All those cars on the Sea to Sky Highway this weekend aren't headed for Whistler - they're coming here.
Literally thousands of riders are descending on Squamish for two major events - and a good number of them won't be riding bikes.
The Squamish Mountain Bike Festival has definitively established itself as one of the community's premier festivals, with a massive presence and economic impact.
That's as it should be. The Mountain Bike Festival is the perfect event to showcase Squamish as the Outdoor Recreation Capital of Canada.
But there may well be more people from out of town here this weekend to ride the rails at the second weekend of the West Coast Railway Heritage Park's Day Out With Thomas.
As Thomas's only stop in Canada this year, the event has sold nearly 18,000 tickets to ride the world's most famous engine (sorry, Royal Hudson) over six days. It's been a smashing success and another occasion to showcase our community's assets to a large audience.
But it doesn't seem like too many local businesses have taken advantage of the crowds.
Some of the attendees last weekend reported to volunteers at the Heritage Park that when they asked for directions, employees at some gas stations and restaurants couldn't even tell them how to find the park.
To be fair, the Day Out With Thomas is a self-contained event, not a community festival. Unlike the Mountain Bike Festival or Loggers Sports, which take over the streets both downtown and elsewhere, the Heritage Park's visibility tucked away behind the BC Rail yards can limit the local impact and community participation.
But thousands of tourists in town still came through - and are coming through now - and the apparent ignorance of such a major opportunity to showcase Squamish highlights the need for more co-ordination of major events.
Tourism training for front-line employees at local businesses is also something we'd like to see more of. It's all well and good to build a visitor information centre on the highway, but in the end, the tourists are still going to ask their questions at the gas stations and the drive-thru lineups.
A little more co-operative marketing between the Chamber and the Heritage Park could make next year's Day Out With Thomas (and we hope there is one) more of a community celebration - and more of a success for everybody.
