In mid-October the Dirtsurfer Canada Pro Team visited Whistler/Blackcomb to demonstrate the sport of inline boarding for Resort Management. Heads were turned and headway was made...

The goal of the team was to demonstrate the boards in the Magic Bike Park, a new set of trails opened this summer. A Dirtsurfer program at Whistler would be inevitable if the demo was a success and judging from photos of these trails, success was inevitable. The team arrived a day early to get more riding in and was happy to find the trails were nice and wide, and although unnecessary, smooth and manicured! Unfortunately, the team was surprised to learn that the trail was riddled with switchbacks that, although perfect for mountain biking, were just too tight for the Dirtsurfer's turning radius. Undaunted, the team rode the main winter runs instead and drew nice sized crowds during the four hour session.

The next day the team met with the Whistler/Blackcomb Management team of Jeremy Roche (Product Development Manager) and Doug MacFarlane (Operations Manager) who had kindly taken time out of their afternoon. Pro Riders MAD MIKE and Scott Schneider turned it up a notch for the Management demo generating excitement in both Jeremy and Doug for our sport and its potential. Check out the gallery of photos taken during our 2005 visits to Whistler/Blackcomb here: PHOTO GALLERY. All but four of these photos were taken during this latest visit. For photos of riders performing on 4X courses, terrain parks and general dirt riding, check out this gallery as well.

Due to the need to renovate existing terrain and work around current programs taking place at the base of the mountain, a Dirtsurfer program will not be in place in time for the 2006 season. However, since the sport will work well in the main terrain park, Whistler/Blackcomb is interested in potentially providing this venue for an all-terrain boarding event next spring/summer! The team will be there in May when the park re-opens for first tracks and to get a feel for the terrain and how it can be used for an exciting off-road event. At this point, the proposal is still being prepared, but we hope to include both a boardercross type race as well as a big air comp and are excited to present the idea to Whistler in early 2006!

We are pleased to announce that our major partner in the event planning is Tony Krygier at ATB Canada and together we hope to create an event that will meet the demands of the athletes, while simultaneously boosting awareness of the sport and drawing large spectator support to Whistler/Blackcomb. This event will require extensive man-power and funding, so we urge all interested individuals and organizations to contact us if they wish to offer their support. Feel free to call us at at Toll Free at (780)465-5833 or e-mail info@dirtsurfer.ca