MIXING IT UP ON THE MOUNTAINS
Sun Peaks and Silverstar boast accessible terrain, and encourage diversity on the slopes
A blanket of pristine Okanagan powder unfurls from the top of Exhibition, an undulating intermediate run down Tod Mountain at Sun Peaks Resort. On this winter morning, it's wholly unblemished thanks to the 12 centimetres of white fluff that settled overnight.
To guarantee a first crack at the snowfall, my friends and I have signed up for a First Tracks private lesson. We boarded the Sunburst Chair at 8 a.m., a full hour before the lifts opened to the public. Before we whoop it up in the hero snow, instructor Rachel Taylor gives us a powder tip.
“Some people say to lean back, but it's really about staying centred,” she says.
With that, we three diehard, middle-aged chicks on sticks point our tips downhill and slalom into the soft snow. They say there are no friends on a powder day, but at Sun Peaks, it's easy to spread out across the resort's three mountains and almost 4,300 acres of bowls, glades and groomers so that everyone finds a powder stash.
We're on a B.C. ski road trip between Silverstar Mountain Resort in the Okanagan and Sun Peaks Resort near Kamloops. The distance between the two is just 188 kilometres, about a 2.5-hour car ride. It makes for an easy drive between a pair of iconic ski areas that boast light, dry snow, exciting terrain, fantastic Nordic networks, and programs that promote inclusion on the slopes.
Like me, pal Meridith Harman has been skiing since she was in grade school, but our buddy Euna Kang has only been carving turns for five years. She grew up in Korea and didn't embrace the sport until long after she immigrated to Canada.
“Back when I grew up, it wasn't common or very accessible for us,” says Kang. “I had to learn the hard way — as an adult.”
As a person of colour on the ski hill, Kang finds that people often underestimate her ability — instructors assume she's a beginner and are surprised when she links aggressive turns on steep runs.
“People assume I'm not a good skier because I'm Asian and I'm a woman,” says Kang.
Like the snow it relies on, downhill skiing has a reputation as a very white sport, one that also skews toward younger men. But ski areas like Sun Peaks are trying to diversify, says Olympic gold medallist Nancy Greene Raine, who has called Sun Peaks home since 1995.
“As Canada's demographics have changed, it's great that the ski industry has reached out and encouraged new Canadians to take up the sport,” she says. “And that many areas reach out to local First Nations and get them involved.”
Sun Peaks sponsors the First Nations Snowboard Team, and the resort also runs an adaptive ski program so that those with physical or cognitive disabilities have an opportunity to experience the thrill of sliding on snow. And, as Greene Raine can attest, skiing really is a life sport that everyone can do no matter age or ability.
“Age is just a number,” says Greene Raine, 80, who skis almost daily and still leads guests down her home mountain three days a week.
Sun Peaks, with 10 per cent green (beginner) runs and 58 per cent blue (intermediate) runs, is a great choice for those new to the sport.
“There's a green, blue and black run from the top of every chair, so it's good for progression,” says Taylor, our ski instructor.
It's a similar story at Silverstar, where we kicked off our road trip. The family-friendly resort's front side boasts gentle beginner and cruiser intermediate runs, with a challenging backside that skiers can strive toward as they improve.
For skiers and snowboarders who need an extra nudge, Silverstar Adaptive Snow Sports runs lessons for kids and adults with a range of physical, cognitive, and behavioural learning needs.
The Okanagan resort is also working to recruit a diversity of snow lovers to its slopes. Silverstar partners with the Okanagan Indian Band (OKIB) and Splastin people to offer complimentary season passes to nation members, and the resort donates ski and snowboard gear annually to help offset the sport's cost. Every Friday, a group from the OKIB meets up to ski and ride together.
“A major priority of the resort association and mountain is to grow sport and opportunities for everyone to progress in the outdoors,” says Cassandra Zerebeski, executive director of Destination Silverstar.
It all jives with Silverstar's new motto, which is to be “heart core” rather than hardcore. It's the idea that everyone simply skis to the best of their ability and quietly crushes it down runs they're comfortable on, rather than push themselves too far, too fast.
It's advice we took to heart as we skied a gentle intermediate run into Christmas Bowl, beckoned by the dual jewels of Okanagan and Kalamalka lakes sparkling in the distance.
After two days chasing the “Silver Sun” between Silverstar and Sun Peaks, we're smitten with these two ski hills with heart.