Description

Working Class is another of the most famous trails on the Whistler Westside, but unlike some other famous trails dropping straight off the Flank Trail, Working Class only gets a single black diamond rating.

Perhaps in that sense, this trail appeals to all the working class riders out there who might not feel up to a life-or-death challenge on the nearby double black lines? Or maybe not...

it's Whistler, afterall, and many of the "working class" riders here could rank in the top 10% of mountain bikers around the world.

Anyhow...

I digress. After following the classic climb to the top via Sirloin and the Flank trail, the Working Class descent begins with a fairly substantial slab roll-in.

The trail then runs down a fairly consistent series of medium-sized slabs, ending in a rooty run-out filled with small ledges.

The ledges and roots continue to cascade all the way down through a beautiful section of deep, dark Whistler forest.

If there's a quintessential trail that epitomizes what mountain biking is like on the Westside, it might be Working Class. There's no woodwork on this trail, and all the rolls are fairly manageable.

There is one optional, very large double black feature that has a single black ride around.

However, if you skip that one big feature, you'll enjoy a fairly consistent, relentless descent ripping straight down the mountain. There are a couple of different ways to finish the descent after Working Class, but the option shown here follows Baby Snakes to Danimal South. Baby snakes is a connector trail that doesn't seem to see much traffic, but that makes it nice and loamy as a result! Yeah, there are some rocks here, but a lot of the rocks and roots are covered by a nice layer of pine needles.

The trail itself climbs up and over a little ridge and then loops around a hillside.

Eventually, you work your way around the hillside and drop into a couple of steep, loose fall-away turns as you plummet towards the creek bottom below.

Some of those steep fall-away turns could feel a bit scary, but they each have just enough of a catch berm to keep you rolling around them and in control.

The exposure and the views through the gully are quite entertaining and make Baby Snakes worth it on its own! At the bottom, it drops straight into Danimal South. Danimal South is a fairly straightforward single black diamond trail that is a logical conclusion to many of the descents in this section of the Whistler Westside.

Whether you're coming off of Pura, Vida, High Society -> Baby Snakes, or Working Class -> Baby Snakes, it's a fairly logical finish. This section of the descent doesn't have any huge features aside from one alternate double black line.

Rather, this trail includes a lot of embedded rocks in the trail tread that are often laced with—and held in place by—extensive root webs.

This creates a fairly rough, consistent rumble-filled rip. However, be sure to watch out for a couple of hairpin corners.

There are a few hairpins that are a bit washed out and exposed on the downhill side, which can prove tricky.

The bottom of the singletrack also pops right out onto the pavement, so be sure to watch for cars as you exit.