Earliest Ever Opening For Banff’s Delirium Drive
Sunday, December 6th, 2009
The extreme terrain at Sunshine ski area near Banff in Albertya, Canada, has celebrated its earliest opening in the ten year history of Delirium Dive.
The world-famous run, one of Sunshine Village’s three freeride zones, opened last week providing access to some of the most extreme inbounds terrain in North America.
Last week it was named one of the ‘World’s Scariest Ski Slopes’ by MSN, to add to its many other accolades.
“We’ve had fantastic snow at the start of this season enabling us to open the Dive earlier than ever before. Expert skiers and snowboarders will be very happy!†said Dan Markham, of Ski Banff-Lake Louise-Sunshine.
Within the Dive’s 600 acres of terrain, natural features include 20 metre cornices, frozen waterfalls, stepped pillow drops, jagged rock spines, and 25 metre cliffs. These natural hazards are unmarked and exist throughout the area.
Skiers and snowboarders need to use good judgment, know their skill level, and understand that mountain conditions may change quickly.
Entry to the area is only permitted for those with a shovel, transceiver and someone skiing or boarding with them.
The Dive’s opening adds to the expert terrain already available in the region at the neighbouring ski resorts of Lake Louise Ski Area and Mt. Norquay – all included on the regional SkiBig3 ticket which also includes bus transport between Banff hotels and the three ski areas.
Whitehorn 1, A Gulley and Ptarmigan Shoots are just some of Lake Louise’s terrain already open for expert skiers and riders, with great powder conditions. Last weekend Mt. Norquay held a special early opening of the North American chair, offering access to the resorts infamous double-black diamond runs.
With some of the best snow in 30 years, the conditions at all three resorts are great on beginner and intermediate terrain too. After opening in October for weekends only, Mt. Norquay is now open full time.
