Revelstoke athletes break record time on Bugaboos to Rogers Pass ski traverse

Completing the Bugaboos to Rogers Pass ski traverse is a tremendous accomplishment within the mountaineering community. Beating the record time? That is in a league of its own.

Greg Hill, Andrew McNab, and Adam Campbell accomplished that record-breaking feat on April 19 this year. The traverse, which spans 135 kilometeres across multiple mountain peaks, takes at least eight days when done with a guided group. The trio completed the traverse in just over 53 hours.

 

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Hill describes himself as a “professional adventurer/environmentalist.” The first time he did the Bugaboos to Rogers Pass traverse was in 2005, and it took 13 days. Ever since hearing about a speed-run of the traverse a year later, Hill was convinced that he could complete it faster with the right team. This year, that idea came to fruition.

“It was a real mental challenge because I’ve never done anything like that. I’ve done a lot of 23, 24-hour missions, and a lot of 18-hour missions. But I’ve never done anything this long,” says Hill.

Teamwork makes the dream work

Although Hill was the driving force behind this particular mission, he emphasizes the importance of the diverse skill-set of his team. Alongside McNab, a ski guide from Revelstoke, and Campbell, an ultrarunner from Canmore, the three mountaineers completed the traverse with very few breaks. Although it was a challenge like none had experienced, they managed to beat the previous record by almost 30 hours.

Greg Hill and Andrew McNab snag a selfie during one of the many uphills. Photo courtesy of Greg Hill

Although the three had little training as a group, McNab and Hill had done a few treks together.

“We’ve been talking about it for a bunch of years, like doing other traverses or other things, similar style, you know, with the idea that maybe someday we try and do this,” says McNab. When he received the call from Hill shortly after work one day, the timing presented the perfect opportunity.

Pushing mountaineering to new heights

Decades of training led up to the moment of the traverse. But, ski mountaineering is a relatively new and uncommon sport; especially compared to downhill and cross country skiing.

The Bugaboos to Rogers Pass traverse was first crossed in the modern era in 1958 by Bill Briggs, Barry Corbet, Sterling Neale and Bob French. The traverse has become more popular recently. A few tour groups offer guided treks through the route, with prices starting around $4,000. However, many people still do not understand ski mountaineering. When you dig deeper into the sport, different styles can be spotted stemming from different countries.

“There’s a lot of history if you want to dig into it and figure it out. It also speaks to the progression of mountain sports in Canada,” says McNab. “The fast and like kind of speed traverse, it’s a lot more European-influenced than our classic freeride ski tour mountaineering style. That’s more of a Canadian thing.”

Although the group took a couple of breaks, most of the 135 kilometer trek was done in one push. Photo courtesy of Greg Hill

Despite its rising popularity, there is still progress to be made within the sport of ski mountaineering. That is partially what makes it so exciting for McNab. As a born and raised Revelstoke resident, he has spent most of his life playing and exploring these mountains.

“That’s always been my desire, is to help or progress the style of how we move in the mountains around Revelstoke. Like I say, there have been decades of amazingly inspiring people here.”

Challenging ageism with adventure

For Hill, inspiration comes from many places: his love of nature and adventure, but also fighting ageist stereotypes. At 45 years old, Hill is hitting physical milestones that many only dream of.

“My strongest was definitely in my mid-30s, before I broke my leg. I’ve been at a point where I’m wondering what my human potential is,” Hill explains.

“I know I’m getting older and slower, but yet I can still find goals that are super rewarding and super challenging and this one really proved that to me. I mean, at hour 51 when we were finally cresting that last climb, I was still super excited and driven because I was so empowered by what we just accomplished. It was really awesome to see that I could still accomplish great things at 45.”

Greg Hill takes a pause to reflect on the journey. Photo courtesy of Greg Hill

For now, Hill and McNab are enjoying their summers around Revelstoke and daydreaming about their next great adventure. Accomplishing this milestone mission is only the beginning for them. After doing this trek, both realized that they work excellently together.

“We offset each other with our skill-set and understand each other and can question each other and push each other at the same time,” Hill says.

In fact, McNab says he was initially inspired by Hill’s athleticism, which encouraged him to continue pushing himself as he got older. Now, he values their friendship and the potential it holds.

“In regards to Greg [Hill], the guys like a forever energized individual,” McNab says. “There are lots of people around here that are pushing to have big solid days in the mountains. But there’s a very select list to call when you have a kind of ridiculous idea, and Greg is usually on the top of that.”