The bone-chilling temperatures offer a rather blunt reminder, as do the patches of white as my plane descends back to earth.
We're not in Vancouver anymore, Toto.
With apologies to Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz, it's my way of saying our West Coast adventure has reached its end after six fabulous days in what is surely one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
It took until the last day we were there, but finally we were given a true glimpse of the majestic Coast Mountains that look down upon one of our favourite places in Canada to visit. Just for the views alone, which are nothing short of stunning.
But as I discover with each stop along the figure skating trail, there are wonderful, amazing people wherever you turn in this land of ours. People who are fiercely proud of where they're from, yet welcoming as can be to a visitor from far, far away.
It is one of the joys of being a part of all of this, the special people that are a part of the journey each year. The many friends I've made along the way in nearly 20 years of being associated with this sport, with whom I will always cherish this annual reunion known as the BMO Canadian figure skating championships.
I can't imagine going through any year without it.
But there are also the new people you meet, like Ally, Rosa, Kevin and the rest of the gang at Earls Paramount, who made their restaurant a favourite stop of mine during this particular trek (and reminded me, once again, why Earls is must-visit anytime I'm west of Ontario).
And, of course, the friendly volunteers at Pacific Coliseum, who gave me every reason to believe the world will get the warmest of receptions when the Winter Olympics come to this city in two year's time.
And so, with those thoughts, we close the book at the Left Coast Chronicles with this final chapter.
Thanks, too, to all of you who took the time to follow along with our 'alternative' view of this event. We don't profess to be 'seriously West Coast,' as one of the Vancouver dailies bills itself, but we do our level best to share the personal stories of the best group of young athletes you'd ever want to meet (and thanks to all who shared theirs).
So now it's bon voyage, B.C.
Next stop, Saskatoon, and the 2009 BMO Canadian championships (with a little pit stop right in my backyard at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa for HomeSense Skate Canada in the fall).
See you all again soon.
Showing posts with label Olympics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Olympics. Show all posts
Monday, January 21, 2008
Friday, January 18, 2008
They're Larger Than Life
If you've been anywhere near the intersection of Burrard and Dunsmuir streets this week, you've no doubt taken in the sight.
Then again, it's pretty hard to miss the huge poster — we're guessing 8x10. Feet that is — of soon-to-be Canadian ice dance champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir that hangs in the front window of the main Bank of Montreal branch in downtown Vancouver.
A little more attention got drawn to it late Friday morning, when the skaters themselves showed up to pose for some promotional shots with 10-time Canadian champions Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz. Naturally, the odd passer-by did a double take — had to chuckle when I saw one guy run out of the adjacent BMO tower and ask Moir "are you actually the guy in that picture?"
People were even getting cabs to pull over in front of the bank before jumping out, cameras in hand, to snap photos (okay, it turned out they were part of the Moir clan. But work with me on this, people).
Point is, Skate Canada obviously sees some star power building here and, rest assured, you'll see plenty more of Virtue and Moir in the runup to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. And if it works out they catch the fancy of Canadians the same way Bourne and Kraatz did during their heyday, well, the folks who run the sport in this country should consider themselves doubly blessed.
Nothing sells like stars, after all.
***
Question overhead on the bus ride to Pacific Coliseum today: "Do they ever get sunshine in this city?"
Beginning to wonder the same thing myself. Especially since the forecast before I came out here was for sunshine and blue skies for most the week (apparently, that's now next week's forecast).
That being said, there are two reasons not to complain: It's not raining. And there's not a snowflake to be seen on the ground anywhere. How often can you say that about a Canadian city in January?
Then again, it's pretty hard to miss the huge poster — we're guessing 8x10. Feet that is — of soon-to-be Canadian ice dance champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir that hangs in the front window of the main Bank of Montreal branch in downtown Vancouver.
A little more attention got drawn to it late Friday morning, when the skaters themselves showed up to pose for some promotional shots with 10-time Canadian champions Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz. Naturally, the odd passer-by did a double take — had to chuckle when I saw one guy run out of the adjacent BMO tower and ask Moir "are you actually the guy in that picture?"
People were even getting cabs to pull over in front of the bank before jumping out, cameras in hand, to snap photos (okay, it turned out they were part of the Moir clan. But work with me on this, people).
Point is, Skate Canada obviously sees some star power building here and, rest assured, you'll see plenty more of Virtue and Moir in the runup to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. And if it works out they catch the fancy of Canadians the same way Bourne and Kraatz did during their heyday, well, the folks who run the sport in this country should consider themselves doubly blessed.
Nothing sells like stars, after all.
***
Question overhead on the bus ride to Pacific Coliseum today: "Do they ever get sunshine in this city?"
Beginning to wonder the same thing myself. Especially since the forecast before I came out here was for sunshine and blue skies for most the week (apparently, that's now next week's forecast).
That being said, there are two reasons not to complain: It's not raining. And there's not a snowflake to be seen on the ground anywhere. How often can you say that about a Canadian city in January?
Thursday, January 17, 2008
That Hit The Spot
It's been a Vancouver tradition for some 80 years and still counting. And what better way to start my day, I thought, than with a hearty breakfast at the famed White Spot restaurant.
The chain, which is no doubt well doubt known to every Vancouverite, was birthed back in 1928 by Nat Bailey, a U.S.-born restaurateur who's also well known to many in local minor baseball circles here (perhaps you've heard of Nat Bailey Stadium?).
Anyways, a friend who's a Vancouver native recommended the White Spot breakfast and it didn't disappoint (I hit the West Georgia St. location, a brisk morning's walk away from the Sheraton Wall Street). But the chain is perhaps best known for its Triple O burgers, which apparently are even sold in Hong Kong and Bangkok these days (they're also dishing them out in steady numbers here at Pacific Coliseum).
I'm told it's the sauce — a combination of mayonaisse and red relish — that makes a Triple O, well, a Triple O. And that there's just nothing like it, especially to anyone who calls this city home.
***
Signs of the 2010 Olympics are in evidence everywhere you look here.
Of course, there's the countdown clock in from of the Vancouver Art Gallery (785 days away, if you're wondering). And, as I've learned, that big hole in the ground on Granville St. next door to the big Sears store is part of the deal, too.
It's supposed to be the site of the main station for the expanded SkyTrain rapid transit system that will service, among other things, the Vancouver airport and the Olympic venues in the Richmond area.
Which explains a lot to me. Kinda figured right away, though, that there was a whole lot more than sewer replacement going on there.
The chain, which is no doubt well doubt known to every Vancouverite, was birthed back in 1928 by Nat Bailey, a U.S.-born restaurateur who's also well known to many in local minor baseball circles here (perhaps you've heard of Nat Bailey Stadium?).
Anyways, a friend who's a Vancouver native recommended the White Spot breakfast and it didn't disappoint (I hit the West Georgia St. location, a brisk morning's walk away from the Sheraton Wall Street). But the chain is perhaps best known for its Triple O burgers, which apparently are even sold in Hong Kong and Bangkok these days (they're also dishing them out in steady numbers here at Pacific Coliseum).
I'm told it's the sauce — a combination of mayonaisse and red relish — that makes a Triple O, well, a Triple O. And that there's just nothing like it, especially to anyone who calls this city home.
***
Signs of the 2010 Olympics are in evidence everywhere you look here.
Of course, there's the countdown clock in from of the Vancouver Art Gallery (785 days away, if you're wondering). And, as I've learned, that big hole in the ground on Granville St. next door to the big Sears store is part of the deal, too.
It's supposed to be the site of the main station for the expanded SkyTrain rapid transit system that will service, among other things, the Vancouver airport and the Olympic venues in the Richmond area.
Which explains a lot to me. Kinda figured right away, though, that there was a whole lot more than sewer replacement going on there.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
From Sea To Sea
You know it's that time again when I'm at an airport mid-January.
Pretty sure it's gotta be that time again when, just ahead of me in line, is none other than Colleen Karam, the friendly voice you'll hear whenever you put a call into the Minto Skating Club (oh, and rather proud mom of senior ice dancer Siobhan Karam, too).
And if it is indeed Canadian figure skating championships time — and it most definitely is — then that's why we're in Vancouver, sharpening up the blogging touch for another go at this favourite event of mine.
It's a week to be happy that the first person you see when you check into the Sheraton Wall Centre is none other than Shae-Lynn Bourne, one of this blogger's all-time favourites in this sport. I said it a year ago in Halifax, when this blogging thing first came to life, but Canadians is like old home week. A once a year reunion of sorts, with athletes and coaches and parents and fans renewing so many friendships and acquaintances — and making a whole bunch of new ones.
Like a delightful young girl named Rosa, with dimples to die for, who made a visitor from another province feel oh so welcome at Earls (a personal favourite eatery whenever I'm in western Canada) on his first night in Vancouver in seven years (and after a long flight from Ottawa, it was much, much appreciated, let me tell you).
Yes, it's been way too long since we all visited the gorgeous part of our fair land, a whole country away from where we were at this time a year ago. How long? Well, the Sheraton Wall Centre, which is our home away from home this week, didn't even exist the last time we were here, way back in 2001 for the world figure skating championships (still one of the best sports events I've ever covered, you should know).
And isn't it fitting that Jamie Sale and David Pelletier, who were on top of the world on a magical night seven years ago at General Motors Place, will be inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame on Sunday at old Pacific Coliseum, which will be the 2010 Winter Olympics venue.
While this week isn't quite an Olympic preview — we're still two years out from that mega-affair — it'll be an interesting stepping stone on the road to Vancouver 2010.
Best of all, it's great to be back on the Left Coast.
Now, on with the show ...
Pretty sure it's gotta be that time again when, just ahead of me in line, is none other than Colleen Karam, the friendly voice you'll hear whenever you put a call into the Minto Skating Club (oh, and rather proud mom of senior ice dancer Siobhan Karam, too).
And if it is indeed Canadian figure skating championships time — and it most definitely is — then that's why we're in Vancouver, sharpening up the blogging touch for another go at this favourite event of mine.
It's a week to be happy that the first person you see when you check into the Sheraton Wall Centre is none other than Shae-Lynn Bourne, one of this blogger's all-time favourites in this sport. I said it a year ago in Halifax, when this blogging thing first came to life, but Canadians is like old home week. A once a year reunion of sorts, with athletes and coaches and parents and fans renewing so many friendships and acquaintances — and making a whole bunch of new ones.
Like a delightful young girl named Rosa, with dimples to die for, who made a visitor from another province feel oh so welcome at Earls (a personal favourite eatery whenever I'm in western Canada) on his first night in Vancouver in seven years (and after a long flight from Ottawa, it was much, much appreciated, let me tell you).
Yes, it's been way too long since we all visited the gorgeous part of our fair land, a whole country away from where we were at this time a year ago. How long? Well, the Sheraton Wall Centre, which is our home away from home this week, didn't even exist the last time we were here, way back in 2001 for the world figure skating championships (still one of the best sports events I've ever covered, you should know).
And isn't it fitting that Jamie Sale and David Pelletier, who were on top of the world on a magical night seven years ago at General Motors Place, will be inducted into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame on Sunday at old Pacific Coliseum, which will be the 2010 Winter Olympics venue.
While this week isn't quite an Olympic preview — we're still two years out from that mega-affair — it'll be an interesting stepping stone on the road to Vancouver 2010.
Best of all, it's great to be back on the Left Coast.
Now, on with the show ...
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