Ski Racing in Whistler BC - Meet the Weasel Workers

Alpine ski racing in North America is dependent on volunteers. At all levels, from club races to the World Cup, from children’s events to the Masters, volunteers build most of the courses and run most of the races. Volunteerism provides the very life-blood of ski racing in both Canada and the United States.

In Whistler BC, on Canada’s west coast, a group of parents banded together in the late 1960’s to form a Nancy Green Ski League program for their sons and daughters. Already early organizers of the Whistler Mountain Ski Club, these parents became self-taught racing coaches and race organizers for their kids.

As their children grew and matured, so did this fledgling group of race organizers. In time, professional coaches were brought in to take over the development of the young racers, but these parents carried on as builders of racecourses and organizers of events.

Bob Parsons, a driving force in the early days of ski racing in Whistler, while watching a row of volunteers linked arm-in-arm and tramping down a steep slope, boot packing the soft snow, said, “They’re Weasel Workers”, naming the group after the slope on which they were working. The name stuck and to this day Whistler’s independent organization of volunteer course workers call themselves the Whistler Weasel Workers, and Bob Parsons is remembered as the “Father of the Weasels”.

In the 1970’s, the Whistler race workers had developed their skills, organization, expertise and reputation to a point that they helped to attract the World Cup to Whistler, and eight to ten races were organized in Whistler in the 1970’s ,80’s and 90’s The Weasels built and maintained the track for all of these events, and provided many of the race officials who ran the races.

These races were too often scheduled in early winter, a time of storms and big snowfalls in Whistler. It is a time for wonderful skiing, but not for ski racing. A great track was always prepared, while dealing with many snowfalls, but thick fog or a foot of heavy snow on race day was more than even the Weasels could deal with. In the end, the weather forced the Whistler downhill to be relocated at Lake Louise.

Over the years, the Whistler Weasel Workers have assisted with many races, in many places. Weasel contingents participated in the Olympic Winter Games in Calgary and again at Salt Lake, as well as in the World Championships in Sierra Nevada, Spain and in Bormio, Italy. Weasel Workers have also been involved with World Cup races at Lake Louise and at Beaver Creek in Colorado. The Weasels have also built the courses for the Canadian Alpine Ski Championships, whenever they have been held in Whistler, most recently in 2005, 2006 and 2008.

In February, 2008, The Whistler Weasel Workers were again hard at work in Whistler, building and maintaining the courses for the Canadian Alpine Ski Championships and for four Whistler World Cup Races. A brand new ladies downhill track is now in play, built especially for the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games. The 2008 races christened the new track, which proved to be a marvelous course. As well, the famous Dave Murray downhill was used for the men’s World Cup races. The Weasels made history in 2008, building the two side-by-side courses for one World Cup race series.

For many years, the Weasel Workers have welcomed visiting volunteers from all parts of the skiing world, form Scotland and Europe to Australia and New Zealand. The Weasels invite course workers everywhere to join them in Whistler. In 2007, for our Canadian Championships, many visiting volunteers joined us from across Canada and the USA. Many of our new friends were back in 2008, with even more newcomers. We will need lots more help in 2010.