The Snow Ghost Express chairlift. Picture: Big White Ski Resort, BC, Canada. Source: National Features
Skiers and snowboarders, Big White Ski Resort, Canada. Picture :Big White Ski Resort, BC, Canada Source: National Features
THERE'S a magic man living on the side of a mountain in Canada.
He isn't a shaman, a witch doctor or a wizard, but if you've been skiing in ill-fitting boots that crunch and cramp your feet, you will think Lindsay Bennett is a miracle worker when he takes all the pain out of sliding down a hill.
The expat Australian is an expert ski boot fitter, someone who knows how to make feet perfectly comfortable in the clunky footwear needed to attach skis to your legs, and he works with those looking to buy new boots or customise an existing pair to have them feel like the old slippers under the bed at home.
I've been skiing for 20 years, renting boots every time I ventured on to a hill, and there have only been a couple of times when I wasn't crippled by pain, with my feet cramping so badly I couldn't make it down a run without stopping to hop from one foot to the other in an attempt to reduce the agony.
That was until I visited Big White the vast alpine resort in British Columbia's peaceful Okanagan Valley above the lakeside town of Kelowna and was introduced to Lindsay and bought a pair of Atomic boots that he customised to my feet.
I spent several hours in his shop, Dizzy's two in the evening finding the best boots for my complicated legs and having personalised foot beds made, and another in the morning tweaking a combination that had been modified by moving buckles and reshaping the shell and came away with something I didn't think existed: comfy ski boots.
Lindsay, who hails from Wandiligong, just outside Bright in the Victorian Alps, has been living in Big White for 14 years and, while he's done almost every job on the mountain, he says fitting boots is the most rewarding because it helps people get more out of their time in the snow.
"I would say 95 per cent of skiers are wearing boots that don't fit them properly, and that number should be zero because everyone deserves boots that fit them perfectly," he says.
"One of the biggest mistakes we find is people buying boots just on length, and it's got nothing to do with length because you have to take into account the dynamics of the whole foot.
"It's fit, which happens by matching the internal dimensions of the boot to your foot, the flex which relates to the hinge point of the ankle in the boot, and the foot bed, which is achieved by having them made by someone who actually knows what they're doing."
For me, the experience was miraculous and when I walked out of Lindsay's shop I not only skied for three hours without even a tingle of discomfort, but kept my boots on through lunch rather than kicking them off as soon as I was on carpet.
And my skiing actually improved when I was able to get my legs and body into the correct position over the skis no longer twisting awkwardly to take the pressure off my cramped feet and could string dozens of tight turns together to navigate whole runs without stopping along the way.
But there's more to Big White than a master boot fitter and the destination is the largest "totally ski-in/ski-out resort in Canada", with the property occupying 3052ha of hillside land, including 1147ha that are patrolled, 367ha that are groomed, and 15ha dedicated to night skiing.
There are 118 designated trails with 105km of marked runs 18 per cent suited to beginners, 54 per cent catering to intermediates, and 28 per cent ready to challenge experts covered in the 750cm of natural snow that falls every season. The longest run is 7.2km from the top of the Alpine T-bar to the base of the Gem Lake Express chair.
Big White is owned by the Schumann family, the Australian clan that had an interest in Mt Hotham. When they bought the place in 1985, they set out "to build a world-class ski resort focusing on customer convenience and service while increasing capacity and offering new skiing terrain".
Since then, a handful of high-speed chairs have been installed and now 16 lifts can carry 28,000 skiers up the hill every hour so there are no lines, even on the busiest days.
Big White is a self-contained resort with a collection of restaurants, cafes and bars catering to every taste and budget, as well as a supermarket for those keen to eat at home, day spas and the Kids Centre, and visitors can stay in everything from luxury houses and apartments to hotels and hostels.
I stayed in one of the self-contained apartments on the first floor of Stonebridge Lodge a modern alpine chalet between the Bullet Express and the Village Centre with a full kitchen, washing machine and dryer, and a hot tub on the private balcony placed to enjoy the valley views.
Keen to offer visitors more than just skiing and snowboarding, there's also an activity desk in the Village Centre Mall where guests can book to do everything from dog sledding, sleigh rides and snowmobile tours to snowshoeing, ice skating and ice climbing.
There's the opportunity to spend the day skiing at Silver Star another resort owned by the Schumann family, a 90-minute drive from Big White with 1240ha of skiable terrain to attend a local ice hockey game or jump on a bus for a couple of hours of retail therapy at the Orchard Park Mall in Kelowna.
I signed up to do the dog sledding and after meeting every one of the 30 dogs that spend the winter living in a quiet corner of Big White many are rescue dogs and all love the attention I sat in the front of a sled while six of the excited animals pulled us along a section of the resort's Nordic trails.
I was even allowed to drive, standing on the wooden frame at the back of the sled and, while I only just managed to hold on when I took my foot off the brake and the dogs charged forward, I was soon enjoying the view over the racing pack to the snow-capped mountains on the other side of the Okanagan Valley.
The writer was a guest of the Canadian Tourism Commission and Tourism British Columbia.
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BIG WHITE
Big White (bigwhite.com) is 56km from the international airport at Kelowna and Air Canada (aircanada.com) flies into the BC town several times a day from Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto.
Big White Central Reservations (cenres@ bigwhite.com) can arrange ski-in/ski-out accommodation, discounted lift tickets, lessons and equipment rentals, airport transfers and more.
For eating and drinking, Beano's in the Village Centre Mall is the place for coffee, the Big White Bakery downstairs has snacks during the day and pizza at night, The BullWheel is a popular apres-ski spot that also serves tasty bar meals, and the Kettle Valley Steakhouse in Happy Valley is a relaxed fine-dining option.
Skimax (skimax.com.au) has a deal to ski Big White between February 8 and March 23 next year, with a seven-night stay in a budget room at Whitefoot Lodge and a weekly ski pass costing from $595 a person, twin share, but bookings must be paid for by October 15.
Source: A day in the life of a wizard
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