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Whistler Blackcomb breaks snowfall record

More than five metres of snow poses some challenges but also fuels enthusiasm as Blackcomb opens tomorrow
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At press time Whistler Blackcomb is reporting 530 cm of total snowfall in the low alpine of Whistler Mountain, resulting in a 220 cm base at Pig Alley weather station and some of the best early season ski and snowboard conditions in years.

That's a record snowfall for any month in the past 30 years, since records were kept. The previous record of 416 cm was set in January 2006, but by Nov. 19 this year Whistler Blackcomb was already reporting 418 cm of snow, with more in the forecast.

While a warm front moved in this week there is still more snow in the forecast and it's possible that Whistler will break the 5.5 metre milestone by the end of the month.

While skiers have been euphoric, the sheer amount of snow has created challenges for crews working to open the alpine, from freeing towers of ice to marking boundaries in areas where patrollers are waste deep in light powder.

"We've had a lot of snow is a short period of time, around three metres over a seven-day period," said Anton Horvath, Whistler Mountain's weather forecaster. "Fortunately the storm snow is settling rapidly and gaining strength, and the only weaknesses are related to the storm snow. There are no deep-seated facets like we saw the last few years that cause avalanches through the season, which is positive."

But while the avalanche situation is not as dangerous as last year where there was a weak layer for most of the season, it still remains moderate to high in the alpine and at treeline - mostly as a result of sliding wind slabs and falling cornices, as well as the sheer volume of snow.

On top of avalanche risks, opening the alpine has been a challenge for other reasons as well.

"There is usually not this much snow in November so we would be able to do the work gradually as we would get snow, it's almost as easy as flipping a switch," said Horvath.

"This year we haven't been able to do the work gradually. It's been a while since we had a few days of clear weather to work in, and we have another storm coming in.

"There's also more prep work at lift stations. We're in a situation where there's so much snow at the Peak Chair offload that we can't push it off the edge like we normally do because we're afraid the cat will fall over the edge. So we have to backblade the snow and pull in backwards, which takes two days. And with all the snow falling the job never really gets done. That's just one example of the kind of challenge we're facing."

Another is on the towers itself. Crews found more than two feet of rime ice (extremely dense clear ice) formed on the tops of Harmony Express towers that had to be removed before the lift could open.

"It took our crews two days to hammer it off with plastic mallets, so that's another challenge," said Horvath. "We also have probably seven kilometres of boundary signs that have to go up starting over by Khyber corner and West Bowl, and all the way to the backside of Whistler, Glacier Bowl, Piccolo, Flute, and the bottom of Symphony. And the snow is so deep that our crews literally have to wade through the snow."

Another early season risk that people should be aware of is the prevalence of tree wells in some areas, which Horvath says are practically bottomless. The snow hasn't had a chance to freeze or compact around trees and there is a chance that skiers and riders can be caught and buried.

The warm summer also resulted in new crevasses opening in the glacier areas, which are invisible with heavy snow. One person has already been caught in a crevasse in Whistler, although he only sank up to his armpits in a snow bridge.

"Before the bowls open up we have to go in with ropes and harnesses and poke around with probes to find the crevasses," Horvath explained. "We took pictures this summer so we know where they are, but we have to probe around to make sure and see if we need to mark those areas."

There are also hundreds of trees down in the ski area after a wind event last week where gusts were recorded of 130 km/h overnight. Horvath said that also took attention away from opening the alpine.

All of the trees falling on runs have been removed, although there are still downed trees in gladed areas and popular forest areas beyond the boundary. Some of those trees may not be removed until next summer.

Despite the difficulties crews are hoping to have the Harmony Chair open for Saturday, conditions permitting. If the system in the forecasts drops a significant amount of snow then there could be more delays opening the lift and the runs in the area.

But while this season has been a challenge for patrollers, groomers and other staff, Horvath says he wouldn't change anything.

"Everybody is pretty upbeat about how much snow we've gotten this year, the staff and public and the people in the valley are in great spirits," he said. "It's also going to help us move forward into the Olympics with a high level of confidence, having this much snow this early to work with."

Blackcomb opens today (Thursday, Nov. 26) with Wizard, Solar, Excalibur, Excelerator, Jersey Cream, 7 th Heaven and Catskinner lifts in operation. Depending on conditions the Crystal Chair could also open.

The situation will depend on what happens with the next weather system moving through. Updates will be posted on the website at www.whistlerblackcomb.com.

The snow has helped to increase interest in the resort, according to senior vice president of sales and marketing Stuart Rempel. The early bird sale on passes ended on Sunday and sales were ahead of last year, despite the economic downturn, challenges getting to the mountains as a result of the Olympic Games and last year's below average season. University student passes are still for sale, and are also selling well.

"We're thrilled with the result of our pass campaign," Rempel said. "Obviously Mother Nature has helped us with over five metres of snow, but I also think that people recognized the value and that our customers are resourceful and will figure out a way to get here during the winter."

Whistler Blackcomb is still collecting data from the sale of passes, but early signs indicate that a lot of Edge Card holders from past years have purchased full season passes this year, which were discounted $430 over last year at early bird rates.

The snow has also created a rush of last minute bookings for the American Thanksgiving weekend.

"Bookings for the weekend were looking challenged just a few weeks ago and we saw a big jump in bookings recently. I can't speak to the entire resort but we saw a dramatic improvement in the last two weeks and I think we'll continue to see a strong pickup through Thursday as well. It should be a pretty good weekend," said Rempel.

That said, the resort still has challenges attracting visitors from destination markets like the U.K., Australia, Ontario and the east coast of the U.S.

"We're still concerned for December, January, March, April, and even the first week of February," said Rempel. "We still have lots of great rooms and great prices, but with lots of snow we're in a good position to overcome the Olympic aversion effect and the belief that's out there that we're too busy or too crowded, or that nothing's open. We have the best snowpack of any resort in the world right now, and with Blackcomb opening this weekend we have a tremendous product."

Coastal B.C. and Washington snow conditions are currently the best in North America. In Utah, which has had some of the best conditions in recent years, Snowbird opened last weekend with a mid-mountain snow depth of just 16 inches or 36 cm. In Colorado, Vail is open with a base of 18 inches, or about 38.5 cm. Mammoth Mountain in California got off to the earliest opening of any resort with a massive snowfall in October, but without much snow since - they are reporting a snow depth of 16 to 24 inches, or a maximum of roughly 60 cm.

The Interior and Kootenay regions are also well behind the coast. Big White Ski Resort in Kelowna is reporting a base of 84 cm, and at press time was less than 20 per cent open. Red Mountain in Rossland is reporting a mid-mountain snow depth of 95 cm after 142 cm of snowfall.