Throughout the pandemic, Bonnie Henry has made it clear that exercise and fresh air are vital components to staying healthy. We have been assured that the outdoors is a safe place for us to gather. Before ANYONE was vaccinated last year, ski slopes were open to ALL. It is not the GOVERNMENT who is mandating that ski hills require vaccine passports. RCR and other ski-resort companies have made this decision. 

This year, over 80% of BC is vaccinated. Vaccines DO NOT protect people from contracting OR transmitting the virus (See*1 a & b ).The median age of death from Covid-19 continues to be 83+ years, few of this age who use the slopes.

To exclude the un-vaccinated from skiing is DISCRIMINATORY (see above references), and evades COMMON SENSE, as follows:

• A) SOCIAL DISTANCING: Skiers/ Snowboarders naturally separate on the slopes. Bulky equipment keeps people well spaced. Faces are usually covered on chairlifts because of the cold. Open chairlifts are found in open AIR - fresh air is safe.  Groups are friends/family who likely carpooled (unmasked) to the hill, and socialize closely in other situations. 
•  B)  Unvaccinated and vaccinated teens & kids mingle DAILY INDOORS at school. It makes no sense that they have to be vaccinated for skiing  purposes, given the above. 
• (C) The majority of skiers (AND staff) are younger than 60, and the nature of this activity draws healthier people to participate. SURVIVAL from Covid-19 in people up to this age in BC, is closer to 100% than 99%. Mortality for this age group is 0.089%  (181 deaths divided by 203,370 cases percent (*See 2, Table 2, Pg.8).Those with co-morbidities are vulnerable. However, people in poor health are less likely to be found in the cold, and spending a full day exercising. They protect themselves as they know the risks, and avoid public places. If not, it is THEIR choice whether or not to expose themselves to situations where they might be vulnerable. 
•  D) Ski hill RESTUARANTS do not exclusively serve skiers, and LIFT TICKETS do not necessarily include restaurant meals. Dealing with these patrons is dealing with different issues- one where there is a government mandate, the other, where there is not. FURTHERMORE, there is NO RESTRICTION in places that do not sell alcohol, or those which do not provide table service. This typically includes ski lodges (*3, Public Health Act, SectionT). People can bring bagged lunches.
• E) Enclosed Lifts: It has been suggested that enclosed lifts might be  cause for concern, and decisions to mandate vaccine passports, might rest on this issue. However, there are no government requirements for vax-passes on commuter busses and trains in BC & Alberta. These are enclosed modes of transportation. However, ALL the lifts in Kimberley, Nakiska & Fernie are OPEN ones, so this issue does not even apply there. Why then, are unvaccinated patrons unwelcome at these three resorts, specifically? A solution for resorts with gondolas: one queue for the vaccinated, another for the unvaccinated to board alternating gondolas....(segregation, but a better option than exclusion).
• F) OUTBREAKS: The majority of outbreaks are known to occur in facilities such as rest-homes and hospitals, not in fresh air environments. Communal living situations which do involve ski resorts, include their staff. Predominantly they are young people who are not seriously at risk. Yet, due to their lifestyles,  they are more likely to catch, and then transmit Covid to patrons, more so than than patron-to-patrons are, or patron-to-staff. Once again: we know that vaccinated people are now also getting sick and transmitting the disease.
• G) RISKS: Downhill activity is a potentially dangerous activity, involving possible injury or death. Winter driving is hazardous, potentially deadly, but has to be done to reach the hill. Should ski resorts be shut down because of the first two risks? Of course not!  One might potentially catch Covid on ski day, as even the vaccinated are not immune. Personal assessment and judgement of these risks are not the responsibility of resort managements. Waivers are there for a reason, and Covid-19 should be added to them, if companies are concerned about litigation.

 We, the undersigned request that RCR and other ski resort companies reconsider their discriminatory decision regarding vaccine passports. On what basis have these decisions been made? Skiing/snowboarding is an outdoor activity that promotes physical, mental, spiritual health to participants. This is a country where winters are difficult to endure without the opportunity for outdoor recreation. People are struggling socially and mentally. Unvaccinated people are entitled to their decisions, which, for some, have involved serious loss of human rights. Indoor opportunities are extremely limited for unvaccinated families and individuals to participate together in healthy activities without mandated restrictions, and young people are desperate to live their lives normally.  It is imperative that every opportunity to allow people to  lower their stress, exercise and  to feel connected with nature, be provided. Fresh open air is that ENVIRONMENT. Ski Resorts are that OPPORTUNITY.

References:

(*1)(a) https://www.news-medical.net/news/20211001/Similar-viral-load-in-vaccinated-and-unvaccinated-individuals-infected-with-SARS-CoV-2-Delta-variant.aspx 

(b) https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(21)00648-4/fulltext

(2*) http://www.bccdc.ca/Health-Info-Site/Documents/Week_42_2021_BC_COVID-19_Situation_Report.pdf  (Table 2. pg 8)

(3*) See section "T"  https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/health/about-bc-s-health-care-system/office-of-the-provincial-health-officer/covid-19/covid-19-pho-order-nightclubs-food-drink.pdf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvM5meOXk9o   Removed now,!!!

Here it is again; Dr Peter Doshi, Editor of British Journal of Medicine whose video was removed from YouTube:

https://www.bitchute.com/video/HpGReYTsz6GM/

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CWEybbJD-o1/?utm_medium=share_sheet

(Above is a Molecular Biologist Professor, presenting at a meeting where vaccine -injured were giving their testimonies - this is why you see someone lying with a blanket behind her.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn5SwOZKzl0 Hospital transmission and bodily autonomy

https://www.pandata.org/reject-the-divide/  

Photo Acknowledgement Montana Ski Company