Revelstoke Nordic trails get new groomer

The Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club officially welcomed their new groomer at a Dec. 10 ceremony at the Mount Macpherson trails. Jeff Ferguson, a Director of Trails and Grooming for the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club, welcomed CSRD Area B director Loni Parker and Revelstoke mayor Mark McKee for a brief ceremony that acknowledged funding support from the city and the regional district.

The City of Revelstoke issued the following media release on Dec. 9 regarding the new groomer:

The City of Revelstoke, through access to the Resort Municipality Infrastructure Program funding, and in collaboration with the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club and the Columbia Shuswap Regional District is pleased to announce the unveiling of a new groomer at the Mt. Macpherson Nordic Ski Centre. The centre is located seven kilometres south of Revelstoke on Highway 23 South.

“The new groomer is a fantastic addition to the Nordic Ski Club infrastructure”, said Jeff Ferguson, a Director of Trails and Grooming for the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club. “The club is proud to be part of the vibrant and exciting tourism market in Revelstoke, and our members take great pride in ensuring that the Nordic Ski Club offers a great experience for visitors and local residents who enjoy Nordic skiing. We are extremely grateful for the support from the Province, the City of Revelstoke and the Columbia Shuswap Regional District for this purchase.”

The Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club maintains over 30 kilometres of groomed ski trails which have become a major attraction for winter tourism. The trails are maintained by a small number of Club volunteers who spend many hours ensuring that the Nordic Centre provides a high quality tourism experience for the visitors from around the world who come to enjoy the winter pursuits that Revelstoke has to offer. This new groomer will be invaluable to the volunteers to help them maintain the trails and ensure Nordic skiers have access to world-class facilities.

Shirley Bond, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills training and Minister Responsible for Labour stated: “As British Columbians and visitors from around the world come to our province to enjoy another ski season, it’s great to see Revelstoke use Resort Municipality Initiative funding to acquire a new groomer at the Mt. Macpherson Nordic Ski Centre. These kinds of investments as part of the RMI initiative are intended to ensure our visitors have a world class ski experience and that they’ll keep coming back, supporting the local economy and contributing to our growing tourism revenue.”

The Province is investing $10.5 million through the Resort Municipality Initiative (RMI) program for tourism infrastructure and amenities in 14 resort communities. The RMI program helps resort municipalities to increase the number of visitors and their length of stay, broaden resort activities to expand the length of the tourist season, increase employment, and to diversify the local tax base.

“Nordic skiing has become a very important part of our winter tourism economy,” said mayor McKee. “The new groomer will make it easier for the Nordic Club to keep the trails in top shape, and ensure skiers who visit the Nordic Ski facilities have a great experience.”