*Whistle

Downhill mountain biking in Whistler was ridiculous. the trails were crazy - really difficult to navigate, what with huge boulders, big jumps, hairpin turns after steep hills. we rocked the easier hills at the bottom for a few hours then decided we wanted to go all the way up, only problem was the trails at the top were all for advanced bikers. i was actually doing well on the upper portion and was getting into a groove til i hear 'flapflapflap' as i catch a flat tire. being so friggen far away from the bottom i was frustrated but at least got to take a gondola ride down. Views from the top were decent; overlooking a bunch of other mountains, couple nice lakes and the castles that are the hotels in whistler village. On the last run of the day i hit a jump going much faster than regular and flew straight up, came down and just slid for like 3m. that's when the pads came in handy cuz my elbow and knee took the brunt of the force and just ended up with a slight burn. seems like an expensive sport, what with our rental bikes being worth $2700, but i d love to be able to do more of it.
that night we met up with a couple of friends in the hotel and had a few drinks in front of a phantom-controlled TV before heading to maxx fish. it was a basement club that was fair sized and was pretty clubby. they did have some entertaining stage dancers. Afterwards we wandered around the village and played on the driving range and snuck into the hotel's pool. ended up being a fun fun night.
we had to fight the urge to drop another couple hundred to bike the day away on sunday. Instead we visited Brohm lake - just north of squamish - where Dave showed me a new thrill that i was seeking. atop a 7m cliff hung a rope, so i grabbed the rope and climbed up another 3m to the top of the next cliff. After some calculating i took the three step walk then lifted my feet as i sailed out past the cliffs below and over the clean, green lake. At the peak of the swing i let go and flailed through the air til i came down with a smack into the water. bruised legs and hand will back that up. Since the first swing was filled with nerves i went for a second round. i thought the weathered rope was going to snap on my second jump and i was going to plummet to a broken neck on the cliff below, or get impaled by one of the tree stumps. however I managed to enter the water with the same lack of grace but less pain.
Overall I'd say Whistler as a town is overrated because it has been extremely commmecialized. Having discovered it in the early days it would have been a mecca for extreme and outdoor sports. from zip treking, to mountain biking, hiking, swimming, skiing and boarding there are heaps of year-round activities for an outdoor enthusiast. Now it seems overdeveloped, overpriced and overly touristy. However it does offer some of the best mountain biking in the world - which would be about the only reason I'd rush back there any time soon.