2009/2010 Tour Reports

Marmot Basin Tour (March 15 – 18, 2010)
Fifty nine club members participated in another great ski trip to Marmot. This year we changed accommodations to the Best Western Jasper Park Inn as a result of excessive cost increases at our former lodgings. The new hotel management and staff went out of their way to make our stay fantastic, including providing each room with a very nice bottle of wine. They did a super job on the group dinner and provided extra help for the Wine and Cheese party too. Everyone enjoyed the Wine and Cheese social and the left over snacks on our bus ride home.
Skiing was excellent. A lovely 33 cm snowfall prior to our arrival followed by additional snow on Tuesday evening provided great conditions.
I am sure that our final trip of the year to Sunshine will also be a great success and I am looking forward to seeing many Club members there in April.
Rick Madsen, Tour Host

Kimberley Tour (Feb 22 – 25, 2010)
The trip went smoothly, without a hitch and we enjoyed three full days of skiing with overall good weather, adequate but not excessive snow, and lots of partying amid the Vancouver Winter Olympics celebrations. We had four out-of-province, five out-of-town, three new, and a total of 42 fun-loving member participants on this trip.
We were blessed with extraordinary good weather and a clear blue sky outbound. An Ontario new member marveled at the snow capped Rockies scenery commenting that just the bus ride was worth the trip. We arrived in good time to have the Wine & Cheese (W&C) at 5:30 pm. Since the BC liquor laws require that alcohol be served by a bartender, that took a big chunk of our W&C budget and we had to self-cater the cheese portion. I was fortunate to be able to delegate this job to a new member, Helen Kwan, who came in with an abundant and splendid array of food… and under budget, too. Of course she couldn’t have accomplished this without the help of many members, and the Sandercock's especially. We had so much food left from the W&C that Susanne Gill/Judy Creed and Nancy Brown/Ron Watkins offered their adjoining rooms to host an après ski party. We had Olympic hockey on in one room and curling in the other.
Tuesday’s group dinner was a prime rib and seafood linguine buffet in the resort's relaxing and cozy private meeting room. A men’s Olympic hockey game was on in the background and we helped cheer them on to their win.
We celebrated the Olympics with lots of mingling and singing to Ron Watkins' harmonica yodeling. Shirley Roddick and Jim Bell were the avid photographers who captured the moments and many of their photos are posted on the Club’s website.
I thank all who helped out, those who brought along their 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics' memorabilia, and, most importantly, all of you for being such a fun- loving crowd. I enjoyed being your host tremendously. Thank you again.
Celia Chan, Tour Host

Silver Star Tour (February 1–5, 2010)
Good company… 49 in all, very good snow conditions, and mild temperatures were the hallmarks of this tour. Having said this we did not see too much sun and the fog settled around the Milky Way and Christmas Bowl areas each day. The beauty of Silver Star though is that the runs all lie within the tree line, so it is always possible to ski the trails on the front face with reasonable vision. Other areas of the mountain, particularly Silver Woods and Putnam Creek remained relatively clear. A gentle fall of new snow on the first day made for some fun powder skiing, and improved conditions for the following two days.
On the après ski side, a catered Wine & Nibbles reception was held at the Bugaboo Bakery. A good selection of Okanagan wines, neat savoury pastries and cheeses were enjoyed by all. A served roast beef or salmon dinner at the Mountain Katz Restaurant rounded out our Club sponsored events.
With Norm White as our Brewster bus driver, dry roads and light traffic made for a speedy trip in both directions. With the exception of a couple of twisted knees we all made it home safely.
Peter & Peggy Gillingham, Tour Hosts

Fly 'n Ski to Squaw Valley (January 24 – 29, 2010)
I loved Squaw Valley! And I love it that the Club endorses the Fly 'n Ski trips so that those who are interested can try new ski hills that are a bit farther afield. The first day, our Mountain Guide from the Ski School introduced us to the Siberia Ridge run by advising that everyone should have the chance to ski it in a white out. That we did… albeit some more contentedly than others! We rode the Funitel, a lift to the mid mountain, which we were told incorporated elements of the Japanese subway system and Russian underground. We saw, but did not climb to, the peaks where many Warren Miller spectaculars are filmed. We were amused by the signs in the cafeteria that requested we “recycle the silverware”.
While we honed our fog/rain skiing skills the first two days, we rejoiced in resplendent sunshine the last two. As Squaw Valley has 37 lifts, we were challenged in trying to ski as much of the resort as possible. Our “super seniors”, Peter and Jackie Morgan, John Eliuk & Krystyna Jahns, enjoyed the $20 lift ticket price at Alpine Meadows, a price they said they’d not seen since the late 1960’s! We were impressed by the courteousness, helpfulness and old fashioned good manners of the many boarders (who had come out to ride the powder) that we encountered on the lifts and hills. Richard Koslowski was of invaluable assistance to all of us with his thorough research of neighbouring ski hills and transportation systems. The experience was fabulous!
Louise Nielsen, Tour Host 

Sun Peaks Tour (January 11–15, 2010)
For the almost 80 members on the Tour, the trip was much enjoyed. Three wine and cheese parties, including the birthday celebration, plus the group dinner kept us hopping every evening. Nancy and Al Greene came in to say ‘Hello’ at the Monday wine and cheese, and it was easy to see that Senatorship agrees with her.
Once we got our minds around the fact that we were not going to see the sun I think everyone enjoyed the skiing. The snow was good and even though there was a lot of heavy overcast, most of the time the light wasn’t too flat.
David Wayne, our driver, was very obliging and good humored even though driving to and from Kamloops was a challenge. We were late getting back due to a 2 hour wait re road conditions just east of the Rogers Pass Summit. Two movies on the way home helped to pass the time and as we approached Calgary we raffled off the remaining 7 unopened bottles of wine, a popular event!
Shirley Tajcnar, Tour Host 

Sunshine Tour (December 15–17, 2009)
Once again, the “snow angel” took care of our Club! On December 14 the temperature was -35C and there had been no new snow for a week. But when we arrived at the base on December 15 it was -12C and warming rapidly. Despite a chilly wind and some reduced visibility, the new snow was fluffy. It was topped off that night with another 7 cm of new snow and even warmer temperatures. In all, the skiing was great.
We managed to organize tables in the Chimney Corner Lounge so we could all have dinner together and share the usual laughs and teasing. We enjoyed the company of two new members - Hubert Rielinger and Lauren Rendle. Other Club members joined us for either a day of skiing or a single overnight bringing the number of skiers to 30. Amazingly, those arriving later found members on the hill to ski with. Those white buttons really work!
We did have cancellations prior to the trip and we wish our ailing members a speedy recovery. While the numbers going to Sunshine were much lower than in previous years, we were all very happy with the services and kindness at the Inn and found the food to be very good. We will hope for a larger group to “kick start” the ski season next year.
Barb Stevenson, Tour Host 

2008/2009 Tour Reports

Sunshine Tour (March 31–April 2, 2009)
Starting on the last day of March, the Ski Club once again made their second trek to Sunshine Village. We had an excellent 3 days of skiing with a little fresh powder for the first 2 days. There were periodic times of flat light and restrictions to visibility but no one seem to be very upset… perhaps its because many of us can no longer see too far anyway. In all, counting the people who just came for a day, we had over 40 Club members on the hill (33 of whom stayed in the hotel). We did not have a group dinner or a wine and cheese party but all gathered in rooms or in the lounge for dehydration refreshments. Suppers were in the lounge and were attended by most of the Club members each night.
We were privileged to be able to celebrate Rita Andrews 92nd birthday at supper on the second night. On the third day several members joined Rita for several runs through the powder and a few trees. Rita, we have reserved a spot for you next year as this trip just would not be the same without you.
I am looking forward to seeing you all on the hill again next year for another successful ski season.
To Dick Wilson—I didn’t know there were so many tree runs at Sunshine!!!
Rick Madsen, Tour Host

Marmot Tour (March 9–12, 2009)
Are any of these tours routine? We seriously doubt it and suggest that Marmot 2009 was anything but routine;  it was in fact exceptional. Our group of 53 skiers included six members from Quebec whose enthusiasm, curiosity and humour added a unique and pleasurable dimension to the trip. Our bus driver, Norm White treated us to the anecdotal history of Highway 93 which was not only interesting but seemed to shorten the trip. By the way, Norm has sold his collected histories of the highways that he has driven and these are available on www.TripTrivia.com. 
The first morning, Tuesday, we awoke to -33C and needless to say it was too cold to ski; in fact the ski hill operators told us that they would not put anyone “in the air” until it warmed up to -24C. Pat McLeod, the hotel convention manager, arranged to have tables and a TV set up in the ballrooms for us, and so the games began: the bridge group of course, but also the “anything but bridge” gang (alias the ABB gang) who started some very noisy and hilarious games. In the afternoon we were treated to a bus tour of Jasper and area, arranged by Rick Madsen and driven, with commentary, by Norm.
Days 2 and 3 were relatively normal and although cool, the skies were sunny, the snow was good and  you could still find some soft stuff in the trees and off the knob lift. By special arrangement, two hosts introduced / reintroduced our group to the hill and one led us through an adventurous double black after which we thought we had lost one of our Quebec skiers. We were in the patrol room reporting his disappearance when thankfully he turned up; he had thought we were meeting at the bottom of the lift, not the bottom of the hill.
The seniors of the SASC make the perfect role models for the soon-to-be-senior baby boomers.  Many of them are dealing with a long list of handicaps and ailments and yet they still ski, snow shoe, paddle, bike and hike.  They are an inspiration and the 2009 Marmot group was particularly amazing. It was a pleasure to help organize the trip for these members.
Ann Gammell and Nan Morrison, Tour Hosts

Sun Peaks Tour #2 (February 16–20, 2009)
We were a few skiers short of the required bus break-even number but we all enjoyed the comfort of all that space, not to mention that the skies were crystal and the views splendid in both directions. And that weather pretty well continued for our ski days too. A fresh snow fall would have been welcome but the conditions were very good nonetheless, especially for the ones of us who prefer the groomed ripples. 
Having just one busload made the wine-and-cheese and the group dinner very comfortable affairs and we were particularly lucky that Nancy (Greene) was on a break from her Senate duties.
It was a week for birthdays too as Tom Whittaker, Anna Frank and Helga Pattison celebrated theirs. Masa's restaurant produced a delightful spur of the moment "cake" for Helga at our group dinner on the Wednesday.
As always, the whole trip was made more comfortable and fun because of all the willing help from all participants. Thank you all.
Dorothy Tyler, Tour Host

Sun Peaks Tour #1 (February 9–13, 2009)
Forty two members signed up for the Tour then we had forty four on the bus as we had two members who had to book privately and wanted to ride the bus too.
The weather was sunny for the most part but we did have 3 inches of new snow on the Monday night and some more on the Tuesday night. We really did luck out with the weather.
Forty members and “Norm” enjoyed the beef dinner at Masa's on Wednesday, and then on Thursday night the ladies organized a “Pot Luck Supper” in the Lodge party room to eat up the leftovers.
The highlight of the trip was, Nobody got Hurt!
Splitting the Sun Peaks tour into two separate weeks worked well as the party room wasn’t too crowded and there were enough ski locker spaces.
Roll on next year…
Peter Fisher, Tour Host

Steamboat Springs, Colorado (February 1–6, 2009)
Steamboat, Ski Town, USA did not disappoint the 23 SASC participants who skied four days on this great mountain.
With the exception of a few hours of cloud on the first two days, we had excellent sunny weather with good visibility. In the morning, good groomed tracks and certain glades and mogul runs offered good skiing. In the afternoon the snow softened without getting slushy. Steamboat has a wide variety of runs to cater to all levels.
One feature that added to the enjoyment of this skiing adventure was the excellent shuttle service provided by the Holiday Inn. The Inn also arranged for complimentary overnight storage of skis and poles at a store adjacent to the Gondola station. Another bonus was the guiding service provided by “The Over the Hill Gang”. The “OTHG” is a local club associated with the Steamboat Springs Resort that you have to be 50+ to join. The club provides a daily guiding service to visitors of similar age. They provided four guides for our group from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM each day and split us into three groups according to skiing levels. They all knew where the best snow was to be found and we skied great groomed slopes and glades, plus moguls and tree runs for those who were looking for more challenging runs. On Tuesday we were all invited to their weekly get together at The Ptarmigan.
Steamboat's Annual Winter Carnival started on the Wednesday so Lois Henderson and Louise Nielsen, while indulging in a rest day, arranged for a large group of us to have dinner at the “Steamboat Yacht Club” on Thursday evening so that we could watch the Carnival ski jumping competition. It was a great way to end our third Fly & Ski adventure.
Gary Davidge, Tour Host

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