Not a heli-skier? No problem. This fun loving group of friends spent a glorious week at CMH Revelstoke enjoying the terrain, the quaint mountain town and dining together in their matching Sweatsedos.
Words by Morgan Dinsdale | Posted Dec 5, 2017
It’s the final night of an epic trip to Revelstoke. The dining room is set, table for twelve. Fresh linens, sparkling silverware, wine glasses neatly in a row with crisp white napkins spilling out their tops. A table anticipating celebration, but you barely notice it.
You’re drawn to the hot pink, neon yellow and baby blue Sweatsedo tracksuits, each adorned with a personal nickname, worn by the eleven guests seated around the table, laughing and smiling, in their matching two-piece velour. Not your standard five-star dining attire. It’s the final dinner for a group of family and friends after a week of experiencing all that CMH in Revelstoke has to offer, and are they ever ready to celebrate!
The group is comprised of Jim and Kristi Umile, Justin and Marianne Townshend, Chris and Amie Heatherton, Kyle and Atlee Alman, Nora Cahill, Tom Aitken and Mark Van Liere. It’s no ordinary group of family and friends. They are a bunch of souls as vibrant as their tracksuits. A tightly-knit crew, that do pretty much everything together in their everyday lives. They’ve come to Revelstoke to ensure everyone could get what they wanted out of a snowy vacation in beautiful British Columbia, from heli-skiing to the spa.
Located in the heart of British Columbia’s interior, underneath the infamous Roger’s Pass – known for some of the best powder skiing in Canada – Revelstoke is a small mountain town filled to the brim with and for adventurers. It’s home to CMH Revelstoke and one of Canada’s hidden ski gems, Revelstoke Mountain Resort, and an excellent Nordic ski center. It also holds the Canadian record for the snowiest single winter, when just over 80 feet of snow fell during the winter of 1971-1972. It’s known for deep, light snow, vibrant wildlife and a community of people invested in a life lived outdoors, reflected in its many outfitters, vibrant restaurants, and activities to enjoy. And this group took full advantage of all that Revelstoke had to offer.
While half of the group partook in some incredible heli-skiing with CMH, the others explored Revelstoke Mountain Resort with a guide, took advantage of the Nordic skiing facilities, stretched it out in some of Revelstoke’s best yoga classes and enjoyed the serene natural beauty of the town walking along the beautiful Illecillewaet River, a tributary of the great Columbia River, flowing through town.
“There really is something for everyone in Revelstoke,” says Atlee Alman, twelve weeks pregnant at the time and as such one of the non-skiers in the trip. “I wasn’t sure about going at first but once I arrived I was so happy I’d come. The views were breathtaking, the massages from the CMH massage therapist were truly rejuvenating, and I even found a yoga studio in town. When the others weren’t heli-skiing CMH made sure we really could do everything together. That was wonderful.”
Atlee’s sister, Amie Heatherton, and her friend, Nora Cahill, enjoyed days skiing with a guide at Revelstoke Mountain Resort and at the Nordic center. “My sister came back from Revelstoke Mountain Resort raving about the experience, saying that they’d skied some of the most remarkable in-bound terrain of her life, thanks to their guide who took them to places they would never have discovered otherwise,” remembers Atlee about her sister’s return after her first day skiing at Revy.
“The whole group skied at the resort the first day, which was a really fun way to all be on the mountain together and is also a great option for down days or those who don’t feel confident heli-skiing,” says Mark Van Liere, CMH’s agent for the New England area who accompanied the group, friends of his whom he spends almost every winter weekend back east skiing together with at Sugarbush Resort.
“We met through mutual friends on a mountain bike trip in Vermont years ago and they took me into their family,” Mark continues, “When they heard I worked for CMH it had always been on the bucket list for the boys and the girls were totally into a winter adventure of their own. They put their confidence, trust and pocketbooks with me, which is why it brings me such joy that this trip was so much fun for everyone! It such a great demonstration of how at CMH we love to create a winter experience for anyone and everyone!”
Mark worked with the team at CMH Revelstoke to build an itinerary that would suit everyone’s unique desires while keeping them together as much as possible, from stretch class to dinnertime. Everyone is looking for something different in their adventure. For some, it’s the exhilaration of the spinning of helicopter blades. For others’ it’s a serene mountain landscape to relax and recharge in or bringing together friends and family. For this group it was all three – and that’s exactly what they got – and then some.
“The guys were blown away by the heli-skiing,” remarks Atlee with erupted joy. “Even with their expectations so high, tears were in their eyes on the last day, that’s how incredible the experience was for them. For me, what mattered most was us being together, and each of us being able to find our own vacation in Revelstoke. We are kind of the crazy group, with our matching outfits and energetic attitudes, and there was this super positive vibe from CMH the entire time we were here!”
Sitting around the table on their last night at CMH Revelstoke their spirits are on a high from a week of adventures big and small in the heartland of British Columbia’s powder playground. From laughter over stories of Chris (Heatherton) constantly flying off everything he could lay his eyes on while on his K2 Pontoons, to chuckles over other guests taking in their matching Sweatsedos, to reminiscing on a week of adventures on peaks from CMH’s tenure to Revelstoke Mountain Resort to the Nordic Center.
The table, remember the table? You see it was filled with more than just delicious food and drink. It was brimming with spirit, shining from a week of adventure in the mountains. An adventure unique to each, and to all.
More on CMH Revelstoke here.
