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 1984. 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: Though all elections have various issues that are debated but the 1984 election is reported to have been fought mainly on the record of the Liberal Party who had formed the governing party for the majority of the last two decades. In the election held in September 1984, the Progressive Conservative Party led by Brian Mulroney won 211 seats to form a majority government.
Question: Who do you think is going to win the federal election?
Steve Bird – Ski Technician – Tamarisk
I think the Liberals will win. I’m not saying they will form a majority government but they will have more seats than the Conservatives. the polls now are saying almost exactly what they did before the last election.
Terry Power – Bartender – Slopeside
I think the Conservatives will win both locally and federally. It will be a minority government for them. We do need a change of government; the Liberals have been in office too long. But there’s not much difference between Liberals and Conservatives, and people are scared of the NDP.
Raj Anand – Lawyer – Toronto
I think the Conservatives. There are too many people who think the only way to make sure is a change is to vote Conservative. It will be worse than it is now; Canadians are going to be dismayed after the fact.
If you’re a regular reader of Museum Musings or our Whistorical blog, you’ll remember that last week we looked at the first Fun Fitness Swim in Whistler, which was sponsored by Molson’s in 1979. For decades, many competitions and events in Whistler were sponsored by companies like Molson’s and Labatts, from fun swimming events to World Cup Downhill races. In 1983, Molson’s also sponsored the first triathlon held in Whistler, the Molson Light Whistler Triathlon.
Triathlons, a race consisting of swimming, cycling and running, became increasingly popular in North America and Europe from the mid-1970s and into the 1980s. One of the first triathlons held in Canada took place in Vancouver in 1981 and a couple of years later the British Columbia Triathlon Federation was founded in 1983, followed by Triathlon Canada in 1984. Involved in all three of these events was Les McDonald, one of the founding members of the Alta Lake Sports Club (ALSC) in 1975.
Cyclists head up from the lake during the inaugural Whistler Triathlon. Whistler Question Collection, 1983.
Les McDonald was an early investor in Garibaldi Lifts Ltd., active mountaineer and climber, and electrician. As a founding member of the ALSC, he was also involved in cross country skiing in the Whistler area and helped with the building of the trail network at Lost Lake (Les’ Leap in named for him). He began participating in triathlons in the 1980s while cross-training for marathons and quickly became heavily involved in the sport. After helping to found provincial and national organizations in Canada, Les got involved on an international level and traveled to help set up national triathlon governing bodies in other countries. Then, in 1989, Les became the founding president of the International Triathlon Union, serving until 2008. When triathlon was included in the Olympic Games for the first time in Sydney in 2000, Les was given a large portion of the credit. During his involvement with the sport, Les worked towards equal prize money, equal representation, and concurrent medal ceremonies for female and male athletes.
Keeping hydrated is an important part of completing a triathlon! Whistler Question Collection, 1983.
Not surprisingly, triathlon was also taken up by other members of the ALSC and members of the club participated in a triathlon in Vancouver just one month before hosting Whistler’s first triathlon on August 14, 1983. The race consisted of a 2 km swim in Alta Lake, a 40 km cycle along “valley highways,” and a 15 km run around Lost Lake, finishing in the Village. Entry to the race cost $10 and those who registered early got a free t-shirt. According to Race Director Les, the triathlon was not meant to be “an iron man endurance test” but an opportunity to introduce all-round athletes and specialists to the “exciting and growing sport.” To this end, the ALSC also organized an event for those under 19 the day before.
The inaugural Molson Light Whistler Triathlon was won by Glen Carsen of Vancouver with a time of 2:45:51 (Carsen also won the second annual Molson Light Whistler Triathlon in 1984) and the fastest woman was Loreen Barrett with a time of 3:11:56. Les finished tenth overall with a time of 2:59:00.
A competitor nears the finish line in the Whistler Village during the 1984 triathlon. Whistler Question Collection, 1984.
Though the ALSC is now defunct, the club continued to host triathlons through the 1980s. Whistler even hosted Ironman races from 2010 to 2019. Today, the Whistler Triathlon Club trains for races and XTERRA Whistler, an off-road triathlon, takes place in September.
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 1984. 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: The sale of beer and wine in British Columbia is governed by the BC Liquor Distribution Branch, which has been responsible for the distribution of all alcohol products in BC since it was established in 1921 (today it also governs the distribution of cannabis). In 1984, the only places that could sell beer and wine were restaurants and bars with the appropriate licence and government liquor stores (private liquor stores were not allowed until 1988). Though there was discussion about allowing beer and wine to be sold in grocery stores in the 1980s, it was not until 2015 that the BC Liquor Policy Review recommended allowing such sales (in a specific model and with the proper licence).
Question: What do you think of beer and wine sales in grocery stores?
Erica Young – Travel Agent – Alpine Meadows
I agree that it should. It would be convenient for everybody, and I don’t think it should affect bar sales. It wouldn’t affect how much people drink – you don’t see any drunks around the village this afternoon (while the government liquor store is open). It would be great.
Marianne Hall – Hotel Employee – Alta Vista
It’s an excellent idea. I think for tourist areas it should be allowed. Everybody is up here for a good time; having it at the grocery store makes it “one-stop shopping”. And I don’t think it would affect how much people drink – the bars are open Sunday, what’s the difference? This is a tourist area – why not cater to the tourists who come here?
Bill Burn – Chemist – Burnaby
Could be okay. It’s hard to say; most people are pretty responsible but there would be some abuses. I don’t really have any strong feelings about it. From the tourist’s point of view I think the greater availability would be good.
After arriving in Whistler in August 1974 on a year’s leave from teaching that became multiple seasons, BJ Godson filled various roles in the growing community, from bartender at establishments such as the Highland Lodge to the creator of the Ski Friends program on Whistler Mountain. During her time in Whistler, she also founded Whistler’s annual Fun Fitness Swim.
According to BJ’s mother, she began to swim at the age of one, even before she started walking. She continued to swim and, in 1979, her boyfriend at the time suggested that she organize a swim in the area because she was “such a good swimmer” and “loved to organize things.” This led to the first Fun Fitness Swim, a fun distance race of about a mile and a half (about 2.4 km) in Alta Lake on August 19, 1979.
A smiling BJ Godson presents a swimming prize to Sheila Peters while Denver Snider looks on. Whistler Question, 1979.
BJ’s time working at the Highland Lodge had introduced her to Roy Adams, a representative of Molson’s, and he agreed to have the company sponsor the event. Thanks to this sponsorship, every participant in the race was guaranteed a t-shirt and drinks, and bananas and chocolate were available to those who needed it during the swim. Local resident Chico made trophies for the first place winners and local businesses donated prizes for a draw.
Rather than focusing on the competition of a race, this event was described by the Whistler Question as “a community event to encourage fitness” and was open to everyone over the age of 19. Thirty-seven swimmers left Wayside Park in one minute intervals, led by BJ and heading for the docks at Adventures West. Volunteers in rowboats and canoes were recruited to help any struggling swimmers and spectators were encouraged to come cheer. The race was followed by an afterparty at the Christiana Inn with refreshments provided by Molson’s and members of the Alta Lake Community Club. The first two winners were Rick McFadden at 41:25 and Meg Fellowes at 44:00, both of whom were reportedly so cold after the race that they didn’t make it to the afterparty.
Participants for one of the early Fun Fitness Swims. Photo courtesy of BJ Godson.
The first Fun Fitness Swim was such a success that the second year went ahead with almost full registration even though the weather was wet, cold and windy. The course changed a few times over the first years until the Fun Fitness Swim moved to Lost Lake in the mid-1980s. According to BJ, one of the main reasons for moving to Lost Lake was the danger of windsurfers on Alta Lake.
Though the windsurfing club and local windsurfers were asked to stay out of the swim course for a couple of hours during the race, there was little they or organizers could do about visiting windsurfers or those who didn’t get the notice. One swimmer in the 1982 event even recalled colliding with a windsurfer. The Question reported his comments, saying “I hit one. He was a beginner. He fell and couldn’t get out of the way. I didn’t see him and – bang – I ran into him.”
Swimmer Shelley Warne heads from Wayside Park to the Alta Lake Inn and back under the watchful eye of Marilyn Moore, who dusted off her bathtub derby craft for the occasion. Whistler Question Collection, 1984.
Though the event continued to focus on encouraging participation rather than competition, swimmers still swam to the best of their abilities and BJ remembered one participant in particular demonstrating their athletic ability. According to BJ, she was swimming around Lost Lake when “all of a sudden, there’s somebody passing me a high clip, swimming so fast they made a little wake.” She soon realized that she had been passed by Dawn Titus, which was particularly annoying as Dawn had had a cast on her leg until just a couple of weeks before the swim.
The Fun Fitness Swim continued to take place at Lost Lake without windsurfers and under BJ’s leadership, with help from other organizations, until 1989, when her friend Cindy took over the organization. Molson’s continued to sponsor the event until the last Fun Fitness Swim was held in the early 1990s.
