Squirrel Lording

#followcamfriday squirrel lording with The Free Radicals and Braydon Bringhurst. Whistler's most popular alpine trail. 

I seem to get a lot of requests to film this trail when I ask the question- "what do you want to see in Whistler". So here you go, people of the interwebs. I present to you, Lord of the Squirrels. King of the squids. Master of puppets. Zebras in a cage. 

If I am being honest, this isn't my favorite trail in Whistler. It contradicts everything I love about riding in the alpine. Let me explain...

Don't get me wrong, this trail is super fun. That said, I couldn't be bothered to ride bench-cut, bike park style trails in the alpine. The reason I ride in the alpine is to escape that style of trail. It just seems very manufactured to me. Quite the contrast to normal alpine riding that is actually natural. And hard. It just seems very out of place to me, considering where we are. I mean, look at those views. You could drive a subaru up the climb trail to access them. 

​

Due to the difficulty of access, most alpine riding is devoid of people. That is part of the appeal. An escape. When you build a 3 meter wide climb-trail to the top, it is accessible by anyone with a bicycle and a little bit of fitness. Now I completely get it, trails are meant to be shared, and beginners make my job possible. Somehow this all seems a little out of place, on the top of a mountain in Whistler. Everything I am trying to escape, is up here. So very strange. This is an artificial alpine experience to me. It's like going to the zoo or on a safari to me. Not quite like being out in the wild. But like I stated, it's still fun. A zebra in a cage is still a zebra. 

Braydon, The Free Radicals, and myself did this ride on a busy day during Crankworx, hoping to escape the madness of the village and work off our hangovers a bit. While we did sober up a hair, we did not escape the madness unfortunately. I can't really complain, I don't even live here. But, I do live in a tourist town and plan rides to avoid the masses on occasion. I have never seen so many people on a trail outside of a bike park. We still had the time of our lives, don't misunderstand me. It's just weird. I myself am to blame for making trails popular, so I really cannot bitch. It's partially my fault, and the fault of the current state of social media and how people consume information. But that is another story for another day... End rant. 

What I remember the most about rides anymore are the people I am with. Always a pleasure to chase Will and Mark around and make Braydon bonk after riding every day, all day, at Crankworx. That first-time Whistler stoke finally got the best of Braydon. Kudos for living your best life while in Whistler. Leaving on your death-bed is a proper exit. Good thing the Free Rad's were having a rest day. Just a casual 5K eh. 

It should be noted that I am still in awe of the current moisture levels after the last two smokey summers, here in Whis. I think we can all breathe a collective sigh of relief and appreciate the moisture. See what I did there? Black and green, blasting through the forest. As it should be. Where will followcamfriday turn up next?