Whistler Bike Park 2014 conditions

Plus it puts someone out of a job…ya! Don't you love progress?

Australia is going to be hit hard.

I can't believe its take WB so long to install this system. Its been running in Europe at smaller resorts for 10 years. Technology seems to have bypassed Canada for a decade..

Great times on Saturday, night and day difference in conditions to last weekend. The new Afternoon Delight is fun, but really smoothed out (as in a newb like me can blast down it whereas before I had to carefully pick my line on a few parts, but I'm sure it will be roughed up again in no time - not complaining!) Did LWDH for the first time, those rock rolls are fun, and got a few more of the A-line jumps than last week.

Curious how many seasons it is until WB uses RFID for tiered access pricing during ski season (think alpine = +$20 or something of that nature) (/tinfoil hat off).

That's brilliant.

Lady at the front desk suggested that … just get regular sticky tape and make a loop or DS tape and it should be good to go.

Hey nickle and team,

Thanks for all the fun "technical" blue trails. I spent yesterday riding with my lovely better half and we laps of the fun blue singletrack off Fitz. I'd never ridden Funshine to Smoke n Mirrors to Blueizum and it was the perfect lap as from there we could sneak over to the rock rolls on LWDH as she really likes the rock rolls.

Also I think HOD below Crank it Up needs a big sign. "Hey bike park hero douchebag this is a blue trail chill the fuck out and don't tire buzz slower riders forcing them to pull off and stop". Seems our first lap I was ahead of my gf and a group decided to mow her down behind me, the rest of the day I rode behind her on that section to play block for any agro riders.

Crabapple hits rebuild is awesome.

What's it like? I still haven't hit Crabapple since it got super sized.

What's it like? I still haven't hit Crabapple since it got super sized.

They are big but definitely the best built jumps in the park. Your best bet is to roll through them and get a feel for the lips, then hike back up and hit them while it's fresh in your head. They boost you a lot so it's important to be ready for some massive air time. Feel them out and use your judgement.

Personally I pedal into jump 1 and usually don't tap the brakes until the last jump, but that depends on how fast the dirt is running and how deep I land in the previous jump.

I gotta get back up there now. Next week I shall ride!

Hey nickle and team,

Thanks for all the fun "technical" blue trails. I spent yesterday riding with my lovely better half and we laps of the fun blue singletrack off Fitz. I'd never ridden Funshine to Smoke n Mirrors to Blueizum and it was the perfect lap as from there we could sneak over to the rock rolls on LWDH as she really likes the rock rolls.

Also I think HOD below Crank it Up needs a big sign. "Hey bike park hero douchebag this is a blue trail chill the fuck out and don't tire buzz slower riders forcing them to pull off and stop". Seems our first lap I was ahead of my gf and a group decided to mow her down behind me, the rest of the day I rode behind her on that section to play block for any agro riders.

Glad you like the blue tech stuff.

HOD is such a cluster%^[HTML_REMOVED]* as far as traffic volume goes. So many things funnel into this trail. Agreed that there are some agro people out there and that it's super unfortunate. If CIU is the most ridden trail in the world, it's only because HOD isn't long enough to count. 98% of the traffic from CIU plus a varying portion of traffic from B-line, hochi, devil's club, crack addict, LWDH, Rock City, CanOpen, Joyride, ClownBoots, and Afternoon delight.

It's almost unfortunate that it manages to be fun for all abilities. It's both impossible for low level intermediates to get an un-pestered run, and for faster riders to get a clean one. There's potential for such a high speed difference that a fast rider could come around a corner and literally be on top of a slow rider. As I said, unfortunate. I sincerely doubt a sign would have much effect. Sounds like your lady was lucky to have a nice guy to play tail gunner. I hope it didn't sour her experience.

When you scan your pass your face comes up on the screen for lifty's to verify.

ah i see I did not notice this, so they actually have increased the jobs then from scanner to picture checker….on all 32 lifts?!?!?! thats triple the scanners they had, that is of course if they have someone doing this on every chair and Tbar, could be some good clusterfucks with missed scans or malfunctions. Imagine a pow day on peak chair, the pass scanners could get a beating…

I have had many a clean run down HOD, its pretty damn fun fast, especially the turn after the section next to the road, love boosting that and barely catching the berm….of course the jack ass can ruin a noobs run, but thats another thread…

hey guys, just had a fantastic 3 days in the park. that little bit of rain made Friday and Saturday really great for late sept riding. thanks to the trail crew for doing such a good job.

question for you guys who hit crabapple hits. How much bigger is the line than that last hit on Canadian open down the boneyard? I spent the weekend getting that line dialed in and feel pretty comfortable on it now. Is crabapple comparable or still another league from there? Want to hit it, but cant shake the feeling it's still beyond me

I have had many a clean run down HOD, its pretty damn fun fast, especially the turn after the section next to the road, love boosting that and barely catching the berm…

Ooooh yeah! That berm-to-berm jump is pretty sweet!

Sometimes get a bunch of clear HOD runs, then sometimes can't get a break for just as many.

Point is, I feel for the noobs. I feel like even if you're nice and don't tailgate them, just the simple fact someone caught them and is now behind them freaks a lot of them out, regardless if someone is 5 feet back or 15 feet back. I've definitely watched a few from the sidelines who looked terrified all by themselves, so I can only imagine what happens when a fast moving rattle-box suddenly appears behind them, especially if that rattle-box keeps yelling RIDER!.

ah i see I did not notice this, so they actually have increased the jobs then from scanner to picture checker….on all 32 lifts?!?!?! thats triple the scanners they had, that is of course if they have someone doing this on every chair and Tbar, could be some good clusterfucks with missed scans or malfunctions. Imagine a pow day on peak chair, the pass scanners could get a beating…

As someone already said, this system has been around in Europe for at least a decade. You can actually load the pass onto a Swatch watch.

I don't think they check every picture every time. It's more likely that they do random controls. But the risk of getting caught and loosing your pass is probably too high to take your chances.

In some places in Europe, they actually display the picture for everyone to see. So even the people around you see if you're trying to cheat.

"Hey bike park hero douchebag this is a blue trail chill the fuck out and don't tire buzz slower riders forcing them to pull off and stop".

My son can keep up to most riders on CIU, and he's worked really hard to be able to do that. But he's terrified of HOD. You hit the nail right on the head with this statement.

HOD is such a cluster%^[HTML_REMOVED]* as far as traffic volume goes.

Good to hear that you guys know the issues there. Honestly, 95% of the folks on that trail are cool and respectful. But there have been a few times over the last year where I had to remind "random kitted out douche" that it's a blue trail and lesser riders have the right of way.

PS: I love Whistler.
:)

You can actually load the pass onto a Swatch watch.

One of my favorite things about the lift line is chatting with the international girl lifties.

How the hell am I supposed to hit on a machine?

:eek: