SPEEDTRIP
Aidan Mulvihill
Profile and significance
Aidan Mulvihill is a Canadian freeski slopestyle and big air specialist who has risen quickly from the Whistler scene onto the international circuit. Born in 2004 and raised around Vancouver before moving to Squamish, he learned to ski as a child at Grouse Mountain and then developed his park craft on the world-class terrain at Whistler Blackcomb. He joined Canada’s national freeski program and broke through in 2023–24 by winning multiple NorAm slopestyle events and the overall NorAm title, earning World Cup starts the following winter. In April 2025 he captured the Canadian National FIS slopestyle title at Whistler Blackcomb, a marker that he’s among the country’s next-up riders. For fans tracking emerging talent, Mulvihill represents the wave of well-rounded, park-bred athletes transitioning from regional dominance to consistent international appearances.
Competitive arc and key venues
Mulvihill’s competitive résumé shows steady, verifiable progress through each tier. After junior results in North America and early-season starts in New Zealand at Cardrona, he put together a strong 2023–24 North American Cup run with slopestyle wins at Aspen Snowmass and Stoneham, plus a big air podium in Stoneham. Those points secured his move onto the 2024–25 World Cup, where he gained experience on the major stages of European and North American freeskiing. Highlights from that rookie World Cup campaign include top-25 results in big air at Chur and Beijing, and a solid 21st at Kreischberg, one of the tour’s benchmark jump venues. He also logged valuable slopestyle reps in venues like LAAX, Tignes, and Aspen, learning to translate NorAm-winning consistency to deeper, more technical fields. Capping the season, Mulvihill won Canada’s national slopestyle title at Whistler Blackcomb with a clean, composed run—confirmation that his competitive ceiling is still climbing.
How they ski: what to watch for
Mulvihill’s skiing reflects a Whistler-forged toolkit: strong jump line management, dependable grabs, and the ability to land forward or switch with equal confidence. On rails, he favors precise, centered slides with solid exits that keep speed into the next feature—an essential trait for modern slopestyle where momentum preservation is everything. On jumps, his amplitude is efficient rather than flashy, allowing him to stay on axis, lock grabs, and ride out cleanly in firm or variable snow. Watch for his timing on takeoffs and his habit of setting spins early without over-rotating; that economy pays off late in runs when many athletes lose composure. As he accumulates laps on XL features—think the “Shaq Left” jump line at Whistler Blackcomb or the perfectly shaped booters at Aspen Snowmass—expect even more polish in trick variety and grab tweaks across directions.
Resilience, filming, and influence
While Mulvihill’s season focus has leaned toward contests, he’s also appeared in coaching-style and park-tour content that showcases his readability on camera and clarity in line choice. That kind of exposure matters for a modern freeski career, where athletes balance World Cup calendars with brand storytelling. His path—regional park kid to NorAm standout to national champion—resonates with young riders building step by step rather than chasing overnight virality. The through-line is resilience: taking lessons from mid-pack World Cup finishes, returning to domestic starts, and converting them into wins when it counts.
Geography that built the toolkit
Mulvihill’s home base provided ideal ingredients for a slopestyle/big air skier. Early turns at Grouse Mountain ingrained comfort in a city-adjacent hill where park laps and storm days build balance and edge feel. A move to Squamish put him within daily striking distance of Whistler Blackcomb, whose parks routinely host elite-level features. Off-snow, British Columbia’s dedicated freestyle facilities such as The Airhouse (Squamish) add reps on trampolines and air awareness tools that translate directly to confident in-run decisions. Internationally, venues like LAAX, Tignes, Stubai Glacier, Kreischberg, Aspen Snowmass, Mammoth Mountain, and Stoneham have broadened his course visualization and speed control across different snowpacks and course designs.
Equipment and partners: practical takeaways
Mulvihill rides with Line Skis, matching a brand steeped in freeski culture to his park-forward progression. For optics, he uses Trinsic Optics, whose lens and frame systems are geared toward clarity and quick changes on contest days when light can swing rapidly. His training environment includes The Airhouse for air-awareness work and dryland sessions, and he’s supported by Canada-based loyalty partner More Rewards, a relationship that underscores the practical reality of funding a World Cup schedule through travel-heavy seasons. For progressing skiers, the gear takeaway is simple: prioritize skis that feel intuitive on rails and stable on takeoff, pair them with goggles that keep vision consistent through flat light, and build year-round air sense in safe facilities before scaling to XL jumps.
Why fans and progressing skiers care
Mulvihill is a clear case study in how a modern Canadian park skier advances: dominate regional circuits, learn to win at NorAm level, collect World Cup reps without skipping steps, and then convert domestic finals into national titles. The style is rooted in fundamentals—clean grabs, centered landings, dependable rails—so viewers can track progression run to run without needing slow-mo breakdowns. If you follow slopestyle and big air to see who’s building toward future X-factor seasons, keep Mulvihill on the radar; his mix of consistent technique, adaptable speed, and expanding course experience suggests a rider still on the rise.
Jérémy Gagné
Profile and significance
Jérémy Gagné is an emerging Canadian freeski rider from Stoneham, Québec, working his way from national circuits to regular World Cup starts in slopestyle and big air. A graduate of the Stoneham Acrobatic Ski Club, he joined Freestyle Canada’s NextGen group in 2023 and quickly converted junior promise into senior-level consistency. In 2023 he closed out the domestic season as overall Toyo Canada Cup freestyle champion, then carried that momentum onto bigger stages with top-16 World Cup finishes the next winter. His appeal is straightforward and durable: readable difficulty at full speed. Approaches are squared early, grabs are functional rather than decorative, and landings keep enough speed to let the next decision arrive on time.
Competitive arc and key venues
Gagné’s résumé charts a steady climb. After NorAm podiums in 2022–23, he stepped into the 2023–24 World Cup with credible finishes, including 15th in slopestyle at Stubai and 13th in big air at Chur. He returned to North America with a 13th in slopestyle at Mammoth Mountain, proof that his habits translate across course designs and snowpacks. In 2025 he added major-championship experience at the Freestyle World Championships in St. Moritz, posting a complete three-run series in big air and finishing in the top 30 overall. He also lined up at the Stoneham World Cup slopestyle at home and started at the U.S. Grand Prix stop at Buttermilk in Aspen—venues that reward broadcast composure as much as trick lists. Venues tell part of his story. Early repetitions at Stoneham and nearby Le Relais built edge honesty and quick setups on firm laps; World Cup blocks at Mammoth Mountain and Aspen’s Buttermilk added the precision and pacing that televised courses demand; Québec’s scene-driven gatherings at Vallée du Parc reinforced line design under the pressure of a live crowd.
How they ski: what to watch for
Gagné skis with deliberate economy. On rails he centers mass on contact and locks in decisively, which turns surface swaps into clean, finished shapes rather than wobble. Exits protect momentum so the next feature arrives naturally. On jumps he manages spin speed with deep, stabilizing grabs—safety, tail, or blunt depending on axis—arriving early enough to quiet rotation and keep hips stacked over the feet. Directional variety shows up without breaking cadence; forward and switch, left and right, the choices serve the line instead of a checklist. If you’re watching in real time, track spacing between moves and the length of the grab—two cues that explain why his bigger tricks look unhurried.
Resilience, filming, and influence
World Cup winters are long and unforgiving, with travel, variable weather, and changing course radii week to week. Gagné’s consistency comes from process. He treats the grab as a control input, not a flourish; he “finishes” spins with time to ride out centered; and he trims speed with small, on-purpose checks that do not spill into the landing. Those habits helped him stack respectable results early in his World Cup life and made his clips easy to present at normal speed. At home, appearances at community-led sessions in Québec keep him visible to developing riders who value a blueprint more than a highlight reel: smooth entries, clean exits, and lines that hold their shape from first feature to last.
Geography that built the toolkit
Place explains the feel of his skiing. The Québec City corridor provides dense repetition across two complementary hills: Stoneham for longer laps, night sessions, and contest-style sections; Le Relais for compact in-runs, efficient rail gardens, and high-frequency practice. Add spring missions and national-team camps at larger venues like Mammoth Mountain and televised stages at Buttermilk, and you get a toolkit that survives different snowpacks and approach angles without changing its identity.
Equipment and partners: practical takeaways
Gagné’s partner mix reflects rider-led culture and repeatable feel. Shop support from Québec institution D-Structure keeps his setups tuned and reliable. Outerwear and streetwear from Vulgus match a day-after-day filming and training rhythm, while Armada provides park-capable platforms with predictable swing weight and pop. For progressing skiers, the lesson is category fit over model names: symmetrical or near-symmetrical park skis mounted so presses feel natural without sacrificing takeoff stability; fast bases so cadence doesn’t depend on perfect weather; and edges sharp enough to hold on steel yet softened at contact points to avoid surprise bites on swaps.
Why fans and progressing skiers care
Jérémy Gagné matters because he turns the modern freeski syllabus into something most riders can study and copy. Domestic titles, credible World Cup finishes, and major-event reps show a ceiling still rising; the mechanics—early commitments, functional grabs, centered landings—make the skiing readable at full speed. For viewers, that means runs worth replaying. For skiers, it’s a checklist you can practice on your next lap: square the approach, use the grab to stabilize the axis, finish the trick with time to spare, and leave every feature with enough speed for the next move.
Mac Forehand
Profile and significance
Mac Forehand is a leading American freeski athlete whose results, trick progression, and film parts place him at the sharp end of modern slopestyle and big air. He first hit global headlines in 2019 by winning the FIS Slopestyle Crystal Globe at just 17 years old, then proved his staying power with a string of major results across World Cups and X Games. In January 2023 at Aspen he landed the world’s first forward double cork 2160 in competition to clinch Men’s Ski Big Air gold, a watershed moment that showcased his ability to pair innovation with contest composure. In March 2025 he added a World Championships slopestyle silver medal in Engadin, underlining his status as a podium threat in every major field. Forehand’s blend of contest hardware and credible film output with Faction Skis has made him a reference point for fans and progressing skiers looking to understand what cutting-edge freeskiing looks like today.
Competitive arc and key venues
Raised in Connecticut and developed at Vermont’s Stratton program, Forehand stacked results early through junior and NorAm calendars. He won the FIS Junior World Championship in big air in 2018 in New Zealand, before stepping to World Cup podiums and claiming his first World Cup victory at Mammoth a few months later. The 2019 Slopestyle Crystal Globe capped that breakout season and set expectations for the Olympic cycle ahead. At the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, he advanced to the inaugural freeski big air final and finished 11th, while missing the slopestyle final—an experience he has described as motivation rather than a ceiling.
The next two winters brought the consistency that marks real contenders. He took World Cup wins and podiums across hallmark venues, including a slopestyle victory at Tignes in March 2024, multiple slopestyle podiums at LAAX and Silvaplana’s Corvatsch, and a big air win at Copper. In January 2023 he struck gold at Aspen Snowmass’s Buttermilk big air jump, then backed it up with X Games slopestyle silver in 2023, slopestyle bronze in 2024, and another slopestyle bronze in 2025. The 2025 World Championships in the Engadin saw him step onto the slopestyle podium with silver and finish just off the podium in big air, a major-weekend performance that confirmed his all-around credentials.
How they ski: what to watch for
Forehand’s runs are built around clarity and control under pressure. On jumps, he favors clean axis separation and extended grab time—often a held Cuban—so even his heaviest spins remain readable to judges and fans. The forward double 2160 he landed at Aspen wasn’t a one-off party trick; it fit a pattern of measured escalation, where he increases degree of difficulty only when speed, pop, and axis are dialed. In slopestyle he carries speed efficiently and uses switch approaches and both-way spins to stack amplitude without sacrificing landing quality. The hallmark on rails is precision: centered stance, reliable edge control, and natural-looking pretzel and re-direction options that let him adapt to course builders’ creativity in places like Buttermilk, LAAX, and Corvatsch.
Resilience, filming, and influence
Forehand isn’t just a bib-number skier. He has appeared in Faction’s marquee projects—The Collective (2019), Roots (2021), and Abstract (2023)—and those segments reveal a skier who values aesthetic line choice as much as podium math. The film work shows creativity on non-standard takeoffs and off-axis approaches, reinforcing his contest identity with an artistic one. Between competitions and filming blocks he has also leaned into progression-driven ideas that circulate widely online, including inverted rail concepts and unconventional features. That willingness to prototype, fail, iterate, and finally stick a world-first on a live broadcast has made him one of the sport’s most-watched technicians. It’s also a feedback loop: filming sharpens his trick selection and adaptability, and competition demands polish and repeatability—together they create a style that reads clearly on screen and on scorecards.
Geography that built the toolkit
Forehand’s skiing is stamped by the East Coast. Long winters, night laps, and firm snow at places like Stratton and Mount Snow teach timing and edge discipline, habits that transfer directly to slick morning courses on World Cup finals day. As his calendar expanded, he layered in the rhythm of bigger lines: Buttermilk’s X Games build at Aspen Snowmass, the creative slopestyle set-ups at LAAX, the high-alpine light and speed at Corvatsch above Silvaplana, and the varied jump lines at Tignes. Earlier, the Southern Hemisphere contest swing through Cardrona gave him essential big air repetitions at a young age. That mix of icy fundamentals and global venue variety explains why his trick execution tends to travel well from site to site.
Equipment and partners: practical takeaways
Forehand rides with Faction Skis, pairs goggles from Oakley, wears outerwear from Spyder, and draws project support from Red Bull. For viewers trying to reverse-engineer the feel of his runs, it’s less about specific model names and more about the setup principles those partners enable. His park skis live near a true twin profile with a mount point that encourages a centered stance for both rails and big jumps; tune and detune are kept consistent so quick swaps between urban-style features and pristine contest rails don’t introduce surprises. Optics choices matter on high-contrast alpine venues—neutral lenses that preserve depth cues go a long way when you’re lining up a blind-takeoff triple. Outerwear that moves without bunching helps on switch takeoffs and heavy grabs. The meta-lesson: a predictable, balanced setup supports the clean axis control and grab continuity that define his skiing.
Why fans and progressing skiers care
Forehand is a complete package: a World Cup winner and 2019 slopestyle Crystal Globe holder; an X Games champion with multiple additional X Games medals in slopestyle; an Olympian who converted that experience into a World Championships silver medal; and a consistent presence in respected film projects. He’s also an instructive watch. If you’re learning to “read” slopestyle, watch how he sequences rail tricks to keep speed for the money jumps; note the way he locks and holds grabs across rotations so judges have no doubt; and pay attention to how he manages pressure—keeping a progressive trick like a double 2160 in reserve, then striking when the moment demands it. That combination of fundamentals, competitive poise, and creativity has turned Mac Forehand into one of the sport’s clearest case studies in how to build a modern freeski career that resonates both on broadcast and in the edits that shape culture.
Cardrona Alpine Resort
Overview and significance
Cardrona Alpine Resort is New Zealand’s benchmark for park-and-pipe and one of the Southern Hemisphere’s most influential freeski venues. Sitting between Wānaka and Queenstown in Otago, it combines a big, open-alpine footprint with a purpose-built freestyle program that attracts national teams every austral winter. With the 2025 opening of Soho Basin, Cardrona grew to 615 hectares and now markets itself as NZ’s largest ski resort, adding a fresh lap option behind the Main and Captain’s basins. The resort’s slopestyle and halfpipe builds, regular ANC and World Cup-caliber starts, and a long-standing training scene give it outsized global relevance relative to its modest elevations.
Cardrona’s identity is clear: progression for every level, from first park hits to FIS-standard features. It’s also a pragmatic winter base for film and team camps thanks to repeatable jump speed, reliable grooming, and a layout that keeps athletes and crews productive when the Southern Alps’ weather moves fast.
Terrain, snow, and seasons
Cardrona rides like a series of linked alpine bowls and benches. The Main Basin is your groomer and progression hub; Captain’s adds rolling ridgelines and playful off-piste panels; Arcadia and Valley View extend the vertical feel when coverage is solid; and Soho now brings a back-side pod with intermediate-to-advanced pitches that ski “like Captain’s,” mixing clean groomers with side hits and wind-buffed panels. The overall character favors flow and line choice over sheer steepness, which is why it suits park mileage, carving days, and creative in-bounds freeride laps.
Natural snowfall is variable by storm track, but Cardrona’s elevation, snowmaking, and wind-buff patterns help maintain consistent surfaces for shaping and training. Typical lift seasons run from mid-June into early October. July and August deliver the coldest stretches; late August through September often pairs blue windows with the largest, most refined park builds—prime time for filming or dialing in trick sets before Northern Hemisphere tours.
Park infrastructure and events
Cardrona’s Parks & Pipes program is the Southern Hemisphere reference. Public zones step from beginner to XL, culminating in a World Cup-spec slopestyle course, a Big Air jump line, and—most seasons—the region’s only full-size 22-foot superpipe. For 2025, a dedicated T-bar was added to accelerate laps on Lil Bucks, Big Bucks, and Stag Lane, increasing throughput on training days without compromising public flow. The shaping is meticulous and speed is exceptionally consistent, which is why you’ll see national teams stacking reps and content crews shooting clean follow-cam lines throughout the late-winter window.
On the calendar, Cardrona regularly hosts ANC-level park and pipe competitions and has opened FIS World Cup seasons in halfpipe and slopestyle. Winter Games NZ frequently stages headline park-and-pipe events here, giving the public a front-row seat to elite runs while leaving behind dialed-in features that benefit everyday riders after the podiums are packed away.
Access, logistics, and on-mountain flow
Getting here is straightforward. Fly into Queenstown (ZQN) or base in Wānaka, then drive the Crown Range and up the Cardrona access road. If you’d rather not drive the mountain road, the resort runs shuttle services from town and from the bottom car park, and both directions are supported by regional transport providers. When you do drive, carry chains when required and respect closures; the mountain road is exposed to snow, rime, and wind, and conditions can change quickly.
Once on snow, McDougall’s Express Chondola is your efficient gateway for warm-up laps and to move deeper into the network; Captain’s Express is the workhorse for groomers and soft-snow laps; Whitestar links key park lanes; and Valley View extends the day with lower-mountain egress when coverage allows. Soho Basin is accessed from behind McDougall’s and Captain’s, with the Soho Express chair returning you to the back-side pod for fast, repeatable laps. Plan your day by aspect and wind—follow groomers early, shift to leeward pockets as the sun moves, then return to parks once speed is perfectly reset.
Local culture, safety, and etiquette
Cardrona balances high-performance training with a friendly public scene. The culture values clear park etiquette: call your drop, hold your line, and clear landings immediately. Give shapers and patrol space to work; their timing dictates tomorrow’s speed and build quality. In mixed weather, respect rope lines and staged openings—exposed ridges ice quickly and patrol will move fences as conditions allow. If you’re new to alpine driving in New Zealand, consider the shuttle on storm days and build buffer time around chain requirements or holds at the bottom car park.
Down-valley, Wānaka and Queenstown round out the experience with easy lodging, food, and bike-or-hike options on rest days. If you want to mix big-mountain faces into the week, sister mountain Treble Cone sits on the Wānaka side and complements Cardrona’s park focus with longer, steeper freeride laps.
Best time to go and how to plan
For the fullest park build and widest event slate, target late August through mid-September. You’ll trade a few wind holds for bluebird windows and polished features—ideal for filming, learning new tricks, or stacking contest-like laps. July and early August are best for cold storms, chalky groomers, and forgiving landings as bases deepen. Spring brings classic corn cycles by aspect and mellow weather that’s perfect for all-day progression.
Book transport and parking plans in advance, especially during school holidays. Keep the snow report bookmarked for overnight wind effects and lift status updates. If your trip spans multiple hubs, use Cardrona for park/pipe and structured training days, then swing to Treble Cone on forecasted freeride windows. For a broader South Island plan, see Skipowd’s regional overview of New Zealand for corridor-by-corridor planning context.
Why freeskiers care
Cardrona is where Southern Hemisphere winters turn into momentum. It offers a repeatable, contest-grade park environment, dependable grooming, and an event ecosystem that brings the world to Otago each August and September. Add an expanded footprint with Soho Basin, efficient lift flow, and two vibrant base towns, and you have the rare resort that serves first park laps, elite training blocks, and polished film days with equal confidence. If your goal is progression—on rails, jumps, or pipe—Cardrona gives you the speed, spacing, and shaping to make every run count.
Whistler-Blackcomb
Overview and significance
Whistler Blackcomb is Canada’s flagship resort and a global reference point for freeskiing, pairing massive scale with a lift system that keeps days flowing. The resort’s official mountain brief lists 8,171 acres of skiable terrain, more than 200 marked runs, 36 lifts, and three terrain parks spanning intermediate to expert, with highest lift access at 2,284 m and base elevation around 675 m—good for roughly 1,609 m (5,280 ft) of vertical in a single push. Average snowfall is given at about 432 inches (1,091 cm) and the operating calendar regularly stretches among the longest in North America, which is why film crews, national teams, and everyday park riders treat Whistler Blackcomb as a season-long training ground.
The two-mountain design is the engine. Whistler and Blackcomb are joined mid-mountain by the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola, an 11-minute, 4.4-km span that makes it easy to follow weather and aspect without losing time. Cultural pedigree runs deep too. Alpine events for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics were staged at Whistler Creekside, and each April the World Ski & Snowboard Festival turns the village and high alpine into a week of comps and films, with slopestyle traditionally centered on Blackcomb’s pro build.
Terrain, snow, and seasons
Terrain breadth is the hallmark. High on both mountains you’ll find alpine bowls, ribs, gullies and three lift-served glaciers, with long groomers and sheltered benches lower down that hold definition when the ceiling drops. Whistler’s Peak and Harmony–Symphony sectors ride “big” on storm refreshes, with obvious fall lines and side-hit traverses that let mixed crews choose their level without splitting up. Blackcomb layers in classic laps off 7th Heaven, access to Blackcomb Glacier, and a network of rolling pistes and trees that ski predictably in flat light.
The Coast Mountains snowpack trends maritime during active weather—dense enough to shape lips and landings—then sets into supportive chalk on leeward panels once winds ease. That mix is friendly to progression: speed holds on groomers in cold snaps, and landings stay trustworthy on the main jump lines through the heart of winter. Mid-January through late February is the most repeatable window for cold, consistent speed; March and April add blue windows and aspect-driven softening for forgiving landings, with many upper circuits holding winter texture well into spring.
Park infrastructure and events
Blackcomb’s park program is the anchor for freestyle. The resort’s terrain-park overview describes a stepping-stone pathway for intermediate and advanced riders culminating in the expert-only Highest Level Park when conditions permit. Expect a creative rail garden culture alongside jump lanes that scale with the base, plus hips and step-downs that make the most of Blackcomb’s natural contours. Because the parks sit close to efficient chairs and mid-mountain connectors, you can stack repetitions without burning time on traverses.
Event pedigree shows up every spring. The World Ski & Snowboard Festival schedules slopestyle in the Highest Level Park, with qualifiers and finals that draw regional and international riders, and the weeklong program across venues keeps the village buzzing. Earlier in the season, you’ll see a steady diet of grassroots jams, photo sessions, and brand-led clinics that leverage the same build standards you’ll find on competition week. The practical takeaway for visitors is simple: in peak months, jump speed and landings are looked after carefully, and line evolution happens without breaking cadence.
Access, logistics, and on-mountain flow
Getting there is easy. Whistler sits about two hours north of Vancouver along Highway 99—the Sea to Sky—so you can land at YVR in the morning and still make meaningful afternoon laps. Resort travel pages consolidate self-drive, shuttle and parking guidance; if you’re car-free, frequent coach services connect downtown Vancouver and the airport to Whistler Village with gear-friendly storage. Once you’re on snow, build the day around aspect and visibility. In active weather, lap sheltered benches off mid-mountain lifts and the lower trees; as skies lift, link bowls via the PEAK 2 PEAK to chase chalk and drifted panels. For efficiency on busy days, use the village gondolas to upload and the mid-mountain crossing to bypass base crowds entirely.
If you’re new to the footprint, start with a quick map read over breakfast and set simple rendezvous points—top of Emerald on Whistler, the junction near Glacier and Jersey on Blackcomb—so the group can branch by difficulty and regroup without phone service. The resort’s trail map callouts also emphasize slow zones and a visible Mountain Safety Team near learning areas; internal etiquette and clear merges keep the big network moving smoothly. For families or mixed crews, Whistler and Blackcomb base areas each offer rentals, day lodges and beginner corridors, so you can anchor the day to whichever side matches your plan.
Local culture, safety, and etiquette
Inside the ropes, treat staged openings and rope lines as non-negotiable; wind and new snow move quickly at this scale. If you step beyond resort boundaries—through any backcountry gate into the Spearhead or Fitzsimmons ranges—you’re in real avalanche terrain. Your morning routine should include reading the Sea to Sky bulletin from Avalanche Canada, carrying beacon, shovel and probe, moving with partners who know companion rescue, and planning conservative re-entry to the ski-area boundary before operations shut for the evening. The resort’s own backcountry re-entry advisories are worth a read, as they spell out after-hours hazards such as active grooming, winch cats and snowmobiles, and remind you to confirm in-bounds terrain status before returning to the lifts.
Within freestyle zones, keep the cadence. Park SMART applies: inspect features, call your drop clearly, hold a predictable line, and clear knuckles and landings immediately. On busy days, choose a two- or three-feature circuit in the intermediate lanes to calibrate speed before stepping to the pro line. Detune contact points for rails but keep enough edge for predictable grip on cold-morning in-runs; spring sessions may require a quick scrape between laps as the surface warms. Courtesy around teaching lanes, slow zones and traverses matters here more than most places because the lift network funnels many abilities into the same arteries—good flow is a shared responsibility.
Best time to go and how to plan
Plan for two distinct moods. Mid-winter (mid-January to late February) delivers the most repeatable jump speed and groomer consistency; build multi-hour park blocks in the morning when lips are crisp and winds light, then pivot to bowls and ribs once patrol drops ropes. Spring (March into April) swaps a few storm days for long light, excellent filming conditions, and forgiving landings by aspect; aim mornings at shaded north faces and park jump sets, then chase corn on solar slopes into early afternoon. If you’re visiting in April, the World Ski & Snowboard Festival adds night events and a village-wide program that extends the day; book lodging within walking distance of the gondolas to avoid time drains.
Daily rhythm is straightforward. Warm up with two groomer laps to check wax and speed, session an intermediate rail line to lock timing, then step to the day’s main jump lane once you’ve confirmed in-run pace. Use the PEAK 2 PEAK to pivot by wind and light instead of by car, and seed two anchor runs—one park circuit, one bowl line—so your crew can reunite quickly between attempts. On low-visibility days, stick to lower-mountain trees and benches where definition holds; when the ceiling lifts, make a beeline for alpine bowls and the Blackcomb Glacier laps that ski “big” even between storms. If you’re mixing resort days with touring, consider staging from huts such as the Kees and Claire at Russet Lake on rest days, but bring full self-sufficiency and respect Garibaldi Provincial Park regulations.
Why freeskiers care
Because Whistler Blackcomb combines everything that accelerates progress. You get near-endless terrain with real vertical, a proven park program that scales to pro lines, a lift network that lets you chase conditions across two mountains in minutes, and a spring festival that caps the season with competition-grade shaping and energy. Add a clear safety framework, straightforward access from a major city, and a village built to keep transitions short, and you have a destination where learning faster and filming cleaner isn’t an aspiration—it’s the norm.
Airhouse
Brand overview and significance
Airhouse is a British Columbia–based freestyle training academy that helps skiers and riders build air awareness and trick progression before they take it to snow. First opened in December 2015 in Squamish, the brand now operates purpose-built facilities in Squamish, Kelowna, and Nanaimo. Its coaching model blends trampoline fundamentals, parkour movement, skateboard cross-training, and ski/snowboard–specific dryland work so athletes can practice rotations, grabs, and body positions in a safe, repeatable environment. For freeskiers who split time between terrain parks and natural features at places like Whistler Blackcomb, Airhouse has become a regional hub to refine skills year-round and transfer them to the hill when the season turns on.
Airhouse’s value proposition is clear: consistent surfaces and certified coaching. Trampolines and structured progressions remove variables like ice, wind, or visibility, letting skiers isolate mechanics and timing. The result is faster learning with fewer bad habits—equally relevant to a first 360 as it is to tightening axis on cork spins or dialing safe inversion entries. Because the venues sit within a few hours of major Coast and Interior resorts, athletes can train in the evening and test on snow the next day.
Product lines and key technologies
Rather than skis or boots, Airhouse “products” are its programs and training environments. Core offerings include Freestyle Trampoline, Parkour, Skateboard, Gymnastics, and dedicated Ski/Snowboard Dryland blocks. The ski/snowboard stream integrates trampolines with specialty training gear from partner Ski Addiction, so skiers can practice takeoff cues, spin initiation, grabs, and landings with realistic swing weight and stance. Sessions range from drop-in times to multi-week lesson cycles and high-performance cohorts for teens and adults who want structured progress.
On the floor, the “technology” is practical: rebound surfaces that stay consistent rep to rep; marked progressions that break tricks into digestible steps; and transfer-friendly drills that emphasize approach posture, pop timing, and spot mechanics. Because the facilities also host parkour and skateboard coaching, athletes gain movement vocabulary—balance, coordination, and spatial awareness—that carries directly into slopestyle and big-mountain skiing.
Ride feel: who it’s for (terrains & use-cases)
Airhouse is built for anyone who wants to land more confidently on snow. Park skiers use it to learn and refine spins, flips, and grabs with less risk; all-mountain riders use it to improve balance, hop turns, shifty control, and air awareness for side hits and natural features. Beginners get safe exposure to fundamentals—stance, pop, and spotting—while advanced riders tighten trick shape, speed up cork entry, and clean up axis control before taking new variations to the jump line. If your winter involves laps at Whistler Blackcomb or trips across British Columbia, the ability to rehearse movements indoors and then repeat them outdoors is a major confidence multiplier.
Team presence, competitions, and reputation
Airhouse isn’t a race brand or a World Cup hardgoods label—it’s a training ecosystem that regional clubs, competitive freeskiers, and content creators plug into. Local athletes and teams use the Squamish, Kelowna, and Nanaimo venues for trampoline blocks and dryland prep, and you’ll see Airhouse credited around B.C.’s park scene in edits and training notes. The facilities’ alignment with Ski Addiction equipment has further cemented the “learn it safe, then send it” reputation among slopestyle and big-air skiers who need deliberate repetition away from variable snow.
Geography and hubs (heritage, testing, venues)
Airhouse’s footprint is deliberately close to high-value ski terrain. Squamish sits at the gateway to the Coast Mountains and is within striking distance of Whistler Blackcomb, a global reference point for park and big-mountain skiing. Kelowna serves Okanagan skiers who split time among regional resorts, while Nanaimo gives Vancouver Island athletes a year-round training base without ferrying to the mainland for every session. For destination context, Squamish’s official visitor portal offers a concise overview of the town and its action-sports culture: Squamish.
Construction, durability, and sustainability
As a facility brand, Airhouse is judged on coaching quality, surface consistency, and safety. Lessons are taught by certified coaches following age-appropriate progressions; the curriculum prioritizes fundamentals like trampoline safety, axis control, and incremental difficulty. Maintaining consistent rebound, clean landing zones, and serviceable hardware is central to durability in this context, and it’s what allows athletes to stack hundreds of precise reps without unpredictable variables. The sustainability angle is practical: training indoors reduces “trial and error” injury risk and wasted resort days, while long-life equipment and keep-it-longer habits align with a progression-first, not throw-away, mindset.
How to choose within the lineup
Start with your winter goals. If you’re chasing park progression, book Freestyle Trampoline and Ski/Snowboard Dryland blocks; those programs isolate takeoff posture, initiation, and grab timing so the first on-snow tries feel familiar. If you’re an all-mountain skier working on control and confidence, combine trampoline fundamentals with parkour or skateboard sessions to build balance and spatial awareness. Then pick the most convenient hub—Squamish for Coast skiers, Kelowna for Okanagan access, or Nanaimo for Island riders—and decide between drop-ins, private coaching, or multi-week lessons ahead of key trips or comp windows.
Why riders care
Airhouse bridges the gap between inspiration and execution. By giving skiers a controlled place to rehearse movements—and coaches who translate those reps to snow—it shortens the learning curve for everything from first spins to corked variations. Proximity to marquee terrain like Whistler Blackcomb and a program mix that serves beginners through high-performance athletes make it a reliable, year-round progression tool for the B.C. scene. If your plan is to land more and crash less next season, a few weeks at Airhouse will pay dividends when you click in.
Recommended Videos
