Update from Whistler Mountain Bike Park & 2018 Dig Day Date

PRESS RELEASE: Whistler Mountain Bike Park

Literally-

If you were the type of person who took everything literally it would make navigating this world difficult. Think about it, you would take everything you read and heard at face value. For example, the classic 70’s Carl Douglas song, where the lyrics tell you “EVERYBODY was Kung Fu Fighting”. You might think wow, surely not everyone was Kung Fu Fighting? Were they all doing it at the same time or did they take turns? Did it happen in the street or were there special facilities for this sort of thing?

The Bike Park opens in precisely 17 days from when this rant is being keyed into a computer and as I sit here ranting, a team of dedicated workers are undertaking all of the tasks required to make that target a reality. The struggle is real. We had a banner year with 1239cm of snow of which 218cm still sit consolidated at 1650m. On top of the snow (or sometimes buried under it) is an unprecedented amount of blowdown and deadfall thanks to some heavy snow and wind events from the fall and early winter. The team in the field are optimistic that we will have a great opening day offering once they get through uncapping the dirt. The weather outlook is also promising given that warm rain or warm sunny days both contribute to snowmelt. The definitive list of trails we plan to open is still a week or so away but I can confirm that Dirt Merchant will not be on offer for opening because we will be ripping into a full rebuild of lower Dirt Merch as our first project of the season.



Garbo and Creekside openings are still a ways off but we will have crews in those zones digging and falling in the coming weeks in order to finish the work we started last summer. In the fall we had curious folks enter our closures “just having a look”, a situation we cannot have going forward. When we are actively tree falling and have equipment operating we can’t have random riders popping by for a look or using the construction zone as a shortcut to get to something on the other side. A breach of our closure requires us to shut down falling and excavating to check our perimeter signs and closure fences as well as sweep the area before we can go back to work. Each person entering the closed trail costs us hours of lost trail building productivity.



If you are itching to be part of the action and want to ensure we get as much trail as possible for opening, why not join us for Dig Day 2018. On Sunday May 13th we will be hosting a public dig day where everyone is welcome to join us for the final push. In the past dig teams have helped us add trails like Angry Pirate and Del Boca Vista to the list which hadn’t seen a shovel in the weeks leading up to season kick off. We will provide a free bike park ticket as well as food and a beer at the GLC afterward for everyone who can pitch in. Last year we had an international crew with riders from Germany, Czech Republic, Brazil, Australia, Belgium and USA join the Team Canada for a fun day of getting the Park ready.



When you visit the Bike Park this year we want you to be the take-everything-literally person. Ride the heck out of the trails we have open for you (after you PreRide & ReRide of course) but please observe and respect our closures.

See you on opening day...
– BF, Bike Park Manager


New for 2018

Daily Golden Hour. We are kicking off our Extended Play hours right from Opening Day. Typically, the Bike Park hours were 10 AM – 8 PM three days a week until mid-June, but for 2018 we will be spinning Fitz Chair from 10 – 8 every day as of Opening Day (May 18th) until September 3rd.

The Creekside Expansion. With five brand new trails spanning 13 km’s opening this summer, not to mention free parking and the Dusty’s patio, Creekside will be the place to be for anyone intermediate level and above. Target date for opening the zone is currently set for Saturday June 16th and the Creekside Gondola will also have its hours boosted, running from 10 AM – 8 PM throughout the summer. Stay tuned for additional updates.



Big Red Express. We will have Big Red Express loading bikes in 2018. The open air chairlift will take riders from the top of Creekside to the Roundhouse and provide support to access the Garbo Zone and Peak Chair. Big Red will have a limited capacity, loading bikes with hooks on the side of the chairs like Peak Express.

Early Bird Passes on Sale Now

Now is the best time to get your all access pass to a sleepless summer, as early bird perks are on until May 20th. Perks for the Unlimited Pass include a free Bring-a-Friend ticket and free Top of the World ticket. For the limited passes, which includes the 10 Day, 5 Day, Twilight and Top of the World passes, you will get a free bonus day added on if you purchase in the next couple of weeks.

Get your pass here.

Dig Day

As noted in the Park Report, we are having Dig Day 2018 on Sunday May 13th. All participants will get food and a beer at the GLC afterwards as well as a free day ticket to the bike park. For more information and updates, please visit the Facebook Event Page.

#RideNowSleepLater

“Those cats were fast as lightning”
Were they special cats, with super powers?
“In fact it was a little bit frightening”
I would have been scared too being the only one without knowledge of the martial arts.
“They fought with expert timing”
Was it a race or were they just timing how long they could do it?
“Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting”
Wow they’re still fighting, don’t they ever get tired?

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MENTIONS: @WhistlerMountainBikePark

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