Trevor Petersen: When death comes too soon 
SkiNet Report by Michel Beaudry (http://www.skinet.com)
It snowed nearly two feet at Whistler on the night of March 3rd. Deep and 
light like it rarely gets in BC's Coast Mountains, the storm provided 
skiers and boarders with the best conditions of the thought this was a 
coincidence of cold, arctic air and a moist Pacific front, I know better. 
Trevor Petersen had just made his last trip back to Whistler. The freak
storm was his way of bestowing a blessing on the valley he loved so much.
It wasn't supposed to happen this way. At 34, Trevor Petersen was at the 
height of his powers. A cauldron of high-grade energy, the Whistlerite 
had a life force that seemed unextinguishable. And a spirit that was 
totally engaging. His signature ponytail flying proudly behind him, 
Petersen had skied and climbed his way into the heart of mountain 
culture. His was not a pose. He was the real thing. 
That's why his death a few weeks ago in Chamonix came as such a shock to 
his friends. "Why do the good ones get taken so soon," asked one of his 
close pals. year.  
On the afternoon of February 26th, after a successful three-week trip in 
Europe, Petersen decided to ski the Exit Couloir on the Aiguilee du Midi, 
by himself. Considered a daunting challenge for most recreational skiers, 
the couloir would have posed little risk for a man of Petersen's 
experience. In his many years of mountain adventures, he'd skied and 
climbed terrain that was ten times more dangerous. Unfortunately, danger 
cannot be quantified in the mountains.
Nobody knows exactly what happened. But the all-too-brutal evidence of a 
massive slide tells enough of the story. They found his body two days 
later, on the surface of the avalanche debris, near Glacier Ronde. 
Battered and broken, it spoke of a lonely and violent death.
While his friends and acquaintances deeply mourn the untimely passing of 
such a strong and noble spirit, it is toward the living that we must now 
turn our attention. A loving husband and enthusiastic father, Petersen 
left behind a wife, Tanya, and two children, his son Kye, and his
daughter Nava. A memorial trust fund has been set up to help his family 
make the transition to their new life without him. For those who wish to 
contribute, checks can be be sent to the Trevor Petersen Memorial Fund, 
Account #506-8424, Royal Bank of Canada, 101-4000 Whistler Way, Whistler, 
BC, V0N IB4.