7:45 am Pacific
Dear Subscribers and Non-Subscribers:
It’s rare we bring you a story like this, and a call for immediate help, though in more than 15 years of focusing on money-making opportunities in the speculative capital markets we’ve also highlighted the importance of “community” and how each of us should share some of what we make in order to be a blessing in the lives of others.
There are times when we can really make a difference, and NOW is 1 of those moments.
BMR is stepping up to the plate, and we’re asking you to as well – whatever your heart tells you to give.
Whistler, where BMR is now based, is reeling from a horrific ski accident that has left an experienced 38 year-old instructor paralyzed.
Chris Song, who was teaching an advanced group of 3 teens including a 15 year-old boy brought to Canada 6 years ago by BMR’s founder and editor, slipped on a patch of ice skiing toward the entrance of a double-black diamond run at Blackcomb, hit a rock and tumbled 150 meters over a cliff. By the grace of God, Chris managed to survive this harrowing fall. Despite his helmet splitting in half, he suffered no brain injuries, no cognitive impairment – another miracle. However, his life – and the lives of his shocked young family – have been altered dramatically. Chris is paralyzed from the waist down and faces a challenging and expensive rehab period and adjustment. Â
This story became public last weekend and a GoFundMe campaign for Chris was launched by Whistler Blackcomb Ski School Kids Manager Donna Kerr. The response to date has been impressive, with just over $100,000 in donations as of this morning, but the 15 year-old boy who was 1 of Chris’ students on the day of his accident – and watched with horror as he saw his instructor go over the cliff – has brought a powerful new perspective to this tragedy and is pleading for additional help for Chris and his family.
“The ski instructors at Whistler, including Chris, helped changed my life for the good when I came to Canada from Argentina 6 years ago,” stated Santiago Vizhnay, “so I felt I needed to share this story because of what has happened to Chris. He and his family really need our help and I decided it was important for me to talk about this, because I was there and witnessed what happened. Hopefully we can spread the word and raise a lot more for Chris’ GoFundMe campaign. It was a miracle he even survived – I thought he was going to die – and I’m hoping for another miracle that we raise so much money that he gets the proper care and can contribute again to help kids like me in different ways. Just a little while ago he was my ski instructor. Now he is paralyzed for life. And he and his wife have 2 young daughters. He always taught me to be safe on the hill, skiing and biking, so I don’t know why this happened. In 6 years here I have learned that what helps make Canada great is how we help our neighbours and friends and even strangers in need.”
Vizhnay agreed to go on camera with BMR, recalling the horrifying moment he saw Chris go over the cliff, and makes a passionate plea for additional help.
Below is a link and the full story that appeared in Whistler’s Pique NewsMagazine:
Brandon BarrettÂ
Whistler Blackcomb (WB) is investigating an on-mountain accident last week that injured a Ski School instructor.
On Friday, Feb. 7, WB confirmed a 38-year-old coach was seriously injured on the job Jan. 28 while skiing in an alpine zone on a double-black diamond run.
âThe entire Whistler Blackcomb team sends our sympathy and support to a member of our team who was seriously injured while skiing on the job,â said Belinda Trembath, Whistler Blackcombâs COO, in a statement. âWe are truly like family here at Whistler Blackcomb, and we are heartbroken that this incident occurred. The safety of our guests and employees is the most important thing to us, and we are conducting a comprehensive investigation of the incident.â
As a result, WB said it has restricted sliding in double-black terrain for certain types of Ski School lessons and instructor groups for the time being.
In a Jan. 31 internal staff email shared with Pique, a Ski School supervisor said the team is âreelingâ from the accident, and that the Ski School âas a whole is looking into practices and terrain to hopefully avoid something similar happening to another one of our team.â
Fundraiser Launched For ‘Caring, Supportive’ Ski Instructor
On Saturday, Feb. 8, after this story was first published, a GoFundMe campaign was launched in support of the injured ski instructor, Chris Song, offering more details on last week’s life-altering accident. Campaign organizer and Ski School Kids manager Donna Kerr wrote that Song was airlifted to Vancouver General Hospital, where he underwent multiple surgeries. His injuries reportedly include multiple broken ribs, a broken left shoulder and “an extremely serious” back injury that has resulted in paralysis from the waist down, wrote Kerr. Song is expected to be in hospital for approximately two months, before being transferred to Vancouver’s G.F. Strong Rehabilitation Centre. Song’s rehabilitation therapy could take upwards of a year.
“Chris will never walk again, and healing will take years,” Kerr added. “His life and the life of his family will never be the same.”
The campaign has a fundraising target of $75,000, money that will help Song’s family cover several major costs, including the purchase of a wheelchair and creating an accessible environment for when he returns home.
“Chris and his wife Jieun have been a part of the Whistler Community for nine years. Their two young children are growing up in our Mountain Town attending school, learning to ski, bike, play soccer, do gymnastics, hiking, and so much more,” Kerr wrote on the fundraising page. “It is our goal to ensure the Song Family can continue to enjoy this wonderful place we all call home while also supporting Chris in his long road to recovery.”
“Anyone who has ever met Chris know how caring, supportive, and welcoming he is to everyone in our community. His students in our Snow and Bike Schools only speak positively about their experiences particularly how patient he is when teaching. Chris takes his time to guide and instruct each student at the level they are at with encouragement and positive feedback.”
Donate to the fundraiser here.
Mountain SafetyÂ
Trembath addressed the topic of mountain safety in a pre-ski season interview with Pique in November, wanting to âreassure locals weâre continuing to work very closely with our mountain safety team to provide a safe experience on mountain.â
On the Whistler side, crews made offseason improvements around Olympic station âto improve the experience for first-timers mid-mountain,â Trembath said at the time.
From changes designed to create better access to the Catskinner loading area on Blackcomb for âfirst-timers skiing the Easy Out trailâ to connecting the top of the Excelerator quad to a new Catskinner Express trail, Trembath said mountain safety staff were âreally innovative this summer in thinking about how skiers circulateâ on Blackcomb. âIt was particularly looking after those first-timers and low to intermediate skiers that want to avoid mixing with folks coming out of our signature terrain park area.â
That circulation has been hampered since Jan. 19, when Blackcomb Mountainâs Glacier Express chair went down due to a damaged gear box. In a Feb. 7 social media post, WB said lift maintenance crews have repaired the issue and the lift will begin running intermittently Saturday, Feb 8Â as the gear box is tested and any final adjustments are made.
*This story was updated after publication to include information about the fundraiser launched Saturday, Feb. 8.Â
That’s a terrible accident and very tough on the family. Sorry to hear this, wishing them the best.
Comment by Danny — February 13, 2025 @ 12:15 pm
Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
Tragic⌠and so close geographically to a lot of BMR supporters
So.. as the âgood bookâ saysâŚdo not forget to share with others in time of need.
Comment by GregJ. — February 13, 2025 @ 3:02 pm
Tragic.
Thank you for sharing this Santiago. We will be praying for Brandon and his family. I hope your video helps move many more people to make donations and I’m sure it will.
Comment by Daniel — February 13, 2025 @ 3:20 pm
Coaches and instructors play huge roles in our kids’ lives, and we tend to take them for granted.
This is a rare case of a very experienced instructor, who has given everything he’s had to kids at Whistler, who is suddenly paralyzed for life after just doing his job (helping kids).
However, I see something very big potentially emerging from this – after many months of rehab, which will be expensive, Chris will be ready to write the next chapter in his life. And it could be magnificent. As Santi said, let’s turn a negative into a positive – give Chris the opportunity to do something great in his future in a different role where he could also still help kids.
All BMR subscribers – look, we’re going to have a great market year, and the last few months have been profitable for many of us. Let’s show some leadership and the generosity of our hearts and make a difference here. I’ve donated $6,000, a tiny fraction of what I expect to make in MAXX and multiple other stocks this quarter and this year. Whether it’s $100 you give, or $250, or $500, or $1,000+, every little bit helps, and please circulate the video and story to your individual networks.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/supporting-chris-and-his-family
Call to action: 15 year-old witnesses tragic ski accident that shocks B.C. community
Chris’ best friend, Pete, came up to Santi in the Village this afternoon and was in tears – gave him a big hug for coming out publicly like this to help bring attention to this story, because it wouldn’t be easy for anyone, let alone a 15 year-old boy who witnessed this horrific accident, to go on camera like this. Santi is doing fine, he is mentally tough, but the image of what happened replays in his mind every day.
Let’s all pitch in here and help ignite this GoFundMe campaignto surge to at least $250,000 – that kind of a raise is not only going to inspire Chris, it’s going to give him the critical help he needs in terms of care to get him into a position to do even greater things in his future. And I’m sure that’ll be helping kids and many others.
Look what Rick Hansen did. He was 15 when he had a tragic accident while riding in the back of a pick-up truck on a fishing trip with friends, became paralyzed from the waist down after the truck rolled over and he got trapped. God had something very big in mind for Rick after that, and look what happened. He has inspired millions with disabilities. We can play a role in giving Chris Song his opportunity through this initial outpouring of support.
Comment by Jon - BMR — February 13, 2025 @ 4:37 pm
Realbotix Releases Robotic AI Vision System
2025-02-17 07:30 ET – News Release
LAS VEGAS — (Business Wire)
Realbotix Corp. (TSX-V: XBOT) (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: 76M0.F) (OTC: XBOTF) (âRealbotixâ or the âCompanyâ), a leading creator of humanoid robots and companionship-based AI, announces the launch of its proprietary Realbotix Robotic AI Vision System, an innovative development that sets a new standard for realism and adaptability in humanoid robots. Designed to elevate user interaction and provide real-time awareness, this system transforms how robots recognize, understand, and respond to their surroundings.
The Realbotix Robotic AI Vision System features user face recognition, object recognition, face tracking, and real-time scene detection capabilities. These additional features allow for enhanced robot use cases and foster heightened situational awareness.
Key Features of the Realbotix Robotic AI Vision System:
– Human Recognition & Realistic Interaction: Robots equipped with the Realbotix AI Vision System can detect human presence and adjust their facial expressions dynamically, creating emotionally engaging and natural responses that minimize the âuncanny valleyâ effect.
– Facial Recognition & Personalized Experiences: Users can upload facial data through the Realbotix Robot Controller, allowing robots to remember and personalize interactions with individuals. This capability is particularly impactful in settings such as social companionship, healthcare, and customer service.
– Object Identification & Scene Awareness: Real-time object detection and scene analysis enable robots to provide meaningful assistance across diverse environments, from smart homes to retail security and beyond.
– Multimodal AI Integration: By leveraging cloud-based multimodal AI, theRealbotix AI Vision System continuously updates its understanding of scenes, recognizing objects, people, and behaviors to generate adaptive, context-aware responses.
– Conversational AI Fusion: The system integrates real-time vision processing with advanced large language models (LLMs), enabling robots to engage in smarter, more contextually nuanced conversations.
The Realbotix Robotic AI Vision System can offer transformative applications across numerous industries:
– Healthcare: Enhances care environments by recognizing patients, monitoring movements, and providing contextual assistance.
– Retail & Security: Improves store management and safety by identifying potential shoplifters, monitoring activity, and optimizing customer engagement.
– Smart Homes: Streamlines daily tasks with personalized responses for household members.
– Entertainment & Social Robotics: Elevates user experiences through adaptive facial expressions and real-time interaction with environmental changes.
Complementing the Robotic AI Vision System is Realbotixâs proprietary, patented realistic eyeball technology, which powers the vision system. Like many aspects of the robot, the eye is also modular, which allows for different eye colours to be installed. This innovation delivers unmatched visual realism, enhancing the lifelike appearance and engagement of Realbotix robots. The beta version of the system gained attention at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas in January 2025, where Realbotix highlighted the potential for advanced robotics to bridge the gap between artificial intelligence and human connection.
âThe Realbotix AI Vision System marks a step forward in AI robotics. By adding intelligent vision, the use cases for our robots are enhanced,â said Andrew Kiguel, CEO of Realbotix. âWith this development, Realbotix reaffirms its commitment to redefining the role of robots in our lives, offering solutions that improve the use cases for robots in social or business settings.â
The Realbotix Robotic AI Vision System is available for customers purchasing Realbotix robots with planned fall deliveries. Realbotix will also provide for the ability for current owners to retrofit existing models. For more information visit http://www.realbotix.com.
About Realbotix
Transcending the barrier between man and machine, Realbotix creates customizable, full-bodied, humanoids with AI integration that improve the human experience through connection, learning and play. Manufactured in the USA, Realbotix has a reputation for having the highest quality humanoid robots and the most realistic silicone skin technology.
Realbotix sells humanoid products with embedded AI and vision systems that enable human-like social interactions and intimate connections with humans. Our integration of hardware and AI software results in the most human looking full-sized robots on this planet. We achieve this through patented technologies that deliver human-like appearance and movements. This versatility makes our robots and their personalities customizable and programmable to suit a wide variety of use cases.
Realbotix.AI: Corporate and Investor site.
Realbotix.com: Robotix Customer site.
Keep up-to-date on Realbotix developments by joining our online communities on Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Follow Aria, our humanoid robot, on Instagram and TikTok.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes certain forward-looking statements as well as managementâs objectives, strategies, beliefs and intentions. Forward looking statements are frequently identified by such words as âmayâ, âwillâ, âplanâ, âexpectâ, âanticipateâ, âestimateâ, âintendâ and similar words referring to future events and results. Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions and expectations of management. All forward-looking information is inherently uncertain and subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, as described in more detail in our securities filings available at http://www.sedarplus.ca. Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and we caution against placing undue reliance thereon. We assume no obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements except as required by applicable law. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250217278070/en/
Contacts:
Realbotix Corp.
Andrew Kiguel, CEO
Email: [email protected]
Jennifer Karkula, Head of Communications
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 647-578-7490
Source: Realbotix Corp.
Comment by Jon - BMR — February 17, 2025 @ 5:51 am