Carl Kuster

Carl’s extensive involvement with BRP since 2002 has blazed a path for CKMP to work in the film production industry. The full service amenities that CKMP provides are appealing to increase efficiencies for film production. CKMP’s professional guiding services help to mitigate the risk of operating in a backcountry environment for a commercial application.

The spirit of CKMP is intergenerational and Carl remembers where his love for snowmobiles began growing-up in the Kuster family motorsports dealership with mom and dad. Carl’s passion resulted in him becoming a four time X-Games medalist while he raced snowmobiles for ten years, seven of those years with Blair Morgan Racing. In 2008 Carl transitioned his competitive snowmobiling experience which complemented his backcountry experience. The formation of Carl Kuster Mountain Park (CKMP) in Malakwa BC, would ensure his love for the mountains would remain a cornerstone within his career.

An interesting piece of Canadian history suggests that Carl’s creative, mechanical ingenuity runs in his blood. In 1882, Carl’s ancestor Frank Lamoureux and his brother Joseph constructed a cable ferry to cross the North Saskatchewan in the town of Lamoureux near present day Fort Saskatchewan, after transporting people in their small boat for six years. The brothers continued this service at a fee of fifty cents until a bridge was constructed in 1906.

Mechanical ingenuity is not the only blood memory Carl was fortunate to inherit. Frank Lamoureux’s wife Marie Lamoureux (nee Sauve), was Métis. In the opinion of explorer David Thompson, having a Métis wife would have given him a great advantage. Marie’s five brothers fought for Métis rights in the 1885 resistance. One of Marie’s brothers Joseph “L’Iroquois” Sauvé would have been 18 years old during the battles. Below is a photo of Joseph from the Saint Boniface historical society. Joseph is wearing his Métis sash with the knot in the centre, which is known as the warrior position. See figure 1.

Before they were required to go to war against what would be Canada for their human rights, Carl’s ancestors were people of the land and were known as Buffalo hunters. Marie carried ancestry from the Turtle Mountain and Little Shell Bands through her great grandparents Alexis Laverdure (1765-1850) and his wife Angélique Montour who were Ojibwe (Anishinabe) and Métis-Cree, also known as Oji-Cree Métis. Marie’s Grandmother on her father’s side was Marguerite Muskegon thought to be swampy Cree.

After the 1885 resistance, the Métis were forced to go into hiding to escape the colonial elements of Canada that were strategically eliminating all Indigenous Peoples. To avoid Indigenous specific incarceration, fraudulent land theft or having their children taken away to residential schools, like many other Métis families Carl’s ancestors chose to hide their Indigeneity to survive. One aspect of the corporate reconciliation goals at CKMP is to uncover Carl’s family stories and reclaim the adventurous land-based culture that was once his family’s norm.

Carl has always had a passion for preservation of the backcountry and is an advocate for responsible and respectful motorized land use. Within the laws of the hunt which were the first laws created within the land mass that eventually became Canada, conservation of the Buffalo was paramount and hunters harvested less than the annual increase each year. Unfortunately through the colonial development of Canada those conservation laws were ignored and the rapid development led to the disappearance of the Buffalo. Whether it is harvesting animals to survive, or accessing the backcountry for fitness, mental health or simply to connect with nature, there are simple ways to reduce our impacts and ensure natural marvels are available for generations to experience.

Today CKMP aspires to embody the values that Carl’s racing career was built on which include excellence, integrity, experience, relationship and inclusion. It is no surprise that Carl’s Indigenous roots are present within these core values, since these values have been expressed through the corporate lived behavior since CKMP’s inception.

At CKMP there is an industry leading team of certified guides that deliver a unique backcountry mountain experience within an impressive and expansive tenured area of the Monashee Mountains. As a matter of public safety, CKMP participates in initiatives that model the way to standardize and regulate snowmobile guide’s training.

CKMP employs thirty-two staff members during the winter months and is currently developing their strategic organizational culture to ensure the relational values of the company are anchored in the hearts and habits of all CKMP team members, clients and partners.