Whistler Omen 2009

phatboyian films presents...

Whistler Day 4 - Heli-Drop

Words arn't really required here the pictures should say it all...

No Photoshop Required 

From Cold water to Hot!

Whistler Day 3

Had another day in the Park no filming or pictures to speak of, we just rode...

... but it didn't stop the angry vein from showing its self?

A dirty job....

For some reason I have to get my sister a gift because I'm on holiday? I never ask for anything other than her having a good time, No Doubt (Mmm, Gwen) it'll be something that'll just sit in her room unwanted. Anyway whilst downtown carrying out said rubbish job i found the Donair Hut, so how could i refuse eh? 1 Chicken Donair wrap coming up "hot sauce?" he asked "yeah", "One line or two", "Two", "Three?", "Yeah go on then". It was good, washed down with there home made lemonade 9/10! no picture tho (sorry Steve), it didn't last that long so directions will have to do!

We got out for final ride on the shore b4 leaving did CBC, and Team Pangor. Took the Video camera so if i get chance later I'll post some footage...

Random Picture for todayNoticed this guy whilst coming come down an escalator he so looks like my Dad from the back?!

Squamish

Went to Squamish with Paul and did a trail that reminder me for of the trails at home in the UK. Was good fast and less techical trail, was a good day.

Paul doing his exporation thing, a detour the right way... Down!

Holy Kebab Batman...

It took some doing but i finally managed to get a kebab in Vancouver, i appears in North Van at least that the places only open during the day. Its got to be said it was rather nice just not as large as the boys at 3 Chefs maybe that's why its hard to shed the weight eh?

Fixed up my bike again new bearings in the front wheel and lower shock bush replaced too! Feels OK again lets hope nothing else goes wrong!!

Critters

All of us rode the bike park today and it was a first from some of us Ali wins the prize for the most swearing to the terrain.

There was plenty of wildlife around today also, first thing we saw was a bear just down the trial from us and try as i might i could get my camera out fast enough before it went into the woods, it look our way as Doug said "BEAR!" it was obviously thinkin "Oh there's Doug" but was embarrassed to come over with all of us stood round...

Ali done some serious swearing down Smooth Smoothie.These fellas didn't move a fast as the bear, think it was because they were playing golf thoThe view from the car on the way home, before the traffic got really bad.

Sun Peak's Bike Park

Got out riding on the bike park was good, we did quite a lot of the runs. Missed out some of it as a few kids had interrupted some bears and they had reared up at them. So we gave the bottom section of Steam Shovel a miss, but sections of that run were my favorite, stream gap jumps and table tops, felt like i was going larger than normal, at least my forks were holding up!!The View Up towards Biker Cross course.

Mission to Sun Peaks

Set off with Nicky, Paul and Sophie the dog for Sun Peak's was a five hour drive but think about it, its only like going to Scotland at home. Sun Peaks has more potential tho.Find a different type of burger along the way Triple-O's had the Cheddar Bacon Burger not bad at all 8/10! Like the "leave the pickle on the outside" for those freaks that don't like, weirdo's...Got to see the Blues Brothers in the gas station to think they were there to save the world or something or maybe just Hope?
Got to the place about 17:00hrs and was well impressed with the place we had got thanks to Nicky and Paul for sorting it. Was soon in the hot tub looking like a fat balding Ozzy, I seemed to have miss placed that photo tho

Working Bike?

Got the bike back today at a massive cost $1135, (try to fix forks, jockey wheel then buying new ones) looks ok a bit heavy. Next is new wheel bearings, and shock bushes, great...

"Think were gonna need a bigger bike..."

Doug and I spent the day in whistler was sweet up until I trashed my Fox 36 forks!! The rebound damping had gone AGAIN when I stopped to inspect the damage i realise that t have lost my upper jockey wheel too. So I ended up rolling to the bottom and as luck would have it there was a Fox Racing Team service tent down the hill under the lift. I Bounced my way down there only to find out they wouldn't help as the were doing some kind of testing. Fortunately I manged to Hire Kona Stinky Carbanzo, Hooray!

We spend the later part of the day avoiding the top part of the mountain as that was ruff as hell hence the damaged forks, and stuck mainly to A Line and Dirt Merchant it was quality and i really enjoyed the hire bike even tho i bottomed it out a few times anyway we videoed some stuff and I made this video...

Whilst we were in the lift queue Doug was talking to Matt Hunter he was asking him about his TCD (Tony's Chain Device), Pro Rider interest at last for Tony...

Also Saw a Bear with 2 Cubs on the trail from the lift, and ten minutes early Doug and Myself had been stood in the same spot, could have been really interesting...

And finally a T-Shirt to celebrate the event

Crankworx at Whistler

Got up Crankworx at Whistler this afternoon, was good experience but it went too long and the course was poor in places the riders seemed to struggle with the unfortunately named last jump the Gap-O-Tron? It was huge.Practice on Badlynamed-O-Jump

We first settled near the dirt jumps I was amazed by how stupid Joe Public are "Er maybe you don't wanna sit there cos people are trying to ride those jumps?". The amount of near misses was amazing I saw one guys climbing up (damaging) a jump as one guy was flying towards it, he cr@pped his pants! Her "Oh, what the hell was that",
Him "i not sure darling maybe a bird, looks like is gonna land on the kids"

The riders were also badly scored we BOOed the judges more than once, was entertaining but it could have been so much better. At least people got heckled at by the Downhill guys.

Nathan Rennie and others taking the Pi$$.

Red Robin Day

Spent all most of the Day Slogging it up Mt Fromme Did Seventh Secret a couple of other runs, to the bottom and then rode right back up to Expresso. Did some skinny stuff on there and surprised myself by not falling off.

Despair- I'd only ridden half way to Mt Fromme on the Road, then you still have to go up it!

Mt Fromme Expresso - Some of the easy Shore riding

Headed back to meet doug and count the seabus to downtown to meet Karen for Dinner went to Red Robins, yes I know another burger but what a burger easily best so far 9/10 9.5 if the meat was a little warmer!

Trying to have a conversation with Karen around the starter was a bit of a problem.

Beer & Burger and it looks like the picture on the Burgerizer!

Doug giving his Bleu Ribbon Burger the thumbs up!

View from the Seabus - Northshore at night.

View from Doug and Karens roof deck of the First Night of the Celebration Of Light.
We were about 2 miles away so it musta been Big!

Canadian Bacon?

The plan was to go up to Whistler today but the weather was bad, so we went around nearly every bike shop on the Northshore. The first plan but into action was breakfast we ended up at the Eighties Restaurant. They can do any kind of eggs you would like but Bacon, Back Bacon, the stuff I love at home they just don't do properly, although its a slightly better attempt than the option in France, Lardons?

We headed over to Deep Cove for Ice Cream, the weather wasn't to good but it still looks nice.

Border Run to Galbraith

We got up early to get across the border into the USA it was still a wait of 90 minutes which was rather dull. We eventually get to Galbraith and the weather was much better we're being lead by Sheldon (and wife Nancy) one of the NSRIDE guys he was a good laugh and he really knew his way round that place. There was quite a lot of up , some fast downs and a few stunts, I found it enjoyable.
We got food in the gas station on the way home, in the UK that would a sweaty sandwich, not so here. An 8" Chicken Hot Sub with all the Jalapenos and pickles you can shake a stick all for $5, bargain!
Few beers later in the Rusty Gull and it was all over, we were all knackered...

Doug, Karen, and Nikki

Karen, Nikki, Sheldon and Paul

Me, sporting my new shorts before I ripped em.

Doug with his Banana aka Doug with his illegally smuggled fruit.

Lynn Canyon

Went over to Lynn Canyon today, the ride over was mainly up but at least it was drier than yesterday. With Doug's Detour completed I was into the forest once more and again I found the roar of the river very peaceful.
Didn't take a great deal of photos on the suspension bridge as it was only just big enough to fit my bike down it. At this point I hooked up with a Swiss guy called Casper and yes he was friendly. We traversed over to Mt Seymour and eventually found the bottom of the Ned's trial and pushed up (not advised it was a funking long way). We were soon back down, I can see why they shuttle here....

The view upstream on Lynn Suspension Bridge.

I finally got back at a little after 17:30hrs I was met by Doug loading the Car up for the Thursday Night NSRIDE club ride. We set off up Mt Fromme at 18:30 after a short drive to it and i started peddling again, I think I did quite well seeing that I had been in the saddle since 11:00hrs. We met up in Seymours pub after and I had 3 (not quite) pints of some Honey Lager which was quite good although the waitress was the most grumpiest ever, and your supposed to tip em? F@ckin Smile!

Stanley Park

Decided it was time to get out on the bike again so I headed down Marine Drive to the Lions Gate Bridge to get into Stanley Park. Some of the coat ride/walk was shut due to damage from the Winter, trees over etcFound a great big dead tree with an other growing out of it, that seems to happen quite a lot here.
Between the beaches on the south side of the headland spotted a big bird, this time not from Sesame St. Possibly a Sea Eagle? Tried to get a better pic and it cheesed it then got mobbed by seagulls but it was happy about that...Once my tour of the headland was completed and I'd seen all the usual touristy type of things like the totems, I headed back to North Van I turned up Capilano Rd and ended up eventually at the Cleveland Dam. Man was it high, just look at the little folks on the left and they ain't anywhere near the bottom.
Decided I wanted more pictures so I rode down the footpath (naughty, naughty) wasn't to many people about, just folks letting their dogs crap all over the trial, nice...
There were quite a few look out points which were really well placed, the one below had a large rock ledge sticking out over the river with a plunge pool under it, fancied giving it a try, but i know my luck. NEWSFLASH "Today a man dropped the 30' into the Capilano River and struck his head on a huge rock watched his bike get stolen then died" well maybe not....

Oh, did i mention it was raining? All day. None Stop.
No? Well it was.

The strange thing it wasn't cold shorts and a T was all I required, on the local news they were having a block party and the weather didn't seem to bother them??

The height of the valley was pretty amazing, and the cloud was in the trees.

My Favorite Photo of the day has to be this one of a Giant Fir in the forest, it came out almost black and white not sure how but I Like it.

Downtown in the Rain

I went downtown with Karen on her way to work, we parted company after we got outside the sea bus station. It hadn't stopped raining all morning i walked the width of the headland no shops were open and although I'd past about 500 Starbucks on the way i wasn't going to go in one. I wander back down Seymour and took a few turns to find the library, I really need to get outta the rain... I eventually found refuge in a Native art gallery called Hills it was warm dry and very interesting looking at the artwork in there. Spotted some images a quite liked, and some of the sculptures were good like this killer whale couldn't quite afford the selling price tho...
As the rain was slowing cruised around a bit more in Gastown, wandered onto West Hastings and found that most of the people round there either were F#cked up drugs of smelt like pi$$ as i passed then, cheesed it outta there and went back to main drag and Canada Place. It looks crap, but i did manage to get a good shot of brontosaurus feeding by the coast...Was passing the Steam Clock at Noon when i sounded off was a L.O.B. Visited two more galleries the better was Inuit Gallery, Vancouver, BC but man was it expensive one piece of wood work was amazing called Eagle and Salmon Mask. Then I went back to Hills and purchased a print of Confessions of the Moon which I was very impressed with earlier. They took the seabus back to the Northshore, then used the same ticket to catch the bus even closer to home. cost $3.25 compared to £1.40 one way to town in Derby? Pattern developing here i think?

Burger Time
After swooping some shorts at Cove bike shop went to Wendy's, I was greeted with the usual
"What can I get you sir?"
"I'll have the Baconater " sniggered Phatboy

Gotta admit it was good, square but good. Its just managed to scrap in with a 7/10, the fries sucked but that's just the same as everywhere else.

Did the Grouse Grind after D&K got back from work did it in 47Min's which wasn't to bad by all accounts. Got to see the bears but didn't stay to long as the bugs were biting!!

The view from the top of Grouse mountain looking North East ish.

One of the fear inducing Grizzly Bears of Grouse Mountain

(OK so I edited out the electric fence everybody was hiding behind.)