Editing Whistler Blackcomb (section)

===Blackcomb opens===
[[File:Blackcomblogo.png|right|150px|thumb|Blackcomb Mountain logo, 1980–1985. The green leaf represents Aspen's ownership. The red and black skis were common to early marketing.]]

In 1978, a call for bids was issued to develop Blackcomb for skiing. The bidding to develop Blackcomb was contested by two companies, the [[Aspen Skiing Company]], and the newly formed Blackcomb Skiing Enterprises (BSE).<ref name=walk/> Aspen, having recently developed the [[Fortress Mountain Resort]] in Alberta, won the contest. A new company, Fortress Mountain Resorts, was formed with a 50–50 partnership between Aspen and the [[Business Development Bank of Canada]]. The new competition, paid for partially by tax dollars, was not initially appreciated by Whistler.

Initial development of the mountain included four triple chairlifts (later named Cruiser, Stoker, Catskinner and Fitzsimmons) and one double chairlift, all supplied by [[Lift Engineering]] (Yan Lifts). The double chair was installed on the lower Gear Jammer run where the tube park is located today and was used as a beginner chair at a reduced speed. This area was also the first area to get permanent underground snow making pipes supplying snow making guns up the south side of the run. At the time the lifts were referred to only by number.

Blackcomb opened for skiing on December 6, 1980,<ref name=hist/> along with the newly constructed village. To ensure guests could continue to easily access Whistler from the new village, Whistler added three Yan triple [[chairlift]]s for the same season; the Village, Olympic, and Black Chairs which met up with the top of the Orange chair at the top of the men's downhill course. Whistler's original base at Alta Lake began to be referred to as Whistler Creek, or Creekside, after the creek that runs through the area.