Think of it this way: because of them the lifts run, they keep the lights on. So they are a necessary evil....
Whistler!!
- Thread starter shelteringsky
- Start date
Just there this weekend. Liftlines were about 40 minutes near opening time, and then about 10-15 minutes if you took the group line and 5-10 minutes if you took singles from there on out. Garbo zone was pretty much just a "walk up and put your bike on and go" although the trails up at the top were pretty hammered and like half of them are closed right now due to the creekside closure.
It's the same thing now as it's always been it feels like though. A line and the blue trails are pretty busy, and the minute you get onto the tech black trails it's empty and amazing. Don't like braking bumps and crowds? Don't ride the blue flow trails.
It's the same thing now as it's always been it feels like though. A line and the blue trails are pretty busy, and the minute you get onto the tech black trails it's empty and amazing. Don't like braking bumps and crowds? Don't ride the blue flow trails.
Having some of the Garbo zone black trails closed was a bit of a bummer - ie Seven Year War and Upper No Joke. On the other hand I discovered Del Boca Vista - best green trail ever.
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Those are goodies. Doing that climb twice is no joke though.
glutton for punishment; gonna be a toasty day out there. that said, rather be sweating my bag off than today's agenda of sitting behind a screen. have a good one!
DC is fun, but I think a bit overrated generally, but given the conga line of people going there regularly, definitely in the minority on that, lol
I've ridden DC and thought it was a great trail but not the best whistler has to offer. Never ridden MC though, how is it compared to DC?
less chundered and hardpacked, at least pre latest ews running of it...this time of year the blackcomb bike park is pretty dry and loose overall
jesus christ dude thats rough. ive had 2 friends die of heart attacks while riding (i was not present at the time for either). as a result ive taken to carrying a packet of aspirin in my pack when i ride.
Yeah, the whole thing was definitely a wake-up call. My buddy was a typical mid-40s dad, probably caring 10-15 extra lbs in beer weight, but definitely not fat. He rode a lot and ate healthy most of the time; not what you think of as a heart attack candidate. I'm in a similar boat - could loose 10 lbs, but ride 5+ hours a week and run a few miles every other day, so now I'm pursuing all the tests I can to make sure my cardiovascular system isn't hiding anything.
My riding buddy had a crazy high resting HR and sporadic palpitations after getting Covid, went and got a whole heap of tests done and they discovered a genetic heart defect that could have caused problems down the track. Now on some medication to control it luckily. Lucky find.
Covid made me black out several times with my HR dropping into the low 30's. Almost killed me and my wife the first time as I was driving on the highway at the time, but luckily stopped in construction traffic. Thankfully on the mend with nothing detected from their tests in the hospital.
Took a few weeks for my resting HR to drop back down to normal as it was > 10 bpm higher than normal.
So now what? They'll replace the Fitzsimmons lift with an 8 person lift this summer. Will the Fitz area be closed? I doubt it. But, Vail...
liftblog.com
Vail Resorts to Install Deferred Park City Lifts at Whistler Blackcomb
In its earnings report today, Vail Resorts announced new six and eight passenger lifts will be built at Whistler Blackcomb in 2023, replacing the aging Jersey Cream and Fitzsimmons high speed quads…
liftblog.com
Scratch my plans for a Whistler/Sun Peaks trip next summer :/So now what? They'll replace the Fitzsimmons lift with an 8 person lift this summer. Will the Fitz area be closed? I doubt it. But, Vail...
Vail Resorts to Install Deferred Park City Lifts at Whistler Blackcomb
In its earnings report today, Vail Resorts announced new six and eight passenger lifts will be built at Whistler Blackcomb in 2023, replacing the aging Jersey Cream and Fitzsimmons high speed quads…
at least Creekside will be back open? and they have been building a bunch of new trails in that area this year still through its closure for Creekside gondy replacement...can't say it will really affect me much as I rarely go to the park these days as standing in lines to ride my bike is not really my preference anymore.
This is annoying news. I had been going to whistler every year from 2006 - Covid, was hoping to return next year. I really dig the fitz area and really don't want to cram into the gondola w/ a bunch of dudes on a hot day to get up there. I guess it is better in the long run.
Great news about creekside, that will probably be a pretty popular spot next summer w/ this news.
Great news about creekside, that will probably be a pretty popular spot next summer w/ this news.
nope, staying in urup
The potentially annoying thing from that is if we skip it again next year for Fitz, someone in the comments points out that the Garbo chair is ancient and might be the next to be replaced which could screw 2024 too...
Haven't seen my younger brother who's in sun peaks in for years, so that will win out. I'd love to do a bromont/msa trip one day, never managed when I was on the east coast.Come to Quebec instead
I like how they're dodging stating what the increased flow will be for summer. My speculation is that it will be a fractional increase, when they really need to be going after multitudes to address the problems they have now.
they could increase by getting rid of those special bike carriers and put the bikes on the rear of each row of chairs like in europe
double the chairs, 4 riders and bikes per chair, double capacity
Fixed
Ah true, can't beat family!
So many good options even beyond Bromont and MSA now. Tons of trail centers and opportunities for some epic days.
Is increased capacity the answer though? Increase it enough and you just move the crowding problem elsewhere, like onto the trails.
build moar trails then?
Was anyone there during the season closing weekend (today was the last day)? I was there Saturday and Sunday, although Sunday was cut short with a crash that messed up my right hand.
Overall, kind of disappointing. The lift lines were pushing 60min for singles. There were even lineups at times for the Garbo zone lift. While I understand it takes a ton of work to build and maintain trails , I don't think you can stay in the Garbo zone all day to avoid the lift lines at the bottom - there's only so much you can do up there.
The entitled and impatient side of me says "yes, they have to do something better with those chairs and they better re-open Creekside next season."
Overall, kind of disappointing. The lift lines were pushing 60min for singles. There were even lineups at times for the Garbo zone lift. While I understand it takes a ton of work to build and maintain trails , I don't think you can stay in the Garbo zone all day to avoid the lift lines at the bottom - there's only so much you can do up there.
The entitled and impatient side of me says "yes, they have to do something better with those chairs and they better re-open Creekside next season."
was deliberating heading up; had a peek at the chair line web cam on sat = hell no. monday looked quite a bit better, but i opted to be lazy & ride shore instead. despite being close to home, i'm kinda done with paying good $$ to strand in line with the hoards. next year should be a proper gong well worth avoiding altogether.
Bumping this....
Anyone hear any updates on how Whistler is going to mess with the 2023 season? I read somewhere the Fitz lift will be closed completely but the gondola will be open. Can you imagine the line up there??
Creekside lift will be open and that side will have new trails.
Anyone hear any updates on how Whistler is going to mess with the 2023 season? I read somewhere the Fitz lift will be closed completely but the gondola will be open. Can you imagine the line up there??
Creekside lift will be open and that side will have new trails.
sightseeing traffic is going to be shifted to Blackcomb base and village gondy prioritized for bikes. New Creekside gondy is really nice skiing wise, should be good in the summer too. There are a whole bunch of new trails in Creekside, sampled a few late fall, they're really fun, and one off TOTW that will be very popular I'd imagine.
I was thinking of going to Canada for a couple weeks mid-year to catch up with friends, ride bikes and drink beer. I was gonna skip Whistler bike park due to the lift malarkey but if they have a plan in place it might be worth doing a couple days.
Haven't seen my brother who's in Sun Peaks since 2018.
Haven't ridden Whistler since 2014.
Going to have to deal with whatever the lift BS is in 2023 before heading to SP.
Haven't ridden Whistler since 2014.
Going to have to deal with whatever the lift BS is in 2023 before heading to SP.