Ever wonder how Flute Summit got its name? Well, Piccolo, Flute and Oboe, adopted in 1965, refer to three secondary summits extending southeast from Whistler Mountain. The lowest summit was named Oboe in reference to the instrument with the lowest pitch of the three, the middle summit was named Flute in reference to the instrument with the middle pitch, and of course, the highest summit was named Piccolo in reference to the instrument with the highest pitch.
Wandering around the Village late afternoon in March, you would be hard-pressed not to stumble across patrons enjoying a frosty glass of suds in one of the many frequented Après-ski bars here in Whistler.
Ski-après often includes food, music, dancing, socializing, and having a few drinks after a long day of skiing
A woman holding up an empty beer keg peers into the camera outside a lodge on Whistler or Blackcomb.
The act of Après-ski originated in Telemark, Norway during the 1880s after a rise in the popularity of Telemark Skiing (named after the region). At this point recognizable ski-après made a modest entry, first informally in skier’s homes, then in newly developed ski clubs—the inevitable second step of the arrival and growing popularity of skiing [Lund, Morton. (2007, March). Skiing Heritage, 19(01), 5-12]
WORLD CUP WEEK ’93 – National Team members Luke Sauder, Ralf Socher, Cary Mullen and others pour beer at Tapley’s
In 1893, Ski-Après made its way to the Alps with the founding of Ski Club Glarus in Switzerland, one of the first ski clubs in the Alps, and from this point ski-après started to spread through Switzerland, France, Austria, and the rest of Europe. Sometime after the First Winter Olympic games in 1924 in Chamonix, France, the French coined the phrase après-ski.
A man, still in his ski boots, carries two flats of ‘Canadian’ beer on his shoulders, fittingly a huge grin is spread across his face.
The arrival of Ski-Après to Whistler may have its roots in the arrival of the Tyrol Ski and Mountain Club, whose members (composed of mostly Austrian and German people) started to frequent Whistler during the late 1950s/early 1960s, eventually buying a 5-acre lot in 1962, and building Tyrol Lodge in 1966.
Long time Whistler Local Trudy Alder worked as the caretaker at the lodge from 1968 to 1970. At the time, she considered entertaining lodge guests with spirited ski-après to be as important a duty as clean linens and stacked firewood.
The two bad boys. Ivan Ackery and Alex Philip drinking beer.
Ski-après certainly is an important part of socializing in Whistler with many locals and tourists alike gathering around to enjoy a fine wine, a cold pint, and other spirited drinks. Enjoying a glass of intoxicating beverage is nothing new to the valley, and certainly didn’t arrive in the valley with the arrival of the skiers. Whistlers own origin story involves liquor to some extent with John Millar, a trapper who was living in Alta Lake, meeting Alex Philip at the Horseshoe Bar and Grill (a restaurant owned by Philip) in 1911 on one of his yearly trips to Vancouver. Millar told Alex of Alta Lake’s beauty and excellent fishing, and though inebriated, he got Alex very excited, for Alex had always wanted to run a fishing lodge. Millar was invited to dinner the following night, with Alex and Myrtle making plans for a trip the following summer. In August 1911 they set out on a trip to visit AltaLake, eventually developing Rainbow Lodge and tourism in the Valley.
Rainbow Lodge became the centre of socializing in the valley in the following years, with fine food, dancing, and of course enjoying a few drinks. Alex Phillip was known to partake in a few glasses of suds with guests while they were staying at the lodge, with some guests later becoming good friends
Brad Wheeler and Ben Schottle of the Whistler Brewing Company (1995)
These days, Rainbow Lodge no longer stands, and Ski-après is no longer confined to Tyrol Lodge and Dusty’s. There’s no shortage of pubs, clubs, and lounges around WhistlerVillage to provide a wide variety of après experiences. Between the Whistler Brewing Company and the Brewhouse, locals and visitors alike can enjoy a number of Whistler beers after a hard day on the slopes. Looks like Whistler, as per usual, has put a new twist on an old tradition!
Summers at Lost Lake are known today for their mild diversions of picnicking, sunbathing, and paddling in inflatable Explorer 200 boats. But during the late ‘70s to early ‘80s the lake was home to Whistler’s “Summer Air Ramp” – a ski jump that launched aerialists high into the air and then deep into the water, allowing them to practice their somersaults and twists in the off-season.
Aerial practice. David Lalik Collection.
Planning for the ramp was initiated in 1977 by local freestyle skiers, commonly referred to at the time as “hot-doggers,” frustrated at the lack of aerial opportunities at Whistler’s glacier summer camps. Instead of relying on a summer snow pack that was, at the best of times, “quirky,” they proposed to create opportunities for aerial training in the valley.
Funding for freestyle skiing in the west was virtually non-existent at the time, so the aerialists banded together with local community members to gather funds and expertise to begin the project.
With no development permit or permission from the SLRD, an inconspicuous site needed to be chosen. Thankfully, all eyes were on the new Village at this time, which had just had its first phase of development completed, and Lost Lake was remote enough not to draw undue attention from local authorities.
Construction was a cooperative effort – timber was scrounged from various sources in town and the plastic grass that had been used as the ski out from the old Olive Chair was salvaged from the Function Junction dump. The piecing together of timber and final overlay of the “Green Meanie” grass remarkably only took two weeks.
Looking down the ramp. David Lalik Collection.
At its completion the ramp projected 20 feet out over the lake. Skiers would ride down the steep ramp, over the slippery plastic grass, and launch themselves as high as 40 feet above the water. “Injuries were commonplace,” says David Lalik, one of the original workers on the ramp, “but [an] acceptable risk in the sport and environment of the day.” The ramp became renowned for being particularly gnarly, even by professional aerialists, and there was sufficient demand for a second, novice ramp to be constructed after the first season of training. By 1979 Lost Lake had become a popular summer hangout for locals – many of which were spectators of the experimental aerial training. The Whistler Answer from this Summer explains that, “the vicarious excitement of watching some ‘less than hot’-dogger pull off a full face landing upon completion of a faultless flip is enough to liven up the most boring tanning session.”
Sponsors began to show an interest in the ramp and competitions started in 1981. The events only got bigger as the Summer Air Camps kicked off the next year – Lost Lake had become a renowned destination for off-season jumping! Offering training from national team coach Peter Judge (current CEO of the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association), the camps attracted all kinds of aerialists, from new to experienced. Having the lakefront crowded with hundreds of spectators was no longer anything new, and often film crews would record events for television broadcast.
Spectators at the jump. David Lalik Collection.
Lost Lake failed to remain as remote as it once had been, and the site eventually became part of the revitalization that installed the Fairmont golf course. As Dave Lalik explains, “this ‘undesirable lot’ and their ramshackle mess … wouldn’t fit in with the new expanded, sanitized, recreation master-plan of contoured 12 foot paradise paths to ‘Lost Lake’.”
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Peak to Valley race, taking place January 31st and February 1st 2014.
The Peak to Valley race is a very unique race that has a definite place in Whistler’s history. The brainchild of legendary ski-racer, Dave Murray, the race starts at the (almost) top of Whistler Mountain at the Saddle and finishes at Creekside.
Peak to Valley Race, ca. 1988. Photograph by Greg Griffith Griffith Collection, Whistler Museum
The average GS race has 35 gates and a vertical drop of 250 metres. The Peak to Valley race has a vertical drop of 1,443 metres, with 180 gates and a course that’s over 5 km long.
Judging by interviews with the racers a lot of the Peak to Valley is about overcoming pain. Whistler resident Sarah Lynch described the experience in 2010 “I was just trying to remember to breathe and then your legs are just burning.”
Alongside the pain however comes a lot of fun and camaraderie. The Peak to Valley is not just for professional racers; anyone can join in – if they dare! The fastest time on record is 4.52.03 – the longest – 29.03.50. Despite these discrepancies both record holders had an awesome time taking part.
The race is a team effort with four people per team. Teams must have at least one woman and all must be 19 or over. Two team members race on the first day and two more race on the second. Their times are combined and the winning team is crowned.
There have been some questionable conditions facing the racers over the years, but to date, no race has ever been cancelled. In 1991 the weather was so stormy that the entire mountain was closed, but the race still went ahead. Racers could upload on the Olive chair and then get a snowcat the rest of the way up, as the conditions were too dangerous for a lift to be run. One racer, Simon Wiruntene from the New Zealand National Ski Team even hiked up, as he knew he was one of the last to start, and actually managed to get the fastest time of the day!
Quilt up for auction: Made out of the race T-shirts spanning the entire history of the Peak to Valley Race
To mark the 30th anniversary Whistler Blackcomb has commissioned a quilt made out of the race T-shirts spanning the entire history of the event. The result is an impressive memento of one of Whistler’s best-loved races. The quilt will be auctioned off to raise money for the Whistler Museum. To make a bid for this piece of Whistler racing history check out the Whistler Museum website (www.whistlermuseum.org) or call us on 604 932 2019. The quilt will be displayed at the Peak to Valley race itself and then afterwards at the Whistler Museum. Bidding will close on February 8th, 2014.
