Table of contents for Buyer's Guide 2025/26 - Vol. 54 #1 in Ski Canada

I've met some precious people over my decades here at Ski Canada but none as nice, or as inspiring, as my new friend Gordon. A month before turning 101 in April, Gordon Precious and his vivacious partner Tracy Dale returned to the Bugaboos to heli-ski at his favourite Canadian Mountain Holidays (CMH) lodge. He now holds the enviable title of world's oldest heli-skier. Tracy, who (I think) liked me referring to her as Gordon's “trophy wife,” didn't come close, she's 83. The pair met on match.com nine years ago where his profile clearly stated “must be a skier.” They graciously invited me to swap ski stories at lunch on their penthouse terrace on a hot Toronto day back in July. Gordon greeted me with a wholesome and happy “Ski heil!”…

There are mornings on the mountain that remain sharp and fresh, even after 50 years. I can still feel the grip of the snow, the wind in my face, and I can see the white panorama of the French Alps—dominated by the Mont Blanc massif. My warm-up routine started slowly and built tempo with each run. The goal was to stay calm, to prepare for the test that awaited. December 7, 1975. The opening downhill race of a new season: the 21st Critérium de la Premiere Neige at Val d'Isère, known as the O-K Track after French champions Henri Oreiller and Jean-Claude Killy. The start of the 1975-76 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup tour had already messed with my confidence, with a career-ending injury to Swiss star Roland Collumbin, and…

We test skis to rationalize ski buying. It's why we gathered dozens of new skis and nearly as many testers at Revelstoke Mountain Resort last March. It's also why we labour through the summer to produce the ski test that's in your hands. Our aim is to arm you with an experience-backed critique of what each ski does well and who would love it. But we also recognize an uncomfortable truth: arbitrary factors are powerful when it comes to ski shopping. First, let's outline the systematic stuff. Our testing begins as resorts open. We consider trends in construction and design, shopping behaviour and the evolution of ski style. By January, ski brands begin releasing details on skis they will launch for the following winter. We put it all together to…

Here, in the foothills of the Tien Shan Range, we are bathed in silence. Dawn creeps over the horizon. Horses stand belly deep in snow among the yurts. The hawks in the trees wait for wind to begin their patrols. Our coffee steams, but not for long, its heat is quickly lost to the bone-cracking cold. Laughter from the other side of the camp breaks the silence as a man approaches on a horse, his purple Adidas shell suit flapping in the wind. “As salem alaykum.” “Wa alaykum salem,” comes the reply. “Peace be unto you.” “And upon you be peace.” What better greeting at this moment, in this place? The rider reaches down to shake hands with Georgie, our host and chef, before looking for room to tether his…

A long-standing myth in skiing is that we need to lean back in powder. We do not. THE DON'Ts Look at the skier in blue, who is very obviously leaning back. You'll see his ski tips are in mid air and they've formed a V shape—otherwise known as a stem—as he approaches the end of the turn. Clearly, a ski which is in the air cannot do much to help him change direction or manage speed. Since the ski won't turn the man, the man is having to turn the ski with a big rotary movement of his upper body. It's a tactic that kind of works, but results in big oil-tanker-like turns. That might suffice in the alpine, but it's not much use in trees. THE DOs Now look…

STILL THE GRIZ At southeastern B.C.'s Fernie Alpine Resort, the Griz Bar is as iconic as the five Rocky Mountain bowls that lead skiers to its doors. Now, the legendary après spot has undergone a thoughtful renovation that has modernized the space while preserving the convivial atmosphere of a bar named after a mythical bearskin-clad giant who elicits snowfall by shooting a musket into storm clouds. As one does. The long-outdated solarium, originally added in the mid-'90s, is gone. In its place: an open, stick-framed interior with large windows and a single-level floor plan. “It used to be on two levels, but now it's all one clean space that's way more functional and has zero trip hazards,” says manager Darcy Richardson. Inside, guests will find new booths, repainted walls, and…

Certain colours dominate Rocky Mountain vistas in winter: The white of snow, the deep green of conifers, the dark grey of bare rock walls, and, above all, the blue of the sky. So when I spot dozens of bright yellow dots climbing the west-facing slopes of Banff Sunshine Village, it gives me pause. The dots, new last year, are the plastic bubble covers of the Alberta resort's new Super Angel LX heated six-pack chairlift. The expanded colour scheme is far from the only remarkable aspect of my family's five-day ski trip to Banff National Park. Lake Louise Ski Resort, for instance, has a new bubble lift of its own. Banff Avenue, the townsite's main drag, is being rejuvenated by renovations to some of its more dated hotels. If there's ever…

After skiing Switzerland for three decades, I finally experienced something I've always wanted to do: wrap up a perfect day in the backcountry by sitting down to a home-cooked dinner in a family kitchen. As the January sun was getting low, my ski mate Martin Oester, born and raised on a neat and tidy little farm a 15-minute walk from Adelboden's 15th-century church, offered his mum's cooking skills (without asking first). While a smiling Käthi whipped up rösti, salad and various cured meats and cheeses from the farm, Martin translated Q&As from his curious dad Christian, and I revelled in the Oester family's warm hospitality. Adelboden is one of those Swiss names I vaguely recognized from the World Cup circuit for its tough Chuenisbärgli course. I jumped at the opportunity…

For the first time in a long time, Canadian skiers might ask, “Should I consider buying skis made in Canada?” To which, after conducting some historical research into Canada's ski-making industry, I wish I could answer, “Sure why not?” The trouble is, we have a long way to go. The fact is that in this day and age, Canadian-made skis aren't plentiful. In certain consumer sectors, Made in Canada has always held patriotic resonance, and has become increasingly top-of-mind since U.S. President Donald Trump declared war on Canadian-made products last February. And while it's too early to tell whether Canadian skiers will boycott K2, Armada, Moment, DPS or J-Ski, this might be a good time to examine the potential for Canada to become a hardgoods superpower. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime…

Fipping through a buyer's guide, it's easy to dream about a gear upgrade. The following pages of shiny, innovative skis, boots, helmets, goggles and accessories screams that your old gear is inferior and holding you back. If you just buy a whole new kit it will change everything. That might be true. For instance, if your vision in a snowstorm is better without your scratched, foggy goggles or your boots feel like slippers, skip right to pages 46 and 38, respectively. For the rest of you, before digging in for a covetfest, take a moment to consider the lessons of Enough: True Measures of Money, Business, and Life. Author John C. Bogle encourages readers to re-evaluate their personal measure of success and to question the idea that more is always…

When I was assigned a story about Big White Ski Resort I anticipated riding the chair with families that were on spring break pilgrimages seeking the oft-mentioned champagne powder. They'd tell me Big White was voted Canada's Favourite Family Resort. I'd ask when and by whom? They wouldn't know, but I'd write down the reasons they love it. I'd see them at bingo. And on a horsedrawn sleigh ride. At home, I'd stir in some statistics. Paycheck. Except, I met more than families at Big White. I met gap year students. Bachelorette parties. Grown ups with jobs, sampling single malts on their annual dude trip in the mountains. It turns out there's more to love about Big White than just family time. To help mark its recent anniversary, here are…