Ky Lane Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 Gday guys, My partner is coming out from Vancouver shortly to spend a year over here in Australia - at the end of the year we're looking at moving back to BC for a while. Just wondering what the job/3d/digital design scene is like over there? Much going on etc? Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neko Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 i don't have much specific to help you with at this time, but it will be very interesting to see what the post-olympic effect will be like. you could make an argument for things getting better, or worse. when you get closer to the time, send me a PM and we can discuss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 24, 2009 Author Share Posted December 24, 2009 Cheers Paul - sounds like a plan. If Sydney is anything to go by, its going to get crazy there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ihabkal Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 I really hope that the economy will improve in Canada overall in 2010, as by 2011 or 2012, my immigration should either be approved or denied. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amer abidi Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 Just saw some pics of British Columbia on the telly; man! that is one sweet looking country!!! Gorgeous.. the sort of sceneries that you feel make you live longer! I'm beginning to appreciate nature more as im growing older, and i really like what i saw =) I hope things work out for you Ky.. would be sweet to be able to lift your head from the computer screen and enjoy some of that gorgeous scenery within minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jinsley Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 Ky, I am with Paul as far as whether construction will pick up or slow down after the Olympics. My gut tells me that things will pick up a little with a few larger projects coming back to life... but you never know. I second giving Paul a shout when you are thinking of coming out here, he was willing to help me a ton when I was starting out and is a pretty decent guy. If that doesn't work out, you can pm or email me also, I know a few places (and maybe can suggest a few to avoid...) in the Lower Mainland that are actively seeking people ranging from 3D Artists to CAD technicians so give me a shout. A few of the larger 3D companies have shut down or had large amounts of lay-offs this last year so there seems to be alot of freelance guys right now... I really notice the increase in emails from people seeking jobs the last 3- 6 months. I don't know whether you want to focus on freelance or not, but I would think that your best bet would be to go work in a firm full time supporting the 3D side of things and offer CAD and graphic support to the mix. Any LEED experience would be a huge asset too, the whole province and most of Canada is on a large LEED kick right now. I don't think you would need to be certified, but a good knowledge base of the letter templates and process (especially the graphic presentation part) would help tons with securing employment. Cheers, -JI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ihabkal Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 I know a few places (and maybe can suggest a few to avoid...) in the Lower Mainland that are actively seeking people ranging from 3D Artists to CAD technicians so give me a shout. Can you help me? I wanna get out of Lebanon and back to North America, maybe you can point me in the direction of a firm that could hire me and help me get a work permit? Thanks in any case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 24, 2009 Author Share Posted December 24, 2009 Thanks for the offers of help guys! Really appreciate it. I'm kinda lucky, I have a masters in digital design, so 3D isnt all I do. Im freelance at the moment here to various ad agencies here in Australia along with my own little client list Ive kept over the years - so if an agency took me on, Id be able to do alot more than just 3D. Im too old for a working holiday visa, so I think Im going to need to line something up before I leave and essentially get "sponsored" for a skilled immigration application. Here's hoping! And Merry Aussie Xmas guys - hope Van is snowing and not slushy (wishful thinking, I know!). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 24, 2009 Author Share Posted December 24, 2009 Just saw some pics of British Columbia on the telly; man! that is one sweet looking country!!! Gorgeous.. the sort of sceneries that you feel make you live longer! I'm beginning to appreciate nature more as im growing older, and i really like what i saw =) I hope things work out for you Ky.. would be sweet to be able to lift your head from the computer screen and enjoy some of that gorgeous scenery within minutes. Yeah, its very beautiful. I race alot of 12/24hr enduro mountain bike races here, and the prospect of doing some rides around BC is just too tempting! Although, as a child of the sun and growing up in tropical Australia, the winters get me down a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ihabkal Posted December 25, 2009 Share Posted December 25, 2009 Vancouver's weathe ris very nice you won't be disappointed. It's like moving form a nice place to another. B ut you never really appreciate living somewhere until you leave it and expreience a new country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 25, 2009 Author Share Posted December 25, 2009 Vancouver's weathe ris very nice you won't be disappointed. It's like moving form a nice place to another. B ut you never really appreciate living somewhere until you leave it and expreience a new country. Completely agree. I stayed in Van for about a year a few years ago, and MAN we have it good here in Aussie. No homeless laying around, no slushy mud for 4 months of the year, and alot less rain (not always a good thing). Vancouver winters will get me down... but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neko Posted December 25, 2009 Share Posted December 25, 2009 Completely agree. I stayed in Van for about a year a few years ago, and MAN we have it good here in Aussie. No homeless laying around, no slushy mud for 4 months of the year, and alot less rain (not always a good thing). Vancouver winters will get me down... but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. i'm not keen on vancouver 'winters' either, and i grew up in the prairies where it can get to -40C. i much prefer sunshine and cold to the dark, depressing cold rain. however, it doesn't get much nicer than this on christmas today... +6C and clear skies. every place has it's ups and downs, and if the weather is about the worst complaint, it can't be all bad. merry christmas and all that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 25, 2009 Author Share Posted December 25, 2009 Yeah, I was in Van for a month over Xmas a couple years ago, and I was nearly depressed by the end of it. Growing up in the tropics, Im just a child of the sun, and not going outside for a month was just weird for me. But still, I need to get my mountain bike out there ASAP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Ky, you're likely to going to want a new bike. MTB in BC can be very different from the rest of the world. No doubt there is a ton of XC/Enduro/All Mountain riding, but BC and particularily Vancouver, is the meca of Freeride. Head over to Youtube and look up "North Shore MTB", "Wade Simmons", "New World Disorder", "Kranked", "Digger", "Crankworx" and "Mt. Fromme". Maybe, lift accessed riding isn't your thing, but I can't get enough. For a good bike, look into Rocky Mountain, Norco, Kona, Cove, Banshee and Brodie - all Vancouver based companies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 29, 2009 Author Share Posted December 29, 2009 Gday Steve, Oh yeah. Very very aware of what BC is renowned for! And yeah, while itll be a very new thing to me - will be getting a freeride bike for all the north shore has to offer. We get Drop In and Ride Guide Bike here on cable, and me and the lads all sit around and leave our jaws on our chests. Wicked stuff, and can only help with bike control for XC stuff. But I's also love to go exploring. I get lost on 8-12hr rides here just for the fun of it. Im in training for the 24hr of Adrenalin this year being run here in Australia, and the qualifier to be at my home trailpark.. so thats my thing. But hell, if its got 2 wheels... Ill have a crack (and itll prob crack me!). Oh, and my first MTB was a Kona Hoss Deluxe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 Awesome! Ride Guide and Drop In are great. Check out the Stund series too. Ride Guide did an episode this year on Panorama and Kicking Horse a few weeks before I went to ride there. I've also been to Fernie a few times and will be heading there this July. Kicking Horse will overwhelm you. Its so big and so high and so steep you'll wonder how you can ride it. I pooped my pants a few times. On top of all of that, there is a grizzly bear preserve IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BIKE PARK! Absolutely check it out if you get the chance. Make sure you buy armor and a full face. Don't even think about riding without it. I think Race Face/Roach make the best leg pads and I'm partial to Giro helmets, but I have a 661 pressure suit for my torso. I've been injured a few times, but would certainly have been much worse without the protection - think shattered kneecap and face. Body armor turns most crashes into something you just shake off and laugh about over a beer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 29, 2009 Author Share Posted December 29, 2009 Ha! You make it sound so appealing! Its something I gotta do though. I did a little downhill at sun Peaks last time I was there, and shat myself on the green run. Just seems pointless riding a bike and not having to pedal once but Im sure theres some wicked trails out in the moountains to get lost in. Will just need to carry a sidearm for the bears Last major injury I did was slipping on ice snowboarding at Cypress and putting my kneecap sideways on my knee... ouch. Heres some of our local trails.. - My fav. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 30, 2009 Share Posted December 30, 2009 Cool beans! Here's the crew I ride with: http://www.youtube.com/user/jfravenelle I spent last year in North Carolina (USA), so like you, I was riding XC all year. Now in Manitoba, I spend all winter on the trainer and watching MTB videos. I did, however, take my Slayer out for a spin on Dec 22 - winter be damned. Lift accessed riding is far more demanding than it looks. True, there isn't much pedaling involved, but its a full body workout the ENTIRE time. Far more balance shifting is involved, almost no sitting and a lot of holding yourself in odd riding positions. Not to mention the constant pounding of roots, rocks and drops. A top to bottom descent of Kicking Horse (4500 vertical feet) will take upwards of 45 mins. The 15 minute gondola ride up is spent eating and drinking all you can. Do that 4-5 times and you are completely drained. Some riding that is likely more your style, for now , are IMBA epics and you will have a couple in your backyard. http://www.imba.com/epics/rides.html I have only ridden one so far (Tsali) but plan to ride the Maah Dah Hey (North Dakota) this coming season and The Kingdom (Vermont) as soon as possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neko Posted December 30, 2009 Share Posted December 30, 2009 frosty - i went to U of M for architecture (four years). rode my bike to school down the pembina highway from osborne village to the university almost every day, even during the winter. that was some challenging riding, as i'm sure you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ihabkal Posted December 30, 2009 Share Posted December 30, 2009 shouldn't this be in a riding forum? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 30, 2009 Share Posted December 30, 2009 that was some challenging riding, as i'm sure you know. Paul, that is actually one of the scariest things I have done on a bike. I lived in St Norbert while attending U of M so biked through the residential neighborhoods to get to school. I now live downtown between the 'ledge and the the forks. I work by the museum and get to walk or ride as I see fit. Anyone here in Winterpeg you want to give a shout out to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 30, 2009 Author Share Posted December 30, 2009 Yeah, how dare we have lives away from a pair of 14" computer monitors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jinsley Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Gday Steve, Oh yeah. Very very aware of what BC is renowned for! And yeah, while itll be a very new thing to me - will be getting a freeride bike for all the north shore has to offer. We get Drop In and Ride Guide Bike here on cable, and me and the lads all sit around and leave our jaws on our chests. Wicked stuff, and can only help with bike control for XC stuff. But I's also love to go exploring. I get lost on 8-12hr rides here just for the fun of it. Im in training for the 24hr of Adrenalin this year being run here in Australia, and the qualifier to be at my home trailpark.. so thats my thing. But hell, if its got 2 wheels... Ill have a crack (and itll prob crack me!). Oh, and my first MTB was a Kona Hoss Deluxe Before you buy, give it a try... decent downhill bikes starts out around $1500 used and can go up to around $3000 - $4000 new. Alot of the local companies like norco, etc. have free demos up at Whistler and Grouse so if you plan it right, you can get 5 - 6 days in riding on decent bikes without making the purchase, just have to buy your lift pass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ihabkal Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 I always wanted to ride a bicycle, but in Lebanon it is not advised as yo will surely get hit by a cager, I started riding a maxi scooter 650cc 18 months ago, it is so nice to run away from traffic jams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ky Lane Posted December 31, 2009 Author Share Posted December 31, 2009 Before you buy, give it a try... decent downhill bikes starts out around $1500 used and can go up to around $3000 - $4000 new. Alot of the local companies like norco, etc. have free demos up at Whistler and Grouse so if you plan it right, you can get 5 - 6 days in riding on decent bikes without making the purchase, just have to buy your lift pass. Oh yeah, Id def be hiring something for a while. ill be bringing my XC bikes over with me, and theres about 10 grand there :S Cant really afford more bikes for a while. Cant wait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now