A growing populace of freeskiers is stepping out of the small town of Vernon, BC, and onto the international stage; TJ Schiller, Riley Leboe, Justin Dorey, Joe Schuster, and Josh Bibby have already made their mark, while a half-dozen more are ready to break onto the scene. Call it the Silver Star Effect—Vernon, BC, is the new capital of Canadian freeskiing.

“Main Street in Vernon, BC, is nothing more than a handful of motels and small restaurants. Head north and you will drive through orchards and pasture land until the valley narrows at Shuswap Lake and heads east to Revelstoke. Drive south, and orchards give way to summer vacation homes and gated golf communities, then Kelowna’s vineyards and strip-mall facade. Indeed, there is little to indicate that Vernon is the new stronghold of Canadian freeskiing. But a half-dozen young skiers from Vernon have entered stage north in the past half decade…”

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