Big White and Silver Star Dominate “Best of Skiing in Canada” Award

Ski Canada magazine’s winter 2006 special issue, titled “Best of Skiing in Canada,” has awarded Big White and Silver Star with a number of prestigious awards. “A year’s worth of praise and amusement, gossip and hearsay, make up our annual look at why there’s no place like home,” wrote Iain MacMilllan, Editor of Ski Canada magazine.

“Every year the industry waits for this issue of Ski Canada magazine to be published” commented Michael J. Ballingall, Senior Vice President, Silver Star and Big White Resorts. “Our teams at both resorts strive to be the best and in a large way the recognition received from Ski Canada magazine and its readers plays a role in congratulating them on their successes and continued hard work.”

This year Silver Star and Big White dominated the awards in a number of areas. Awards listed below are excerpts from the pages of Ski Canada magazine and they include:

Awards for Big White:

• Best Place to Drop off the Kids and Get their Gear” – Big White has now integrated its kids’ rental facility with the Kid’s Center instruction area. Get the kids kitted out and ready for lessons in one easy step.
• “Best Party to get a Local’s Invite” – The Shed Party at Big White is an annual invite-only shindig that features Valdy, who’s a regular at the resort each winter.
• “Best Place to Celebrate Australia Day” - Snowshoe Sam’s at Big White rocks each January 26th as the Big White’s Aussie staff let down their hair – and dye it green and gold.
• “Best Powder”
• “Best Grooming”
• “Best Terrain Park (West)”
• “Best Place for an Old-fashioned Outdoor Hockey Game”
• “Best Family Skiing”
• “Best Place to Fly and Ski on the Same Day – - Both WestJet and Air Canada offer daily service into Kelowna International Airport. The WestJet flights get in early enough to allow you to spend a half-day on Silver Star’s or Big White’s slopes to acclimatize to that champagne powder.
• “Best Place for Boys to Play with Heavy Machinery” – At Big White last summer, more than 30,000 truckloads of fill were dumped onto 14 runs on Gem Lake. Apparently this makes for smooth runs - and happy Dumptruck Dans.

Awards for Silver Star:

• “Best New Terrain” – A gold medal for Silver Star’s new mostly intermediate Silver Woods area, which increases the Vance Creek side of the mountain by 54 percent. More than 145 hectares of new terrain are serviced by a high-speed detachable quad. A neat nine new trails and gladed tree islands will provide fabulous powder on northeast facing slopes.
• “Best New Terrain Parks” - Silver Star’s new TELUS Park dials up tricks for beginners and experts. First-timers can use fat boxes to learn to slide and mini-hits for catching their first air. Advanced riders will grind the long boxes and killer S-rails, and launch off big hits. There are also a half-pipe, aerial training site, race centre and a dual-mogul race course.
• “Best Powder”
• “Best Bumps in the West” – Putnam Creek at Silver Star.
• “Best Grooming”
• “Best Family Skiing”
• “Best New Digs” – Silver Silver Star’s luxurious new Snowbird Lodge with great ski-in/ski-out convenience and loads of extras that include an in-house cinema.
• “Best Non-Grooming Use of a Snowcat” – Take a historic snowcat on a gourmet dinner tour to Paradise Camp, Silver Star’s refurbished mountaintop dinner spot.
• “Best Program to Keep Your Kids Climbing the Walls” – Both Silver Star and now Big White have climbing walls that are open at night.
• “Best Place to Fly and Ski on the Same Day” – Both WestJet and Air Canada offer daily service into Kelowna International Airport. The WestJet flights get in early enough to allow you to spend a half-day on Silver Star’s or Big White’s slopes to acclimatize to that champagne powder.
• “Best Place for an Old-fashioned Outdoor Hockey Game” – Silver Star’s Brewers Pond.

Ski Canada magazine’s awards recognize the uniqueness of these two Okanagan resorts and emphasize the family fun they try to put into the sport. Silver Star and Big White have just completed an attendance breaking Christmas, New Year’s period and are continuously receiving fresh snowfalls of their world famous Okanagan champagne powder.

Article provided by Big White and Silver Star Mountain Resort.

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