Whistler Mountain has seen quite a few races over the past six decades, but only one (as far as we’re aware) involved pitting a Crazy Canuck on two-by-four planks against a novice skier who had first skied around a gate just the month before. On Monday, April 22, 1985, however, crowds gathered to watch Dave Murray and Doug Sack go head-to-head, or at least ski-to-plank.
After issuing the challenge in December, Sack used his column in the Whistler Question to build up interest in the race and keep the readers updated on his progress as he learned to ski. Various rumours were in circulation by the day of the race, including one that Murray could complete the race course on the two-by-fours in only 30 seconds. As the fateful date approached, Sack was heard to say, “as far as I’m concerned, there are presently seven wonders in the world. If I beat Murray Monday, you can make that eight.”
The day of the race, Sack headed up Whistler Mountain at opening, describing the journey as “the longest, loneliest ride of [his] brief skiing career.” After a couple of runs down to the Orange Chair to calm his nerves, Sack ran into Murray on his way up and the two decided to take a run together. Murray hadn’t skied much on his “Crazy Canuck Demos,” but the run proved that a Crazy Canuck on two-by-fours was equal to a rookie racer, promising an interesting race. According to Sack, “we knew the race was a toss-up and we also knew that we were doing something totally hilarious because everyone was laughing when we got back up the Orange to the race start.”
The race consisted of three runs. As the pair waited at the starting gates, Sack heard Murray say, “have a good run, Doug,” just before the countdown, and then they were off. In his recounting of the race, Sack wrote, “it doesn’t matter what level skier you are, when you go for it, you go for it. So I went for it… and fell down trying to make the third gate.” Not disqualified, Sack got back up and managed to catch up with Murray, who tried to gain speed ahead of the flats and wiped out. The first run went to Sack.
Riding up the chair together before the second run, Murray and Sack discussed the pressures of the second run and what it felt like on an international stage with much higher stakes. Feeling more confident having completed a run, Sack made an aggressive start to the second run, made it through the first two gates, and lost a ski in the third, somersaulted, and passed the fourth gate on his back. The second run went to Murray.
Tied heading into the third run, Murray and Sack spent their ride up discussing their ambivalence about winning and their determination to have a clean run where both made it to the finish line. Following Cate Webster’s advice not to worry about speed until after the third gate, Sack was in front as the skiers approached the first waterfall. Assured by the crowd that Murray was right behind him, Sack managed to maintain the lead. He was officially proclaimed the winner of The Great 2x4 Race and was presented with a pair of national ski team racing gloves and a gold ski pin from Murray, though Sack still gave Murray a gold nugget because “there were no losers in the race.”
While reporting on the dedication of Dave Murray Downhill in April 1991, Sack looked back on the race and credited Murray with the development of his alpine race reporting. Following the race, Sack spent a couple of years covering local and Nor-Am races with the support of Murray, and then in 1987 Murray set Sack up with Glenn Wurtele, who arranged for him to go to Europe and cover the World Cup circuit. According to Sack, the two-by-four race remained “the funniest thing I’ve seen on skis” and a feat only Dave Murray would have attempted.
