Aussies have surfing (grrrrrr). The UK has rugby. The Americans have damn well what ever they like. And us Canucks? Well we do one thing really well…we do cold like no other country on Earth. Heck, it’s actually below zero in BC right now. For the adventure travel junkie this means one thing…Ski slopes!! Canadians might find even more comfort knowing that, according to numerous polls by international ski buffs, and this one among them, Canadians do skiing so well that we’re on top of the list. Check out the Ten Best Ski Resorts on Earth. And the winner is…Whistler Blackcomb!!!

Caught in the doldrums of winter? Me too. It’s grey, it’s cold and I so can’t think about surfing right now. Fortunately us Canadians are a hardy breed and ne’er without an excuse to grab the skis and hit the slopes…whether on a mountain or, as you’ll see in this video, through the streets, back alleys, front yards and over things you generally shouldn’t jump. This is the funniest, most enjoyable video you’ll see all day. And the  best part? Right at the end, when he non-chalantly packs up his gear and boards the bus…the kids in Nelson BC will get a kick out of it…

Where do people think up this stuff? We’ve seen guys jumping out of planes in kayaks, people waterskiing behind great white sharks. And now, in perhaps the best-looking video ever, a skier makes an absolutely sick cliff jump during an avalanche.

Truthfully, I think somebody was sitting at home one night, took acid and thought this one up. But I’m glad they did because this video is absolutely freakin’ gorgeous, shot in glorious HD!! A bit of a corporate plug, I admit, but will blow your mind none the less. Matthias Giraud is this week’s hero.

What do you get when a professional skier happens upon a polar bear on a ski jump?  A video that’s garnered over a million hits.  Bear with the amateurish video, cause the brief encounter is so worth it.  The skier looks petrified, but the bear’s more like WTF?

After watching this video I realized three things.  First I am glad to have Norwegian ancestry because if YouTube is correct, Norwegians have mastered the art of skiing and BASE Jumping and have cojones big enough to fit in a dump truck.  Two, this video, of Norwegian daredevil Halvor Angvik speed flying (if that’s what you want to call it) in Wengen, Switzerland this year is amazing, and three, I am definitely asking Santa Claus for a wing-suit for Christmas!

There are no words that can really capture the poetry of this video, in which J.T. Holmes and some Norwegian BASE Jumpers glide over the cliffs of Norway. Amazing. Just amazing. I want a wing-suit.

What was that hoopla about Canada never winning Olympic Gold in Montreal or Calgary? I’m lovin the fact that a week into the Vancouver Olympics, we’re sitting at four golds already, with seven medals in total, and we’re in fourth place for medals so far. But you know what they say…you never forget your first. You can question Alexandre Bilodeau’s charisma, but not what he did for his country. G’OH Canada!!!