In June and July this year, Ollie Blackmore will be attempting a world record by cycling around Vancouver Island solo and unsupported. This challenge is a world-first, and Ollie has planned this entirely by himself to fundraise for cancer charities in British Columbia and the UK. The hope is to raise $25,000 for BC Cancer Foundation and £25,000 for Big C in Norwich, Ollie’s home town through online donations.
With a target of £25,000 for his local charity The Big C, and $25,000 for Canadian charity The British Columbia Cancer Foundation, Ollie hopes to be able to make a big difference to people’s lives, breaking a world record in the process. Both offer support to patients and families in the form of care and even research to combat this all too common disease.
He’s currently well on his way towards his target for The Big C; the total standing at around £9000 with around two months to go until the ride. As an ex-smoker, and someone who has been indirectly affected by cancer, Ollie’s hope is not only to raise support and awareness to fight the disease, but also to show that there are healthy alternatives to smoking.
Ollie also sent me the following information: “The ride is 15 consecutive days over a distance of 2,300km. I’ll climb a total ascent of more than 151,000ft which is 5 times higher than Mount Everest! I carry all my food, equipment, clothes and spares for the custom made bike. I’ll camp in the wild every night, fully aware of the dangers from bears, cougars, wolves and logging trucks. I have been training like crazy for this trip, covering 400-500 miles each week and preparing by taking on two of the UK’s hardest cycling sportives The Fred Whitton Challenge and Tour of Wessex.”
Along the way, he will be recording the challenge with several cameras and posting updates to social media to really show the context of the challenge and how hard it will be — including the riding, planning, camping, weather, repairs and more.
Some facts about Ollie’s Cycle Challenge Canada ride:
- 70% of the route is off-road
- Ollie will be carrying 35kg of supplies and equipment
- He’ll cycle for 2,300km, that’s only 14km fewer than the Tour de France riders in the same period, without the luxury of a day off, a hotel room or a support team
- Some climbs are near 40%
- He will burn an average 6,500 calories a day
- Several days see total climbs in excess of 16,000ft, only 1 stage of the 2013 Tour de France had a higher total elevation.
Support Ollie’s ride, which begins June 22nd from Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal, by visiting his website to learn more, donating online, and following on Facebook for regular updates.
The Rio Theatre is serving up a strong lineup for May featuring some of the most frequently quoted films of our generation. These 19+ screenings can be complimented with a beverage from the theatre’s full service bar as you enjoy a night out with friends. Tickets are available online in advance or at the door for $8 or $6 if you come in costume.
Rio Theatre Friday Late Night Movies
Friday, June 6, 2014
Mars Attacks! (Tim Burton, 1996)
Tim Burton’s out-of-this-world alien invasion comedy is a cult-classic that includes hilarious Martians with unbeatable weapons and a cruel sense of humor, as well as a killer cast. Starring Jack Nicholson, Pierce Brosnan, Glenn Close, Natalie Portman, Annette Benning, Danny DeVito, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael J. Fox, and Tom Jones (as himself). Hosted by Tyler James Nicol.
Friday, June 13, 2014
Audition (Takashi Miike, 1999)
Based on the novel by Ryu Murakami, Audition created waves when it debuted on the festival circuit and has since developed a strong following for its visceral interpretation of the source material; this is a horror film for the not-so-faint of heart. ‘A widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all.’ Hosted by Little Miss Risk.
Friday, June 20, 2014
Spice World (Bob Spiers, 1997)
I’ll tell you what you really really want… Drag queens. | As a general rule, drag queens make everything better. Especially when the drag queens are The Spice Gurls, and they’re doing a live shadow cast to the tunes of Spice World. Fresh off their phenomenal tour of Texas, The Spice Gurls finally return to the Rio to bring Spice World to life. Get your platform shoes British accents ready, people. Time to spice up your life! *Tickets $12 in costume/advance or $15/door
Friday, June 27, 2014
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Steve Barron, 1990)
Perhaps the best live-action movie about a group of humanoid, mutated, teenaged turtles whose collective proficiency in the martial arts winds up pitting them in a ferocious battle against a criminal gang of Ninjas ever made. Hosted by April O’Peel.
The Rio Theatre is an independent art and movie house located at 1660 West Broadway, at Commercial Drive, and is easily accessible by transit. Follow along on Facebook and Twitter for more film screenings, comedy showcases, and special event information.
Miss604 is a media partner of the Rio’s Late Night Movie series.
One of the things I love about Las Vegas is the wide variety of things to do there, aside from the casino floor (which can also definitely be fun). This series will share my recent trip with Travel Nevada, covering some of the fun activities that you can do in Nevada, all within a few hours (or less) from the Las Vegas Strip.
Next up in Nevada was a half day kayak trip on Lake Mead with Desert Adventures. Once again, we had perfect weather and met with our guide, Reid and headed to Lake Mead which is a national recreation area that extends across Nevada and Arizona. The lake is the largest man made reservoir in North America and is a result of the building of the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River.
Kayaking on Lake Mead
Photo credit: John Biehler
Once we had the kayaks unloaded, we set out to explore. The scale or the lake is somewhat deceiving as our first destination was what appeared to be a small island but was actually quite large and took a bit of time to reach. Continue reading this post ⟩⟩
The film and television industry in BC is full of talented individuals, both on screen, behind the camera and behind the scenes. Each year, the Leo Awards celebrate excellence in BC film and television production by not only awarding outstanding achievements but also by recognizing them in the first place.
“Making fabulous television in Vancouver is such an easy thing to do, and I’m happy to be doing it.”
Kristin Lehman
One quick look through the list of nominees for the Leo Awards each year really makes you realize just how much is made in BC — and how much we should be shouting from the mountain tops that this is the place to be when it comes to creating content for screens both big and small.
There’s a sense of pride when you’re watching a show and you see BC talent appear in a role, or when you hear about a local student production making waves, or when you see a Vancouver location doubling as Seattle, Chicago, or Kansas on a show (John and I have a game for the latter that we call “guess where Vancouver”).
Leo Awards 2014 Red Carpet
On Sunday, the three-night Leo Awards celebration wrapped up by handing out the final awards of the year and hosting a red carpet reception. I was there to welcome nominees, presenters, and hosts, and I had the opportunity to speak with Lorne Cardinal (nominated for Best Supporting Performance by a Male in a Motion Picture for If I Had Wings) and Kristin Lehman (nominated for Best Lead Performance by a Female in a Dramatic Series for Motive).
On the Red Carpet with Lorne Cardinal
Known for his comedic portrayal of Sergeant Davis Quinton on the hit series Corner Gas (2004-2009), actor, director, and producer Lorne Cardinal was nominated this year for his role as Angus Coleman in If I Had Wings. Cardinal has also spent time recently working on The Making of King Lear which is about the National Arts Centre theatre production of King Lear, with an all-Aboriginal cast. I asked him about the transition between comedy, drama, acting and directing:
“It works really, really well. I love the variety, I don’t like just doing one thing. I prefer to do as much as I can. I prefer to do comedy, then I prefer to direct, I love working with young actors and I love flexing those muscles as well. Producing is a new creature and I’m mostly going to start writing a feature film script so that’s another iron I’ve got in the fire as well.”
“In this business I think diversity is the most important element that you have to do. You can’t just rely on being an actor unless you get really lucky and hit it big. But if not, then you have to rely on the other skills that you have, whatever they may be. It’s a good learning lesson.”
Corner Gas: The Movie is also on tap for Cardinal, it launched a Kickstarter campaign in May and it surpassed its $100,000 goal in a matter of days. “It surprised the heck out of me, that’s for sure. It was nice to get it off my chest, sitting on that secret for a couple of months was tempting.” The total is now sitting at $205,388, with 16 days to go. “It’s amazing, I was just totally overwhelmed by the support right across the country.”
On the Red Carpet with Kristin Lehman
Vancouver local Kristin Lehman is no stranger to crime dramas and the CTV hit Motive, now also on ABC in the United States, is not only filmed in Vancouver it’s also set in Vancouver.
“You know we have such skilled, fabulous technicians here that aside from my own love for our city, we actually have some of the most talented crews and actors here. So, it feels like – it’s like I’m coming home but never missing a beat.”
Her character Detective Angie Flynn, for which she was nominated, can be scene at the Olympic Village (where the community centre stars as the police station in the series), at Mom’s Grilled Cheese food truck in one episode, and in the dark alleys of downtown that movie-makers love so well. I wondered if as a local, Lehman had discovered anywhere new in town, thanks to filming location choices, which she has. “I go to places I wouldn’t normally find myself and I love them every single time.”
“When [Motive] brings me to places that increase the diversity of my own life, I feel really grateful and this show definitely does that.”
A full list of winners from the Leo Awards is available online now, from each of the three nights and on the Leo Awards Facebook page.
The Stanley Park Train will be celebrating its 50th anniversary of operating the miniature railway with special events Friday, June 6th to Sunday, June 8th.
1966: Stanley Park train. VPL #42873 & 42874. Photographer Gordon F. Sedawie for the Province Newspaper.
Stanley Park Train 50th Anniversary
From 10:00am to 5:00pm daily, train rides will be $5 per person and visitors can enjoy free entertainment and activities such as:
An interactive CinemaZoo animal display, an inflatable bouncy train, face painting, BC Metis Federation Dancers, stilt walkers, train themed crafts, a Vancouver Aquarium display, Firefighters BBQ & display (Saturday only), Vancouver Public Library Story Bus (Sunday only) and more.
Stanley Park Miniature Railway Facts
When the original miniature railway began in 1947 is featured only a child-size train. The current adult-size train opened in 1964.
The area for the miniature railway was cleared naturally when Typhoon Freda wiped out a 6-acre virgin tract behind the children’s zoo in October of 1962.
The train is a replica of Canadian Pacific Railway #374, famous for pulling Canada’s first transcontinental passenger train into Vancouver in the late 1880s. [Source]
It carries 200,000 passengers a year on a 2km circuit.
In late June the train will be transformed into the summertime “Spirit Catcher” train in partnership with Klahowya Village in Stanley Park, which will run until September.
