September 21/02 8:52 am - Sad News, Annapolis Festival, BC Camps

Posted by Editor on 09/21/02
 

Sad News

We are very sorry to have to report that Fernand Tremblay, a fixture in the Canadian bicycle industry for over 2 decades, passed away yesterday after a long struggle with cancer.

Anyone who dealt with Velomag for advertising probably ran into Fernand on a regular basis. When we first took over Canadian Cyclist, Fernand was our advertising rep, and helped us get started. In the last few years our contact has been pretty much limited to running into each other at trade shows, but even then, Fernand was always ready sit down and have a chat about the industry and wanted to know how we were doing.

We will miss his warm smile and hearty handshakes.


Annapolis Royal Cycling Festival

This is a little late, but there are still two days to enjoy at the Festival.

The wheels go round and round in Annapolis Royal from September 17-22 this fall, where it's the 19th annual Arts Festival, put on by the Annapolis Region Community Arts Council. This year's theme is "Cycles." One of the keynote events will be a sculptural tribute to the late Ontario artist and cyclist, Greg Curnoe, who not only painted pictures of bicycles, but raced them as well. Much of his career was devoted to recording his life in London, Ontario, including his bike rides. Influenced by the French Dadaists and surrealists like Marcel Duchamp, Curnoe painted many pictures of bicycle wheels, as well as his favorite bikes, the Zeus 10-speed and the Mariposa TT.

Local artists Brad Hall, metalworker, and potter and sculptor Ray Mackie are constructing "Hommage a Greg Curnoe," a large site-specific sculpture made entirely from bicycles. Annapolis Royal, in the heartland of historic Nova Scotia, hosts many bicycle tours during the vacation season, and many residents, too, young and old, use bicycles to get around and for recreation. Each fall and spring, discarded bikes and bike parts are set out along the rural roadways for seasonal trash collection. Seeing these derelict and abandoned armatures suggested a way that they might be whimsically "recycled" into a popular and participatory welded sculpture dedicated to Greg Curnoe, who met his untimely death in a cycling accident in 1992. All summer long bicycles accumulated for the project at Brad Hall's foundry attracting attention from photo-seeking tourists and residents alike. Hall nicknamed the pile of bikes "Finish Line for the Tour de France." Greg Curnoe's widow Sheila Curnoe has generously lent one of the artist's bikes and a painted wheel for the Cycle exhibition in the Chapel gallery at ARTsPLACE.

Hall and Mackie are also installing smaller "bike-works" on private lands and buildings around town, turning the area into a cyclists' dreamscape, complete with interactive wheels that spin and horns that toot. With the help of the former Nova Scotia Arts Council, Bike Again in Halifax and the Annappolis County Recreation Committee, the creative team will unveil the piece on Friday, September 20 at ARTsPLACE. Recreation staff are pleased to participate in the project since it highlights the healthy recreational aspects of cycling.

Commented Curnoe Project organizers Jo Stern and Susan Tileston, "We are fully confident that this unique event will help to put Annapolis Royal on the tourist map as a dynamic and friendly place to visit; proud of its historical prestige and presence, but also a place with avant-garde thinking and a way of life second to none. We're combining the creative aspects of cycling and art making into this year's festival, and we promise there's something for everyone."

Other events scheduled during the weekend include a bicycle parade, a bike maintenance workshop, a road riding workshop with Steven Swan of Backstreet Bicycles (Digby), a bike ride and picnic to the Lequille Grist Mill with readings by Kent Thompson (author of "Getting Out of Town by Book and Bike") and Susan Haley, a bike ride to a local orchard and a cycling rodeo for kids.


There are arts events for non-cyclists as well. Workshops include "Picnics for all Seasons" with Sylvia Yeoman, "Nature and Life Cycles" with Karen Achenbach at the Historic Gardens and "Sculpture Techniques for Kids" with Brad Hall, Ray Mackie and Ralph Pardy.

This year's musical event is a concert with soprano Janice Jackson and pianist Michael McKay at the King's Theatre on Friday, September 20 at 8:00 p.m. Jackson's cabaretesque concert will feature "A World of Song Cycles," looking at song "cycles" from different countries (England, Spain, France, Canada, Holland), including some classical versions of Beatles tunes by Dutch composer Louis Andriessen. She'll also perform a song cycle by Nova Scotia's own, composer Emily Doolittle. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door.

For those with a literary bent, Kent Thompson will lead a travel writing workshop, while Alf Silver will host a session on writing for various media. On Saturday, September 21, CBC Radio's "Writers & Company" host Eleanor Wachtel will be the guest speaker at a "Bibliophile's Feast,' featuring locally grown organic food coordinated by Doug Brown (Oak Haven Organic Farms) and Pat Redgrave (Garrison House) and a kitchen party open jam session.

The Festival concludes on Sunday, September 22 with readings by Canadian authors Joan Clark, Christy Ann Conlin, Robert Finley, Susan Goyette, Heidi von Palleske and Alfred Silver, hosted by Jane Buss of the Writers' Federation of Nova Scotia. Festival sponsors include Nova Scotia Power, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Town of Annapolis Royal, Annapolis County Recreation and the former Nova Scotia Arts Council.

To register for a workshop or the Bibliophile's Feast, or for further information, call ARCAC for a full Festival schedule at (902) 532-7069 or 1-800-228-4492 or e-mail arcac@ns.sympatico.ca.


Sprockids Camp

Doug Detwiller, founder of the incredible Sprockids program sent us an e-mail yesterday:

"I know that this time of year is extremly busy for you, but I just wanted to touch base and let you know about a very exciting project that we held over the weekend of September 13-15th. It was the second in a series of pilot projects between Sprockids and Whistler Blackcomb. The concept for this project was to bring together a group of Sprockids teenagers and their parents for a weekend of riding and bonding. The camp was called "The XC/Freeride Camp for the Generations," and took place over two days. On the Saturday we focused on XC riding, and on Sunday we suited up in full face helmets, body armor, jumped on dual suspenion bikes and went downhilling. It is a whole new direction for Sprockids, and represents a great way of getting teenagers and their parents turned on to the world of mountain biking."

We have reproduced a writeup by Doug: Sprockids Camp. For more information about the Sprockids program there is a link on the above page.


Under 23 Fall Training Camp

October 25-27, 2002

Presented by National level coach Jeremy Storie, this camp is designed to help all cyclists improve their performance, whether on the road, off- road or track.

Designed to improve cycling performance for young riders of all disciplines, the FALL SUPERCAMP has a particular focus on riders between the ages of 13 and 18, and those moving on to the senior class in the near future. The 2002 Fall Supercamp starts on Friday, October 25 which is a provincial wide Professional Development Day. The mix of group road riding and cross- training all held within the confines of a 3 day long team competition put fun into the start of a new season. Led by level 4 cycling coach, Jeremy Storie, the Supercamp starts on Friday with team formation and on- the- bike training including a track riding session at the velodrome Friday evening ( no experience needed ) and continuing throughout the weekend with group rides interspersed with cross- training activities and small fun competitions. Bike Training will mostly be conducted during the morning sessions, with the rest of the day given over to cross training and information sessions. Riders will leave the Supercamp with a much better understanding of the sport of competitive cycling and with a fresh start for the 2003 season. The Supercamp is designed to improve all disciplines of racing. The on- bike training sessions are geared around road riding and will take place on quiet backroads in the Langley area. Be assured that the skills and fitness developed on the road are completely transferable to off- road or track riding. Final details and itinerary will be sent to all participants after October 21, 2002.

The Coaches

Jeremy Storie

Jeremy is a level 4 cycling coach who has coached 10 Canadian riders to the World Championships in all the cycling disciplines - road, off- road and track. He is also a high school teacher for the Burnaby District. He has raced at the National level for many years and has represented British Columbia on many occasions. Well regarded within the cycling community, Jeremy has a great passion for bicycle racing which is demonstrated by his tireless efforts in promoting the sport.

Ride Leaders

On every ride, the groups will be accompanied by ride leaders drawn from the local cycling community. These will include National Team rider Mandy Poitras (8 time national champion and double World Cup race winner), and Svein Tuft, professional racer with Prime Alliance.

What to bring Deadlines and Costs

All participants should arrive at camp with a road bike in good mechanical condition, with a full rear fender.A mud flap is also mandatory for the comfort of those riding behind you. In addition, please be sure to bring a pump, spare tubes, some basic tools and appropriate cycling clothing. Finally, a valid 2002 Cycling B. C. license or $15 event license is required ( available at the training camp).

The cost of the entire course is $100. This includes coaching, all facilities fees, obstacle course fees, insurance, velodrome, and track bike rental fee. Food and accommodations are the responsibility of the participant but there may be some local homestays with riders available.

The deadline for registration is October 21st, 2002. Refunds, less $25 administrative fee, given up to October 22nd, 2002. A full refund will be given to those with a valid medical condition. No refunds after October 22nd, 2002 Payment in full for the course should accompany the registration form, with cheques payable to "Jeremy Storie". Don‚t forget to sign the waiver as well as the application.

Please make cheques for $100 payable to "Jeremy Storie" and mail with this form to:

Jeremy Storie, 28- 20750 Telegraph Trail, Langley, B. C., V1M 2W1

tel: (604) 888- 5779 or (604) 888- 5933

fax: (604) 888- 5933

email: bigring@ shaw. ca