Ski Canada Winter 2025 - Vol.53#4

I’ve heard the line many times from starry-eyed skiers: “You must have the best job in the world!” I’m not talking about working for Ski Canada, although looking back, this gig has been pretty good. I’m thinking of the comment that my grade 13 high school buddy, Paul Osak, also gets regularly. Not wanting to kill the dream with the harsh realities of running an off-grid lux mountain lodge, Osak plays along as if his only work responsibilities are to personally measure depth and lightness of snow, and later to hold après-ski court in Selkirk Snowcat Skiing’s dreamy setting. Paul and his wife Megan (the brains behind most of his decisions) bought the world’s first-ever cat-skiing operation in 2013 from original co-owner Brenda Drury. Her husband Allan had literally invented…

THE PASSING OF AN ICON AL RAINE: 1941-2024 It’s fitting that a recounting of Al Raine’s life should appear in a Ski Canada issue titled The Best of Skiing, since he’s responsible for much of what Canada has come to represent on the world stage. From the time he was appointed as head coach and program director of Canada’s alpine ski team in the spring of 1968 to his final days as the mayor of Sun Peaks, Raine was driven by a conviction that our ski racers could go head-to-head with the top European countries and that Canada could develop four-season resorts that would offer a tourism experience at the very highest echelon. Raine’s work with the national team incorporated concepts that were years ahead of their time: summer training…

At the start of the 2024/25 season, Canada’s retail ski scene looked bleak. The past three winters of enduring rapid mood swings brought on by COVID-19, extremely fickle weather and high interest rates produced a glut of unsold inventory. During the pandemic, self-propelled sports like cycling and backcountry skiing experienced meteoric growth. Supply couldn’t keep up with demand, as masked legions of outdoor enthusiasts lined up to pick away at barren shelves. Manufacturers and retailers alike looked at those growth statistics and somehow thought the absorption rates would extend into the next two or three years. Future orders were based not on sales in 2018 or 2019, but on the pandemic-fuelled heyday. Shortly after Labour Day last season, Environment Canada issued a bleak weather forecast for the upcoming winter, which…

GEAR & GADGETS 1 Wrapped snugly in thermal-reflective Omni-Heat, Columbia’s comfy new Cirque Bowl women’s suit has all the trimmings without the high price: vents, powder skirt, adjustable hem, cuffs with thumb holes and a helmet-friendly hood. $350 jacket, $230 pants; columbiasportswear.ca 2 Dakine’s Titan gloves have a waterproof-breathable membrane and gauntlet cuffs to keep the weather out. Leather palms ensure pole grip and phone-friendly liners allow a two-part approach to comfortable touring or chairlift texting. One thumb has a goggle squeegee for wet lenses and the other has textured fabric for wet noses. $130; dakine.com 3 The Rush jacket by Arc’teryx uses tough yet light Gore-Tex Pro three-layer fabric that allows complete all-weather protection for comfortable ascents and descents. Easy-sliding, watertight pit zippers, articulated patterning and a regular fit…

We are creatures of habit. It’s easy to slide into a routine and not deviate from the familiar trails carved through the rolling snowfields of our brains: Drive to the hill at 8 a.m., get a parking spot close to the café but not too far from the chairlift. Three laps of run X, coffee with Bud and Chuck, then three more runs and head for home. Are we missing out on the best because we’re so used to what we know? They say don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. How about not letting good be the enemy of new. “New” can mean a different local ski area, a new province or state, a whole new country, or a new continent. It could be a new way of…

BEST STEEPS There is a reason why the Freeride World Tour makes its only North American stop at Kicking Horse. With a full 80 in-bounds chutes, Kicking Horse is king of the rodeo when it comes to adrenaline rushes. The open ridge layout permits straightforward navigation above, and safe catch basins below make it an easy place to explore for those who like their skiing with a little anxiety. BEST USE OF A LEVEL Skiers at Fernie Alpine Resort will notice an easier exit out of Siberia, Lizard and Currie bowls after off-season earth-mover work levelled terrain at choke points. Resort ops didn’t stop there. A thorough renovation of the popular Griz après bar included the levelling of the floor. From now on, if you are walking all wobbly when…