our executive

Formed in 1978, HeliCat Canada is a not-for-profit association registered under the BC Societies Act. 

The Association is governed by an elected, volunteer Board of Directors. The Executive Director administers the day-to-day functions of the organization and manages its various initiatives, staff and contractors.

Chief EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Ross Cloutier

Ross brings over 40 years of adventure industry experience to his role of CEO. He has worked in over 30 countries developing adventure tourism businesses and adventure-economy strategies, and developing adventure tourism product with First Nations communities, governments, and businesses in Canada’s north, British Columbia, Greenland, Iceland, Labrador, and Chilean Patagonia. Ross is the founder of the Adventure Studies Department at Thompson Rivers University and was the BC Provincial Search and Rescue Coordinator. Ross was the President and Board Chair of Avalanche Canada and the Climbing Leader of the Everest Canada 1991 expedition.

President

Beat Steiner
Bella Coola Heli Sports

“The best three things about heli-skiing are the powder, the helicopter ride, and, most important, the privilege of being in those environments.” – Beat Steiner

Beat Steiner has always had a passion for skiing and capturing the beauty of the landscapes that make the sport possible. Born in Zurich, Switzerland in 1961, Steiner’s interest in skiing started at a young age. Following his graduation from high school, he worked in Zermatt before enrolling at Simon Fraser University – the perfect Canadian destination to both study and expand his ski skills at some of the country’s most iconic ski resorts. To stay afloat and keep invested in his passion, Steiner stayed at several Whistler squatters cabins while working with some friends to organize extreme ski expeditions to slopes that had never or rarely been skied. Funding these expeditions meant working with media and organizations to publish articles about his experiences and even filming extreme sport videos.

After meeting Craig Kelly in 1989, the reigning world champion in snowboarding at the time, they decided to combine their love of skiing with their skills in cinematography. They created films where they would not only showcase the world’s greatest ski and snowboard destinations, but also provide tips and tricks for all levels of snowboarders so fans could watch and learn at home. With the snowboarding industry on the rise and home video technology becoming widely popular, Steiner was able to make a career of filming for the next 16 years, traveling the world’s most beautiful and exotic ski locations including Japan, Argentina, Russia, New Zealand, Iran, India and Greenland. As a full-time cinematographer, projects included work on Imax Extreme, The North Face expeditions for NBC, Warren Miller's feature films and Global Adventures series, as well as numerous action sequences for both TV commercials and feature films.

His company, ADventureScope Films, participated in creating a trend for shooting extreme-sports videos. To find the best terrain and snow conditions, he began using helicopters to fly to remote mountain areas in search of the deepest snow, and the biggest, steepest slopes. After discovering Bella Coola – nearly 450 kms from the nearest traffic light – in February 2000 with two friends and partners; Christian Begin, a fellow cinematographer, and Peter “Swede” Mattsson, the production safety coordinator and mountain guide; Steiner knew he had something untouched and decided to apply for a heli-ski permit.

They first operated in 2,000 sq/km of mountains to the north and south of the Bella Coola Valley, with 40 people signed up for their inaugural winter in 2003. Two years later the heli-ski business had grown to 120 sign ups, at which point Steiner and his partners began focusing full time on growing the business and expanding their permit area. They now have the largest permitted Heli-Ski area in the world with 15,500 sq/kms (3.25 million acres) of terrain stretching from the fjords and mountains of Bella Coola to Mt. Waddington, the highest peak in B.C. The intimacy of the groups and hands-on approach is what drives the business – with five separate lodging facilities, the team can host small groups and private programs, ranging from five to 16 people.

Steiner remains at the forefront of the Heli-Ski industry, constantly looking for ways to expand or improve and find unique new skiing opportunities. He plans to build another heli-ski lodge and expand its summer programs, which include sold-out grizzly bear viewing programs at Tweedsmuir Park Lodge.

When he’s not sliding down the most scenic slopes in Canada, he enjoys spending time with his family and sharing his passion with his children.

Vice-President

Dave Morrison
Island lake Lodge Catskiing

Secretary / Treasurer

Paul Osak
Selkirk Snowcat Skiing

Paul Osak is the president and owner-operator of Selkirk Snowcat Skiing, which he purchased in 2013. Originally from southern Ontario, Paul and his family moved to Nelson in 2001 to embrace the mountain lifestyle. In 2008, he took over as president of the Whitewater ski team and spent six years as a member of the Advisory Planning Commission for the City of Nelson. A big believer in giving back, Paul has developed partnerships with Selkirk College and the LV Rogers High School outdoor programs, providing students with first-hand experience and behind-the-scenes education at a cat ski lodge. Paul’s strong background in business and corporate sales is an asset to the HCC Board of Directors, where he sits as a Director-at-Large with a focus on membership.      

Director at Large

Mike Sadan
Whistler Heli Skiing

Mike is currently the Senior Advisor for Whistler Heli Skiing, owned by Whistler-Blackcomb/Vail Resorts. He previously served as GM for 15 years and has been guiding guests since 1991. Mike’s career both in the field and in adventure recreation management has spanned several sectors and over 35 years. He was owner-operator of one of British Columbia’s busiest river rafting companies for two decades and was a founding director of the British Columbia River Outfitters Association before joining our team.

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Kathy Milne
Backcountry Snowcats

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Sue Gould
Independent Guide

Sue Gould was the Director of Guide Operations at Great Canadian Heliskiing. She’s always had a passion for the mountains even though she grew up playing piano competitions all over Canada. Back in the early 90’s, she put her career in music on hold in order to pursue mountaineering more seriously. Her first job in the industry had her throwing bombs at snow while working for the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure avalanche control program. She then spent a bit of time working as a field research technician for ASARC. Once she achieved her guiding certification in 1995, she started right away with Great Canadian Heliskiing and has been there ever since.

While Sue can also be found teaching avalanche courses for the Canadian Avalanche Association. Off season, she mixes it up by performing with a variety of jazz and classical ensembles. She is also the music director and conductor for the Purcell Mountain Orchestra, as well as a private piano, voice and music theory teacher. Sue brings a variety of experience to the board, having worked with many different kinds of teams.