In 1972 Paul Henderson scored three of the most famous (and important) game winning goals in hockey history during the Summit Series including the one that won it all against Russia. This wasn’t just international play – it was Canada reclaiming hockey as its game, even from behind the Iron Curtain.
Recently Mitchell Goldhar bought Paul Henderson’s famous #19 Team Canada jersey (for over $1 million) and decided to share it with the rest of the country. He’s put together a cross-Canada tour that will have stops in Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, and BC where Henderson will drop the puck at the Canucks game April 2nd.
“It will be a wonderful place for parents to bring the kids and educate them about something that happened 29 years ago,” Paul Henderson told me over the phone. He’ll be accompanying the tour for 20 of the jersey’s 65 stops. The Henderson Jersey trailer will park at each location where hockey fans young and old can enter and view memorabilia, take photos, and learn about the epic series.
While the tour wasn’t his idea, Paul enjoys connecting with fans and hearing their stories. He told me that a man came up to him in Winnipeg a while back and said, “My dad and I never had a good relationship, we just didn’t get along but in 1972 we watched that series together and finally found something we both really liked.” The man told Paul that the series changed his family. “You get all kinds of stories like that,” Paul added.
Paul made sure to emphasize that it’s free to visit the trailer, he’s got a free DVD that tells his life story, and he’ll gladly pose for photos.
Stops in the Lower Mainland include:
Surrey: April 1, 2011 at Surrey Sport & Leisure (Unit 110 16555 Fraser Hwy)
Vancouver: April 2, 2011 at Rogers Arena
Maple Ridge: April 3, 2011 at Planet Ice (23588 105th Ave)
Earlier this week I began a new series called “Vancouver Icons” that will combine information about famous city landmarks with a collection of photos I find on Flickr. When I first started blogging I wanted to showcase the lesser-known aspects of Vancouver life, history, and culture – helping people explore beyond the tourist traps and cliche photo ops. However, there are so many iconic places and things around Vancouver that we pass every day and may not know much about. Today’s Vancouver Icons feature is the Marine Building.
Known most recently for its cameos in locally-filmed television shows and movies (eg. as the Daily Planet in Smallville) the Marine Building is one of Vancouver’s most recognizable buildings.
1931 – Looking North from Vancouver. Archives Item# CVA 371-1157. Photographer: Joseph Frederick Spalding
Construction began March 13, 1929 with a ceremony attended by Mayor W.H. Malkin who blew a golden whistle to start the excavators in motion. The building formally opened October 7, 1930 with 21 floors at a height of 321 feet – it defined Vancouver’s skyline.
It has ornate ocean-themed features everywhere you look on the inside and out, from carvings to clocks and elevators. A few of the features as described by the late Chuck Davis on his site, Vancouver History:
Great Entrance: “Seahorses and pufferfish still swim along outside the building between the second and third floors. Boats and ships move past, biplanes and a Zeppelin fly by. A train chugs past. It’s one of the great entrances in Canada. Seventy-six years ago, when it was new and the colors were brighter, it must have been a dazzler.”
Elevators: “The lobby, small as it is, is a masterpiece. There are five elevators, their doors of solid brass intricately and interestingly designed. There was a time when five uniformed young women stood beside them, each carefully chosen for her beauty. The elevators were the fastest in the city at 700 feet a minute, at a time when 150 feet a minute was the norm.”
Lobby: “On the east wall of the lobby is a clock with unusually shaped numbers. When the big hand is on the starfish and the little hand is on the crab, it’s six o’clock. The lobby floor has 12 inlaid signs of the zodiac and was once made of a material called Corkoid, imported from Inverness, Scotland. It has now been replaced with look-alike material.”
You can spend an afternoon gazing up at the art deco details on the exterior of the building – many of which you may not notice in passing but will discover upon closer inspection. The Marine Building is located on Burrard between West Hastings and Cordova.
The Vancouver Whitecaps FC will play host to Toronto FC this Saturday for their Major League Soccer home opener at Empire Field. This marks the third chapter in Vancouver soccer history.
Starting in 1974, the Vancouver Whitecaps were a part of the North American Soccer League but the team (along with others in the league) folded in 1984. The team came back to life in 1986 as the Vancouver 86ers, playing in the Canadian Soccer League. For the next decade they would play with various leagues until becoming a part of the USL in 1997. The team changed their name back to the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2001 and in 2011, they’ll be playing in the MLS as Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Being a part of the MLS means the team has attracted even more international players and will be squaring off against the Chicago Fire, DC United, Seattle Sounders FC, Portland Timbers, and the Los Angeles Galaxy (just to name a few clubs in the West).
> Photo credit: Peyvand Padidar Photography
The Whitecaps have a very dedicated fan base that can often get more riled up (and chant more unique tunes) than you’ll see in the stands at a hockey game. If you would like to be a part of their next chapter, here’s how you can enter to win a pair of tickest to the Whitecaps’ MLS home opener on Saturday, March 19th.
Yesterday I was invited up to Hester Creek Winery in Oliver (at the Southern tip of the Okanagan) to tour their facilities, meet their winemaker, and learn more about their vineyards. While I am very familiar with the brand (and they have also been generous sponsors of the last two Twestival events I have organized) I had still never been to the Hester Creek estate.
We spent the day touring the villas (that are currently B&B style), meeting the friendly staff like Robin and LeeAnn Openshaw, exploring the property with General Manager Mark Sheridan, and doing tastings with winemaker Robert Summers.
Our group (which consisted of food and travel writers from Vancouver) tasted a variety of Hester Creek’s yet-to-be-released offerings as well as some of their classics.
Ambrosia Apple, Parsnip, and Celeriac Soup (with sharp cheddar toast and honey).
Paired with 2010 Character White
The soup was fresh, fruity, smooth and creamy, and the crunchy apples garnish with crusted toast added a delightful contrast in textures. Chef Bell created the soup’s stock from the chicken that was our tender and juicy second course and more apples were used in our sweet and salty dessert.
Maple Hill Farms Chicken with Golden Quinoa
Paired with 2009 Character Red
Classic Tart Tatin (granny smith apples, salted caramel)
Paired with 2009 Late Harvest Pinot Blanc
Hester Creek’s new restaurant will feature meals prepared with their wines in mind with locally-sourced ingredients from Oliver and the Okanagan. Their demo kitchen in the winery will continue to host a cooking series with top-notch guest chefs from around the country. I took a few photos of the restaurant’s construction and look forward to returning in the summer to take some “after” shots, perhaps while enjoying some of their mediterranean-style pizza on the patio overlooking the vineyard while sipping on a Character White.
I have been going to the Okanagan every year for the last 30 years and have spent quite a bit of time in Osoyoos over the last ten years. Wine tours in the region include hopping in the car with a designated driver and heading up the Golden Mile for tours and tastings before returning home to your hotel, campsite, or (in our case) my aunt’s condo. I didn’t previously know that Hester Creek had villas just up the hill from their winery and that they will soon be opening their own restaurant. Before now, they have sent their guests over to Burrowing Owl for dinner but they can now be their own ‘one stop shop’ for a getaway in the vineyards.
I was most impressed by the people of Hester Creek and their passion for two things: the visitor experience and above all, the quality of the wine. It’s clear that they are all about the grapes, the vines, sustainable practices, and producing a quality product.
Returning home just a few hours later, I got to ride in the co-pilot seat of the airplane. It was a whirlwind tour but at a relaxed pace, leaving me feeling very excited about visiting the South Okanagan in the coming months.
Volunteers planted over 120 trees in Surrey’s Green Timbers March 15th, 1930. According to VancouverHistory, this was BC’s first “forest plantation” and now this 400 hectare park is an urban refuge:
Green Timbers Urban Forest in Surrey is unique: it consists mainly of trees planted from seedlings in the first attempt at reforestation in British Columbia. It sits on a square mile of forest astride the Fraser Highway.
1914 Green Timbers – Pacific Highway – Surrey Archives
Stand by that highway and look east, and you’re directly facing Mount Baker. This highway was originally the Yale Wagon Road to the interior, built by the Royal Engineers in 1875. In 1923 it was renamed the Pacific Highway when Surrey was linked by road to Blaine in Washington State.
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