Peak 2 Peak Gondola

When we rocked up to our hotel, it was clear the Days Inn wanted to show off the fact that Dola & Co had decided to retire for the evening there, and consequently we scored prime parking. Perfectly timed too, as an entire stadium of people emptied out of a hockey game and got to come by and have a chat. Nice work.

Back to business – Toast and Cat headed off in a cab to hit up Future Shop, following a somewhat frightening incident which prevented us from uploading our video footage onto the laptop. The very kind employees there were extremely helpful, and the cab driver on the way home provided us with a definitive session of Soo-101, so we didn’t have to feel like we zipped through without some background on the town. We learned that we were only steps from the waterfront and the world famous shipping ‘locks’ – precisely where we wanted to be the next day for Dola’s portfolio building. Right…off to another 10pm dinner…and another town that stocks Kokanee. Sweeeeet. We needed one after this day.

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During lunch in Massey we received a welcome interruption… Introducing: Frank >>>, an elderly gentleman who rocked up to the diner on his bright yellow electric scooter. Spotting him as a true-local from a mile away, Mich and Cat encouraged Toast to approach the gentleman to see whether he would be willing to share some local history with us. Toast proceeded to stalk the lovely man around the restaurant and finally asked, “Please, sir, but may I interview you for our tour?”

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Arriving in Sudbury in the pitch dark didn’t allow us to really check out the town. After settling in for a late dinner at the Holiday Inn, we settled into our rooms and plugged into our laptops to catch up with emails we didn’t get to on the road.

Cat and Mich managed to have a lovely uninterrupted sleep, but when Toaster rocked up for breakfast, disturbingly looking more disheveled than usual, we learned Dave kept him up most of the night with a pretty serious session of snoring. Poor Toast.

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This morning it was up and at ‘er bright and early. We had a long drive to make today from Montreal to Sudbury. We did, however, manage to make it up to a super lookout point that offered a spectacular view of the entire city.

As we climbed into Gus to embark on the next leg of our journey, we realized that, following the thus-far failure to deviate from the reggae station on our satellite radio, that we must have finally converted Mich into a lover of this fabulous genre. Apparently not, but she has, thus far, been gracious enough to allow majority to rule… Bob Marley, keep on truckin’…

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This morning we had to wake Dola up bright and early yet again for another TV appearance. Seriously – if this keeps up, her head is going to get so big we’re going to have to get some additional oversize-permits. She was pretty stoked to arrive at the A Channel headquarters. The Breakfast Television hosts Kurt and Karen clearly thought they were coming back to Whistler with us – they walked out to meet her sporting goggles and ski-poles, and no sooner could you say ’20 cms of fresh!’ Karen had vaulted her way into the gondola.

After a pretty lengthy spot, it was time to head to the Parliament buildings so that Dola could continue building her portfolio. However, before we took off, DD (Daddy Dave, or Designate Driver – take your pick…there is also a third meaning, but it’s classified) discovered that we had picked up a nail in one of Dola’s trailers’ tires. We plugged into our trusty GPS (who we have fondly nicknamed ‘Tips’) to inquire where the nearest Canadian Tire was located, we headed off to find out it was no longer there. Oops… J So, bring on On Star incident No.2. This time we had someone at our hotel within 10 minutes. Amazing.

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Following our awesome Canada AM appearance, we trucked-on to our next destination, and our nation’s capital, Ottawa. High after a strong start to our media pursuit, someone must have momentarily glanced away from our gas gauge, as we suddenly found ourselves stranded – on the side of the 401 – somewhere outside of Napanee, famous for being home to Avril Lavigne … However, not all was lost, as this was our first chance to test out our trusty On Star service. Spot on. Seriously- everybody needs this service in their vehicle.

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This is Michelle, PR Queen for the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Tour here. The tour team has all arrived and there are less than 24 hours to go before the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Tour launches itself across the country!  An appearance on CTV’s Canada AM morning show will kick it all off on Monday at 7:50ET and although a 7am arrival time is going to be “interesting” for these Western tour babies, we have lots of Red Bull to keep the energy going!
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Oh, it is a motley crew…..

Michelle “Roo” Leroux: Michelle, Whistler Blackcomb PR princess, is the team’s driven and fearless leader. Michelle has her finger on the pulse of the snow industry, and has been instrumental in the launch of Dola’s final place of residence, the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola. spanning Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains. She’s responsible for wrangling the media along the way, allowing them to ‘discover’ Dola and her place among Canada’s great tourism icons…

Mark “Toaster” Torlay: Toaster, a long-time Whistlerite and ex pro-snowboarder, is the tour’s ‘personality.’ When he’s not on tour with Dola, Toaster spends his time living the dream running Kokanee promotions in Whistler throughout the winter and during Kokanee Crankworx in the summer.

Dave “DD” Muller: Dave is known as the team rock, and as our expert driver is reponsible for getting the team across this great nation. Dave has worked for Whistler Blackcomb for 25 YEARS! He spends his winters as a groomer at Whistler Blackcomb, and summers in the Fleet Maintenance department. Dave is sorely missed by his two kids and wife, and we can only imagine how excited he is to rid himself of the rest of the team to return to his regular life.

Cat Taylor-Mckay: Cat Mckay is the team’s mischievious instigator. When she’s not busy driving Toaster crazy, she’s managing the involvement of our great partners that have teamed with the tour. Cat was lured to Whistler in 1997, and has been there ever since, and currently works year-round as an Account Manager in Whistler Blackcomb’s Marketing department.

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PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Sky Cabin will travel from Toronto to Whistler discovering its place among some of Canada’s top tourism icons.

Whistler Blackcomb’s PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Tour won’t quite stretch from “sea to shining sea,” it will take a Sky Cabin from Toronto to Winnipeg, to Vancouver, and then home to Whistler; hitting every city and town in between, in just over two weeks.

The PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Sky Cabin embarks on its epic Canadian adventure on Monday October 20, 2008 after being on display for the duration of the 2008 Toronto Ski, Snowboard & Travel Show.  The PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Tour will explore Canada’s vast terrain with a GMC Yukon Hybrid, visiting Canada’s best-loved tourism icons.  The PEAK 2 PEAK team will document their experiences as they discover the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola’s place among Canada’s top tourism icons including Ontario’s CN Tower and Niagara Falls; Old Montreal, The Forks in Winnipeg, Calgary’s Canada Olympic Park; British Columbia’s famous wine country; and everything in between!

“The PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola will be a Canadian icon that will ensure we remain at the leading edge of tourism innovation,” says Michelle Leroux, PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Tour Manager. “We are taking a Sky Cabin on the road and sharing the PEAK 2 PEAK story with Canadians while we discover our place among Canada’s storied tourism icons.  We’ll also share the Whistler spirit in major cities in partnership with Labatt as we throw epic PEAK 2 PEAK Party hosted by Kokanee Beer with Whistler’s quintessential ski town band The Hairfarmers!”

The entire tour will be documented online with updates from the road; daily videos capturing the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Team’s adventures and mishaps, and epic party sessions from the PEAK 2 PEAK Party Tour hosted by Kokanee Beer in select Canadian cities.  Don’t miss the excitement as the PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Tour travels across Canada!

The PEAK 2 PEAK Gondola Tour could not happen without sponsors Kokanee, TELUS, General Motors, Doppelmayr, Tourism BC and the Fairmont, with apparel provided by Quiksilver and Roxy.



City Stops & PEAK 2 PEAK Party Tour Schedule:

Friday, October 17 – 2008 Toronto

PEAK 2 PEAK Party at Brazen Head hosted by Kokanee Beer

Saturday & Sunday October 18-19 – 2008 Toronto Ski, Snowboard & Travel Show

Monday, October 20 – Toronto

Media event at the CN Tower

Tuesday October 21 – Ottawa

PEAK 2 PEAK Party at Heart & Crown hosted by Kokanee Beer

Wednesday, October 22 - Montreal

Thursday, October 23 - Sudbury

Friday, October 24 – Sault Ste. Marie

Saturday, October 25 – Thunder Bay

Sunday, October 26 – Winnipeg

Media event at The Forks

Monday, October 27 – Regina

Wednesday, October 29 – Calgary

PEAK 2 PEAK Party at Earl’s Tin Palace

Media event at Canada Olympic Park

Thursday, October 30 – Kelowna

PEAK 2 PEAK Party at Tonics Pub hosted by Kokanee Beer

Friday, October 31 – Vancouver

Media event at Stanley Park

Saturday, November 1 – Vancouver

PEAK 2 PEAK Party at Darby’s Pub hosted by Kokanee Beer

Sunday, November 2 – Whistler

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