The 2010 Whistler Accessibility Blog (The WFTD Society)

Nov 2, 2011 3:57pm

Request for proposals issued for ice under plaza Pavilion and on Great Lawn

By Alison Taylor, Pique Newsmagazine 

Don't lace your ice skates just yet Whistler; but it might be time to get them sharpened.

There could be skating under the Olympic Pavilion in the village as early as this winter if all goes according to the municipality's plans.

The municipality has issued a Request For Proposals for a "temporary recreational ice amenity" to run for three months at Whistler Olympic Plaza, and is looking to test the feasibility and operational costs of an ice surface. The project is still in the early exploratory phases.

 "I think it's absolutely wonderful," said Councillor Tom Thomson, who months ago asked staff, with council's backing, to investigate the possibility of a temporary ice surface.

 "I think we have the beginning of something great."

 Long envisioned as a potential amenity in the village, the community's appetite for an ice rink was whetted in the run up to the 2010 Games. The plaza site was originally slated for an indoor ice rink that would host the Paralympic sledge hockey competition. That development proved too expensive but the concept of village skating prevailed.

Read more »

Aug 31, 2011 3:44pm

GranFondo Whistler riders chasing personal goals

Fastest times just over three-and-a-quarter hours

By Andrew Mitchell, Pique Newsmagazine

There will be 7,000 riders in the second running of the RBC GranFondo Whistler on Sept. 10, all of them with personal goals for the 122-kilometre ride from Vancouver to Whistler. For some it will be to win their category while others will be looking to reach a time goal or beat their time from last year. Some will only be looking to finish.

There are dozens of Whistler locals in the event, including a few disabled riders that will be entering for a second year.

Phil Chew, an amputee who pedals with one leg is looking to better his time from last year.

"I did it in 4:40 last year – I was trying to get under five hours but I had no idea. This year, optimistically I'd like to do 4:20. Realistically, I think I could have done it in 4:30 but I made a few mistakes," he said. "One mistake was stopping in Squamish and trying to get water, and the whole zoo there. I was so wound up and trying to do everything to be fast, and it kind of threw me off a bit. I was there for five, six, seven minutes, and it took awhile to get going again.

"(Another mistake) was after the Lions Gate bridge where about 500 passed me at the Clover leaf. A guy was directing me to come one way, and when I came out that way I realized that I had to go back. About 500 people passed me and I had to work my way through that group to really get going again."

Chew has also been training a lot more this year and will go into the 2011 race about 20 pounds lighter than 2010. He's also entered a race in Langley this year that was 144 km so he's done more than the distance – and was also under five hours in that race.

"Now I have a better bike and few things in my favour," he said.

John Ryan is no stranger to pain after pedalling his hand-cycle across Canada – a distance of almost 9,000 km – in 1999 to raise money for spinal cord research, and he plans to get through the 2011 race even if hurts.

"I had some issues with my elbows and shoulders from Squamish, so I was definitely in a lot of pain by the time I got home," he said of his 2010 GranFondo. "I'm kind of worried about that to be honest, because I haven't done enough miles in training. Fitness-wise I'm okay but I need to get more miles in the saddle."

Read more »

 Pictured above to the left is Phil Chew Leg Amputee and to the Right Whistler own John Ryan one of Whistler’s Real Estate top sales producers.

This was such a great story from last year that we decided to bring it back…

Sep 8, 2010 3:57pm

 Local riders take on GranFondo Saturday

Disabled athletes Phil Chew and John Ryan will be among 4,000 cyclists on Sea to Sky Highway

 By Andrew Mitchell, Pique Newsmagazine. 

 Although Canada's top cyclists will be earning points at a new UCI ProTour event in Quebec this weekend, the RBC GranFondo is bringing 4,000 cyclists to Whistler on Saturday. About 200 of them will be racing the 120 km and competing for $12,000 in prize money.

The top riders are expected to take four hours from the start at Georgia and Burrard Street to the finish line on Blackcomb Way in Whistler.

The race version of the GranFondo, the Giro, is only open to 200 riders that are licensed in Category 1, 2 and 3. Several members of Team Whistler are in that group – Gary Baker, Mike Boehm, Trevor Hopkins, Otto Kamstra and Phil Chew.

A below-the-hip amputee, Chew is bound to turn some heads on the course on Saturday. The former Paralympian will rely on one leg to hammer up the long climbs, but anyone who has ever seen Chew in action knows that he's up for the challenge.

"I first bought a road bike three years ago, and that first year I was doing a lot of mountain biking so I didn't get out that much. Then I had a bad crash on the road and ended up getting 10 stitches in my head… That really shocked me and I went back to the mountain bike," said Chew.

Chew was riding his mountain bike the next year, with the odd road ride mixed in, when he had an off-road crash that resulted in a separated shoulder. Concerned that he wouldn't be able to forerun the downhill at the Paralympics in March, Chew pulled back to let himself heal.

Read more »

Photo by Joern Rohde / www.wpnn.org 

The Celebrations Plaza is very Accessible to People with Disabilities.

Whistler Olympic Plaza’s new, permanent stage, which can be seen in the background here, officially opens on Saturday (Aug. 27).

August 25, 2011 – Whistler question nespaper

Christopher Poon
chris@whistlerquestion.com

Whistler Olympic Plaza, the biggest official venue in Whistler is finally set to open this weekend (Aug 26-28. 2011) after a year of construction, and what better way to kick things off than with performances by Canadian rock icon Sam Roberts Band and alt-country artist Kathleen Edwards?

The show will take place at the newly-finished pavilion stage site at the east end of the plaza and marks a new era in Whistler’s entertainment scene.

“You try and visualize stuff on paper and you always hope for the best and I think this is an example of something that’s exceeded expectations,” said Mayor Ken Melamed. “It certainly has mine.”

For Melamed, the RMOW and various community members, the site is the culmination of years of planning to create what may very well become Whistler’s central hub for culture and entertainment.

Read more »

Whistler's Farmers Market has returned and takes place every Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm as well on every Wednesday afternoon from 3 – 8 pm in the upper Village area. With a great selection of Arts and Crafts, Fresh Vegetables / Fruits, taste testing and much more the Whistler Farmers Market really is a great place to spend an hour or two visiting…

This is a Fully Accessible activity for People with Mobility Restrictions in Whistler BC during the summer months.



The Whistler for the Disabled (WFTD) Society has sponsored two bike riders in the “Ride to Conquer Cancer” this year.   The Bike ride takes place from Vancouver, BC Canada to Seattle Washington, USA in a two day all out bike ride with friends or family.   We also supported a RMOW (Resort Municipality of Whistler) staff member with his quest to race funds to help him through his Brain Cancer and treatments.

We continuously donate funds to support many causes in the community thanks to you and you’re Accommodations Bookings which are made on our website or by using our Toll Free Number in North America at 1-888-933-9383.



`

(The above Image was provided by Joern Rhode, Whistler Photographer) 

The Whistler for the Disabled (WFTD) Society donated some funds to help support Kids with Cancer in BC at the GLC’s main event at the base of Whistler Mountain.

Dave Clark pictured above with WFTD Director Hugh Tollett who was proud to present a cheque for $ 250 dollars to help support the kids who have cancer in BC. 

Helping out the BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, BC by helping provide much needed funds for the kids to send them to Camp and for Family Support along with Research plus a whole lot more.

Visit them at www.BaldingforDollars.com



Photo Credit from "Whistler Photographer" Matt Murray mattmurrayphotography.com

Participants look back at the Games' impacts on Whistler

By Susan Hollis, Pique Newsmagazine, March 16th, 2011

When 502 athletes with various disabilities competed at last year's winter Paralympic events, they were sliding on more than ice and snow. These athletes were riding a sea change in the public's perception of disability, a symbolic closing of a chasm that has separated the able bodied from the disabled since the inception of the Paralympics in 1948.

"It made people notice us. Prior to the games it was hidden a bit, not many people understood it or acknowledged it and now that they've watched me and my teammates race in the Alpine events and all the other events as well they were like, 'Wow, these people can actually ski.' It was cool," said para-alpine skier and Whistler resident, Morgan Perrin who has competed in two Paralympic Games. "I think even though it's not going to be the same as able-bodied events and probably never will be, at the same time we're getting more recognition and that's a great start."

Prior to the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, there was a discernable lack of attention given to disabled sport in Canada. Aside from the occasional public pat on the head, Paralympic athletes were relegated to the sidelines behind their able-bodied counterparts and rarely given the support – financial or public – that they deserved. This support has been earned not just by overcoming disabilities but also for charging forth as serious athletes on courses designed to challenge their athletic prowess – a caveat that was finally achieved through the 2010 Paralympic Games. Anyone present at any of the sporting events last March will tell you the competitive edge is just as strong in the Paralympics.

Read more »