I've gotten more conscious when writing about localized weather events in this column, mostly because there’s usually a four- to- six-day lead time from when I submit these words to my editor to when the column runs in Pique the following Thursday. This has stung me a few times when waxing poetic about the powder storm of the decade before an unexpected rain event raises the freezing level to the stratosphere. I watch the forecast like everyone else, but we all know anything more than 48 to 72 hours out is a crapshoot. And don’t get me started on pre- season snowfall predictions.
But looking back on the weather is as clear as a bluebird day.
It’s been a weird year of weather in Whistler. If you remember way back to last December, we had a super start to winter when the snow banks grew so large they almost toppled. Then, in January, we had a few pineapples rip through the region before a six- to- eight-week snow drought, killing any notion of a return to the powder seasons of yore.
A welcome late-season redo in the spring brought pow well into May, but at the expense of summer arriving on time. The rain and cold lingered into August, the last we saw of either until a couple of weeks ago. All Time Fall Time was cancelled for 2022, but 20 degrees and sunny in late October wasn’t getting a lot of complaints, with the exception of a few dusty mountain bikers. Now we’re in early November, and folks have already been skiing and sledding in the backcountry for a couple of weeks.
So while our society is more or less back to normal, the weather is anything but.
While I can’t control the temperature, snowfall or the opening date of the Creekside Gondola, I can control how ready I am for the impending winter. I’ve never been motivated enough to prepare my body in the gym to do pre-season dryland training, but I do like my equipment to work properly on the first day of turns. That means giving those dried-out ski bases a fresh coat of wax, or if I was diligent enough last spring, scraping off the summer storage wax. Cruising past folks on dried and shrivelled boards on the opening day cat track—saving a few precious minutes of lift-line waiting—never gets old.
With wet storms always looming, I also like to give my Gore-Tex some fresh water repellency treatment. Like waxing skis, it’s an easy chore to put off. But if you want to avoid your jacket and pants turning into popsicles, do your treatment. Arc’teryx recommends cleaning or treating your garment’s Durable Water Repellency (DWR) “every 10-12 days of heavy activity.” A morning of lining up in the rain on a higher freezing level powder day easily counts as a day of heavy activity as far as your jacket is concerned. So pick up some Nikwax before it sells out until Christmas.
Speaking of heavy activity, over the years I’ve found that ski touring has its own unique fitness requirements. Running and hiking only do so much for preparation. The only way to get ski-touring fit is to stretch those skins on and get marching. Luckily, there’s actually quite a bit of base building up in them thar hills right now, so it doesn’t have to be the typical early season “just for the views” trip (also known as the “just for the ‘gram” trip).
Less on the physical side (but very important on the analytical side) is keeping a constant, watchful eye on the snowpack. This is another chore that can be easy to forget when you’re balls-deep in pow for a week straight. But if you’re skiing in the backcountry, checking the Avalanche Canada app for the latest bulletins, observations and analyses should be as drilled into your routine as checking snow- forecast.com. Read it most days, especially when there are major changes in wind, temperature or precipitation.
If I were to make one prediction about this winter, it’s that it will be unpredictable. Better make sure we’re ready for it.
Vince Shuley’s routines are in a constant state of refinement. For questions, comments or suggestions for The Outsider email [email protected] or Instagram @whis_vince
