MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Fall 2018

FALL 2018 ML BLUE 31 But even from an industry insider perspective, things are changing. When I started racing bike a decade ago, there were few women’s bikes on the market, and what was there was designed for more casual riding, rarely for racing. In just ten years, the women’s race-worthy cycling gear market has exploded, and bikes built for women are available for every discipline. And those traditionally “male” sides of sport? Finally, the “Extreme” events like downhill mountain biking and freestyle skiing are becoming more female-friendly. Women’s-only Tuesday night downhill races during the summer have soared in popularity. And on any given day, you can spot women shredding down the black-diamond trails at Blue Mountain. “Once women know about adrenaline-filled sports, they love them,” says Becki Relihan, Blue’s Assistant Manager of Patrol Services who divides her time between the office and the slopes. She adds that even in the outdoor industry, she’s seeing more and more women signing up for ski patrol as they work towards becoming firemen (firewomen). It’s an exciting time to be a woman in the outdoor space: In 2016 in the US, there were more young women in cross-country skiing than men, and that stat is probably similar in Canada, where most kids learn to ski and skate as soon as they can walk. Relihan and May agree that many women come to the hill for the first time as moms dropping off kids for lessons, then learn to ski or snowboard as their kids crush the bunny slope. “More women’s ski instruction in tandem with the kids’ sessions would be great to see,” Relihan adds, and women’s days are becoming more popular across disciplines. One such event is Sending It for Sarah, a women-only ski day that celebrates the life of freestyle skier Sarah Burke, which will be in its fourth year in February 2019 (see p.25). The event has doubled its participation numbers and has raised tens of thousands of dollars for the foundation started in Burke’s name. It’s also brought a lot of women and girls out to the slopes to try freestyle skiing for the first time, and founder Melissa Kurtin says that one of the girls who came to the event ended up with a scholarship to pursue freestyle skiing more seriously. It’s easy to look at statistics on women in sport and become disheartened… MARC LANDRY/BLUE MOUNTAIN RESORT