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Descending into Nepal

Photographer Blake Jorgenson gives Whistler first look at Nepal adventure
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Snapping mountain biking culture Whistler photographer Blake Jorgenson hosts a slide show presentation as one of three photo journeys shared during the Kokannee Crankworx celebrations. Photo by Blake Jorgenson.

What: Nepal: A Himalayan Mountain Bike Adventure

When: Wednesday, July 25

Where: MY Millennium Place

Admission: $10

Award-winning photographer Blake Jorgenson put his April mountain bike adventure in Nepal into perspective.

“Here in Whistler, you do a 5,000 foot descent in less than 20 minutes,” he begins. “In Annapurna, we rode (descending) for three days with 10 hours of riding each day. It was super grueling and a lot harder than what we expected. I think it ended up being as different as anything anyone could consider in riding.”

Tales of first descents, sickness and fatigue, and some of the most sensory overloaded rides through the Himalayas will come to light in the slide show presentation of Nepal: A Himalayan Mountain Bike Adventure on Wednesday, July 25 at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. at MY Millennium Place as part of Kokanee Crankworx.

Festival revelers will be the first to see the images taken from Jorgenson’s six-day ride through the Annapurna and Langtang regions of Nepal with two-wheelers Hans Rey, Richie Schley and Wade Simmons. The photos are currently being reviewed for a dozen publications all over the world.

“The photos concentrate more on the riding experience and trying to capture the feeling when I was there as opposed to a slide show of Nepal with guys biking in it,” he said.

The draw of discovering new faces and places every five minutes was difficult to pass by, but a seasoned pro, Jorgenson picked and clicked the non-stop change of culture and terrain with a discerning eye.

“The hardest part when you go on trips like this is that you want to photograph everything and then you realize you aren’t going anywhere,” he said. “We will be showing about 250 photos, which are not even one per cent of everything we saw.”

Jorgenson and riders will provide a running commentary at the slide show presentation with questions from the audience fielded afterwards.

Jorgenson needs no introduction among these parts. The mountain adventure and lifestyle photographer’s images are a regular presence on countless adventure magazine covers all over the world.

The senior photographer for Powder and SBC Skier magazines has shot magazine editorial for publications such as National Geographic Adventure , Outside, Powder, Bike and Skiing . He also boasts a growing list of advertising clients such as United Airlines, Bell Mobility, Helly Hansen, Adidas, Oakley, Salomon, Rossignol, Head and Whistler-Blackcomb. The award-winning photographer also serves as the official still photographer for action sport filmmakers MSP Productions and Freeride Entertainment.

Join this evening of giant mountains, virgin singletrack and first descents for what became the mountain bike adventure of a lifetime for the four riders.

Tickets are $10.

In addition to hosting Nepal: A Himalayan Mountain Bike Adventure, Crankworx festivities include two other slide show presentations.

Richard Juryn presents Mountain Biking in Mongolia on Friday, July 27 at 8 p.m. at MY Millennium Place. The epic mountain bike trek explores the little-known kingdom of Mongolia, visiting deserted lands and a nomadic culture. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children. Proceeds benefit MY Place’s Art Sea to Sky program.

Five critically acclaimed photographers pool images for The Road Less Traveled on Sunday, July 22 at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. at MY Millennium Place. The Zero Ceiling Society fundraiser showcases the talents of shutterbugs Derek Frankowski, Sterling Lorence, Christophe Margot, Stephen Wilde and Chris Winter. Admission is by donation.