Juste une autre fin de semaine de Ride!

3 jours à Whistler, qu'est-ce que l'on pourrait espérer de mieux en cette fin de premier semestre à Vancouver. Avant de commencer la course aux examens finaux, je part pour une ultime fin de semaine de ride en 2009. Jérome et moi prenons le bus à 6:00am de UBC. Nous arrivons à 8:15 et prenons la première gondole pour le "mid station" du côté Whistler.

Blackcomb, vue du côté Whistler

Nous montons au sommet et survivons au froid glacial de -25 degrés avec des rafales de vent entre 50 et 70 km/h!! Jérôme et son célèbre chandail des Canadiens, étonnamment  très apprécié des gens sur la montagne, même étant dans la zone Canucks!

Le célèbre Inukshuk au sommet de Whistler a subit les récentes intempéries et en porte les traces...

Vue du village de Whistler, 1500 mètres plus bas...

Plus tard dans la journée, Jérôme va rejoindre d'autres connaissances sur la montagne, et je termine la journée avec une hike en compagnie de Sebastian le Suédois sur le côté Blackcomb. Il pointe notre destination...qui nous a pris 45 min à atteindre...

Une fois arrivé, le gel et l'effort sont mélangés dans un même portrait

Arrivé à destination, je grimpe un petit sommet pour la postérité

On se prépare pour la descente en free ride

Le flan de montagne, côté 7th Heaven, avec la forêt de poudreuse en contrebas. On peut voir le côté Whistler de l'autre bord de la vallée

On se retrouve au UBC Lodge pour une soirée de recupération...

Les Suédois et moi

Le lendemain, le froid est de retour, et après avoir réouvert une blessure interne au genou en atterrissant d'un big air côté Blackcomb, je prend le restant des 2 jours plus relax...

Le 2e jour, en compagnie de Andy et Travis

Le dernier jour, le froid est toujours présent, mais le vent a quelque peu diminué.
Vue du sommet de Whistler

La fin de semaine tire à sa fin, le soleil se couche tranquillement derrière le sommet de Whistler...

...et l'horizon s'enflamme une dernière fois avant la descente de 8.5km qui me ramène à Whistler Village

À la prochaine Ride!

First Official Whistler - BlackComb Week End!

It was time, and what a time!! Whistler has announced an all time record month of november for total snowfall with more than 550cm in 3 weeks!!

The email I received this week!

After 2 more weeks of hardcore studying, it was again time to go out there and check out what they meant by "Record Snowfall". We were well served! Jerome (a friend in UBC who comes from Bellechasse, Qc) and I get on the 6am bus on saturday morning on our way to Whistler. We get up there, and fight our way to Harmony lift on Whistler mountain for some early morning powder dream. We walk a little, and get ready for some fresh tracks!

Jerome making some new tracks

Jerome takes a nice multishot of my track. Wow, waist deep powder, a Dream!

Taking a break on the mountain, thinking about the next slope to hit

With the new Peak to Peak gondola, we head to Blakcomb, since winds were too strong on the Whistler side

On top of the 7th heaven lifts, we see that winds are still very strong on Blackcomb...50-70 km/h!

(2230m)

After a few powder tracks in the forest of 7th Heaven, we head back down on the slope called "Couloir Extreme". And it was...more than 45 degrees inclination, sick!

"Couloir Extreme"

We head back to Whistler for a Poutine, and this concludes Saturday

Jerome went back Saturday, I continued with the Swedish Crew on Sunday!

Back in 7th Heaven on Blackcomb side, Joaquim, Stefan, Mats and I get ready for some more powder

"7th Heaven", Forest of Deep Powder

Joaquim getting wild

And this conclude this first week end in Whistler. Great start of season! Looking forward to the weeks to come!

Until next time!

My First Live NHL Game!

Yes, it was not in Montréal, as Les Canadiens were always our eternal ennemies during the Nordiques Era, and the fact that driving 3 hours to "Monléal" didnt seem too interesting considering that the Canadians currently have only 11 victories in 23 games, which gives a 50% chance of seeing them win...

Anyway, back to the subject, I happen to have very friendly neighboors who happened to have extra tickets for the sunday night game, so unexpectedly, Nick and I both got our things together and showed up (in the nose bleed section) to see the Vancouver Canucks encounter the team that ended their last year's playoffs, the Chicago Blackhawks. The latter being on a 6 victory streak, the stakes were high to see if the Canucks could pull this one out.

During the warm up

Video of the Warmup

After 2 scoreless period and Canucks leading 20 shots to 12, it was still 0-0...Until Chicago managed to squeeze a pitiful goal on a rebound between the pads of a screened Luongo in the 3rd. After 3 periods and leading 30 shots to 17, the Canucks are defeated 1-0...

Roberto Luongo (born in Montreal)

Captain and first goalie of the team

Still, It was a good game, and there was a few fights worth coming to see!
And both Sedin's were back together on the play, Daniel Sedin having been injured for the past 6 weeks

Until Next time!

Whistler Opening Day!!

On that tuesday 10th of November, I received an uncommon Email from Whistler-Blackcomb stating that due to the 100cm+ of snowfall in the last 7 DAYS, the resort would open 12 days early, on Saturday the 14th of November.

 The cover page of the mail I received...talk about a teaser!

I haven't been writing for awhile, and thats because I've been OVERLOADED with Studies for the past 5 weeks, constantly having deadlines one after the other. But this special Email changed it all. I decided that I NEEDED to get out there, and finally get a change of pace.

Well, I really made a good choice, because it was THE opening, and What an Opening!! 150cm at top and great conditions, coupled with stoked friends from UBC. We got our gear ready and woke up crazy early (5am!!) to get on the slopes with the first riders of this 2009-2010 Season!

So Andy, Arsham and I got to the mountain for 8h15. Lifts opened at 8h30. Thats when we discovered that there was about 1000 people who had the same idea, and some even slept in front of the door to get first place in line!

The 500 meter line up at 8h30 in the morning

After having lost Andy and the others I came with, I found the Swedish Crew

Sebastian and I

We got up there and the view was fabulous! Fresh powder everywhere, and the sun trying to pierce through the morning clouds...

After one run, we had lost half the Swedish crew, and Stefan and I went on our own to discover a new...and not to easy...way down (red line)

This was my second run of the season...

After a few runs of randomly finding and losing people, I ran into my original friends (Andy Scott and Arsham) at the end of a pretty sketchy tree run. 

After I found them, CBC television was on site, and they interviewed me for a few minutes. I later had my 5 seconds of glory on Late National News on CBC West Coast television!

Andy and I

We then went into a Holly Forest of Snow Covered Pine Branches and Sacred Powdered Paths

Here's one I really like: (you can See the Sacred Powdered Path...)

We finally ended up, after 6 hours of non-stop snowboarding (I had lunch in the lift going back up)

on The final Rundown in complete Fog (Scott)

What a first day!!

Until next time...

Compteur Réactivé!!

Je reviens officiellement pour les fêtes pour la première fois depuis 2005!

En cette période de midterm intense, j'ai bien hâte de vous revoir!!!

À très bientot!

Hiking in BC

Already a month behind me here in the West! Taking advantage of the unsually sunny weather in BC, it was time to go out there and get some mountain climbing going!

First Week-End: The Chief and Garibaldi Lake

The Swedish Team, Nick and I left with two full minivan down to Squamish (BC) on that saturday morning of mid September. We got to our hostel, The Inn on the Water, looking over to our first hike: the Chief.

Our objective for that day was the 3rd peak of the Chief's rockface

(highest point on the cliff, on the picture)

The hike was pretty steep uphill, 1.7km long for 850m elevation, almost 45 degrees inclination!

At a midway point, a famous jump picture with the Team!

At midway between peak 2 and 3, the cliff edge gets kinda scary!!

Looking down 500 meters of rockface

After 1h30 of straight up, chains, ladders and slippery rock hiking, we finally got to peak #2!

From left to right: Sebastian, Erik and I

Funny weather on that saturday, from up there we could see both rainfalls and sun. Made up for a beautiful scenery

The inevitable result of that weather was the most bright coloured rainbow I've ever seen

Group Picture at Chief's peak #2

The next day (sunday), we all went to Garibaldi lake. On the way up there, I met Marc, a guy from Montreal on exchange as well. He's poiting at the direction of Garibaldi lake.

We went all the way up, and the pictures are showed on hike week end #2, below.

Second Hike Week-End (in a row):

Garibaldi lake and Panorama ridge

So, the week-end following with Andy and Scott, two colleagues from my Management Simulation team, we went back to Garibaldi lake for camping.

After 3 hours and 9km trail up to the lake with all the camping equipment on our back, we finally get up there, and enjoy the beautiful and relaxing sight of Garibaldy lake with the Sphinx Glacier in the back (1500 above sea level)

Taking it easy in the sun on that saturday afternoon, the birds are looking up for a easy snack with Scott.

A beautiful setting sunlight on the mountains.

The beginning of the coldest night I've ever experienced...

The next morning, after spending the night freezing my ass,

we are so gratefull to see the sun appear behind the mountains.

Finally some warmth!

It got below 0 at night, so the next morning, the table tops were frozen!

After a quick breakfeast, we get going on that beautiful sunday morning.

Crossing the meadows, we are looking at our objective (the highest peak in the middle)

Taking a break in the Meadow before undertaking the final rocky path...

The rocky path that leads to the top: Panorama Ridge

From Panorama Ridge (2100m above sea), looking down on Garibaldi Lake and the surrounding mountains.

Andy, Scott and I

A Video that speaks for itself!!

Then, we went along the ridge to 3 more peaks.

Andy and I walking next to a glacier

Keeping the ritual going, we built a Inukshuk

Great memories from the Rockies!!