Words: ckoPhotos: cko, Doug Bishop, and others

ItÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a damn good thing the boys over at Plehouse Films only put out one ski flick per year, because I donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t think I could handle too many more premieres and the debauchery that surrounds them. The just-concluded tour of Quebec for PlehouseÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s second film Red Tape covered three stops in a week and a half Ã¢â‚¬â€œ not a rigourous travel schedule but in the home province of Plehouse it was enough to satisfy any premiere junkie. HereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s my account of what went down:

Heading out into traffic, guided by Trish the Fish

Arrival at the venue - just in time to miss the movie

The tour began in beautiful Quebec City. Since Newschoolers is now run out of Montreal, that meant one thing: road trip! Doug and I packed the essentials, got some randos on board and headed out in rush-hour traffic in Montreal in hopes of getting to Quebec City in time for the show. The randos included my girlfriend Lucie, newly transplanted Montreal-er Emily Bennett and visiting lurker Max Hill. Prospects of actually making it to the venue for the main event were iffy at best but things began to look grim when yours truly made a couple

of disasterous navigational errors. Thankfully Doug caved into some good old fashioned peer pressure and was able to successfully back up on the highway far enough for us to get back on track. Once again Doug, IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢m sorry. Two-and-half short hours later found us checked in to our hotel and on our way to the event. As predicted and feared by most of us, we missed the movie Ã¢â‚¬â€œ but we werenÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t going to let that spoil the evening. The venue, a classy theatre on the edge of old Quebec was packed full of 600 crazy ski fans and even though we arrived after the movie and the prize giveaways, the crowd was still buzzing. Being touted as the World Premiere brought out a star-studded cast to the show: The Phils, Thomas Rinfret, Josh Bibby, Iannick B (avec Amy), newcomers JF Houle and Kim Lamare, the D-Structure crew and even The Jerk from Freeze were all on hand for the festivities.After the venue cleared out, the crowd moved into Old Quebec where we partied Ã¢â‚¬Ëœtil the wee hours in smokiest bar on the planet. IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ll let the pictures tell the story on this one but judging by everyoneÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s condition the following morning, the event was a complete success.

Smokiest bar ever.

Iannick & Amy enjoying the festivities.

Emily, Max, and cko.

Belan looks excited to see Emily.

Max & Doug take things to the next level - Bibby looks scared.

The next event on the list was much more low-key. An all ages event back in Montreal the following weekend at Cinemateque. I made this one a solo mission and figured it would be a great environment to actually get to watch the movie this time. The venue was a perfect size for the dozens of kids that showed up, with an intimate theatre setup and a very laid back atmosphere. All the Plehouse boys were there in full force signing autographs on posters, clothing and the new Freeze mags they were handing out. Now, I wonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t ruin the movie for anyone (weÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ll save that for our Movie Review section) but highlights included some phenomenal cinematography during the Iceland segment, a solid soundtrack which contributes to an overall great vibe, and finally getting a chance to see TJ, Bibby and JF Houle killing it on film. Oh, and Sarah stepped it up this year with one her strongest segments on record.

Classy digs for the all ages show.

DVDs and autographs for everyone.

Phil Benjamin lookin' all sophistcated after the show.

After the show, more autographing ensued and a small posse including Felix

from D-Structure, the Powder11 guys, and myself headed uptown to enjoy the rest

of the night at the Plehouse headquarters (read: Charles and PhilÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s apartment).

Another successful mission, made extra special by actually getting to see what

all the hype was about. Two down, one to go.

They say you should always save the best for last, and I guess they have that saying en franÃƒÂ§ais too because Plehouse crew ended things off with a bang. The final show on the Quebec tour was at Foufounes Electriques on busy Ste Catherine street in the heart of Montreal. Premieres at Foufs always have a very good chance of becoming epic due to the sheer volume of people that show up and the crazy drink specials they always serve up ($2 beers anyone?). All the regulars from the last two stops were there and much to the surprise of most JF Cusson actually made a public appearance to take it all in. When the lights dimmed for the show both levels of the bar were packed and it was evident the crowd was happy to see signs that the new ski season was well on its way. As I took in my second viewing of the film the rest of the crowd cheered on

their heroes as they lit things up on screen. Afterwards, skis were given away and schwag was thrown into the throng of hungry fans hanging out in front of

the stage. The party then spread out to the rest of the bar (which features a fully functioning mini-ramp open to anyone that feels theyÃ¢â‚¬â„¢re sober enough to give it a shot) where mingling and schmoozing were in full effect. Drink specials were fully taken advantage of and before I knew it, JF was giving Doug golf tips with his trusty pool cue and Belan and I were having a heated discussion in the corner trying not to get hit. Things escalated from there until we were promptly asked to leave as closing time quickly approached. The fact that the bar closed was not nearly enough to dampen the spirits of the remaining party-goers, as we carried on in the streets outside. In the end I made it to bed safely just after 5:00.