Tag: Mountain Biking

When the mountain bike industry came to Whistler | 1987

When the mountain bike industry came to Whistler | 1987When the mountain bike industry came to Whistler | 1987

October 1, 2026 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Featured photo: Richard Kelly going over the descent down Whistler Mountain with the “Delegation.” September 1987.
Courtesy of Leanna Rathkelly.

In the summer of 1987, some of the biggest names in the emerging mountain biking industry arrived in Whistler. They came to ride, talk bikes, and see what was happening in a destination still better known for skiing. Among those waiting for them was Whistler photographer Leanna Rathkelly.

Rathkelly had moved to Whistler in the fall of 1985, hoping to build a career as an outdoor photographer. Mountain biking itself was still relatively new to the valley. Earlier that year, Richard Kelly and Eric Wight had started Backroads Mountain Bike Adventures with a fleet of 10 Nishiki Bushwacker mountain bikes, offering rentals and guided rides. Many visitors had never even seen a mountain bike before.

After Kelly and Wight went their separate ways in 1986, Richard and Leanna started LifeStyles Adventure Company. Their focus was on guided experiences, including rides around Whistler and multi-day trips through the Gulf Islands. Leanna, who began working for the Whistler Question in 1986, handled much of the company’s photography, writing and marketing.

At the time, there were few trails specifically constructed for mountain bikes. Riders explored logging roads and hiking trails around Lost Lake, Cougar Lake and Cheakamus Lake. As Rathkelly recalled in an August 2026 interview with the Whistler Museum, riders were still discovering where these new bikes could take them.

“The more they pushed these bikes, the more they realized they could go on hiking trails,” she said.

In 1987, Mountain Biking magazine began planning a gathering of bicycle industry representatives. The magazine wanted a destination where leaders in the emerging mountain bike industry could exchange ideas and get in some good riding. After considering several locations, it chose Whistler.

Two individuals sitting on a chairlift with a bicycle, surrounded by fog on a mountain.
Kelly on the chairlift with the editor of Mountain Biking Magazine, Dave House. Courtesy of Leanna Rathkelly.

Working with the Whistler Resort Association (now known as Tourism Whistler) and LifeStyles Adventure Company, the magazine brought about 30 members of the bicycle industry to Whistler that September. Rathkelly remembered it as a “Mountain Bike Symposium.”

The guest list included Tom Ritchey of Ritchey Mountain Bikes, Scott Nicol of Ibis Bicycles, representatives from Marin, Specialized, Raleigh, Scott USA and Kestrel, Tioga and other people involved in the rapidly developing industry.

Rathkelly met the group at Vancouver International Airport before they travelled to Whistler, where the Whistler Resort Association hosted a welcome reception. The following morning, they headed for one of LifeStyles’ favourite destinations: Cheakamus Lake.

The ride began relatively easily before climbing a rocky logging road and entering the narrow trail toward the lake. The contemporary magazine account described riders negotiating moist soil, rocks, logs and branches while trying to keep pace with riders such as Nicol and Ritchey.

A black and white photograph of a group of mountain bikers sitting by a lakeside, enjoying a meal and conversation, with mountains and a forest in the background.
A lunch time picnic at Cheakamus Lake as featured in Mountain Biking Magazine. Courtesy of Leanna Rathkelly.

Rathkelly didn’t ride with them that morning. Instead, she and a friend hiked ahead carrying food. Rathkelly remembered walking in with a new dog in a front pack and another pack filled with supplies.

At the lakeshore they laid out a gourmet picnic for the arriving riders.

“We put out a nice gourmet spread,” she recalled. “And, of course, they arrived gobsmacked seeing this pure mountain scenery.”

The meal included melons, grapes, bread, cheeses and even a double-layer chocolate cake carried into the lake.

For Rathkelly, Cheakamus Lake represented what mountain biking was about in those early years: “To be able to get you into these beautiful, natural, wild areas safely and with pure joy.”

Cover of Mountain Biking magazine featuring two cyclists in casual biking attire on a dirt path, with a dog accompanying them. The magazine highlights features like the John Tomac signature bike and travel destinations.
Richard and Leanna on the cover of Mountain Biking Magazine. Courtesy of Leanna Rathkelly.

The following day offered another distinctly Whistler experience. LifeStyles had arranged with Whistler Mountain to take bicycles up the ski lifts and guide riders back down the mountain. At the time, the lifts did not have bike carriers, so the bikes were placed on the chairs for the ride up.

The trip became an eight-page feature in the February/March 1988 issue of Mountain Biking. Many of the photographs were credited to Rathkelly, documenting the group’s rides and their time in Whistler for the magazine’s North American readership.

Long before purpose-built trails and the Whistler Mountain Bike Park, the 1987 trip captured mountain biking in Whistler at an earlier stage. Riders were still discovering where the bikes could take them, while some of the people shaping the emerging mountain bike industry were discovering Whistler for themselves.

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How Whistler helped shape mountain bike media

How Whistler helped shape mountain bike mediaHow Whistler helped shape mountain bike media

June 16, 2026 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Featured Image: Kranked 1 to 5 on DVD. Photo Whistler Museum Collection.

Today, mountain bike media and Whistler are almost inseparable. From 1990s freeride films, coverage of Crankworx and viral videos such as I Only Ride Park and Ferda Girls, Whistler has played a central role in how mountain biking is documented, promoted, and experienced.

A key milestone in Whistler’s connection to the mountain bike media landscape came on April 11, 1999, when Kranked II: Trail from the Crypt premiered at the World Ski and Snowboard Festival in Whistler. The Kranked series would become one of the most influential MTB film franchises of its era, helping document the rise of freeride mountain biking and introducing audiences around the world to British Columbia’s trails and riders.

Shot on 16mm film, the early Kranked movies captured a rapidly evolving sport. Their footage showcased everything from Kamloops’ sandy steeps to the wooden ladder bridges and elevated features of North Shore Vancouver, which would go on to influence trail-building around the world. The films helped establish B.C. riders such as Ryan Leech, Wade Simmons, Brett Tippie, and Richie Schley as international stars.

Bjørn Enga riding in Whistler. [mid 1990s]
Image: Rowles Collection

The driving force behind the series was filmmaker Bjørn Enga. Raised in Granthams Landing and North Vancouver, Enga discovered mountain biking in the early 1980s. Seeking adventure, he moved to Whistler in the early 1990s, where he embraced the ski-bum lifestyle and worked as a taxi driver between 1990 and 1992. Although he briefly returned to university, the pull of mountain culture eventually led him back to British Columbia’s mountain towns.

By the mid-1990s, Enga had launched Freak Radical, an interactive journal dedicated to mountain culture. Teaming up with Christian Begin, at age 28 Enga shifted to film production, starting Radical Films. Their first feature-length production, Kranked: Live to Ride, was released in 1998, laying the groundwork for what would become one of mountain biking’s defining film series. This period in the sport’s history is explored in detail in Darcy Turenne’s 2017 documentary The Moment.

Whistler played an important role in the development of the Kranked films. The world premiere of Kranked II was held at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler and drew approximately 1,000 attendees. The event was organized by Shauna Hardy, a former North Vancouver schoolmate of Enga’s, who would later found the Whistler Film Festival in 2001.

Another local connection came through Whistler-based artist and designer Stu MacKay-Smith of Toad Hall Studios. MacKay-Smith, who had previously collaborated with Enga on Freak Radical, created most of the distinctive graphics and animation featured in the early Kranked productions.

How audiences consumed MTB media, at the time, was very different from today. Films were distributed through bike shops, first on VHS and later on DVD. Eager mountain bikers often waited for copies to arrive at their local bike shop.

In 2000, while promoting Kranked III: Ride Against the Machine, Radical Films posted a video trailer online, something virtually unheard of in the action sports industry at the time. While filming in Mexico, Enga received an unexpected message from the company’s internet provider that exclaimed that they could not support the amount of traffic. In short, Kranked III’s trailer was blowing up the internet.

“Apparently they were using more data than the usual high-volume content,” Enga later recalled. “I got this message at a pay phone in a remote place in Copper Canyon, Mexico. Our plan with the internet site did not include that much data… Early days!!!”

The trailer’s popularity suggested there was a strong appetite for online video distribution and viewing. What is taken as a given today was groundbreaking 25 years ago.

Kranked III opening night ticket. Rowles Collection

The influence of the Kranked films extended beyond riders and audiences. The series also served as a training ground for a generation of filmmakers and photographers who would go on to shape MTB media. Among them was Darcy Wittenburg, who worked on Kranked films before co-founding The Collective with Jamie Houssain and later establishing Anthill Films. Anthill Films is a production company that has continued to push the creative and technical boundaries of action sports cinematography (see Brandon Semenuk’s unReal Segment).

Today, action sports photography and filmmaking have become an important part of Whistler’s cultural identity. The groundwork laid by early innovators such as Bjørn Enga helped transform MTB media from a niche pursuit into a global industry, with Whistler often at its centre.

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Losing the UCI MTB Triple CrownLosing the UCI MTB Triple Crown

August 5, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

Back in 2001, Whistler was slated to host the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) MTB World Cup Triple Crown event, but it did not go ahead. According to The Province, the UCI had received 11 bids to host the event from various Whistler groups between 1991 and 1999. Only one was successful.

In 1998, Marika Koenig and Claire Bonin founded TEAM Management, an events and festivals company focused on mountain biking. That same year they executed the inaugural Whistler International Classic, an internationally-sanctioned race where pro riders could build up UCI points. Over the next two years, TEAM added the race to their new event, Summer Session, a multi-day festival that revolved around mountain biking, cycling, skateboarding, and general summer fun. From fun and competitive races to bachelor auctions, the week was jam packed with events. Through this, TEAM showcased Whistler’s capability of hosting a World Cup event.

Mountain biker Dave Wastson competes in the 1999 Summer Session. He later won the 2001 Joyride Bikercross. Bruce Rowles Collection

TEAM invested their time and funds to submit an extensive bid to UCI in September 1999. It was endorsed by Cycling BC, the Canadian Cycling Association (CCA), and W3 – Whistler Blackcomb, Tourism Whistler and the Resort Municipality of Whistler.

Four months later, UCI awarded the bid to Whistler. Unfortunately, the dream of hosting a World Cup in Whistler did not come to fruition, as W3 wanted to take over ownership from TEAM, but did not have the expertise to do so. In December 2000, 7 months out from when the Triple Crown event was supposed to take place, W3 and TEAM withdrew their intention to host the World Cup.

The Whistler community expressed disappointment, outrage, and confusion, writing letters to the local papers in support of TEAM’s role and success with other MTB events. Many questioned the real reason for backing out. The fallout caused TEAM to cancel their events planned for the summer, including the third-annual Summer Session, and end their business.

Promotional video for Summer Session (2000). Koenig Collection

There were also concerns that this fallout would affect Whistler’s bid for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, since UCI President, Hein Verbruggen, sat on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and was not too pleased with the outcome. The Olympic bid, however, remained unaffected and was awarded to Vancouver and Whistler in 2003.

In the meantime, two other resorts competed to take on this opportunity – Sun Peaks and Grouse Mountain. In March 2000, Grouse Mountain was confirmed to take on the Triple Crown from July 4 – 8, 2001, as well as events in the 2002 and 2003 World Cups. There were concerns initially with lack of on-mountain facilities and accommodations, but the Vancouver mountain assured UCI that the Skyride could transport 1,200 people per hour to make access for athletes and spectators easier. They also brought in Gestev Inc., an experienced organization who did World Cup races at Mont-Ste-Anne (Quebec) and Mazatlan (Mexico). Though the event was successful, mountain biking on Grouse died down after these World Cups, until this year when their new Bike Park opened this summer.

The podium for the cross-country event at the 2002 World Cup on Grouse Mountain. That year the downhill and four-cross events were cancelled. Makarewicz Collection

Back in Whistler, this left a void that needed to be filled by a large summer event. Since the 1980s, mountain biking had become a staple of Whistler summers, with several attempts at hosting annual events, so what was next?

Paddy Kaye and Chris Winter formed Joyride Productions in 1997 with the goal of bringing freeriding MTB events to Whistler. They helped build many of the trails on Whistler Mountain prior to Whistler Blackcomb taking over the park, and assisted with events and trail maintenance during the Summer Session festival. With the lack of major events in the summer of 2001, they brought Joyride Bikercross to the forefront and it was a massive success. The event took place a day prior to Grouse Mountain’s World Cup, a strategic choice on their end since pro riders would be close by to attend both events.

This homegrown event got bigger and better, and the slopestyle competition was introduced in 2003 when Joyride was incorporated in the Whistler Gravity festival. A year later, the festival was rebranded to Crankworx – Whistler’s largest summer festival that now has a multi-stop world tour.

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Bringing the Arizona Heat: the 1994 Cactus CupBringing the Arizona Heat: the 1994 Cactus Cup

October 15, 2024 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

In 1991 at Pinnacle Peak in Arizona, a group of locals called Team Aware started the Cactus Cup, a mountain bike racing event. The Cactus Cup attracted 100 riders in its inaugural year and then grew quickly, with the goal of promoting the sport and broadening the pool of racers and recreational riders.

Specialized Bicycles became the title sponsor and the event toured other locations across the United States. In 1994, the Arizona event had 1,900 participants and 20,000 spectators. That same year, the organizers partnered with Blackcomb Mountain to host their first international event in Whistler.

The base of Blackcomb Mountain during the 1994 Cactus Cup. Blackcomb Mountain Collection, Randy Lincks

By this time, Whistler had a strong mountain bike culture and had shown its capacity to host large, multi-day events through the Can-Am and BRC races. The second stop in the Cactus Cup Series took place from Friday, July 22 to Sunday, July 24. There were over 300 riders, which was half the expected attendance. Though many pro athletes were in attendance, for many there were more important races going on. For example, The Province reported that BC’s top women Lesley Tomlinson and Alison Sydor would not be attending as they qualified for the Tour de France.

The weekend was packed with competitive racing, a bike expo, a kids rodeo and race, a fun dual slalom, and a “Meet the Pros” hoe-down party at Merlin’s.

Kicking off the competition on Friday morning was the Time Trial, an individual race against the clock. Later in the day was the Fatboy Criterium, where racers took to the Village Stroll riding a quarter-mile loop on Specialized’s slick Fatboy tires. Saturday’s race was the Dirt Criterium, a 1.5 km multi-lap course starting at the base of Blackcomb Mountain. The last and biggest race, the Circuit Race, took place on Sunday with a 13 km course with single tracks and up and downs.

Kids take part in a tricycle challenge at the Cactus Cup. Blackcomb Mountain Collection, Randy Lincks

Points from these four races would determine riders’ overall score for the event. There were four categories for the races (citizens, novice, sport, and expert and pro). While all classes could enter the last two races, only the experts and pros could compete in the Time Trial and Fatboy Criterium.

Throughout the weekend, the top spot in the men’s pro category was between Kansas’ Steve Tilford and Vancouver’s Bruce Spicer, who won the 1992 Cactus Cup in Arizona. It was a 30° C day for the last race, and Tilford left Spicer in the dust. As Spicer told the Whistler Question, “I’m not sure if it was the heat or what, but my legs were never quite there today. I was surprised.” In the women’s pro class, Victoria’s Melanie McQuaid took first place in what was considered her first international race.

One racer, Kevin Murray, recalls that water hoses were placed at the end of the finish line to cool off riders. However, that was not the most memorable part of his weekend. During the Saturday race, he pretzeled his front rim and had to drop his bike off at the Glacier Shop for repair. Unfortunately, the shop was broken into that evening and his Norco Rampage was stolen. Specialized provided a loaner so Murray could still compete in the last race. Despite these issues resulting in Murray giving up racing, he fondly remembers how exciting it was to see world class racing at home.

Ultimately, the Cactus Cup saw success in Whistler. Kris Burchard from Specialized told the Question that the lack of turnout was to be expected as it takes time for an event to establish a reputation, but the “weather was great, support for the volunteers was excellent and the venue was first class.”

The Cactus Cup occurred in Whistler the next two years, but the main event had its last race in 1999. In 2017, it was revitalized back in Arizona and still continues today.

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