What’s better than backcountry powder shared with a couple of
good friends? What beats chasing your buddies through the trees,
sharing great lines on open slopes and watching your mates “pop”
off bumps into the “pow”? Now, if that though brings a smile,
broaden the picture to include 12 good friends. Think about a
day of great powder shared with the 12 people you most like to
ski or ride with. Then expand that thought to three or four days
in succession. Oh, yes, and throw in some uphill tranportation
that gives you 12 to 15 great runs a day.
If it seems like a wild dream, it’s not. Snowcat skiers and
boarders are doing it every year.
Assemble your own group to share a snowcat and two guides and to
control the pace of each day’s skiing. The cat rides back up the
mountain become almost as much fun as the runs down, filled with
the old lies and jokes and stories that you all enjoy sharing.
Evenings in the bar at the lodge playing pool or darts for
“shots” or soaking in the hot tub just continue the fun of the
day. Our Favorite Chatter Creek Photos
(http://favorite-chatter-creek-photos.blogspot.com) were taken
by a number of cat skiers including some old friends who go cat
skiing together every year.
Many cat skiing operators in BC encourage groups. At least two
operators offer no particular incentive to group leaders, but
point out the advantage to having companions that know one
another and are all compatible skiers and riders. However, at
least three BC operators provide group organizers a free seat
and one operator offers two free seats (take 12 people, pay for
10). Other operators offer a discount ranging from $1200 per
day, to $1500 for a 4-day tour. Typically, it’s all or nothing
and the group size must be 12 to qualify for a discount. As nice
as it is to get a great discount, Group Organizers shopping for
a cat skiing tour should think about group discounts last, after
making a short list of operators having terrain and skiing
conditions that best suits their group’s needs.
Organizing a group is no cakewalk. The group organizer is the
sole point of contact with the company. He or she collects and
accounts for all funds, makes lump payments on behalf of the
group, distributes company literature, collects client
information and submits it to the company. Above all, the
organizer ensures that group members understand the tour dates,
transportation arrangements, meeting times and special
conditions like baggage restrictions or clothing needed for the
trip in to a remote lodge.
The real effort goes into filling the group with compatible
skiers. A sign-up list circulated at the end of each tour always
generates lots of interest in the following year. Everyone’s
ready to be back next year; same time, same place, same group.
Fantastic! However, things change a bit in the following weeks,
when the deposit becomes due. People return home and remember
(or are reminded of) family vacation promises, visiting
relatives, budgetary constraints and other priorities. Then it’s
“scramble time” for the Group Leader. The deposit is due shortly
and the group is not full. Some Group Leaders end up subsidizing
the group deposit.
Finally, the organizer handles last minute changes. People get
sick or have emergencies or “things” happen at work and
substitutes have to be arranged. Snowstorms can force
last-minute changes to travel plans, requiring telephone calls
to the entire group, as described in the article, “Getting to
Chatter Creek: Go Early and Get there“
(http://backcountrywintervacations.com/getting-to-chatter-creek.h
tml )
You may have known your buddies for years, but you don’t really
understand them until you try to organize their ski trip. As one
cat ski operator noted, “It’s like herding cats”. One or two
email messages is not enough to convey critical dates and other
information. There is always that benighted soul who forgets or
is confused or looses forms or is always late with payments.
Experience teaches the value of a standby list of people happy
to step in and replace “foot-draggers”. That usually focuses the
attention!
Regular reminders and specific confirmation is needed to ensure
that people really do understand what they need to know, and
that critical dates and times really have been recorded in next
year’s calendar, and not this year’s. If the meeting point is in
a different time zone, alarm bells have to be rung regularly, or
people will forget the time shift, or get it backward. People
need reminding that there is a day of travel before and after
the dates of the tour. If tour members are married, it’s a good
idea to ensure their wives know “the drill”.
Different organizers handle their discount in different ways.
Merle McKnight, manager of Chatter Creek, in Golden recommends,
“Put it in your pocket, you’ve earned it!” Many organizers do
just that. Others share the discount with the group members,
giving everyone a small discount. One organizer rents a bus to
take his group from Calgary to Golden, where his cat skiing tour
starts. That tour really starts and ends in Calgary and
everything in between is a blur.
In the end, whatever frustration a group organizer may bear
falls right away on that first run of the annual tour, as one’s
mates charge down the hill, with whoops and hollers and powder
snow flying. The grins on their faces make it all worth while!
Having written so much about organizing groups, I should add
that, over the years, I’ve had a number trips with two or three
friends, sharing a snowcat with strangers. Without exception,
these trips have been wonderful experiences. I’ve made new
friends and have thoroughly enjoyed myself. Even though I am an
experienced skier, I have rarely felt held back by weaker
skiers. Well, perhaps just once. Snowcat skiing is so “laid
back” and relaxed and guides are so skilled, that a range in
ability within a group can “work” very well. Most snowcat skiing
operators encourage just strong intermediate and expert skiers,
so “slower” skiers are rarely far behind. More often than not,
they end up waiting while the hotshots “scope out” special
challenges; cliffs, bumps and the like.
If you don’t really know what cat skiing is all about, check out
the Cat Skiing Articles photo gallery at
http://cat-skiing-articles.blogspot.com.
|
