INDEX:SportsFormer Senators goalie Emery signs one-year deal with Russian club
Ray Emery will kickstart his hockey career in Russia.
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The 25-year-old goaltender, bought out by the Ottawa Senators last month, has signed a one-year deal worth around US$2 million (tax free) with Atlant Mytishchi of the new Continental Hockey League.
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`The reality is that since Ray's buyout there hasn't been a lot of interest, it doesn't seem like someone (in the NHL) wants to give him a second chance right now,' Emery's agent J.P. Barry told The Canadian Press on Wednesday. `It's a terrific offer from Russia and we've been speaking to them for several weeks since the buyout.
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`I've been talking to Ray a lot over the last couple of months and I know he's taken a lot of steps to make changes. This is his best opportunity to play next year.'
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After helping the Senators reach the Stanley Cup final in 2007, Emery had a nightmare 2007-08 season, losing his starting job to Martin Gerber and grabbing headlines for the wrong reasons - such as being late for practice or throwing his stick in the stands.
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Sens GM Bryan Murray had enough and bought him out of a deal that was to pay him $6.75 million over the next two NHL seasons.
Parents, if you are waking up today thinking "what am I going to do with the kids today!?" then I have a great idea for you. Send them to the free kids Wrestling Camp and have some time for yourself!!
Free Summer Kid’s Wrestling Camp July 7-9
The Alberni Wrestling Club is once again hosting their annual Kids Wrestling Camp July 7-9th in the ADSS gymnasium. The camp is running all three days from 10am to 12 pm and will feature instruction from local coaches, alumni, and high school wrestlers. As well as learning some basic wrestling moves and technique, the camp participants will also partake in fun wrestling themed activities.
During the month of June, high school wrestlers visited the local elementary schools to introduce and promote the sport of Olympic wrestling. Through games and skill development the participants were given the opportunity to try the sport while being in a fun and safe environment.
"When we [the wrestling club] introduce wrestling at elementary schools and the kids camp, we always stress the importance of fun and safety," explains Aaron Keitlah, an ADSS high school wrestling alumni and now a wrestler at North Island College and a coach in the Alberni program. "We always go through a proper warm-up and stretch to limit the possibility of injury and try hard to reveal the enjoyment of wrestling rather than the competitive side."
The camp will be a great opportunity for kids to stay active and meet new friends over the summer break. For some it will serve as a kick start to summer and being a part of the wrestling programs at the local middle schools. Others may come to simply enjoy participating in the fun games. The camp focuses on participants in Grades 4 -7, although there are some cases where younger and older athletes have been involved.
If you already feel like you would benefit from some time away from your kids over the summer, this would be a perfect event to take part in. The camp will run from 10 am to 12 pm all three days with registration being held each day starting at 9:30. There are registration forms available at the gymnasium which needs to be filled out by a parent/guardian. Participants are asked to bring gym strip and clean running shoes. If you have any questions or concerns feel free to contact Aaron Keitlah or Roxanne Neville at 724-0778.
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PacificSport is hosting a send-off rally for Athletes and Coaches from the Mid-Island Area who will be representing Canada at the Beijing Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games today in Parksville.
Athletes attending will be: Port Alberni's own Travis Cross, Michelle Stilwell, Trevor Hirschfield, Tony Theriault and Dan Proulx.
The Rally Host is Sue Schellinck who represented Canada at the Barcelona Olympic Games.
This all goes down at the Parksville Community Beach today at 11am.
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For those of you wondering if there will be a Port Alberni send-off for Travis Cross....OF COURSE there will be, you should know better when it comes to this town!
I don't know all of the details yet but trust me, it will be a great event. Tom McEvay has some plans he is trying to pull together as only he could do. This will be a send off of McEvay-i-an proportions. Do I owe Don Taylor 2bits for using that one? HA.
Keep tuned to the blog at the stations for the details when they are available!
Imagine how good the send off will be when just the "welcome home" was this well attended on only one day notice?
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The FESTIVAL OF SAILS kicks off Friday, as the Tall Ships start arriving tomorrow. I'll surely post some pictures here on the blog, but the best source for all of your needed Festival info is on the OFFICIAL WEBSITE
Hello and happy Monday. I'm back in the saddle (sort of!) after a long, busy and crazy weekend. It all started Friday with the morning show here and then an on-location with 93.3 THE PEAK FM at the B.C. Provincial Motocross Championships all afternoon. After that it was off to the Alberni Valley Charity Golf Classic Wine and Cheese reception as I met my teammates and we strategized about how bad we might be the next day!
It turns out we were bad at all...Second place! How that happened, we don't really know. No kidding! We had to be the least caring, most fun team out there. Maybe that's why we did so well?
The honest truth- we had just finished our third last hole (by virtue of me downing a 30 footer for BIRDIE, I might add) and all of a sudden our scorekeeper said "We're 9 under!" No one on our team could believe it. I certainly know that I couldn't. At the very best I thought we were 5 under or so, as did everyone else. We just had that much fun and were that carefree that we didn't really care and didn't really feel the pressure. And that might be further proved to be true as we all of a sudden thought we had a chance to win and we couldn't get a birdie our last two holes because we might have been thinking too much about it!
I still thought that 9 under wouldn't even get us in the prizes. I thought at least 10 under would be the score. I'm glad I thought wrong, as I won a beautiful Alberni Golf Course golf bag courtesy of Bruce MacDonald and Mac 5 Golf.
My huge thanks go out to my teammates Dave, Luke, Cory, and Anne. We had a great time and they we were all great golfers at various times. That is why it's 5 person best ball! Great games team!
Thanks also goes out to all the volunteers, sponsors, and organizers of the event. Another huge success that keeps getting more fun and better run and just a little different every year!
I am working on getting a final number raised that will go to all the charities. When I get it, I'll add it to this post.
Someone made a lengthy post in the comment section Saturday regarding the tournament and the lack of local Bulldogs attending. I will post my reply to that comment. I am only raising the topic here so the comment-maker knows I am not ignoring their concerns. I always encourage comments and appreciate them.
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The Coulson Flying Tankers Martin Mars Water Bombers are still wowing crowds and impressing their clients in California. I continue to be impressed by the great online coverage coming from various sites, especially the work by Eric Cassano at Shasta Lake.com
I emailed Eric on Friday saying how much I appreciated his updates and pictures, and especially his thanks to Port Alberni, BC, and Canada.
Eric sent me back this nice note: Thanks again Eric!
Hi Evan!
Thank you very much for the wonderful e-mail and the kind words about the photos. Thank you for mentioning the ShastaLake.com website, too! The Martin Mars is really a beautiful airplane and a joy to photograph.
Coulson Flying Tankers and the crew of the Martin Mars are doing an incredible job fighting the fires here in California. We are deeply grateful for all the help and support we have received from Coulson Flying Tankers, Port Alberni, British Columbia, and the wonderful people of Canada.
Many thanks and best wishes to you all!
Sincerely, Eric Cassano ShastaLake.com
Thanks again Eric! For updates again check out shastalake.com
Redding.com is also a site that has been sent to me several times by people finding updates.
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Sad news came out of Vancouver yesterday with word of Bob Ackles passing. What an incredible story, and no doubt an incredible man.
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B.C. Lions president and CEO Bob Ackles dies at age 69 of heart attack
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VANCOUVER - Bob Ackles, who started with the B.C. Lions as the team's first water boy and went on to become the CFL team's president and chief executive officer, died suddenly of a heart attack Sunday, the club said in a statement.
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Ackles was 69.
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`It was our league that virtually adopted him when he was just a boy, and it's our league that has looked to him as a man for counsel, inspiration and leadership by example,' CFL commissioner Mark Cohon said in a statement.
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`As much as the CFL has meant to Bob, he has meant so much more to us.'
A small jovial man with a quick smile and a huge love for football, Ackles served in the CFL, NFL and XFL.
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The return of Ackles to the Lions in 2002, along with his hiring of Wally Buono as coach and general manager, has been credited with revitalizing the CFL in Vancouver.
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(The Canadian Press)
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Alberni Wrestling is hosting their kids summer camp today tomorrow and Wednesday. Kids are welcome to come for one day or all three. The best news- IT IS ALL FREE! Read below for details!
Free Summer Kid’s Wrestling Camp July 7-9
The Alberni Wrestling Club is once again hosting their annual Kids Wrestling Camp July 7-9th in the ADSS gymnasium. The camp will run over three days from 10am to 12 pm and will feature instruction from local coaches, alumni, and high school wrestlers. As well as learning some basic wrestling moves and technique, the camp participants will also partake in fun wrestling themed activities.
During the month of June, high school wrestlers visited the local elementary schools to introduce and promote the sport of Olympic wrestling. Through games and skill development the participants were given the opportunity to try the sport while being in a fun and safe environment.
"When we [the wrestling club] introduce wrestling at elementary schools and the kids camp, we always stress the importance of fun and safety," explains Aaron Keitlah, an ADSS high school wrestling alumni and now a wrestler at North Island College and a coach in the Alberni program. "We always go through a proper warm-up and stretch to limit the possibility of injury and try hard to reveal the enjoyment of wrestling rather than the competitive side."
The camp will be a great opportunity for kids to stay active and meet new friends over the summer break. For some it will serve as a kick start to summer and being a part of the wrestling programs at the local middle schools. Others may come to simply enjoy participating in the fun games. The camp focuses on participants in Grades 4 -7, although there are some cases where younger and older athletes have been involved.
If you already feel like you would benefit from some time away from your kids over the summer, this would be a perfect event to take part in. The camp will run from 10 am to 12 pm all three days with registration being held each day starting at 9:30. There are registration forms available at the gymnasium which needs to be filled out by a parent/guardian. Participants are asked to bring gym strip and clean running shoes. If you have any questions or concerns feel free to contact Aaron Keitlah or Roxanne Neville at 724-0778..
First off it's the BC Provincial Motocross Championships. Practice sessions run today, with racing beginning Saturday and Sunday at 10am out at The Alberni Motocross Park. There will even be live entertainment out there Saturday night with Mr. 2cents rocking the place.
This weekend is also a huge one for the Alberni Golf Club, as they host the 14th annual Charity Golf Classic with the wine and cheese festivities tonight, and the real action kicking off tomorrow with the golf. Or does the real action kick off tonight? HA.
This is always an incredible time, with various local and BC charities being the benefactors. You are welcome to head out to the course for the wine and cheese tonight or dinner and the party tomorrow night even if you aren't golfing. The more the merrier!
Got your eyes on a Wayne Gretzky signed jersey? How about one from Sidney Crosby? A Gordie Howe autographed Stanley Cup? They've got all that and more for the silent and live auction items.
Again, it's all at the ALBERNI GOLF CLUB. I'm golfing, so look out for me, you might want to bring a helmet!
Celebrities attending this year include Port Alberni's own Rob Schick, Mira Laurence from A Channel, "King" Richard Brodeur and more!
It will be a blast!
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Looking for more updates or pictures on the Martin Mars Water Bombers? A great update can be found at Redding.com here
Here is a great update (nice to see some Canadian and Port Alberni mentions!!) from Shasta Lake.com
Thank You Fire Fighters!Thank You Canada!
(Tuesday, July 1, 2008)
The Martin Mars "Hawaii" waterbomber made several drops Tuesday on the "Motion Fire" near Shasta Lake, California, USA.
Jagr signs with Russia's Avangard Omsk after being released by Rangers
MOSCOW - Russian club Avangard Omsk says it has signed Jaromir Jagr, a day after the New York Rangers parted ways with the star winger.
Avangard announced the signing on its website today but did not disclose the terms of the contract.
Jagr had long been reported to be considering lucrative offers from Russia. Rangers general manager Glen Sather said Thursday the club could not wait any longer for Jagr to decide where he wanted to play.
Jagr played for Avangard during the NHL's lockout season in 2004-05.
On Thursday, the Rangers signed former Vancouver captain Markus Naslund to replace Jagr.
(The Associated Press)
No way Markus Naslund is replacing Jagr, in my humble opinion....
Moving on.
I can't tell you how refreshing it was to read the words of NBA'er Gilbert Arenas today. It took something this cool to get me talking about the N B A on the blog!! If every other athlete was so honest!! Read the story below:
Free agent Gilbert Arenas is taking one for the team. The three-time all-star point guard took less than the maximum available from the Washington Wizards on his six-year contract so the team can have more cap space. Arenas put the contract into perspective, telling The Washington Post -- ``What can I do for my family with 127 (m) million dollars that I can't do with 111 (m) million?''
Yes, I know how it works. I can't write a BOOK of a posting one day without making up for it the next day with some eye candy that is easy on the brain!
First off- A picture taken by me with my HTC 6800 SmartPhone from Bell off the Bailey's deck looking over Sproat Lake to Mt. Klitsa. What a beauty! It was 30+ degrees so the lake was incredibly refreshing.
Now to a series of pictures taken by Brenda Kraneveldt at Relay for Life. Please accept my apologies for posting these so late. I have two excuses. #1- Brenda took forever to send them to me. Reason- She had my email address wrong. Come on though, it was 2 in the morning or something! Who could remember an email under those circumstances!? Excuse #2- I've just been really busy lately!
The story goes like this. Brenda and Candice from the 7-11 on 10th and Redford came and visited THE PEAK tent in the middle of the AM, looking for a way to stay awake just like the rest of us.
Brenda had a kick-butt camera so I asked her if she could take some pictures of THE PEAK set up for the station and for the blog.
Thanks for the pictures Nicole!
These cool Canadian Cancer Society flags/banners were right in front of us
Now this is some funny stuff.....As the ladies were visiting us, Jolie and myself were feeling pretty darn tired.
The 7-11 crew might've saved the Relay for Life for us, as they said "We told our Red Bull Rep that we were going to be in Relay, so he donated a case to us....want one?"
Ummm.......Is the pope catholic? Does a Bear poop in the woods? It's 2am or so and we're going all night until 7am. OF COURSE WE WANT A RED BULL!
As you can see by the below picture, Jolie is REALLY needing the Red Bull.
Oh man, that is good RED BULL! Hey, we made it all the way until 7am, not a wink of sleep. Cancer doesn't sleep and neither did we! (with a little help from our friends!)
Thanks to the Girls from 7-11 at 10th and Redford, and THANKS THANKS THANKS Red Bull man!! I know a certain morning show host that could use a few more of those!
One last picture-Candice shows everyone how it's done on the putting green!
For those of you that had a LONG LONG weekend and you are starting work this week on "humpday" today I am very jealous of you!
Hopefully you have a couple free minutes to read this posting.
Just what the title says- THANK YOU Bulldogs.... And a special thanks to Jim and Noreen Pelk!
Why? Well Monday night The Pelk's hosted a little "sorry we can't make it to your wedding" party for Sarah and myself out at Sproat Lake because no one that works for and with the team will be able to make it out to Manitoba later this month.
My thanks to everyone who attended- Laurie and Norm, Dave and Carolyn, Blair and Marilyn, Tom and Trish, Dennis Shannon and Aiden, and of course Noreen and Jim.
And thanks to Ashley and Chad for the tastiest steaks ever!
The Bulldogs staff as a group went in and got us a great present. I must say a huge huge huge thanks to everyone with the Bulldogs because the present was very very cool. Thank you for being such thoughtful people and being so great to work alongside.
It was kind of funny how it all happened. Noreen and Laurie came and said they needed me to make a little presentation, saying (and I quote)
"it wouldn't be the first time we have asked you to do something for us on very short notice"
(very true)
I was actually thinking it was a presentation welcoming new business manager Blair Noel and his wife to town and to "the club" so to speak.
It was actually for us! We were given two framed pictures- 1 being a panoramic photo of the puck drop from the last ever game at Maple Leaf Gardens between the Leafs and the Chicago Black Hawks.
The other being the same photo of the puck drop from the FIRST game ever at the Air Canada Centre between the Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens.
I actually posted a picture of one of the pictures here on the blog back around the Bulldogs Spring Camp. I went to check things out at the rink and saw Noreen Pelk sitting at the Season Ticket Table with some hockey memorabilia on the surrounding tables. I said how bad I wanted the Toronto pictures...I never believed I would actually get them! It's on the right below.
Thanks for remembering Noreen, haha!
The LAST game at the Gardens is a special one for me because an acquaintance of mine, and Flin Flon, MB native Reid Simpson was the 1st star of that game, making him the last player to skate on MLG ice for an NHL game.
Both pictures will fit very well on our wall surrounding our matted framed and certified "piece of the boards" from Maple Leaf Gardens.
Now all of this actually goes hand in hand with the comment made on the blog yesterday asking "Are you a Toronto fan again?"
Please allow me to explain. This story isn't simple, but I'll tell it as quick as possible...
I grew up a Montreal Canadiens fan. My dad was drafted by them.....His initials matched their logo. I wasn't forced to cheer for them, I chose to.
Being a Hab fan was great in 86 and 93 was great as they won two Cups. 89 wasn't great losing to CALGARY of all teams in the finals. And losing to Boston in the playoffs wasn't a fun time either!
Cheering for the Habs ended when my hero and idol ended playing for them. I still remember watching Patrick Roy getting embarrassed and left in the net against the Wings, finally getting pulled and walking over to Ronald Corey to tell him he just played his last game in Montreal. I believed Roy was mistreated and after he got traded cheering for Montreal wasn't the same anymore. I couldn't cheer for Colorado!
So who to cheer for now? I grew up in Manitoba, so I somewhat cheered for the Winnipeg Jets. That of course ended when they flew to Phoenix. I just couldn't cheer for PHOENIX! The Jets were dead to me!
I started cheering for my "second" team. The St. Louis Blues.
Right now you are probably thinking ST LOUIS??!! Yes, the Blues all of a sudden became MY TEAM. Why? Well back in 1993 I was watching the playoffs cheering for ANYONE but Toronto, because that's what Montreal fans typically do. I still vividly remember the performance of one Curtis Joseph that series. He was heroic. He got his head taken off by Wendel Clark and others. He gave the Blues a shot. The way he battled immediately won my heart as I was a goalie myself and a fan of goalies.
The Blues thing ended pretty early after Cujo squabbled over a contract with Mike Keenan. He even spent time in the IHL with Vegas. I didn't know who to cheer for then. Eventually, Joseph signed with Edmonton and I had a team again. The Oilers of the Cujo era were fun to watch. Never very good, always good for a playoff upset or miracle. Ask the Dallas Stars in 1997 and the Colorado Avalanche the next year.
Exhibit A. Game 7. OVERTIME. I remember running outside around my house screaming when this one ended. Bob Cole at his all-time BEST.
Eventually Joseph became too expensive for Edmonton and he ended up in Toronto. All of a sudden I was supposed to cheer for....THE LEAFS???? WHAT????
In the end it wasn't too hard to cheer for Toronto. They were on TV almost every single night, and on CBC every single weekend. And they had several exciting playoff runs.
I must do a funny back track that leads me to having the piece of the boards from Maple Leaf Gardens on my wall....
During Joseph's time in Edmonton, I managed to buy an autographed Edmonton Oilers team stick at a fundraising auction. I kept it for several years as I was an Edmonton fan. After Joseph ended up in Toronto, my friend Robbie B. approached me about trading my signed Oilers stick for a matted and framed piece of the boards from Maple Leaf Gardens. I was the biggest Leaf fan out there, I took the offer in a heartbeat!
Eventually Joseph left Toronto and went to Detroit....Try as I might, I just couldn't cheer for Detroit! It was about this time I actually started cheering for Vancouver. I was in Manitoba still, but the GM place crowd won my heart with their passion shown in the playoffs when they started singing O Canada. Maybe 2003 or around that?
Now- I cheer for the Canucks, and any Canadian team. And the Washington Capitals, as any blog reader will know.
With Curtis Joseph resigning in Toronto yesterday, I'm guessing it was my good buddy Robbie asking me if I'm a Toronto fan again. The answer is YES because I go where Cujo goes.
I was even a Calgary fan for the first time in my life in the spring (besides their 2004 Stanley Cup run) because Joseph was Kipper's backup!
The fact that the Bulldogs gave me the two Toronto pictures one day and Joseph resigned there the next is pretty cool actually!!
Now if anyone out there is thinking for a gift for us I'm into ANY hockey history stuff.
I have enough Maple Leaf Gardens and Air Canada Centre stuff. Something from the Montreal Forum or Bell Centre would be very cool, and so would anything regarding Chicago Stadium or Pacific Coliseum or GM Place!
No, I'm not canvassing for gifts....Just helping you along if you are having trouble picking something! :)
I'm worried I need a new security system in my house knowing that Bruce Sly (the biggest Leaf fan in BC) reads this blog and maybe he wants some Maple Leaf schwag?
Thanks again to the Dogs staff and Jim and Noreen, and thanks to you for reading!
Well, WOW is about all I can say. It was apparently the longest Canada day parade ever today in Port Alberni. It had to be at least an hour. I don't know how long it took to get to us but it ended just shortly before 12 noon and started at 10am.
I was sitting next to a couple from Victoria, who left their camp site at Sproat Lake to come into town to see what Canada Day and Port Alberni are all about. About halfway through the parade (although we didn't know it was only HALF way at this point) the man said "wow, this is a pretty long parade!" If he only knew it was only half done!
I know for sure they were impressed with Port Alberni's community SPIRIT.
You can't describe it, and you can't teach it. It is just a part of the fabric of this city. In my humble opinion, it's a HUGE factor in making this city a great place to live!
Here's some pictures I took off my camera phone - a HTC 6800 from Bell. (a cell carrier/shop really needs to sponsor this "feature" don't they?)
Parade getting to us
Below is my buddy Jacob, who was nice enough to share his candy haul with me as the "big kids" don't get any! Thanks Jacob! (don't mind my thumb, haha!)
Jessica and friends with the 93.3 THE PEAK FM Community Cruiser. Way to go Peak People!
My favorite part of the parade is always the old trucks and cars- many from the Alberni Valley Industrial Heritage Society. Port Alberni Mayor Ken McRae waves to the crowd below, along with City Councillor Hira Chopra. 1937 truck and OLD Ike Patterson. Who's older Ike?
This gal below was the flag bearer for the Alberni Motocross Riders. Of course Alberni Motocross hosts the BC Provincial Motocross Championships NEXT WEEKEND!
I forgot my phone when we went down to Glenwood Centre to sing O Canada and Happy Birthday to Canada and to have a piece of Canada's Birthday Cake, but there were hundreds of people there too!
Way to go Port Alberni and way to go FolkFest Multicultural Society for doing such a great job with the parade and the celebrations at Glenwood!
I must make this a quick one as I'm doing a typical Canadian thing today- helping a brother out in need! Yes, I'm off with some friends of the Bulldogs to help move new Business Manager Blair Noel and his wife into their new home!
For those that want the historical stuff of Canada day- CLICK HERE
As for these videos- a tear to my eye for some of them! Enjoy!
My thanks again to Barb for finding this great update on the Hawaii Mars mission down in California on Lake Shasta.
This great website has a video of the arrival. It is cool to see the plane landing, especially after battling through several challenges just to get down there. I'm knocking on wood for the skies to clear so they can start BOMBING, and they will have safe flights.
Wow, what a weekend! And WOW what am I doing working today??!! The show must go on I guess.
Some thank yous are in order for the great friends we have that opened their homes to us over the weekend.....Thanks to Angel and family for inviting us over Saturday for a BBQ gathering to see the progress with Jelly Bean the service dog. And of course a dip in the pool. After that it was off to Crystal's for BBQ # 2 on the day and a little Bocce. I am still undefeated in Port Alberni when it comes to Bocce. It's true, ask ex-Bulldog trainer Matt Auerbach, now with the WHL'sChilliwack Bruins.
Yesterday we were invited out to the Bailey's for a dip in Sproat Lake and a cool beverage. No better way to beat the heat!! Thanks Norm and Barb! Holy smokes is Sproat Lake ever cold! It's no lake in Manitoba by any stretch, but still chilly with the lack of any sustained warm temperatures until the last several days. You can't get any more refreshing than that though!
After that it was over to Parksville and another BBQ gathering at my good friend Paul's house, and a walk on Rathtrevor Beach and into the Pacific....And finally back home to a HOT house and a bed to be able to wake up at 5am for the morning show today.
What a couple of days! I am amazed and thankful every day with the incredible beauty of where I live, and I'm also thankful for the great and kind friends we have here!
Ask, and you shall receive. By popular demand, I'm providing a copy of the Rob Shickand crew Alberni Valley Charity Golf Classic interview from the 93.3 THE PEAK FM Morning Show Thursday morning for your listening enjoyment here on the blog. I have had a tonne of emails and facebooks about this. Enjoy the interview- click the link under the PEAK logo
Happy sort-of long weekend, and thanks for checking the blog.
First off, my thanks to Judy for reading the blog and emailing me this incredible picture of one of the Martin Mars Water Bombers. What a great picture! I was down at the Harbour Quay this morning picking up some produce and meat at the Farmers Market when I heard that beautiful sound again, that unmistakable drone.
Shortly thereafter the Hawaii Mars flew overhead at 11:04 am P.S.T and down the Alberni Inlet, no doubt bound for Northern California.
God speed gentlemen, and hang in there California, the Mars is coming!
She's going to be a hot one today! And a nasty one on the UV scale.
Check out today's forecast from Environment Canada so you know what you are getting into if you are heading outside in the afternoon today and tomorrow...and Monday and Tuesday...Is summer finally here?
Take care of yourselves and your loved ones, don't let them get burned!
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I was flipping the channels this morning and I also heard another unmistakable tone. This one wasn't due to four huge engines though! No, it was the sweet tones of Jim Hughson, back on the air with CBC's coverage of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Is it just me, or did the CBC never get the credit they deserved for everything they have done in securing Jim Hughson's services for not only Hockey Night in Canada, but also Blue Jays Broadcasts and anything else they do?
Hughson is such a pro, and so smooth. I'm not usually into BaseBall until September when the races are really hot, but when I landed on the game with Jim calling it I just couldn't change the channel. I could listen to him calling play-by-play of the gardening channel!
While all of his professional talents are evident for anyone watching CBC, what people don't know is that Hughson is a true good guy. A class act, a true gentlemen, if you will. How do I know this? Lets just say that I am extremely lucky to be able to know this first hand.
Off to a pool party today at my good friend Angel's house, then a little BBQ tonight.
Imagine my surprise minutes ago when Coulson Group CEO Wayne Coulson called me to give me an update! I have never spoken to or met Wayne before but he was a pleasure to chat with and I could sure tell how passionate he is about these planes and what they mean to this city.
Here is the update Wayne gave me:
The crew departed for California yesterday, but ran into a mechanical problem that required them to return to base to solve.
The problem has since been rectified, and the plane will depart at first light tomorrow for California.
They will operate out of Lake Shasta in Northern California.
Plenty of fires are currently burning, and things look to get worse before they get better as lightning is in the upcoming forecast.
I know I am not alone when I brim with pride not only for the City of Port Alberni but also for the Province of B.C. and the great country of Canada when I think of these magnificent behemoths of the skies arriving on the scene as the cavalry to save property, land, and lives!
The thought of the fire situation in California "hits home" with me when I think of all the Bulldogs players and their families down there. Hope you guys are doing alright!
I'm sure everyone has their own favorite piece of "Mars Media". I must've received the pictures of the Mars skimming the beach to pick up in the reservoir down in Cali last year about 50 TIMES. Here's my favorite items, taken with my own little digital camera off my deck 2 summers ago. Is there any sound as beautiful?
Thanks again to Wayne for the updates. I will get more when possible!! Hammer
Winnipeg Manitoba - Bobby Hull signs 10-year contract for $2,500,000 to coach and play for the Winnipeg Jets of the fledgling World Hockey Association, giving the WHA instant credibility; hockey's first millionaire, Hull plays out his career with Swedish stars Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson. Here he is in action in 1967 against the Leaf's Bruce Gamble.
I thought that this was a funny thing to see on the wire first thing this morning when the last item I posted yesterday was about the NUMBERS of the game nowadays. Read below for the proof in the pudding!
Toronto Maple Leafs look to cut ties with defenceman Bryan McCabe
TORONTO - The Toronto Maple Leafs are looking for a way to cut ties with veteran defenceman Bryan McCabe.
The team has been working for almost a month on convincing McCabe to soften his stance on the no-trade, no-movement clause in his contract - with no success.
`We've asked (McCabe's agent Ian Pulver) about teams they would accept a trade to, but they said they wouldn't accept a trade, and that (the Leafs) should buy Bryan out,' Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher told the Toronto Star on Thursday.
'That's where it stands. There's a long time before camp and we'll see if we can resolve this closer to camp.'
Fletcher, through assistant Jeff Jackson, told Pulver the Leafs have no intention of absorbing the salary cap hit on the remaining three seasons of McCabe's contract. McCabe is owed US$6.15 million for next season and $4.15 million in each of the final two seasons.
Under a buyout scenario the Leafs would absorb two-thirds of the remaining salary and, according to a report on TSN's website, a $2-million signing bonus that has to be paid by Sept. 15.
The BC Bike Race comes to Port Alberni this weekend. Check it all out on their website HERE
Sunday is day two of the race, which sees the riders travel from Cowichan Lake to Port Alberni. I am not sure what the riders ETA is at Bob Dailey stadium, but it will be quite the site to see with all of the tents set up. If I can find out a estimated time of their arrival on Sunday, I'll post it here.
Lets be honest when it comes to the NHL fans in the salary cap era....
For every fan that doesn't get the system and doesn't care to follow the numbers closely, there is the opposite hardcore fan that could walk into an NHL office and do a good job of assisting the "capologist" in the following the numbers and the impact of contracts on the rosters. You may not believe that, but I believe those people are out there.
With the game this day and age under a salary cap, it is almost a full-time job to follow the numbers!
Just after 8:10am we'll be talking about the Alberni Valley Charity Golf Classic at Alberni Golf Club July 4th and 5th. Special guests include Les Doiron and Kathy Cross who will be joining me in the studio.
Kathy appears on behalf of Community Schools, one of the organizations benefiting from the tournament this year.
photo:Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images
Joining us via the phone lines will be Port Alberni native and NHL referee Rob Schick. For those that don't know, this tournament was first started by Schick 14 years ago. While the tournament no longer carries his name as it used to, Rob's legacy lives on with the tournament still taking place every year and still raising money for worthwhile causes!
Should be a good interview, I hope you can listen in!
I was pleased to see this one end up in my email inbox from the NHL pr people, about PentictonVee and recent NHL draft pick (Phoenix Coyotes) Brett Hextall....Great story, and great for the BCHL to get publicity like this!
I had to laugh after reading the comments from Coyote GM Don Maloney. How he desrcibesHextall, is exactly how I thought of him after I heard he got drafted. I didn't get the chance to see him play often, but he was always a competitor. I still remember when the Vees visited the Dog Pound this season....the Dogs built up a 5-0 lead. I remember trying to do the play-by-play, but my eyes kept shifting towards Hextall. He had some sort of bone to pick with former Vee Chris Moulson. One shift, the next, and so on and so forth.
Now of course you want your leaders and battlers to not let you get into a 5-0 hole.....I still have respect for a guy who isn't just going through the motions by that point and start the bus.
Some of the good ones can turn the passion on and off. Some of the great ones NEVER turn it off.
Here's to Hextall being a future BCHL'er turned NHL'er.
It was a nice afternoon yesterday as I attended the celebration of Chris Talbot's life at the Alberni Golf Club. It was indeed a celebration, with a large crowd in attendance.
The second I walked in and saw how many people showed up I thought "this obviously says something about the man he was"
It was nice to see so many people from the different Island Radio stations. The Wolf, The Wave, The Eagle, etc etc. Again, I think that says something about the man.
My thanks to Rob Bye, the other Island Radio staff, and the staff of the Alberni Golf Club who did all the work to plan and carry out the proceedings yesterday. It was indeed a day of celebration.
It was the wish of Chris and Marsha to not have a memorial service....My only regret from yesterday is that Chris wasn't present to see how many friends he really had! Maybe the boss had a nice view of the proceedings!
I was pleased to have a couple special guests in the studios this morning from the Alberni Motocross Association- Brian Higgins, Myrna Hansen, and Paige Hansen- to talk about BC Provincial Motocross Championships being held right here in the Alberni Valley July 4th 5th and 6th.
If you missed it, click the below link to hear a copy of the interview from the show this morning. All audio courtesy and copyright 93.3 The Peak FM, a Division of the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group, LP.
