Below is a new letter that we would like that you to copy and paste and send to Dr. Henry. Please feel free to make any changes to improve the letter. Their email addresses are: bonnie.henry@gov.bc.ca, HLTH.Minister@gov.bc.ca, premier@gov.bc.ca     Thank you for your continued support.

To:      Dr. Bonnie Henry - Provincial Medical Officer, British Columbia

CC:      Adrian Dix - Health Minister, British Columbia

CC:      John Horgan - Premier, British Columbia

It seems clear that Vail Resorts will not change its policy on vaccine certificates unless it is ordered by the provincial health authority. It is up to you, Dr. Bonnie Henry, to change the policy so that the Covid 19 safety orders are science based and consistent.

It is mandatory to show proof of full vaccination to enter gyms, fitness studios, indoor racquet sports, dance classes, bars, restaurants, entertainment and sporting events. Yet it’s not required to get into the tight, poorly ventilated space on a gondola, a ride that can take 25 minutes or longer..

Every winter morning, there’s pressure to upload quickly. Singles skiers take every available space. Physical distancing on gondolas is measured in inches rather than feet. Most skiers will not wear masks because neck tubes and scarves are permitted – because they are often soggy and rarely worn properly over the nose, they offer little protection.

Eating and drinking are not permitted but many people remove face coverings to do so. The small windows are often frozen shut, eliminating all ventilation. Contact tracing will be impossible! Long before Covid 19, locals referred to gondolas as “germ buckets”.  With COVID-19, the risk of spreading disease is greatly magnified.

At Whistler, our small businesses and most of our jobs depend on Whistler Blackcomb staying open. Last year we wore face coverings in lineups, on lifts, and in gondolas. We rode chairlifts and gondolas only with family members or alone. The mountain still had to close early because of a major Covid19 outbreak.

This year, the highly infectious Delta variant has pushed the number of active cases and deaths in the province to a significantly higher level than this time last year. Yet the provincial health authority insists there’s no need for vaccination passports, one of the most effective weapons to fight the pandemic, in ski resort gondolas.

Finally, it's just not right to expect the vaccinated, those that have followed health orders, who got their vaccines as soon as they were available, to cram into a small, often unventilated space with the unvaccinated. But we have no choice, that is if we want to spend the day on the mountain with friends and family.