Taxes, taxes, taxes...

Here are two ways to beat the tax man! This summer in British Columbia the government is introducing a new tax they call the HST which is going to make everything better and be better for everyone which is why we are all so happy about it. In the past we have paid a 5% GST tax on all catskiing trips - now we are going to be paying 13% tax - to pay for the Olympics perhaps? However if you pay for next winter's powder skiing at Wildhorse now we get you 10% discount AND you don't pay the additional 8%. Total savings 18%. Just another reason to book before April 30th.
The other method is to pay a share at Wildhorse Catskiing & Powder Mining Co. A share costs a mere $10K but provides you with an annual tax free dividend of a 3 day catskiing package including all meals and accommodation.

You can order online at www.skiwildhorse.com

Why Ski at Wildhorse Catskiing?

When I meet people that have skied at a wide variety of snowcat skiing operations it is always interesting to find out what they like about Wildhorse Catskiing. There are a range of options out there offering a variety of services. Here are some of the reasons:

Accessible Location - for our U.S. customers we are 3 hours away from the Spokane WA airport. Calgary and Southern Alberta - 3-7 hours and people doing the Powder Triangle tour we are on the road with all the popular Kootenay ski resorts.

Snow and Terrain - We have a good variety of terrain that keeps most skiers very happy and we get the snow and the quality is good. We have short runs, steep runs, long runs and awesome views.

Daily Operation and Ymir Palace - Wildhorse is based out of the Ymir Palace in the town of Ymir. Roscoe and Belinda do a great job creating home-style cooked meals, a friendly low-key atmosphere at a great price. Skiers get all of the amenities of a small town BC town including the Ymir Hotel, a liquor store and the town of Nelson just minutes up the road.

We are happy with the results - skiers like skiing at Wildhorse because the price is right for lots of powder skiing, the food is great, the beer is cheap, and everyone is out to have a good time.

Investment for Powder

Interested in an investment for powder? We are planning a major expansion next winter with new terrain, a second cat and further improvements at Qua Yurt. The basic deal is $10,000 for a share in Wildhorse Catskiing & Powder Mining Co. interest includes a 3 day catskiing package paid annually in powder skiing at Wildhorse Catskiing or a week at the Ymir Yurts. Investment returned on demand ( 90 days notice ), or repaid at our option. As the price of catskiing increases your investment increases in value - yahoo! Transferable. Call Trevor at 1-888-488-4327 to discuss.

Welcome to the Winter 2009/10 at Wildhorse Catskiing

We are now accepting Bookings and showing current Availability for catskiing at www.skiwildhorse.com.

Prices have once again remained the same as last winter. We continue to offer the best value for powder skiing anywhere from 200-400 per day. The rustic style of the Ymir Palace and the Ymir Hotel continue to offer unique apres-ski accommodation, food and entertainment. Wildhorse Catskiing has ordered up lots of fresh snow and the steep and deep terrain you know and love. You can book online or by email reply or by calling 1-888-488-4327.

Our marketing campaign is once again your word of mouth. Please forward this email to your ski buddies and bunnies so that we can all benefit from great skiing at awesome prices.

Bookings Discounted by US Dollar

Skiers from the U.S. are getting a 20% discount on their bookings currently due to the difference in the value of the US and Canadian dollar. It also means that Canadian skiers can go catskiing at Wildhorse for about the same price as a skiing at a major resort in the U.S.

Some further investment advice: If you had purchased $1000.00 of Nortel stock one year ago, it would now be worth $49.00.With Enron, you would have $16.50 left of the original $1000. With WorldCom, you would have less than $5.00 left. If you had purchased $1000.00 of Delta Air Lines stock you would have $49.00 left.If you had purchased United Airlines, you would have nothing left. If you had purchased $1000.00 worth of beer one year ago, drank all the beer,then turned in the cans for recycling, you would have $214.00. Based on the above, the best current investment advice is to drink heavily and recycle. This is called the 401-Keg Plan. If you had invested your dollars in a cat skiing vacation with Wildhorse you would have powder smiles stretching across your face and memories to last a lifetime. See you soon.

Bookings and Contacting Wildhorse

Thanks to everyone who has been on the phone and email contacting me booking for this winter. I am typically away from the office and telephone getting things organized in the field and then I come back for two or three days. Thanks for your patience and understanding. We don't have cell phone access in Ymir. Even if we did have a phone we would not hear it with the noise of a generator as we inspect the snowcat and tighten bolts.

Transport from Ymir

The last couple of winter's we have used snowmobiles to transport skiers from Ymir to our snowcat up in the mountains. This winter we are moving to these fine looking vehicles. They will be outfitted with bench seating and we will cruise along the snowy country roads. It takes us about 30 minutes to go from breakfast at the Ymir Palace to loading skis on the snowcat 20 km away.

Snowcat Maintenance

It's that time of year again when the snowcat gets overhauled. The tracks are removed and pulled upright so that every single bolt, track and grouser can be inspected, tightened, welded, or replaced. Most of the noises that the snowcat makes come from a loose something on the tracks. We will spend a week alone on the tracks. The snow is pretty much all gone now.

Road & Run Map

Here is the latest on the Wildhorse Road and Run Map. Wildhorse Ridge is the main system. We were up today looking at the world. 20cm of fresh dry light powder. Mmmm.

Snowcat Maintenance

We probably spend a day of maintenance on the snowcat for every 2 days of catskiing during the winter. Every season the tracks come off - and I think they weight about a ton. All the wheels are removed and inspected. This year we are moving to solid rubber tires so no more flats. The suspension is checked and this year we are upgrading to the heavy duty suspension normally found on winch snowcats. All the fluid filters, hoses, wires, cables, bearings, seals, electronics are checked and replaced. The frame of the snowcat is checked for cracks and welded. Then we put it all back together again. Then we go skiing.

New Roads

It's time to start breaking new ground and building new trails for next winter. The snow is just about all gone.
The chainsaw is out. The trails are getting higher, the terrain is bigger, and the views are spectacular. It is raining every second day, which sucks.

Working on getting the Snowcat Passenger Cab installed. The season is ready to roll. Christmas time and then let's get skiing.

Life is getting easier. All the summer road work development has paid off. In a 5 hour push Dan Morton and Trevor Holsworth pushed 50% of the winter's trails and got a good start on preparing for the remaining trail work. It looks like the storms are tracking to the North and South of the Kootenay's for now. That's fine - it will be our turn when you are here skiing in January and February.