In the 1980s the Whistler Question began posing a question to three to six people and publishing their responses under “Whistler’s Answers” (not to be confused with the Whistler Answer). Each week, we’ll be sharing one question and the answers given back in 1985. Please note, all names/answers/occupations/neighbourhoods represent information given to the Question at the time of publishing and do not necessarily reflect the person today.
Some context for this week’s question: In January and February 1986, the Alta Lake Sports Club planned to host two large races on the Lost Lake cross-country trails: the BC Winter Games Cross-Country Ski Trials and the BC High School Championships. The decision as to whether to close the trails to the public in order to accommodate the races was left to council, as was the decision to waive user fees for the club and racers or not. While the previous year saw fees waived, it was decided that club-sanctioned races would be able to purchase bulk tickets at half the price of a regular ticket and that groups could use the trails for special events as long as they gave at least two weeks notice.
Question: Do you think the cross-country ski trails should be closed to the public to allow for two weekend competitions this winter?
Judy Deppiesse – Computer Supervisor – Vancouver
Any more than two weekends would be bad. And how would we know they were closed? I’d hate to drive all the way up here and find it was closed. Notifying the people would be the hardest part. How would all the skiers in Vancouver find out about it? And why would they have to close all the trails? Why couldn’t they leave the Lost Lake circuit open?
Rick McKinnon – Accountant – Burnaby
I’ve only been here twice, but it is a very nice place, especially for learning. It would be a real pain to come all the way up here to find it closed for races. In fact, I probably wouldn’t bother coming up at all.
Vicki Porbet – Stockbroker – Vancouver
Unless it’s just a very small part of the trail system that’s affected, I don’t think it should be closed to the public. There are only a few cross-country ski areas within driving distance of Vancouver. If Whistler is closed, there is only Cypress Bowl and maybe Mt. Baker. Otherwise you have to drive all the way to Manning Park.
In January 1966, skiers in the Lower Mainland saw the beginning of two new ventures: Whistler Mountain held its opening day on January 15 and Ski Trails published its first issue on January 20 (although a typographical error dates the first issue as January 20, 1965). Luckily for us at the Whistler Museum, this means that the opening season of Whistler Mountain is documented throughout the first volume of Ski Trails, which was published every two weeks.
The aim of Ski Trails, according to editor Michael Horsey, was “to provide an informative and entertaining service for BC skiers” while targeting “the average recreational skier who wants to know about new skiing areas, new products and what other skiers are thinking about.” To that end, they published longer pieces detailing specific resorts and ski areas and what they had to offer, beginning with Whistler Mountain in their first issue. They also published articles on new ski signs and ski fashions, regular columns that listed new developments and events, and letters from readers, as well as more comical pieces that commented on the ski culture of the 1960s. Throughout their first volume, Ski Trails also published race results for the various races and ski clubs in the province, often including names that would become very familiar in the Whistler area such as Andree Vajda (Janyk), Bob Calladine and Karen Dokka (Vagelatos).
The cover of the first issue of Ski Trails, including the erroneous date. Ski Trails, Vol 1, No 1
In its first issue, Ski Trails announced that “The hottest skiing news for Lower Mainland skiers is coming from the cold, cold slopes of Whistler Mountain” and listed the different facilities, accommodations and apres options available. It would appear that the early season did not go off without a hitch, however, and by the second issue of January 29, Ski Trails reported on long line ups for the gondola and T-bars that still weren’t in operation. This trend continued into February, with a photo caption that read “Backed up like rush hour traffic, these skiers queue at Tower 9 at the Whistler chairlift.” Because Ski Trails reported on ski areas throughout the province, we know that this problem was not unique to Whistler Mountain and that all of the mountains considered local to the Lower Mainland were experiencing capacity difficulties. The staff at Ski Trails attributed this to a “ski boom” of about 80,000 skiers in the area, leading to “predictable results” including long lineups and crowded slopes.
This photo of Tower 9 of the Red Chair appeared in the third issue of Ski Trails. Ski Trails, Vol 1, No 3
For Whistler Mountain, this problem was partially alleviated by the February 26 issue, which reported that “the opening of the two T-bars at Whistler has reduced line-ups and is giving skiers a full day of skiing.” At that time Whistler had one T-bar located at the valley and another above the chairlift (today’s Red Chair) near its current location.
Throughout Whistler Mountain’s first season, Ski Trails continued to update skiers about new developments and events such as the First Aid Ski Patrol fundraiser to help build a ski patrol cabin, road conditions and plans for the next season, while continuing to situate the ski area within the context of other ski areas in the province.
Ski Trails also reported on what the ski patrol was up to at Whistler Mountain. Ski Trails, Vol 1, No 6
As we head into another winter season in Whistler, skiers (and now snowboarders) are sure to experience a very different Whistler Mountain than the one reported throughout Ski Trails in 1966. While we have quite a few issues of Ski Trails in our collection spanning from 1966 to 1973, we do not have a full run. If you happen to come across an issue while cleaning out an attic or crawlspace, we would love to see it!
In the 1980s the Whistler Question began posing a question to three to six people and publishing their responses under “Whistler’s Answers” (not to be confused with the Whistler Answer). Each week, we’ll be sharing one question and the answers given back in 1985. Please note, all names/answers/occupations/neighbourhoods represent information given to the Question at the time of publishing and do not necessarily reflect the person today.
Some context for this week’s question: This one seems pretty self explanatory, so we think we’ll leave it there.
Question: How did you learn about Whistler? How does it compare with US ski resorts?
Barb Webster – Secretary – Los Angeles
We heard about Whistler through Damon-Nelson, travel agents. We were here two years ago and stayed at the Delta Mountain Inn and like it, so we requested it again. Whistler was beautiful, but very cold. It’s much friendlier than US resorts and not nearly as crowded. No, we don’t have any set stereotyped views of Canada. Our only criticism might be that the sense of humour is a little bit dry.
Karen Brant – Physiotherapist – Los Angeles
I hear about Whistler from a ski travel newspaper. It’s friendlier than US ski resorts, but a little too cold. It’s as good or better than US resorts and I had a wonderful time. It was great. The skiing was excellent. I don’t have any stereotyped images of Canada.
Rollin Nanson – Sales – Seattle
I heard about it through friends. The skiing wasn’t quite as good as last year. What does Canada mean to me? A good time – partying. I kind of like coming up here because of the friendly atmosphere. I know I’ll have a good time regardless of the skiing. Whistler offers some of the best skiing in North America. It’s right at the top.
In the winter of 1987/88, a new group of uniformed skiers could be found on Whistler Mountain helping to create positive experiences for skiers on the hill. Known as Ski Friends, the program was somewhat modeled largely on the volunteer Ski Friends program at Lake Louise, even borrowing the name.
Over a decade before Ski Friends appeared on Whistler Mountain, many of the roles that they would come to fill were provided by Mountain Hostesses. Developed in 1974 by Leanne Dufour at the request of Jack Bright, the Mountain Hostess program provided twice daily guided tours around Whistler Mountain, helped run special events, and filled some of the roles provided by guest services today. Mountain Hostesses attended ski shows on behalf of the lift company and Dufour even traveled to Japan with Jim McConkey to promote Whistler Mountain to skiers there. Unlike the Ski Friends program, however, Mountain Hostesses were all paid employees of the lift company.
The Ski Friends program was not entirely dissimilar to that of the Whistler Mountain hostesses, which had been a position with the lift company for over a decade. Greg Griffith Collection, 1982
In February 1987, Mary Read, who with her husband Preston was an original investor in Whistler Mountain, asked her sister-in-law in Calgary for information about the volunteer Ski Friends program as Whistler was looking to form something similar. A Ski Friend herself, Dorothy “Dee” Read (member of the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame and mother of Crazy Canuck Ken Read) obliged by sending Mary a copy of the 1985/86 Ski Friends reference manual, a daily roster sheet, a Skiing Louise trail map, and a copy of “Amongst Friends,” the Ski Friends newsletter. These documents, along with Whistler Mountain Ski Friends manuals that belonged to Mary, were donated to the Whistler Museum and Archives in the 1990s and together clearly show the similarities of the two programs.
The Skiing Louise Ski Friends was founded in 1977/78 by the wives of ski patrol members who wanted to contribute to the resort. By 1985, Lake Louise had up to ninety members “of both genders, all ages and from numerous walks of life.” The stated aim of the Ski Friends was “to enhance the enjoyment of the skiing public at Lake Louise” and they did this by conducting free guided tours of the ski area, providing skiers with information such as directions and trail maps, and generally being a positive presence and friendly faces on the ski hill.
While Ski Friends had various responsibilities around the ski area, it appears that the guided tours were one of the most important parts of being a Ski Friend. Tours met at the Ski Friends sign multiple times each day and Ski Friends would take groups of 8 to 10 skiers, most of whom were new to the area. According to the manual, “A new area is overwhelming to first-timers, so the tour should be designed to show participants where to ski when they’re eventually on their own.” Ski Friends also pointed out facilities and provided additional information on the area and its history, much of which was outlined in the manual.
The Whistler Mountain Ski Friend jacket. Whistler Blackcomb Collection
The Ski Friends program at Whistler Mountain, as outlined in its 1987/88 manual, included many of the same responsibilities and expectations as the Lake Louise program, though it also involved being a bit of a salesperson. According to the official position summary, “The Whistler Ski Friend is expected to sell to the public the services, programs, benefits and qualities of Whistler Mountain; and to ensure, by dispensing accurate information and generous assistance, that the guest has the best ski experience possible.”
Looking through the 1987/88 manual, some familiar names show up as Ski Friends, including Mary Read, Isobel MacLaurin (who acted as a “float”), and BJ Godson, who led the program before leaving Whistler in the late 1980s.
The Ski Friends used to help Santa out around the holidays. Photo courtesy of BJ Godson
Like in Lake Louise, Whistler Ski Friends led tours of the ski area. They also helped with crowd control in lift lines, handed out maps and brochures, assisted with on-hill races and picnics, and generally worked to make guests’ ski days more pleasant by assisting in any way they could (the manual pointed out that the map at the Alpine Lightboard was “a good place to find confused and lost skiers”). Ski Friends were provided with up-to-date information on grooming, events, and weather conditions, as well as historical and general information about the resort and the mountain.
Today, there are still friendly uniformed faces on Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains who lead tours and offer information, though the program is now known as the Mountain Hosts. The Ski Friends program at Lake Louise is still going strong, offering tours and information to visiting skiers and snowboarders.
