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Fredriksson wins Deep Summer Challenge

Crankworx's first photography competition was met with a very warm reception by the public, as over 1,000 people crowded into the ballroom at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler last Wednesday night to see the five-minute slideshows that six photographers

Crankworx's first photography competition was met with a very warm reception by the public, as over 1,000 people crowded into the ballroom at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler last Wednesday night to see the five-minute slideshows that six photographers had managed to capture over just three days of shooting.

In the end, it was Swedish photographer Mattias Fredriksson who came out on top, taking home $3,000 in cash and prizes at the inaugural Deep Summer Photo Challenge, while Dan Barham and Harookz were second and third, respectively.

"It was a great honour to even be considered for this event," Fredriksson said in a press release.

"I am known for my ski photography but I love to shoot bike riding. To share this experience with people like John Gibson means a lot to me since he is one of the reasons I was inspired to get into mountain bike photography. Dave Mossop and I worked so hard to edit the photos, we really worked as a team. I learned a lot from this and I owe so much to Team Scanda for helping me take first place against these amazing photographers."

Fredriksson and his team made a point of representing all styles of riding, capturing Canadian downhill racer Stevie Smith, Norwegian freerider Trond G. Hansen, Swedish freerider Jenny Liljegren, and Swedish freestyle rider Martin Söderström in their element at the Whistler Mountain Bike Park and Whistler's many valley trails and jump parks.

"Each and every team did an incredible job of shooting and producing widely varied and extremely entertaining shows in such a tight time frame," head judge Paul Morrison said. "In the end Mattias took top spot, but each team should be very proud of what they accomplished. I believe every person in the huge audience was pretty much blown away by what they saw." 

Blank Slate bringing live theatre to town

Theatre lovers should jump at their only chance this summer to check out a live performance here in Whistler.

From Aug. 27 to 29, the first ever Blank Slate Theatre Festival will take up residence in the Path Gallery and the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre. As part of the three-day event, the venues will host evening performances of Some Reckless Abandon , by the well-known Canadian playwright George F. Walker and Problem Child , a one-woman show.

The festival's mandate is to present "innovative, exciting, and imaginative theatrical productions with strong artistic vision."

Tickets are $20 for each show, or $35 for both. For more information, visit www.blankslatetheatre.ca .

Function Block Party Friday

After the July Function Block Party was a resounding success, the Whistler Arts Council and Function Junction merchants are preparing to host the second ArtWalk event in the southernmost regions of Whistler.

On Friday, Aug. 21, WAC presents the second and final Function Block Party of the summer will take place and this time around they're taking it up a notch, offering more venues, three party hotspots, DJs and bands, plus live art and a community mural.

Participating artists include Chili Thom, David Buzzard, Pascale Gadbois, Mike Barry, Anastasia Chomlack, Robin Dutcher Pryor, Dave Petko, Arne Guttman, Bea Gonzalez, Jason Cyr, Vicki English, Chad Chomlack, Justin Ormiston, Shawn Ackerman, Vanessa Stark, Hayley Wirshing, Suzy-Annick Raymond and Randy Smith. Venues include the Creation Station, Pique Newsmagazine's office, Mountain Blooms/Whistler Wedding Planners/Orkidz Art Studio, Cracked Pepper Catering, Black Ohm Tattoos, Patina Home Interiors, Art Junction Gallery, Millar Creek Café, Delish Cafe & Catering, and Podium Auto Detail.

The fun kicks off at 6 p.m. and runs until 10 p.m., with a free shuttle running from the taxi loop to Function, courtesy of Canadian All Terrain. The shuttle runs every half hour from Whistler Village Taxi Loop to Function Junction starting at 6 p.m., making a stop in Creekside at the Greyhound Bus Location on the way to Function. The last shuttle leaves Function at 9:15 p.m.

Summer of Funny deadline extended

Pique Newsmagazine's Summer of Funny writing contest is well underway and great submissions are coming in, but the deadline is drawing near. Friday, Aug. 28 is the deadline, with the winning submissions running in our Labour Day issue.

Pique is accepting humorous short stories, scripts, long format jokes and poems, and will be giving $400 in prize money to the top submissions. Pique's editorial staff will determine the winners, with a maximum prize of $250 for an outstanding submission.

Build 'em, stack 'em, mix and match 'em...

The Whistler Museum is calling on all kids to come out and show their Olympic spirit next weekend during its annual Lego building competition, which takes place at the Spruce Grove Field House on Saturday, Aug. 22 at 1 p.m.

Kids will be given a pile of Lego to build something that represents the Olympic games to them, with some pretty impressive surprise prizes up for grabs.

Johnny Utah wins again

Whistler's very own Cole "Johnny Utah" Manson again captured the title at the Air Guitar Canadian Championships, which were held in Winnipeg last week, performing along to Motley Crue's "Kickstart My Heart" and Metallica's "The Prince." Now, our local capoeira/air guitar guru is headed to the world championships in Oulu, Finland Aug. 19 to 21. Rock on!