MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Winter 2018

WINTER 2018 ML BLUE 59 Under the helmet with Blue Mountain ’ s terrain park regulars words :: Allison Kennedy Davies There’s an old saying about legendary fields of play: If you build it, they will come. As I rode up the slopes at Orchard in a Prinoth snowgroomer with Lucas Ouellette of Arena Snow Parks in mid-December, I could see it in his eyes—the excitement, the promise, the potential. Ouellette has one of the coolest jobs around. As a builder for Arena Snow Parks, he travels to different resorts, moulding the snow and working the terrain to build a playground that will become the social hub of the skiing and riding community. As we drove around the slopes, Ouellette explained his vision for the new Badlands Terrain Park, a longstanding Blue Mountain tradition that’s found a new home this season under the Orchard chair at south. Ouellette explains his vision with a wave of his hand—a set of rollers here, a bigger jump line there, a rail section on this side, the Grove terrain park at the bottom. It’s a layout that will have riders flexing their creativity, using the whole run and, ultimately, having fun. “There’s been some creativity lacking in Ontario terrain parks in recent years,” explains Ouellette. “I’m hoping to change that.” By the time you read this story, the new Badlands Terrain Park will already be open. Maybe you’ve already put in some runs there, worked on some new tricks, made some new friends, filmed some videos, taken some bails and shared some laughs. If you haven’t yet, there are two locals we guarantee already have: Lucas Eastmure and Tye Wilson. We caught up with Eastmure (two planks) and Wilson (one plank) to find out what Badlands means to them. Find Your