Features

Letting the Good Times Roll

A moustache and tie-dye affair at the MGT summer camp

Story and Photos by Sara Tollestrup

The line “I’m down with MGT and so is she, and she, and she,” from soon-to-be famous rapper, MGT camp alum, and glacier coach extraordinaire Notorious B.E.V. says it all. For those of you lost in the translation of the acronym it stands for More Good Times and that’s exactly what MGT is all about. Since 2004, camp directors Leanne Pelosi and Joanna Majcherkiewicz have been helping girls have plenty of good times at their all-girls snowboard camps around Canada. This year there were five camps: two winter camps at Lake Louise, one at Grouse Mountain and two summer camps at Whistler Blackcomb.

2007 is a transition year for MGT according to Pelosi. During the Grouse Mountain Terrain Park Clinic MGT also put on a slopestyle contest using the same acronym, but in this case it stands for Mega Gnarly Tailgate party. The slopestyle, won by Calgary’s Raewyn Reid, is one example of where the ladies are headed with their transition. In the near future Leanne and crew are going to New York City to present their new ideas to teen magazines. I wasn’t given the full story as to what else they want to accomplish, but there was talk of brining MGT camps to the States and some more action on the contest front as well.

MGT is moving up in the world, but that’s not to say that the camp isn’t already awesome. I had the pleasure of getting in on the pre-transition good times during the first and last days of summer camp on Blackcomb’s glacier. MGT has a similar setup to other camps on the glacier, but with a totally unique vibe. Picture shopping with all of your best girlfriends but instead of asking “do these jeans make my butt look big?” asking, “how was my backside 3?” Even though the crew is typically a group of coaches and campers who have recently met, it feels like a bunch of close friends hanging out and having fun.

There are few days in my life that I laughed as hard as I did on day 1 with MGT. I caught up with coach/coordinator Robin Van Gyn and her group of sleepy, but stoked campers. Maybe it’s an extra large coffee at breakfast, or maybe she’s truly that enthusiastic at 9 a.m., but Robin had her girls lined up to hit the first jump before most of the other campers had their iPods pulled out. Sensing hesitation from some of the girls, Robin asked if everyone had hit a jump before. A couple of hands went up, so she offered some pointers and a demo. As the girls hit the jump, they were cheering each other on with the kind of excitement more often associated with downing sake margaritas at Sushi Village.

It was awesome to watch each one of the girls attempt the jump, even the ones who seemed hesitant about hitting it at first. As we made our way down the course I started talking to one of the campers, Tessa, who told me that it was either her third or fourth time at MGT and that she can’t get enough. She seemed really comfortable and confident as she hit the hip, and I’m willing to bet that her three or four camp experiences have something to do with that.

Robin’s group was having so much fun that I considered spending the entire day with them. However, I quickly changed my mind when I overheard Dominique Vallee telling her campers that she is really bad at telling jokes, but that she was going to tell one anyway. With conscientious effort, Dom said, “What kind of bees give milk? The answer, “boo-bees,” was followed with the kind of laughter that leads to wet pants—not from sitting on the snow. Dom is a big fan of boob jokes, so if you want to laugh until you cry and nearly fall off the T-bar, I recommend partnering up with her. The girls had had a couple of warm up runs by the time I joined them, so they were ready to give the wallride a go. In true coach form, Dom dropped into a flawless, tail-over-the-metal-edge-at-the-top-of-the-wall wallride demo. The girls followed her one by one pumping their arms when they got it and giggling when they didn’t. It was good to see girls messing up and laughing it off because it showed the lack of pressure there. MGT is about progressing step by step and not feeling like excuses are needed when tricks aren’t dialed. After several laps of the park it was time for a lunch break. During lunch the jokes reached a new level of absurdity. Dom’s campers will not only take home a fresh bag of tricks, but they will also have quite the arsenal of boob jokes.

The boxes of Smarties at lunch had refueled Leanne’s group and given them the sugar rush necessary to attack boxes, picnic tables and rails. The laps I spent with Leanne’s group were all about popping, spinning and sliding off anything and everything in sight. There was a mini plastic cheese wedge propped up at the bottom of the course that was perfect for playing around on. Watching the girls pop off the wedge one by one was like watching a photo sequence come to life. Day 1 on the glacier came to a close as we cruised up the T-bar with everyone quoting their favourite lines from B.E.V.’s amazing MGT rap.

For those that fail to realize camp is about more than snowboarding, I have two words: tie and dye. A tie-dye/BBQ party was held that night at Lost Lake with all of the girls and coaches but without the key element—a BBQ. Jeff Keenan kindly spent the night cooking hot dogs and veggie burgers at home, while we tie-dyed t-shirts, bandanas and every piece of white clothing within a 20 km radius. There was even a pair of men’s boxers in the mix. The production of tie-dyed haute couture induced more competition and envy than anything that took place on the hill. After filling the air with the stench of vinegar (spraying clothes with vinegar is the final step in tie-dying), eating candy and taking photos of everyone with their creations it was time to get to bed.

Wanting in on more good times I found myself back at MGT for the final day of camp. Day 6 was called “Never Trust a Person With a Naked Upper Lip,” needless to say I was pleased not only to rock a moustache but also to be the first female on the hill with a fuzzy upper lip. At the base of the mountain each girl was given the difficult task of selecting the moustache that best suited her. When the paper was peeled off and the moustaches were adhered, in my case crookedly, to our faces it was apparent that the day would be amazing.

It was raining on and off that day which is typically a downer, but at MGT it simply added to the fun. Hot chocolate drinking, singing in the rain and shredding around in plastic bags were all great activities of the day. The plastic bags doubled as excellent sleds as well. In order to plastic bag sled, lay down with your board strapped to your feet, then slip, slide and spin your way down the landing of a jump. Plastic bag sledding may very well be an event at the 2010 Olympics, just wait and see.

Beyond plastic bags and moustaches the day consisted of taking the skills the girls had been working on all week and putting them into action. The campers definitely showed improvement despite the less-than-perfect weather. A major contributor to the girls’ improvement is the fact that they know they have the support of all of the coaches and girls around them. MGT is markedly more than snowboard camp, it’s genuinely good times. Snowboarding, tie-dying and moustache sporting rarely come together in one experience, so given the chance to take part, do it!