Revelstoke and Kicking horse

So me and my buddies are heading to Canada for some riding in about 8 months from now for the whole season. We were gonna go to Banff, but are thinking the terrain at Kicking Horse and Revelstoke is looking pretty good. It just appears to be a bit more back country like than a typical resort. We of course are boarders and drops, hits, lips and ridges suit us a lot more than the plainer hills if you know what i mean.

Problem is that we are just basing this off trails maps and photos from the website. So please help us if you can with the questions below.

1. Do these resorts just do a better job showing off these kind of features?

2. There is no terrain parks at either of these resorts? correct? this seems odd but i cannot see them on the websites

3. Is there just as much crazy terrain at the 3 in Banff?

4. Should we go to Banff and just plan a trip there?

Also, if anyone can put some perspective on the size of canadian resorts that would be great. They are mostly in the viscinity of 3000 acres and 800-1200 vertical, but resorts tend to do this to make themselves look better and in reality you only ride half of that most of the time, anyone guilty of this?

I think all round whistler would be the best for us but we are trying to steer clear of the olympics plus we are not gonna work which i hear could make whistler difficult.

cheers for your help.

Trav

I'll make a better effort at a reply when I am finished Uni today... essays due an all that.

IIRC Kicking Horse does have a terrain park.

For starters - the following link has a comparison of some areas:

http://www.whistlerblackcomb.com/mountain/maps/index.htm

Trav wrote:
1. Do these resorts just do a better job showing off these kind of features?

Perhaps. They are marketed to the more advanced rider so that would fit with what you are saying. Other resorts are likely to focus on this less. However, it is true that they both have probably the best in-bounds terrain in Canada (of the sort you are interested in). Revelstoke in particular has almost 6000 ft vertical.

2. There is no terrain parks at either of these resorts? correct? this seems odd but i cannot see them on the websites

There were some huge jumps at KH at one point (can't remember when) I don't think it is a regular thing though. I don't think they have one at Revelstoke. Sunshine and Louise, Big White and WB are the places if you are looking for parks.

3. Is there just as much crazy terrain at the 3 in Banff?

Yes, delerium dive at Sunshine springs to mind, but that area is often closed due to avi conditions (it only opened up a few days ago this season) and you need full avi rescue kit to enter (beacon, shovel, probe and partner). The other terrain is good bu the extent of steep interesting terrain outside of the 'extreem' areas is not as great as KH and Revelstoke. Same goes for Louise but they do not have the 'extreem' zones.

4. Should we go to Banff and just plan a trip there?

Depends on what you want? You should definately check KH and Revelstoke out. I think that is a given. banff is a lively town where you will meet loads of people. Golden (for Kicking Horse) and Revelstoke are also great towns but on a much smaller scale. If you were to base your decision on nightlife I would put the order of best option

Banff,
Golden,
Revelstoke

If you were to base your decision purely on terrain I would reverse the order

Revelstoke
Golden
Banff

You'll meet a lot of people in Banff, but you'll likely to socialize with more locals in Golden.

Good call on the Whistler decision. It is already way too busy.

An important point is length of season. The full Kicking Horse season is Dec to April. Sunshine has good skiing from Nov to May (I skied knee deep Powder on May 21st a couple of years ago :-)). Revelstoke has a similar season to Sunshine.

Banff is the obvious choice, but given that Golden is in-between Banff and Revelstoke, it could be a strong contender if you want to do something a bit different.

Whatever you do, you will love it, they are all great areas to ski/ride and all 3 have enough epic terrain to keep you all happy for a season.

Over to you Pablo...

I spent a pretty good sized chunk of last season living in Banff and also had the pleasure of visiting Kicking Horse and Revelstoke.

Between the Big3 (Banff) they have some pretty awesome terrain such as Delirium Dive/Wild West at Sunshine (generally open January-ish onwards but the last couple years have been bad), anything off the back of Louise (think Delirium Dive without the massive vertical) and Norquay (the big chair has some awesome runs for a powder day). All 3 have a terrain park and Lake Louise has brought back kickers after RCR banned them a couple years ago.

Kicking Horse is bigger/steeper/gnarlier than any of the above. It doesn't need to promote it-the in bounds terrain is pretty extreme. Not as much snow as Sunshine/Revvy so it can turn in to an icy mogul fest pretty fast. When it is good it is very good, I had probably my best days skiing ever in bounds at the Horse. Lots of scope for back country too. Revvy is unreal, tree skiing is immense and the quantity of snow is unbelievable, not much going on in town.

(All the following applies when the snow is good top to bottom) Norquay skis true to it's vertical and has a pretty cool park. Lake Louise offers fun to be had from top to bottom including a pretty cool park (slick management decision bringing that back) and Sunshine skis to half its stated vert but the snow is always soft and plenty to jib off, big park (hard to lap).

You can lap the gondy at KH for some epic runs, think 6 top to bottom burns and then retire to lunch. Good fun most of the way down with a 2 minute burn on a green after the good stuff.

If you like trees Revvy is excellent from top to bottom.. tight trees are my favourite so it is win win win. Not completely tidied up in terms of glading etc, still some stumps about.

Ehhh, I think that's it. I would go back to Banff as a base given another chance.

Thanks for the responses guys, that bit about Sunshine riding half as big as they say was what i was expecting.

Good point about lappin' the park, didn't think of that.

The point you made about KH being really good when its good but how it can turn into a icy mogul fest is my worry. Blacks don't often get groomed and with no park what am i to do if/when we have a dry spell and there is no fresh snow for two weeks.

+the seasons in banff are a fair bit longer compared to revvy and KH. I think lifts shut pretty early at Revvy too.

I'm a bit reluctant to throw Fernie into the mix because it is less central and a long way from KH and Revelstoke, But i hear it is quite steep has some good pow and a park, albeit a bit less 'extreem'.

Such a tough decision, and yet i ride bad snow most of the time on a 300 acre hill in oz all winter and love it, guess i just don't wanna regret where i go.

Thinkin Banff is still the best option and maybe just hit up revelstoke for a week, if only it had a park...

Trav wrote:Thanks for the responses guys, that bit about Sunshine riding half as big as they say was what i was expecting.

Good point about lappin' the park, didn't think of that.

The point you made about KH being really good when its good but how it can turn into a icy mogul fest is my worry. Blacks don't often get groomed and with no park what am i to do if/when we have a dry spell and there is no fresh snow for two weeks.

+the seasons in banff are a fair bit longer compared to revvy and KH. I think lifts shut pretty early at Revvy too.

I'm a bit reluctant to throw Fernie into the mix because it is less central and a long way from KH and Revelstoke, But i hear it is quite steep has some good pow and a park, albeit a bit less 'extreem'.

Such a tough decision, and yet i ride bad snow most of the time on a 300 acre hill in oz all winter and love it, guess i just don't wanna regret where i go.

Thinkin Banff is still the best option and maybe just hit up revelstoke for a week, if only it had a park...

Norquay is perfect for lapping, Lake Louise could be better but it ain't a long burn down from the lift to the start.

Fernie remains in full RCR ownership=no kickers, just rails.

Where in Aus? I skied Buller once upon a time..

In Revelstoke if you finding yourself wanting a park you should consider some sweet-ass snowlerblades.