E A S T K O O T E N A Y

N E W S I N S I D E

Thursday, November 19, 2009 S e r v i n g t h e S o u t h C o u n t r y , F e r n i e , S p a r w o o d , E l k f o r d s i n c e 1 8 9 8 $1 ( includes GST)

ELK VALLEY REMEMBERS

Sparwood ceremony - Page 16

SPORT

Elk Valley Dolphins - Page 21

ELK VALLEY REMEMBERS

Fernie ceremony - Page 14

ELK VALLEY REMEMBERS

Elkford ceremony - Page 16

Brydon supports Right to PlaySkier among athletes in 2010 calendarBy Rebecca EdwardsFree Press Staff

Count down to the Olympics and give a child the chance to play in 2010, by buy-

ing a charity calendar featuring Fernie skier Emily Brydon.

Brydon is featured in the Right To Play 2010 charity calendar, which is now available for $20 with proceeds going to the char-ity.

The calendar features quotes, biographies and photos of 18 Canadian athletes including speed skater Clara Hughes, cross-country skier Beckie Scott, hockey player Hayley Wickenheiser.

Brydon and fellow Canadian speed queens Britt Janyk, and Kelly VanderBeek have also launched a signature Speed Queen t-shirt in aid of Right to Play.

Featuring a crown and crossed skis, the t-shirts will be on sale at the first world cup race in Lake Louise on December 5-7 and

also at the charity website www.righttoplay.com/speedqueen

Brydon is an athlete ambas-sador for the Toronto charity which uses sport and games to teach life skills to children and their families in 26 developing countries.

She travelled to Ghana last year to see some of the char-ity’s programs and is also hoping to organize further trips in the future.

Brydon, who is currently train-ing in Nakiska ahead of the Lake Louise race, told The Free Press this week that the charity’s prin-ciples are close to her heart.

“Sport is something I know really well, it is something I’m passionate about, I’ve seen first hand how it can change people’s lives, it is one of the only things in our world that transcends bor-ders.

“I really believe every child has a right to play, I believe in the principles behind the charity and the way they are changing lives every day.”

• The Right to Play charity calendar costs $20. To purchase a calendar call 250-423-4782.

To buy a Speed Queens t-shirt visit www.righttoplay.com/speedqueen

Fernie ski racer Emily Brydon is featured on the December page in a

2010 calendar that will raise money for the Right to Play sports charity.

Submitted photo

Are you prepared for avalanches?By Rebecca EdwardsFree Press Staff

Backcountry users are being warned to treat early season snow conditions just as they would if it was the height of winter, by

planning trips and refreshing their skills.Two ski tourers set off an avalanche in Lizard

Bowl at Fernie Alpine Resort on Monday last week, luckily escaping without being buried but prompting RCR to close the base area to stop skiers accessing the slopes.

Matt Mosteller of RCR said: “This was a very serious situation – it is now all about everybody going out there and getting their training, tak-ing an avalanche course, practising with the probe and the shovel and going in low aspect areas and safe areas to start out with.”

He added: “We have staff working on prepar-ing the trails for the season, and their safety and the safety of any guests in the area is extremely

important to us. We can’t have people setting off avalanches while we are working.”

Chris Thomas of Fernie and District Search and Rescue received a 911 call from the skiers immediately after the incident and was just arranging for a helicopter to respond when the resort told him their staff had seen the slide and had recovered the skiers.

Thomas said it is time for skiers and snow-mobilers to refresh their avalanche skills.

“If you are planning on going into the back-country take the avalanche skills course, they are being offered at several locations, go with someone that has experience in the backcountry to help minimize the risk.”

Karl Klassen, of the Canadian Avalanche Centre said that forecasting backcountry con-ditions is difficult at this time because snow-mobile and cat ski operators are not open and reporting their data to the centre.

“The main message right now is just becauseit doesn’t seem like winter in the valley, when you get up there it is definitely winter come a little early so you need to plan your trips, make sure you know what the conditions are just as you would in December or January.

“There have been a number of incidentsthroughout the province and on the Alberta side of the Rockies. None of them were serious but they are indicative of people parking up and going for a little spin in just the places that are more dangerous right now.”

• The Canadian Avalanche Centre is holdinga backcountry safety awareness workshop at The Arts Station in Fernie on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. costing $20.

Speakers at the workshop will include ava-lanche researchers from University of Calgary and local backcountry professionals to give an overall view on safe backcountry use.