When Hannah was 3 years old, she watched Maelle Ricker win Gold in Snowboard Cross at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. She pointed to the TV image of Maelle on the podium wrapped in the Canadian flag and stated: “That’s what I want to do.”
Though all sports came very easily to Hannah as a child, she truly loved anything with speed and a touch of danger, with mountain biking and snowboarding quickly becoming her two main loves. Growing up as a Whistler kid, meant she had plenty of opportunities for both. At the age of 12, Hannah was asked to join the BC Snowboard team for Snowboard Cross, becoming its youngest member. Over the next three years she won most of the competitions she entered in BC and many around Canada.
While Hannah excelled in sport, school was incredibly challenging – leading to bouts of anxiety and depression. At the beginning of Grade 2, a Psychological Education Assessment determined that Hannah was in the 87th percentile for intelligence and less than 0.1% for reading. In short, she was severely dyslexic. This began the first real challenge of Hannah’s life – how to overcome her dyslexia. After many years of sweat and tears, she will graduate with her grade 12 cohort in June 2025.
In her first-year racing internationally, Hannah won gold at the Canada Winter Games and 9th in Junior Worlds. In her second-year, she captured 3rd overall in the North American circuit and 5th at the Youth Olympic Games in South Korea. She is incredibly proud to represent Whistler on the international stage! When not on her board, Hannah volunteers at WORCA Volunteer dig nights as well as WORCA’s Witsend race. She loves the opportunity to encourage other athletes to be their best and give back to the Whistler community whom she credits as giving her so much support over the years.
Today, Hannah is incredibly proud to be Canada Snowboard’s newest Next Gen athlete for Snowboard Cross. Though she had an injury early this year at a World Cup, she remains determined to recover and get back to doing what she does best. Go Fast! Her long-term goal remains firm – Gold at the Olympics – just like her mentor Maelle.
I’m Carter Durlacher, a 15-year-old adventure athlete born and raised in Whistler, BC. Growing up in the mountains, I’ve been on skis since I was two years old, started ski touring and heading into the backcountry by age seven, and I’ve been hooked ever since. My family and I spend countless hours exploring off-grid, from big mountain areas to the smallest hidden spots, and I love every second of it. I started competing in Freeride last year, and I’m currently ranked 2nd in North America on the IFSA Jr Freeride Tour.
My goal is to continue developing my skills as an athlete and to become a professional skier, sharing my passion for skiing and mountain life with others. When I’m not skiing, you’ll find me on my skateboard, biking, hiking trails, or out on the water windsurfing. I spend most of my time outdoors, and I love creating videos to share and inspire people to get outside, have fun, and see what’s possible when you follow your passions.
As the winter season approaches, I’m excited to keep pushing my limits, representing Whistler, and giving my best on and off the mountain. A huge thanks to Old School Initiative for supporting me this upcoming season—I’m stoked to represent you!
Highlights: Ranked 2nd overall in North America on the International Freeride Junior Tour U15. Skiing, snowmobiling/sled skiing, skateboarding, mountain biking, dirt biking, surfing, windsurfing/foiling, and hiking.
Nick Katrusiak grew up in Whistler, BC, where he attended Myrtle Phillip Elementary and Whistler Secondary. His early years were mainly shredding Blackcomb, Whistler, and the trails of west side. Starting on Magic Chair, Nick developed a passion for skiing very quickly. At the age of 10, he became a member of the Whistler Mountain Ski Club. Over the span of eight seasons, coaches like Drew Hetherington, Conrad Pridy, and Jordan Williams, to name a few, played a role in shaping his skiing and guiding him in life. Nick is thankful for all the teammates and friends from Whistler that pushed him to become the best version of himself.
Nick competes at the Nor-Am, European and World Cup level, this past season having many career best results. 2023/24 being his first season on the Canadian Ski Cross Team, Nick is just getting started. He is very grateful to have the opportunity to represent Whistler and Canada on the world stage. Even with it being such a young sport some of the world’s best Ski Cross athletes come from Whistler, Ashleigh McIvor and Marielle Thompson. With so many role models and like minded people in Whistler to look up to it is a community that Nick is proud to have behind him.
I was born in Vancouver and have been skiing since I was just two years old. When I was seven, my family moved to Whistler, and that’s where my passion for skiing really took off. For the past eight years, I’ve been a part of the Whistler Freeride Club, competing since I joined the club. It’s been an incredible journey where I’ve not only worked hard to improve my skills but also had a ton of fun skiing with all my friends and coaches.
One of the biggest highlights of my skiing career so far happened in January 2024, when I was one of two girls who got to represent Canada at the Junior Freeride World Championships in Austria. That experience was amazing and unforgettable. My 2024 season was fantastic overall! I placed third at the North and South American Freeride Championship in Breckenridge, Colorado, and I took first place in Canada. Because of these achievements, I’ll be heading back to Austria again for the Junior Freeride World Championships in Kappl in 2025.
Skiing is my passion, and my journey in freeride skiing has been all about dedication, hard work, and the joy I find in the sport. With the support of the Old School initiative, which I am super grateful for, I’m excited for what’s ahead
When I was 9, my parents moved us from one mountain town (Mont-Tremblant) to the next (Whistler). Though I had skied for a long time being in Whistler all year consolidated my love for skiing. For me, skiing is a place where I can have a routine, work hard, and improve. A place where I can focus on myself while appreciating the beautiful landscape I get to call home. When I was 3, I first started skiing. Being brought up in a family of ski instructors and fanatics, I didn’t have much of a choice. I am grateful for that every day. My parents have been teaching skiing for ages and that brought them to Whistler. We would spend most winters in Whistler while homeschooling starting at age 4. Though I never thought I would go into racing as a kid, I ended up joining at 10 years old and fully committed around 14. When covid hit, it was harder to connect and skiing was an amazing space for me to appreciate nature and do the sport I loved. In one of my first ski cross races in February last year, I got injured. Being injured allowed me to reflect on what I could do to improve my mental health, greatly augmented my perseverance while working through many setbacks, and allowed me to get ahead in school so that I could ski the coming year. At 17, I had a newfound appreciation for skiing and I found a balance in my school, sport, and mental health by shifting my training to work for me. Though it brought me injury last year, I learned a lot from being injured and Ski Cross gave me the opportunity to strive for the Youth Olympic Games in South Korea this year, where I participated in January 2024. Through the ski club, I have volunteered for many of the WMSC community ski swaps and being in FIS means being a leader for the younger kids in the club.
Next year, I will be attending University of Calgary while being on the Ski Cross Dino’s team. I find being a student-athlete motivates me more for school and helps my time management. This program will allow me to pursue Ski Cross while getting a post-secondary education. Though I’ll be at school, I will still be training 5 days a week and leave for races regularly. My goal for next year is to continue to improve my skills, achieve better results in the Nor-Am circuit and to qualify for World Juniors. As for long term goals, I want to keep working hard and see how far I can go in Ski Cross.