On Wednesday August 24th, members of Vancity Savings Credit Union will be able to purchase deeply discounted $5 PNA fair admission from 11:00am until closing.
You can get your fair gate pass at any PNE ticket booth on Vancity Member Day only by showing a Vancity member debit card or Vancity Enviro Visa card. Drop by the main gate, ocated on Hastings and Renfrew. Vancity employees will be there to greet our members from 59 communities throughout BC. All children 13 years old and younger can get in with free admission, regardless of whether they are a member or not, and the PNE concert series that day presents Serena Ryder.
Vancity is Canada’s largest credit union and a Living Wage employer with $15 billion in assets, more than 417,000 members and 59 branches throughout Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria and Squamish.
If you’re a Vancity Savings Credit Union member just let me know in the comments. I have 2 Playland ride passes to give away (valid only tomorrow) for a lucky member who can attend the fair Wednesday, August 24, 2011.
If you would prefer to keep your name private, please feel free to use an alias for this contest entry only but be sure to provide a valid email address so I can contact you should you win. I’ll draw a winner this evening from all entries.
It’s where you can ride the Crazy Beach Party, visit Hell’s Gate, or take a spin on the Enterprise without leaving Vancouver. The Fair at the PNE has returned for the 101st year and with it children young and old will enjoy carnival games, marketplace shopping, livestock exhibits, rides, cotton candy, and more sticky-gooey tasty delights. Over the years the rides have changed, we’ve added a few and lost many, but there’s one that has been a mainstay and that’s the wooden coaster.
Roller coaster at the PNE in 1923. VPL Accession Number: 12261.
The ride portion at the fair has held many names including “Happyland” before becoming “Playland” a few decades ago. From what I can find, there have been at least three iterations of a wooden coaster at the PNE including the Giant Dipper. According to Chuck Davis’ records, in 1927: “The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) and his brother Prince George (later the Duke of Kent, and still later King George VI) visited Vancouver.” While here, “Edward tried out the Dipper one afternoon and liked it so well he returned in the evening.”
Giant Dipper roller coaster at the PNE in 1932. VPL Accession Number: 12276.
Located on the West side of the grounds, the Giant Dipper was demolished in 1948 to make room for an expanding Hastings Racecourse track. The Dipper was a crowd favourite and there was much opposition when this was announced.
“THEY’RE TEARING DOWN the Giant Dipper at Vancouver’s Hastings Park today to make room for the extension of the racetrack. This may be good news to adult followers of the galloping bangtails, but it’s something close to a major tragedy for thousands of youngsters. Shown viewing the crumbling skeleton with nostalgia and sorrow is 14-year-old Bob. Said Bob, ‘If they want to rip things apart in this town, why don’t they start in on a few schools?’ The Giant Dipper has been a top attraction at the midway since 1925. It cost $65,000. It was almost a mile long, and the cars reached 40 miles an hour. The longest sheer drop was 60 feet—a thrill credited with having hastened the ripening of many a beautiful friendship.” [Source via The Province Newspaper]
When the new coaster went up in 1958 (at the location you find it today) it was the largest in Canada.
The coaster was built board by board 53 years ago and reaches speeds of 45mph/72kmh and a height of 23m/75ft. It was designed by Carl E. Phare and was built by Walker LeRoy as a part of the vision for Playland.
It’s ride that you either love, hate, or love to hate. I’m not sure it’s scary because of the dips and turns, or because it feels like it could fall apart at any minute. Regardless, it’s always a thrill that leaves me with an unwipable smile after each go.
Today, it’s the oldest operating coaster in the country. It’s frequently been named to “Top Ten” lists for wooden roller coasters around the world and has received an official “Coaster Landmark Award” from the ACE.
The PNE will run until September 5, 2011 and after that time Playland will still be open on weekends until the end of September. If they bring back Fright Nights this year, you can even ride the coaster in the dark this fall.
After a successful first day of Live at Squamish 2011, Sunday followed with an even larger line-up of artists. With shows starting earlier in the day, it was packed with even more music and dancing. Although the sun hid periodically behind incoming cloud cover, the bikinis were out, the beer gardens were brimming and hands were clapping for the amazing talents that graced each stage.
The Zolas on the Stawamus Stage. Photo by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photos by John Biehler on Flickr
Metric. Photo by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photo by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photos by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photos by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photos by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photo by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Metric then Weezer. Photos by John Biehler on Flickr
Weezer. Photo by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photos by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photo by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Metric finished their set to a booming rendition of Stadium Love and Weezer dropped a few covers on the crowd including Pumped Up Kicks and Radiohead’s Paranoid Android. Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo also took a stroll through the crowd and without skipping a beat, while being hugged and grabbed by adoring fans, didn’t skip a beat during his Island in the Sun ‘hip hip’ cues.
Major Lazer at the Garibaldi Stage. Photo by John Biehler on Flickr
Thievery Corporation will be playing Malkin Bowl in Stanley Park next month. Touring for their sixth studio album, Culture of Fear, this DJ duo has sold over 1.2 million albums in the US over their 15-year career. Their sound has been described as “space-rock” that is hip hop inspired with “airy down-temp trances and dub-reggae infused vibes”.
Their live performances are legendary as they’re known to bring out live bands for instrumentals and vocalists to compliment their smooth beats. Fresh off their shows in Hungary, Turkey, and headlining at Red Rocks in Australia, they’ll be gracing Vancouver with their presence as we coast into autumn. While there’s rain pouring down today, this beautiful outdoor concert would be a great way to extend all the good times had this summer in the sunshine.
It’s an early concert, starting around 5:30pm on September 13th at the lovely outdoor Malkin Bowl with guests Los Amigos Invisibles. If you would like to attend, I have a pair of tickets to give away, here’s how you can enter to win:
Leave a comment on this post with a Thievery Corporation song title (1 entry)
Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
I entered to win tickets to @ThieveryCorpDC in #Vancouver from @Miss604 & @LiveNationWest http://ow.ly/6a0Pm
I will draw one winner this Friday, August 26, 2011 at 10:00am.
Kayak for a Cure 2011 is taking place this Sunday, August 28th starting out from Jericho Beach. Participants have been collecting pledges and sponsorships over the last few months and in exchange they get to support a great cause and enjoy time out on the water.
Since it began in 2006, Kayak for a Cure has raised close to $250,000 for cancer research. This year they’re partnering with InspireHealth cancer care centres and hope to raise $50,000 at the sold-out Vancouver event.
Those participating can usually bring their own kayak or rent a single or double kayak for the paddle. John and I shared a double kayak last year for the event that took place on a gorgeous late-August morning. We even spotted spray from a whale, that was hanging out near Jericho at the time, as dozens of kayaks slid by on the water’s surface.
Although registration is now closed (they filled the spots for all 60 kayaks), you can still sponsor a paddler or make a general donation to the cause. If you have your own kayak, you can paddle with the group on Sunday as well. Meet up in front of Ecomarine at Jericho between 8:00am and 9:00am.
Kayak for a Cure takes place across North America, from Victoria to Mississauga and up through the Yukon and Northwest Territories.
