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New freeride mountain bike documentary released this week

Arts News: Week 2 winner in Whistler Music Search; Comedy Quickies winner
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RIDING HIGH Riding the Tatshenshini follows the "Godfather" of freeriding Wade Simmons, Darren Berrecloth, Tyler McCaul and Carson Storch as they sent out on a two-week adventure through Canada's north wilderness in search of untapped terrain. Photo by Scott Serfas / Red Bull

Get comfy in front of the biggest screen in your home and settle back to watch an epic story of four generations of mountain bike riders in search of the ultimate ride.

Riding the Tatshenshini follows the "Godfather" of freeriding Wade Simmons, Darren Berrecloth, Tyler McCaul and Carson Storch as they sent out on a two-week adventure through Canada's north wilderness in search of untapped terrain.

The expedition begins in Yukon's Dalton Post and follows the foursome 260 kilometres by raft, culminating in the incredible landscapes of Dry Bay in Alaska.

The 42-minute Red Bull documentary was filmed by Freeride Entertainment with Whistler's Scott Serfas the main photographer.

Riding the Tatshenshini will be made available on Red Bull TV in English and French starting Oct. 18. 

JULIAN PRICE TAKES WEEK 2 OF MUSIC SEARCH

Week 2 of the Whistler Music Search was won by another Australian singer-songwriter, Julian Price.

Last week, Australian Vendulka advanced to the finals.

Said Price via email: "(This) is my first time in a competition like this and it's really well organized and stacked with talented competitors.

"I played tracks by Pearl Jam, Amerie, The Weeknd, a Disney classic ("Be Like You" from the Jungle Book) and an original of my own."

His session saw him play acoustic guitar, sing and play a kick drum and tambourine with his feet.

This week's participants include: Marcus Ramsay, Caitrin Madden, Funky Snow Monkeys and Brian Walker.

To catch Week 3 of the search, head to the Crystal Lounge at 9 p.m. on Oct. 19.

WWF BOOK AWARDS

The winners of the Whistler Independent Book Awards 2017 were announced on Oct.13 at the 16th annual Whistler Writers Festival.

The winner of the 2017 Fiction Award was Farida Somjee for her novel, The Beggar's Dance. Paul Shore was named the non-fiction winner for his memoir, Uncorked: My Year in Provence.

The awards were established to recognize excellence in Canadian self-publishing. They are the only juried awards for self-publishing in Canada, with each nominee being individually assessed by judges from the Canadian Authors Association (Metro Vancouver), and the finalists selected by a distinguished team of judges.

"The Beggar's Dance is a challenging and captivating novel," said Gail Anderson-Dargatz, a Giller Prize finalist and judge of the Fiction Award on the Vivalogue website (Vivalogue jointly administers the awards).

Said, J.J. Lee, one of the judges for the Non-Fiction award: "In Uncorked, Shore's use of the game of Pétanque as a point of entry to address areas of personal alienation is a great literary and narrative choice. This memoir made me laugh; especially Paul's foil Hubert, who is a star."

Release Agreement wins Comedy Quickies audience award

Scores packed into Maury Young Arts Centre Oct. 19 to laugh their hearts out at another edition of the infamous Comedy Quickies, the kick-off event of the Whistler Writers Festival.

Two awards were handed out: Best Act of the Night and Best Writing.

The Best Act of the Night, as selected by the audience, went to Brackendale author Katherine Fawcett's Release Agreement, a sketch about Whistler Blackcomb's new owners, Whistlerado Mountain Resorts, and their new waiver format: a rock opera.

The Best Writing Award, pre-selected by a panel of judges, went to Toronto writer and Second City performer with the troupe MuffinTop, Ed Scherrer.

His war sketch, Hold the Line, was about three hair follicles fighting for their survival on the top of a balding man's scalp.

The awards each came with $250.