Whistler fest gears up to celebrate 20th year
Mid-April has always been a party on the mountain
It really doesn’t matter what the weather conditions are if you’re in Whistler over the next two weeks.
For the past two decades, mid-April has been a party. That’s when the World Ski & Snowboard Festival takes on both mountain and town — and this year it’s celebrating its 20th anniversary.
The nine-day event promises plenty regardless of this year’s lacklustre snowfall.
“We had already decided to move the Big Air events to mid-mountain this year and conditions up there are great — we’re covered,” says Sue Eckersley of event producer Watermark Communications.
“And for those two Saturday nights in the Village that are signature events, we’re doing the Gibbons Plaza-palooza with some musical events and athletes performing non-snow events.”
The annual event presents the finals of the AFP (Association of Freeskiing Professionals) World Tour, where champions in superpipe, slopestyle and big air are crowned. It also features an entire cultural showcase of musical acts, film screenings, photo contests and more.
“Last year, we had the biggest numbers ever, with 125,000 unique individuals who attended the festival, which is 10 times the population,” says Eckersley. “Every year things change a little to reflect the ever-changing tastes of our target demographic (25 and under).”
So this year, besides newer fan favourites such as the Olympus 72-hour filmmaker showdown (April 15-16), there’s more variety in the athletic events outside those played out on the mountain.
“There is a whole women-in-sport focus, including the Girls Gettin’ It Done movie night (Monday), and even roller derby, which is huge on the West Coast and has come to reflect mountain culture, too,” says Eckersley. “The biggest challenge is trying to find enough space here to do all the things we want to do and keep it rolling.”
If previous years saw jam bands and rock groups, this year the focus is on electronic and dance acts including MSTRKRFT, Longwalkshortdock, Humans and more to keep the kids in motion.
“But there’s also hip hop, as always, including headliner YelaWolf and festival favourites Swollen Members, who have played here more than any other act,” she says. “They are kind of like family to us as Prevail has emceed our fashion shows and other events, so to have the 20th and not have them here would be wrong.”
For those familiar with the WSSF, rest assured the Whistler Dogfest is still barking hot on the final Saturday (Apr. 18). What that has to do with skiing or snowboarding is anyone’s guess. But it certainly is Whistler.