A pair of Williams Lake residents embarked on an ambitious adventure this winter, attempting to ski/snowboard every ski hill in the province.
Oliver Berger, 32, and Morgan Day, 27, both avid advocates for the local ski community and Mt. Timothy employees who were lucky enough to secure a few months off of work for the trip, will complete the final leg of their journey this weekend — one that started at the beginning of January and has taken them to close to 40 ski hills in B.C.
Preparations for the trip, later billed Shred the Nar, began in the fall. Both Berger and Day said it’s something they’ve always thought about doing.
“As a kid I always wanted to ride every mountain in B.C.,” Berger said. “It’s been a goal, but I never really pulled the trigger on it. So, we talked about it, he [Day] seemed gung-ho about it, and we just said let’s do it.”
Day, meanwhile, had become accustomed to posting live video snow reports from Mt. Timothy daily. The idea to document the trip via GoPro Camera and create a Facebook page, Shred the Nar, seemed like a no brainer, they said.
“It’s something nobody’s really ever done before,” Berger said. “So, we said, let’s make a couple videos from each place and try to promote each little hill a bit, and promote what we’re doing, and maybe it’ll turn into something bigger. Who knows?”
Trips, spanning thousands of kilometres in ‘Bluebird,’ a 1977 Chevrolet van equipped with a queen-sized sleeping quarters and a cooking area, began to last up to three weeks. Every time a ski hill was visited, no matter the size, a new video showcasing each mountain’s assets would pop up on Youtube.
“All the hills were a blast but we especially enjoyed our days at the smaller, local hills, that we rode,” Day said. “Personally, I’m attracted to them more as they have a really good local feel, relaxed vibes, great snow and usually no crowd.
“To share our experiences from working at Mt. Timothy and to hear how they run has been a blast, and hopefully the two of us can apply some of this knowledge gained into our local mountain.”
Day said he hopes people will see the videos and be inspired to ride and to support their local hills.
“In this day and age everyone from Troll Resort, to Harper Mountain, and even the larger hills like Big White can use a little help,” he said.
“If our videos encourage some new people to go ride then we’re absolutely thrilled.
“Some of the best days riding were at the smaller hills — Summit Lake, Tabor Mountain and Shames Mountain just outside of Terrace.”
One highlight Berger and Day said stands out is their trip to the newly-opened Hudson’s Hope Ski Area.
“That was pretty great,” Berger said. “It’s a super-short handle tow and it’s the first season they’ve been open. We were there on day four of operations and they’d been working on getting it going for three, four years.
“To them and to us it was awesome. We got to help promote them and we got some fresh, virgin tracks down some runs no one had ever ridden. Who knows, maybe they’ll name it Shred the Nar?”
There were, unfortunately, a pair of black marks on the trip. In February while riding Murray Ridge in Fort St. James Berger suffered a torn ligament in his shoulder, requiring him to take a short break from the trip.
Later, While riding Hemlock Valley Resort in Agassiz two weeks ago, Day suffered a dislocated shoulder, also tearing ligaments, putting him on the injured reserve for this weekend’s trip to Vancouver Island.
Both, however, have zero regrets.
“It’s really been the journey of a lifetime,” Day said. “I can’t say enough about the overwhelming support we’ve had along the way. Family, friends, all the staff at Mt. Timothy, as well as Dale Taylor and Eric Sannes at the Rush FM, for helping us spread the word of Shred the Nar.”
They added the sightseeing, the people they met, and the road trips helped complete the adventure.
“That window screen, it’s a TV with no commercials,” Berger said.
“It just keeps changing. It’s the best show ever.”
To check out Shred the Nar’s videos search for ‘Shred the Nar’ on Facebook.