Page 64 - Sharp November 2024

WATCH
GONE FURTHER
A JOURNEY TO CELEBRATE CITIZEN PROMASTER’S 35-YEAR ANNIVERSARY
By Justin Mastine-Frost
P RESS JUNKETS ARE A PARTICULAR BEAST ON THEIR OWN,
but Citizen Promaster trips always take on a life of their own. From flying over glaciers in Squamish, B.C., to learning to scuba dive in the Bahamas, Citizen Watches loves putting its Promaster watches (and the reporters who cover them) right on the cusp of danger, where one’s risk analysis is promptly put to task. We’ve gone diving with sharks. We’ve raced UTVs up the back side of Whistler. And this summer, we were waiting for a helicopter to pull us into another great Canadian mountain range, alongside some of the world’s most impressive adventurers: Red Bull alumnus and ice climbing legend Will Gadd; award-winning nature photographer Jody MacDonald; paraglider, base jumper, climber, and mountaineer Jeff Shapiro; and scuba diver and underwater photographer William Drumm.
This fresh group of ambassadors had already been putting their respective Promaster watches to task, testing their mettle in all sorts of challenging environments, and this trek would be no different. Right out of the gates, it was clear that this was no ordinary junket. Straight from our first night’s hotel, the team departed for Lake Louise for dinner, with a surprise waiting for us on arrival. A gentle canoe paddle around the lake sounded almost relaxing until we were informed that a cold plunge into glacial waters would be on the menu before cleaning up for dinner. “Be prepared to be challenged to push your boundaries this trip,” we were told, “Go Beyond is one of the pillars of Promaster after all.”
Given the Promaster line’s three pillars of air, land, and sea, at least a momentary experience with water had to be in the cards, but our cold plunge wasn’t the only time we would find ourselves submerged. The next day’s canyoning experience involved heavy wetsuits, as we were led to rappel down a series of waterfalls. Only a few of our team had prior climbing experience, but with Gadd over our shoulder, the enthusiasm and excitement rapidly outpaced any trepidation. As we inched our way down some of the more treacherous passes, Gadd swung his way down an opposing rock face with reckless abandon, smiling and cracking jokes while putting to rest any lingering fears for our safety in the process.
Energized by this first immersion into our adventure, our crew piled into our helicopter and pointed toward the Bugaboos — a mountain range in B.C.’s Purcell Mountains — for a few more
64 NOVEMBER 2024
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