May 1, 2005

Early Opening Shatters Records

WHISTLER, BC, May 1, 2005 - It was another weekend for the record books for Whistler Blackcomb: Whistler Mountain Bike Park had its earliest opening to date, and a record number of riders hit the trails.

On Saturday, rider numbers topped 600, compared to about 400 from last year's opening. Over 500 riders hit the park on Sunday, compared to about 300 last year.

"It was a phenomenal weekend, and a great start to what should be another awesome bike park season," said Rob McSkimming, VP of Business Development and the riding force behind the development of one of the world's leading lift-accessed downhill biking parks. "Most of our trails are buffed, including our signature A-Line, and riders hitting the GLC drops are back and amazing the GLC patio patrons."

Saturday marked the earliest opening for The Whistler Mountain Bike Park, which will operate on weekends from 10am to 5pm until the official opening and start of daily operations on May 21.

Since Whistler Blackcomb opened for biking in 1999, the Whistler Mountain Bike Park has seen a 700% growth in business. Last year, the park attracted 33% more riders over the previous year.

To help new riders conquer the sometimes intimidating sport, this year Whistler Blackcomb will build another lift-accessed park at the base of Blackcomb - The Magic Park - specifically for beginners and families. Also new this year and accessible via the Garbanzo chair is the 2,200 vertical foot, 8km-long Freight Train trail, which is modelled after A-Line, but twice as long with double the hits. The Kona Jump Farm will also be introduced this summer as the world's first lift-accessed dirt jump facility, providing the skills practice area to progress throughout the park.

"We've set an aggressive growth target for this year," McSkimming says. "Our goal is to attract upwards of 90,000 riders, compared to 78,000 last year. With exciting new developments like the beginner Magic Park, Freight Train, and the Kona Jump Farm, we think our park will succeed at attracting more beginner riders while continuing to challenge advanced riders."

Spring skiing and snowboarding continues until June 5 higher up on Whistler Mountain. The mid-mountain snowbase is 175 cm or 70 inches. For those who want to play with all their toys on the same day, a low lift ticket price of $45 Cdn can be used for skiing/snowboarding and mountain biking within the same day.

"This is by far my favourite time of year in Whistler," McSkimming says. "With bikers ripping it up on the lower trails, skiers and snowboarders heading higher up the lifts for a great day of spring skiing, and valley golf courses opening this weekend, the buzz in the village is great," McSkimming adds. "Whistler truly is a four-season resort, and at this time of year, you can experience four seasons of mountain activities all on the same day."

For information on early season ticket pricing, season passes, accommodation deals and bike park info check out http://ww1.whistlerblackcomb.com/bike/ or call 1-800-766-0449.

Whistler Blackcomb is an Intrawest resort. Intrawest Corporation (IDR:NYSE; ITW:TSX) is one of the world's leading destination resort and adventure travel companies. Intrawest has interests in 10 mountain resorts in North America's most popular mountain destinations, including Whistler Blackcomb, a host venue for the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. The company owns Canadian Mountain Holidays, the largest heli-skiing operation in the world, and a 67 percent interest in Abercrombie & Kent, the world leader in luxury adventure travel. The Intrawest network also includes Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort in Florida and Club Intrawest - a private resort club with nine locations throughout North America. Intrawest is developing five additional resort village developments at locations in North America and Europe. Intrawest is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. For more information, visit www.intrawest.com.

Proud to be a venue for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Media Note: A photo of a rider in the Whistler Mountain Bike Park taken on opening weekend is available for editorial use in conjunction with content surrounding the Whistler Mountain Bike Park. It can be downloaded in high or low resolution at </photo/index.htm>. Photo Credit: Tom Prochazka