Sean Okeefe maneuvers his 20-seat The Squamish Shred Shuttle into a parking spot at the Squamish Adventure Centre on a recent sunny autumn afternoon.
The 30-something local launched his shuttle in August of 2017. The company provides daily transportation between Squamish and Whistler in addition to offering transportation for some private events – including four weddings this past summer. With the end of Greyhound in our region last month, Okeefe hopes his burgeoning business is on the cusp of something big – and fun.
The Chief sat down with Okeefe in one of his shuttles for a chat about his business, life in Squamish and what the future may hold for both.
What follows is an edited version of that conversation.
Q: The typical Squamish question – how long have you been here?
A: I moved to Whistler in 1998 from Ontario – chasing the snowboard dream. I worked in a range of different businesses from skate and snowboard shops and distribution centres to restaurants and pubs, golf courses – I was an electrician for years. I found out what I wanted to do by finding out what I didn't want to do. Then, I was in the city going to school and started a Jet Ski rental company. I ended up selling that. After four years of being in the city for school, I wanted to be back in the mountains. Squamish was obviously the perfect place. I have been here since 2011.
Q: It sounds like from a young age you were quite entrepreneurial. Is your family the same way?
A: No, all my family are educators. My dad and my mom were teachers, my aunt is a teacher, my uncle is an art professor – it's a very education-focused family. Then, both my sister and I went the business route.
Q: You call your business "experiential transportation." Can you explain that?
A: It is because we aren't just providing you with a ride. We play ski and snowboard videos. We play music.
We do some social media stuff and we work with a number of brands. For example, Beaver Wax provides us with all sorts of wax bars and when the first-time riders come on, we usually provide them with a bar of wax or stickers. So, it is more than just a transportation company.
Q: How is Squamish for getting a business going? What is the business culture like?
A: A little slower than in the city. But then everyone here I have chatted with has been so behind the company and getting a good transportation option for Squamish to Whistler.
Q: And you drive the buses, too?
A: I am the main driver, yes. I do have a few people who are going to help part-time. I look for people who have been driving for more than 10 years and have winter driving experience. One of my new part-time drivers is from the Yukon so he has driven in a lot of snow. I want to find not just the typical bus driver, but someone with a passion for biking and snowboarding and who will get along well with the youth who we transport.
Q: Can you tell me about the buses?
A: This one has 20 seats. We have another one that is just going through its commercial inspections right now. It has 22 seats onboard. We also have a 4X4 van that is more geared for the summer and for the off-road stuff we do around town. We are looking into an additional shuttle as well. We want to have two running and one as a backup.
Q: Why do you think Greyhound failed?
A: I think they spread themselves too thin. A lot of their rural routes weren't creating revenue for them.
With Epic Rides coming out of the city, it has become the main option from Vancouver to Whistler. You also have to evolve with the times. Greyhound is an old company that has been around forever. Are they renowned for their customer service? Not so much. That is where everything is going in this industry – customer service is number one.
Q: With the dissolution of Greyhound, one of the concerns former mayor Patricia Heintzman mentioned was that private carriers wouldn't be able to offer a low enough price point. How much is it to ride your shuttle?
A: A single rider for a single pass is $22 round trip. But what I am promoting more is the 10 and 20 pass options. If you buy 20 passes, it works out to about $17 a trip. It is comparable to Greyhound. I am losing money, for now, but that is business. You have to struggle a little bit for a while. The one thing I wanted to do was make it affordable for a single rider or group of people.
Q: What is next for your business?
A: We have a couple trips a day now, but we are working to add more trips as we get closer to the ski season. [Rides have to be pre-booked online.]
What I am working on this winter, for next summer, is a 13-day pre-packaged trip, where everything – your accommodation, your transportation, your bike tickets, food options – is taken care of.
Q: What do you think of the newly instituted speed limits? [Horseshoe Bay to Squamish was reduced to 80 km/hour from 90 km/h; Squamish to Whistler dropped to 90 km/h from 100 km/h]
A: I think it is a good thing. There are certain areas on the highway where that extra 10 kilometres was probably a bit too much and that is where you see some of the accidents. Just the sheer volume of vehicles on the highway now has increased so much and that is why we are seeing an increase in crashes. You are still going to get the people who are racing up from the city to get [to Whistler] as soon as possible. Some of them just don't have the right tires or lack the skill for driving in these mountain conditions. Ten kilometres an hour really isn't that big of a deal. In this bus, we keep it around 90 km per hour anyway. Even when the speed limit was 100 km, I was still going 90. Because it is diesel, the shuttle doesn't have the same acceleration as gas does, so it is safer, in that sense. When the roads are getting worse, you shouldn't be going anywhere near that speed anyway.
Q: You have been in the corridor for a while. What do you think of all the changes and growth in Squamish?
A: I have mixed feelings. I love seeing the growth in town and seeing options that we haven't had before. It is becoming a bit of an extension of both Vancouver and Whistler. So, there are a lot of benefits, but the downside is if you start losing that peace and quiet and escape that we had. I used to tell all my friends how quick and easy it was for me to get to Brohm Lake and be in the water in like 10 minutes – it is not even doable anymore [in the summer]. There isn't the parking and other locations are busy as well. It is a little sad, in that sense.
Q: In the rare moments when you aren't working, what do you do for fun?
A: I play on the local men's soccer league. I started a team five years ago with some friends. We have grown that team to the point we are actually winning some games now. And, I snowboard and mountain bike. I have two dogs so I spend time walking with them. When I get a chance, I go over to the Island to surf.
