“Gary says he’s the best skier on the meowtain!”
Just stumbled across this Canadian cat named Gary who is a regular on the slopes of Nakiska Ski Area. The Calgary ski resort has partnered with Gary for the 2020/2021 season. His owner used to ski patrol there. If you’re skiing Nakiska keep your eyes peeled for this remarkable duo. If you’re wondering if your cat could become a skier, scroll down and read Gary’s owner’s guide to cat skiing:
GUIDE TO CAT SKIING:
I’ve gotten lots of questions related to skiing with Gary and I’m hoping this “step by step guide to skiing with a cat” helps answer most of them!
.
Step 1 towards skiing was to spend *a lot* of time getting comfortable adventuring together and getting Gary used to riding on my shoulders.
.
It’s not an exaggeration to say I’ve carried Gary on my shoulders for both hundreds of hours and kilometres over the past three years. He’s comfortable balancing there, and knows it’s a safe place to be.
.
We both had to have a lot of trust in each other’s ability before even wondering about the possibility of skiing.
.
Step 2 is to be a strong skier. I’ve been skiing for nearly 30 years, have worked as a pro ski patroller and am used to skiing while carrying heavy and awkward loads.
.
When I’m skiing with Gary we go slowly and stick to easy runs to further reduce any risk.
.
Step 3 s to introduce skiing slowly to let him experience it for the first time in a controlled, low-stakes setting. The first few runs we did together were maybe 15 metres long on a small, low angle hill close to home that I walked to the top of.
.
After that went well, we tried a slightly longer but still low angle run when we went cat skiing last year.
.
Even @nakiskaskiarea we stay on groomed green runs so it’s easy to remain in control at all times.
.
Step 4 was to get permission to bring Gary to the resort. As part of Nakiska’s social media ambassador program I was able to get Gary a special pet pass after chatting with their team about the logistics and safety of bringing Gary to the hill.
.
Lastly, our visits are short and we avoid skiing at peak times so we’ve got more space. Gary doesn’t love a big crowd anyhow.
.
As for what Gary thinks of skiing? He’s super happy to sniff the breeze and watch other folks as they go past. I suppose for him it’s all just another shoulder ride.