In 2001, Derek Foose founded the Whistler Freeride Club (WFC). His goal was to bring his passion to the Sea to Sky corridor, as well as give back to the ski community by coaching future generations.
Foose started out with just six pupils. He and his organization have experienced exponential growth on all fronts since then.
“We have definitely seen a massive increase in interest and popularity, and the overall skill level in the junior freeride community,” Foose said. “That’s kind of spilled over to the adult ranks as well.”
Safety, fun, learning
WFC alumni have certainly been making waves as of late. Marcus Goguen claimed the Freeride Junior World Championships (FJWC) crown in January, while Wei Tien Ho and Jackson Bathgate recently earned their spots on the Freeride World Tour (FWT).
The pipeline behind them remains strong, as seven WFC athletes concluded the 2023 season ranked top-15 or better in the IFSA’s North America standings.
Lukas Bennett led the way for boys aged 15 to 18 as the continent’s fourth-highest rated freerider. Kane Gascoigne was close behind in sixth, and Kieren Ferguson ended up 14th.
Among girls in that same age bracket, no WFC member stood out more than Drea Dimma, who earned a fifth-place ranking.
The future looks bright as well, with Carden Tomic as the top-ranked North American in the boys’ age 12 to 14 category. Samuel Hoad is in ninth, and Emmett Guy is 15th. Regan Beattie checked in at seventh place (3,375 points) among girls in the same age bracket, followed by Kyrra Tacilauskas in 12th (3,165 points).
“I’m extremely proud of all of the kids as a group, and individually,” Foose said. “It’s an individual sport … but we still try to take a real team approach to it, recognizing that there’s a big group of kids, a whole team of coaches and even parents that are all really supportive of each kid’s individual effort.”
WFC parents indeed form a lively community that celebrates the achievements of all club members.
“Every year, we send kids to the [FJWC], and next year, we’re going to send a whole new crew,” said Kane’s father, Adam Gascoigne. “And kids like Carden … oh my gosh, the level coming up underneath is huge.”
“The club has a lot of really good skiers, and that’s just who our kids are skiing with all the time,” added Heather Ferguson, Kieren’s mother.
Why do so many WFC athletes take to the snow so well? It has much to do with the club’s pillars of development: safety, fun, and learning, in that order.
“The kids need to be returned to their parents at the end of each day, intact, but if they’re going to give us their free time—that’s one of a teenager’s most valuable currencies—we have a responsibility to make their time with us awesome,” explained Foose.
“We are working hard on skill development and acquisition with them, but if it’s just hard work all the time, then it’s not fun,” he continued. “And if it’s not fun, they’re not going to stick around.”
Role models
A robust culture of mentorship across generations has also contributed to the WFC’s momentum. Connor Warnock, Carlene Loughlin, Ryder Bulfone, Meghan Platt and Cooper Bathgate (Jackson’s twin brother) are all alumni who returned to the club as coaches. Warnock is the longest-tenured of the bunch, having worked as a trainer for more than eight years.
Moreover, Foose praised his experienced athletes for stepping up as role models.
“Seeing the older kids recognize their value to the younger kids by seeing themselves four or five years ago in those younger kids is honestly one of my favourite parts [of freeride],” he said. “I mean, coaches are important, but there’s nobody cooler to a young kid than an older kid doing the same sport who’s excelling at it.”
Parental engagement is likewise invaluable to the WFC. After all, moms and dads are responsible for driving their children to practices and contests across the province. They are the ones who cheer in the cold. Foose and his team do all they can to keep the parents’ trust by being as open and as accommodating as possible.
“The parents are truly like the glue that binds us all together,” he explained. “We do our best to communicate with them, and to make sure that they have what they need in terms of info to support their kids. We’ve got a great crop of parents that are making a huge, huge difference in what the kids are doing.”
In return, WFC parents trust the process that their youngsters are undergoing. Those like Adam and Heather are actually more nervous about their sons driving the Sea to Sky highway than their high-flying exploits on powder.
Exciting new things are on the horizon. According to Foose, there is a good chance that Whistler athletes will comprise the entirety of the six-person Canadian team at the 2024 FJWC. In the past, Canada has always been represented at that marquee event by a mix of Whistler skiers and those from other organizations like Fernie, Lake Louise and the Whitewater Freeride Team.
Official FJWC invitations won’t go out until November, but Foose and his gang could be on the cusp of history.
“The level of technical skiing in our club is the highest it’s ever been,” he said.
