Sun Peaks Resort, Tourism Sun Peaks preview summer season as bike park opens this weekend

Added Strokon: “The flowy trails are really fun. Big jumps, flowy berms.

Balfour said he’s been waiting all winter for the trails to open.

“It’s just fun,” he said.

The Sun Peaks Bike Park opens to the general public at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, with the Sunburst and Sundance lifts offering access to about 70 per cent of the mountain biking trails.

“Mountain biking with tacky, wet trails is a perfect time to be out,” said Christina Antoniak, director of communications for Sun Peaks Resort. “And then we’ve also got a couple hiking trails opening at the top of the chairlift, as well. That’s a slow, phased-in approach, as the trails at the higher elevation in our hiking network dry out over the next couple of weeks.”

The resort will host two major downhill biking competitions this summer — the Dunbar Series Canada Cup and the national championships — along with the junior national championships.

“Trails here are awesome,” Sun Peaks local Johnnie Balfour said. “We’ve got super-steep stuff, we’ve got really tricky, technical trails and we’ve got some great jump trails, as well. There’s also a really good progression park for the little kids to learn how to ride.”

Antoniak said the resort has seen significant growth in biker visitation in recent years, noting the addition two years ago of bike access on Sundance has been a catalyst.

Sun Peaks Mayor Rob O’Toole popped by the Sun Peaks Centre Stage on Friday to share a few thoughts with CFJC Today, noting great effort has been made to turn it into a premier concert destination.

The large space that is home to the resort hockey rink during winter has been cleared in anticipation of a busy summer.

Following its soft launch last year, Tourism Sun Peaks senior event manager Theresa St. Louis said the aim is to turn Centre Stage into a revenue driver this summer, with a series of concerts, trade shows and sporting events on the schedule.

“It is so fantastic,” she said. “With these curtains open, you can see the skyline. It’s quite spectacular to see it go from day to night and have the music on the stage. We saw that firsthand with the Brett Kissel and Jess Moskaluke show in September. It feels like you’re outside, but you’re in the protection of the cover.”

Toque is scheduled to play on Canada Day, Big Sugar, Wide Mouth Mason and 54-40 are in the lineup for Rockin’ The Peaks, slated for July 4 and July 5, and Retro Rock Weekend will run from Aug. 22 to Aug. 24.

Speed Week, designed for car lovers, is scheduled to run from July 18 to July 20.

St. Louis said the long-term strategy is to draw eventgoers to Sun Peaks and keep them there long enough to stay in accommodation, dine in local restaurants, shop in stores and experience summer activities.

The Sun Peaks Golf Course has been open since May.

Antoniak said the resort boasts the highest-elevation disc golf course in Canada and nine holes are open for play this weekend.

by Marty Hastings

Sun Peaks Resort, Tourism Sun Peaks preview summer season as bike park opens this weekend

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