My wife had a job assignment in Vancouver. She urged my to come with her. She suggested I could go bike riding. So I went to Whistler for a day. It was a 2 hour bus ride. The plan was that I'd rent a bike and do cross-country trail riding in the morning and DH in the bike park in the afternoon. Both were to be with a guide/coach. I filled out about a dozen releases and waivers and picked up the cross-country bike, a Giant Trance. Paul, the guide ran me through a few warm-ups at the skills park after which we headed out. We rode some pavement, some gravel, and some dirt single track. I got a bit winded due to the altitude, but it was all very enjoyable with lots of great scenery. I had never considered roots to be an issue. I suppose that was because there aren't a lot of trees where I ride and I just considered roots to be like anything else on the trail. However, roots are attached to trees, and on single track, the trees are right next to you. I had a minor crash when the bar end clipped a tree. My knee pads and gloves did their job. After lunch, I got the DH rig, armor and a full-face helmet. The bike weighed a ton. Paul showed me how to load the bike onto the lift and away we went. The first run was on a green flow trail with lots of bermed turns. I got lots of practice but still need lots more. I lost it once coming out of one turn. I dropped down too far and lost it in the lose dirt. The second run used mostly the same trail, but with a few detours for some more technical features. One "technical feature" was a mama bear with two cubs. We waited for them to wander off. The third run used much of the same trail, but included some blue. It was a fast flow trail with lots of berms and with optional jumps and such. I skipped the jumps and such, but did get about an inch or two of air going up a tabletop. I really liked this trail because even if I lost it in a bern, there was flat open space in which to land; no going over the side or into the trees. I did one crash. It wasn't really OTB, because I kept the bike ahead of me - I think. The armor did its job and I continued the ride. I only got the three DH runs because I didn't want to miss the shuttle bus back to town. And, that's just fine as I'm not sure I had the stamina for any more runs. I don't intend to do any serious DH riding and have no need for a DH bike. Nonetheless, I'm looking forward to riding at Snow Summit.
How very cool Bruce!! Good ride report. I have the opportunity to go early July. I really want to go but not sure I can afford it. Any one wanna sponsor me?? Haha...I kid!!
Rideinrox, I must admit a day at Whistler is a bit pricy. But, if you are in Vancouver and haven't been to a major park, it is something you should really try to experience. I'm easily satisfied and I could fulfill all my DH needs at Snow Summit, so I would probably not have gone were I not already in Vancouver. But, note, when I used to play golf, I was happy playing the same course over and over whereas my friends liked to try different ones. YMMV. A company called Epic Rides has a shuttle that is $35 round trip. Its a two hour ride that leaves Vancouver at 8:00 and leaves Whistler at 5:00, so you can ride from 10:15 to 4:30. From what I can tell about your riding from the forums, you probably should not do the x-country. It isn't much different from x-c anywhere else with single track through the wood. Focus on DH. I'm not so hot for DH, so my initial plan was to do DH in the morning and x-c in the afternoon. That way if I really liked the DH, I could pay extra and do it all day. The x-c was to be in the afternoon in case I really hated the DH. The order of the rides got reversed because of guide availability. For me, it worked out just fine. As far as the DH, the trails don't require any sort of a guide. They are pretty clearly marked and they all seem to take you back to the village. And, if you've done more than a few days of DH, you can pass on the instruction. That will reduce the cost a bunch. You will need someone to show you how to load the bike onto the lift. There is a practice area for that and people will gladly show you what to do. Being at the park with all the riders and shops is quite the experience in the event you don't ride. BTW, I notice you're in Palm Desert. I'll be in Palm Springs from June 22 until July 2. Let me know if you want to get together for a ride of some sort.
Thanks for the info Bruce. Yea, my new love is DH! I figure two-three days should satisfy my craving for Whistler. Dirtmistress is who I'll be riding with; she says I'll dig it there. We've ridden SS together so she knows my skill level - she says I'll kill it (SS almost killed me trying to clear the step-down on PartyWave - there's no forgiveness if you case it. Whistler, I hear, is more forgiving if you short a jump)!! P.S I moved to Murrieta 2 weeks ago....so...if you're in this area, I'd be happy to take you on a ride!
Rox if you go, which dates are you targeting? We will be there July 5th to 11th.. Ryan and I would love to show you some of his (our) favorite trails if the dates coincide.. I also have Ryan booked for a private session with Chris Kovarik for a 1/2 day that week and he is pumped for that.. let me know on the potential dates.. Jim
^^Exact same dates Jim (crazy timing!!).... I'll probably be cutting the trip short bc of my budget. Do you know if you have to have a passport? I haven't traveled outside of the US in a very long time when birth certificates sufficed for crossing the border.
You do need one.. better hurry up and get it this week and pay fee to expedite.. don't want you not showing up due to lack of passport
and make sure to keep me posted if you are for sure going those dates.. need to make sure we exchange numbers so we can connect for some park laps while you're there.. we talk about you riding SS with Ryan.. let's make it Whistler!
Camp out and ride valley trails for free if you have to, well worth it! And yes, passport is mandatory these days unfortunately.
I enjoyed the valley trails immensely. But, I wouldn't make the trip just for them unless it was so you could say you rode Whistler. You should do at least a few DH runs.
