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Mother Nature, She Loves Us, She Loves Us Not…

As was predicted, the snow melted up at the top of Grouse…BUT it did snow enough to give us a decent covering before Mother Nature decided she’d had enough fun playing with my emotions and it was time to warm things up and wash away my excitement. This is somewhat of a ‘normal’ occurrence for this time of year; although the winters are definitely not like they used to be about 10-15 years ago. And if all the scientists are correct, we have messed things up pretty bad and might have reached the point of no return.

I truly hope we haven’t ruined our relationship with Mother Nature and we still are blessed with an abundance of snow for the upcoming winter shred season and many more decades to come. However, we have definitely tainted our relationship and now must work hard to repair what damage we as humans have done to our one and only planet.

I encourage all and any who appreciate what a beautiful and amazing planet we have the privilege to occupy, to make an extra effort to help maintain our planet for our generation, but more importantly for the future generations. Reduce, Recycle and Reuse as much as humanly possible, as that is the humane way in which we as humans should treat this planet that Mother Nature has so lovingly shared with us.

Numero Uno

Here we go, my first blog of the season, I'm hoping to keep my blogs updated as frequently as I can throughout the season all season long. I will be discussing any and all topics I feel will keep you interested...or not.
Today as I got of the tram this morning it was pouring rain, but as I was getting closer to the peak office I began to notice the odd wet snowflake (if you can call them that), which then turned to a heavy snow fall. YES, it is snowing up here at Grouse and sticking! Now, I'm not getting my hopes up, as the weather forecast says rain is on its way, but either way, it seems like whenever the first snow falls I still get that super excited feeling I used to get when I was wee lil' boy. I just like the way snow smells, feels and looks, I love when there is enough snow to blanket and cover all the worlds imperfections, making it a perfect winter wonderland. (what can I say...I'm a sensitive kind of guy)
With the snow on its way, I just wanted to get all you boys and girls excited and remind you that it was on Nov. 27 last season when we opened up the Paradise Jib Park...so get your gear ready and stay tuned!

Quiksilver Park under construction

This week the Quiksilver Park is receiving a HUGE facelift. We are rebuilding all current features and increasing the size of most of them. Most of you will remember Benny from last year. He is making a cameo appearance in the cat all week and helping us out with the construction.

We are finally receiving some sunshine, clear skies and cold temps which is pefect weather for construction. It is nice to come in the next day after building a new feature and not have it buried from the snow and wind storm from the night before. This has been the story for the park crew and groomers over the past month or so.

On your next visit you will also notice a huge hole at the park entrance. This is the construction zone for our new log entranceway which will be the new official entranceway by next week.

Chris Dufficy onsite with Knowledge Network

Recently, Grouse Mountain Pro Team member, Chris Dufficy visited the resort with his entourage from the Knowledge Network. Over the past few months, the Knowledge Network have been producing a documentary on Chris' life, his amazing recovery from multiple concussions, (which would have forced the majority of athletes to retire) and how he has managed to continue peforming at the high level that he does. The special also investigates the effects of concussions and head trauma through interviews with doctors and other athletes who have sustained and survived such potentially-devastating injuries.

The day was spent riding around with Dufficy and entourage searching for some good lines in order to attain some more action and lifestyle shots for the documentary. Our initial plan was to film in the park but considering there was so much new snow and the vis was not the greatest we stuck to the back runs. Dufficy managed to find some great lines that will hopefully make the cut in the editing room. We finished the day with some interview segments on the chalet deck as the city poked in and out of the storm clouds.

Stay tuned for the air-date.

Remember kids: Be safe at whatever sport you do. You can do so by being aware of the risks involved, knowing your limitations and abilities, follow the rules and wear proper protective gear. While doing all of this, make sure you still HAVE FUN!

4th annual MGT Weekend

On January 5th and 6th, Grouse Mountain hosted the 4th annual MGT(More Good Times, Mega Gnarly Tricks) weekend. Saturday was a park clinic and Sunday featured the 2BuckChuck park contest. MGT coaches were out in full force and included Leanne Pelosi, Molly Milligan, Amanda Mourant, Joanna Majcherkiewicz, and Raewyn Reid. The weather wasn't ideal as Saturday was very windy, snowy, and low visibility. Sunday was only snowy and low visibility. This didn't put a damper on the weekend or stop the girls from having a good time though.

Sunday's 2BuckChuck saw over 30 girls turn up to duke it out for $2,222 in cash, a trip to the Abominable SnowJam at Timberline, and loads of draw prizing. The contest took place on a very snowing Paradise Park course. The course consisted of a 20' Down rail, 8' ButterBox, 16' ButterBox, 20' FlatRail, Flat Down Rail, and a Jump.

The park crew had their hands full all day trying to keep up on maintaining all the takeoffs and in-runs. All the falling snow makes speed a rare commodity, which pretty much cut the jump out of the course unfortunately. With speed being a major factor for most riders, the contest format was slightly tweaked and ended up being a 2-hour jam format. Overall impressions were added up by the judging panel, which consisted of Leanne, Molly, Amanda, and Joanna, to determine the winners.

Overall, all girls, judges, and staff had a great weekend in the snow.

For full results, photos, and video check out http://www.mgtsnowboardcamp.com/