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On-mountain musings – thoughts for a new year

by Michel Beaudry

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Page 3 of 3

While waiting for the opening of the Peak Chair on a blustery morning last month, I was surprised to hear languages spoken in the line-up among the youthful crew assembled there that I'd never heard spoken at Whistler before. And it's not like there was a big group of us — we were probably less than a hundred souls in total. So I decided to see just how many language groups were represented.

And I was blown away by the results. There were Spaniards and Norwegians, Germans, Swedes and Japanese, French and Quebecois, Italians, Slovaks... even a couple of Danes for good measure. And they were all under 30 years of age! But what made it even more interesting — at least for me — is that everyone, EVERYONE, in the line-up appeared to be an expert skier or snowboarder. And while each group expressed its sartorial aesthetic in its own particular way, the gear these riders wore on their feet reflected the very leading edge of snowplay technology.

"So big deal," you might say. "So now we have ski bums from around the world. But they're still cheap. They still have no money. They still don't impact our bottom line much."

But what about later? I mean, how do you think mainstream riders in Montreal or Toronto first heard of Whistler? While those responsible for promoting the resort in those early years would love to take credit for drawing newcomers here, the real sales vehicle back then was word-of-mouth. And it's the same today. One happy, super-charged, Whistler-raving kid, I would posit, is far more effective at infecting potential visitors with the Whistler bug than a million dollars' worth of conventional advertising.

And given the current communication revolution, that potential has never been greater. I mean, word-of-mouth has grown a seriously-big megaphone in the 21st century. Just imagine right now what these Whistler-touched foreign kids are saying/blogging/posting/tweeting/skyping to their snow-starved peers back home? Or where, in the future, these young people might plan a mountain vacation with their new, growing families and/or business colleagues? It really is a no-brainer. We have become global... just not in the way we expected.

So enjoy the snow my friends. And enjoy the ride. A new Whistler era is upon us...

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