Night halfpipe, clubhouse to help Whistler Valley Snowboard Club
For the past seven years the Whistler Valley Snowboard Club has been coaching young riders, teaching them the ropes in parks and the pipe and giving them the tools they need to progress to the next level.
Some of the graduates of the program have gone on to represent Canada on the World Cup team – notably Sarah Kopinya and Mercedes Nicoll. Others have gone on to pro status, picking up sponsors and appearing in contests and films. Tyler Massey is the latest to make that step, getting an invitation to join the best of the best in the Ripzone Snowboard Invitational big air contest.
Today the program has close to 60 riders and is supported by a dozen coaches, including a number of graduates and pro riders. They take part in contests locally and around the province, and many go on to represent Whistler in the provincials, junior nationals and nationals, and Canada in the junior world championships.
With a good reputation, strong coaching and a solid relationship with Whistler-Blackcomb, the Whistler Valley Snowboard Club is preparing to bring itself and its athletes to the next level.
"We’re going through our transition right now," said Rob Picard, the head coach and founder of the WVSC.
"We’re trying to work on a five-year plan, and really see the future of the club. With the night halfpipe at Base II we hope to get the mountain more involved with the team program and amateur developments.
"We’re trying to get a clubhouse at Base II… so we have a more social scene with the club. That’s where we’ve had problems – all of this (Olympic development) money is being put into programs and being handed out, but we get forgotten about because there’s not enough parent involvement."
Currently funding isn’t an issue for the team, which gets by on dues and an annual grant from the Whistler-Blackcomb Foundation. More funding will be needed to maintain a clubhouse and travel to more competitions. They could also use a van, says Picard.
The goal for next season is to expand the number of kids involved in the program to 100, something Picard believes is possible as a result of their partnership with Whistler-Blackcomb and the fact that this is the first year that the club will advertise its services. The night halfpipe that Whistler-Blackcomb is planning to build at Base II, in advance of the 2005 FIS Snowboard World Championships, will also help, as the number of programs the club offers can expand.
The WVSC is one of the first snowboard clubs of its kind in Canada, and it’s by far the largest and best organized. Picard says the creation of other clubs will ultimately benefit the WVSC by creating a real grassroots for snowboarding in Canada.
"The CSF (Canadian Snowboard Federation) and the provincial association is really trying to encourage as many grassroots programs as possible to get up and running," said Picard. "They’ve put together a manual on how to start up a non-profit snowboard club and be able to attract more kids into them.
"Look across the field at alpine skiing, there’s ski clubs all across Canada, and as it funnels up it works like a kind of period – all of these people at the bottom who move up from the club team to the provincial team to the development team to the national team.
"For (snowboarding), we have all these huge events at the top that feed the national team and the development team and the provincial associations, and there are a few clubs here and there. It’s all upside down, an upside down pyramid in many respects."
The club has been active this season with events like the Sprite Park Rider Series in Whistler and a few regional events. Although a few athletes have gone on to compete with the provincial team in Nor Am and FIS level competitions, as well in the Ripzone Provincial Snowboard Series, Picard says the travel is difficult. Sometimes it can also be counterproductive because none of the facilities used around the province are up to Whistler-Blackcomb’s standard – the kids are used to riding perfect pipes and parks and don’t do as well at other venues.
To bring more kids to the next level, Picard would like to see a few more sanctioned amateur events in Whistler like the Provincial Series. That series gives athletes the chance to earn points that can help them go to the provincial and national level.
The club is trying to bring a provincial series contest to Whistler for the World Ski and Snowboard Festival in April to give the kids a chance to gain some points.
Although most members of the club prefer riding the park to training for halfpipe and snowboard cross, which are both Olympic events, Picard says the night halfpipe will go a long way towards that goal.
"I can’t wait for the halfpipe at night so everyone can just focus on that, it’s the only thing that they’ll have to do," Picard said. "We’re thinking that once (the kids) learn to pull off some tricks and can pull off a really nice halfpipe run then they’ll really want to go and compete and do well.
"You collect those points so you can move up, to the Olympics eventually if you want.
"We do have a few athletes that are definitely interested in keeping the progression going. There is still a lot of focus on the park, (but) that doesn’t mean that when we start moving into the pipe more that they can’t bring some of the skills they learned in the park.
"You see that a lot with snowboarding – all of a sudden a kid from nowhere will come in and win one of the biggest contests of the year, that’s the way the sport has always been. There’s a lot of potential out there for kids that really work hard and get their runs together."
For more information on the Whistler Valley Snowboard Club, visit www.whistlervalleysnowboardclub.ca.
