Salter in to talk about his 500-plus pairs of antique and retro skis. The amateur ski-curator brought in a sizeable chunk of his private museum to speak about some of the high and low points in the history of ski design.
It was only fitting that we close of the winter season with last week’s presentation by a panel of WORCA board members on the past, present and future off Whistler mountain biking. The stoke was high among the crowd of fat-tire enthusiasts, and we all left with the impression that we have lots to look forward to in coming summers!
Our Speaker Series events are designed to feature knowledgeable and engaging speakers and the amazing lives they lead. We were fortunate to have such an outstanding line-up this year and we appreciate all of them taking the time to share their stories. Special thanks as well goes to Namasthe Tea and the Whistler Roasting Company, who generously supplied each event with their wonderful teas and coffee.
The Speaker Series now goes on hiatus for the summer, to resume the third Wednesday of the month for October, November, and January through April.
We are always on the look out for exciting new presenters in the fields of local history, mountain culture, the environment, travel, adventure, or anything else that might captivate a crowd of Whistlerites. If you or someone you know has an interesting story to tell, or if you have an idea for something you’d like to see at a future Speaker Series, drop us a line at programs@whistlermuseum.org. Meanwhile, although the Speaker Series takes a temporary break, we aren’t going anywhere, so stay tuned for upcoming announcements regarding our summer programming!