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Actually he was more of a knuckledragger for a season…

On Tuesday, October 20, 2015, Canada elected a new Prime Minister in Justin Trudeau and subsuquently ended a nine year run of conservative leadership for the Canadian government. The son of a former prime minister, Trudeau was born into the Canadian version of the White House on Christmas Day in 1971 and although his beginnings were somewhat charmed, he hasn’t always espoused the “Fortunate Son” lifestyle.

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In fact, at one time Justin Trudeau was a ski bum living in a van and teaching snowboarding in Whistler for a season!

In an interview with CBC radio, friend and a fellow shred instructor, Sean Smillie said Trudea is “one of the most dangerous people in the world to snowboard behind!” According to Smillie, he mainly used a “ridiculously long snowboard, totally built for speed” and although Smillie says the prime minsiter wasn’t completely out of control, “it was always touch and go.”

In addition to an affinity for speed, the prime minister drove an exceptionally shitty, ski bum car recounts his friend.

“We used to nickname it the Staff Car. More often than not, we’d be huddled around a little heater in the front seat. I’d have to hop out at intersections and push the car so it wouldn’t die. It was always a miracle we made it to where we were going.”- Sean Smillie

However, Trudeau left the skid lifestyle to become a teacher for a year at the West Point Grey Academy in Vancouver, where he taught drama, law, and French. Later, Trudeau would move on to graduate studies in Montreal before putting his studies on hold in order to pursue a politics.

To this day, Trudeau retains a deep respect for the mountains ever since his brother was killed in a tragic avalanche incident in 1998.

 

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