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Blackcomb’s Arthurian legend

Looking closely at some of the names on Blackcomb Mountain, there is a theme that has developed over time as if by fate.

Looking closely at some of the names on Blackcomb Mountain, there is a theme that has developed over time as if by fate.

It's a connection to a legendary place called Camelot, where the Knights of the Round Table fought fierce dragons in their search for the Holy Grail, much like present day Whistler locals fight tourists in their quest for fresh powder.

It definitely wasn't predestined that there should be certain connections between a handful of ski run names, the gondola, the bar at the bottom, the children's castle and the fabled legend of long ago.

Most people don't even make the connection. But the parallels are there.

King Arthur's Camelot was a magical place unlike any other and some say the mountain has that same kind of magic – the kind of stuff that transcends earthly realms.

Perhaps the first clue to Blackcomb's magical connection was during the 1987/88 $26-million expansion in which the Wizard chairlift was revealed, in addition to Solar Coaster and 7 th Heaven.

The later names have their roots in traditional Blackcomb folklore.

Solar Coaster was named in a competition and it was Rob Boyd's sister, Sue Boyd, a ski patroller at that time, who came up with the winning name.

7 th Heaven was christened by Hugh Smythe. It was Lift No. 7 on Blackcomb and Smythe recalled a liftie greeting him years earlier at the top of Stevens Pass on a wet, miserable day saying: "Welcome to 7 th Heaven."

But the origins of the Wizard are a little less clear.

It may have something to do with the fact that the three lifts combined were the first super-fast detachable lifts on the mountain that could take skiers to the top of Lift #4 in 14 minutes as opposed to 40 minutes.

"The Wizard can do anything and can send you anywhere with the beam of its wand," said Arthur De Jong, mountain planning and environmental resource manager at Whistler-Blackcomb.

And the name may also have been chosen for its appeal to younger skiers, he added.

Whatever the reason, the name worked and so began Blackcomb's connection to the Arthurian legend.

Merlin's Bar and Grill, at the base of Blackcomb, was also built during this expansion.

The Merlin of the Camelot story was the young King Arthur's tutor. Throughout the legend, Merlin is seen as a protector, a magician and a prophet, involved in all aspects of Arthur's realm.

He was the wise wizard who organized the infamous sword-in-the-stone contest, which resulted in Arthur becoming the King of England, for only the rightful heir could pull the sword from the stone.

There are present day contests at Merlin's like the old wizard's contest, although rather than removing a sword from a stone they usually involve removing clothes from a body.

The magical theme lay dormant for the next few years until the next big expansion in 1994 in which the Excalibur gondola and the Excelerator chairlift were introduced.

"What we were trying to express to our guests was that we were putting in the fastest lift system into alpine terrain in North America," said De Jong.

Historically, Excalibur is King Arthur's unbreakable sword that was given to him by the Lady of the Lake.

Excalibur could slice through armour and chain mail and never lose its edge.

Like its namesake, the Excalibur gondola can slice through time and space, said De Jong.

"We were expanding the ski experience in the sense that we were bringing more guests much quicker to the Alpine," said De Jong. "It was symbolic of expanding the experience not just the physical side of the ski area."

Excelerator, while it has no connection to the Arthurian legend, was named through a contest with over 6,000 entries. Ten people submitted that name and the marketing department liked the play on the first two letters with the new gondola.

Their gimmick: "The power of Ex squared will get you faster to the great beyond."

The connection to the legend became even more significant after the creation of the Children's Adventure Park about four years ago with its medieval castle.

But the castle wasn't built because there were already medieval connections on the mountain.

"We weren't trying to link it into the Arthurian theme. It was the logical theme inside the forest."

The castle playground is located just off Easy Out, near the Catskinner Chair. De Jong spent time at Disney and with child psychologists to uncover the best children's theme for the park.

"It was very deeply researched," said De Jong. "We found through reading kids literature that medieval times always intrigued kids."

The marketing team was also looking for a theme that would last forever and preferably something that had a base in history.

"It's got to have connections to truisms. Kids will forever be intrigued with dinosaurs, likewise with medieval times. Power Rangers and Ninja Turtles, those come and go," he said.

There are other names on Blackcomb that may or may not have roots in King Arthur's mystical story. Sorcerer and Black Magic runs are near Solar Coaster and there is Magic Chair at the bottom of the mountain.

There is even a run called Arthur's Choice. But it doesn't refer to King Arthur; it's just a coincidence, perhaps like the rest of these names.

"We presented six gladed runs that we had produced in the fall of 1993," said De Jong. "The marketing guys asked me to put my finger on the map. As a patroller I had skied it so many times. It truly was my favourite off piste line in the Crystal zone."

It just so happens that De Jong's first name is Arthur, hence the name Arthur's Choice.

While these names make up only a small portion of all the names on Blackcomb, the magic theme prevails and conveys the idea that the mountain is a present day Camelot.