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On our cover Tall ships, cultural festivals, theatre, music, and more—in this month’s cover story, Sarah Sawler has Halifax’s can’t-miss summer events. Photos: Trevor J. Adams, Teffa Ciolfe, Patrick Healey, Steve Jess, Chris Smith PUBLISHER Patty

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EDITORIAL INTERNS

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Enter at halifaxmag.com Contest closes August 31, 2017 The winner of the May 2017 contest is Judy Haley of Halifax. $100.00 gift certificate to The Wooden Monkey. Halifax Magazine is a Metro Guide publication.

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CONTENTS

Vol. 17 No. 6 | July/August 2017

42 By simply answering the questions below, you will be eligible to win $100 in product or service from the Halifax Magazine advertiser of your choice.

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Eligibility: The contest is open to any resident of Atlantic Canada who is 19 years or older except those who are employees of Metro Guide Publishing or Advocate Printing. Your name may be made available to carefully screened companies whose related products may interest you unless you request otherwise. The winner’s name will appear in a future issue of Halifax Magazine.

READERSHIP SURVEY

7 | EDITOR’S MESSAGE Halifax Magazine has a new website and we hope you don’t notice it 8 | CONTRIBUTORS Meet the writers and photographers who work on Halifax Magazine

38 | THE UNSTOPPABLE PADDLER For 61 years, Dennis Ring has been competing (and winning) against the best in his sport. He shares his story with Caitrin Pilkington

10 | CITYSCAPE A local entrepreneur rides the kombucha wave, The Amazing Race Canada Auditions come to Halifax, Simon Thibault explores his roots with Acadian cuisine, and Lois Legge offers a personal take on why Nova Scotia’s wilderness is worth the fight

44 | BODIES IN MOTION Crossing Canada and exploring countries around the world, Tristan Glen is Halifax’s poster child for long-distance biking adventures. Rachel Collier has his story

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18 | SUMMER IN THE CITY Music, sports, tall ships, and Pride— our favourite things to see and do in Halifax this summer, by Sarah Sawler

42 | PUNJAB TO PEGGY’S COVE Maritime Bhangra shares culture and joy, while supporting good causes. Priya Sam reports

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16 | PROFILE: SEEING IT THROUGH Part of Shakespeare by the Sea for 14 years, Thomas Gordon Smith introduces theatre to new audiences every summer 46 | DINING: PLANTING SEEDS With a focus on tasty food, veganism goes mainstream in Halifax 48 | DRINKS: CRAFTBEER LEXICON Learning the language is the first step to finding your new favourite brew 50 | OPINION: TO SERVE AND DEFLECT Have a complaint about police? Your only option is to complain to other police

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EDITOR’S MESSAGE

The website we hope you won’t notice With this issue of Halifax Magazine, we’re launching a new website. This is the part where I’m supposed to tell you about all its amazing new features and revolutionary design. I’m required to use words like “immersive” and “experience” a lot. And maybe throw in a promise that our new site will forever change the way you see our magazine, the Internet, the world, and indeed life. But really, I don’t believe any of that. I believe if we’ve done our job correctly (and I think we have; it’s a good team), you won’t notice our changes at all. At most, you’ll have a vague sense that things are arranged with a bit more common sense, that it’s easier to move between stories and discover content beyond what you came looking for. But if you notice the design of the site more than what it contains, we’ve missed our mark. Halifax Magazine focuses on people and their stories. Our new site reflects that. It’s not a clearinghouse of gadgets and the Top 10 Latest Trends (#6 Will Blow Your Mind!). Like the print edition, the website spotlights quality original journalism by talented local writers. Some local magazines write stories about their advertisers, to keep them spending money; what’s best for readers is secondary to wooing advertisers. But we believe serving readers is our most important job, so we publish stories because we think they have journalistic merit and you’ll benefit from reading them. Our new website is clean, functional, and easy to navigate, reflecting that philosophy: sharing the stories of the people who make Halifax special. In this issue, writer Priya Sam is back with the story of Maritime Bhangra. This Indian dance group became YouTube stars with a video of their joyous dancing on Nova Scotia’s Atlantic coast. But as they explain in the story “Punjab to Peggy’s Cove” on page 42, they’re not in it for fame or fortune. I’m also happy to have Halifax Magazine regular Lois Legge returning in this issue. You’ve probably heard lots of activists lecturing people about the need to protect forests and fight urban sprawl. They’re messages we hear so much they’ve become background noise. In “Cathedrals of calm” on page 13, Lois cuts through the clutter with a clean, simple, warm, and deeply personal explanation of why spots like Blue Mountain Birch Coves Lakes are worth the fight. And on page 44, first-time Halifax Magazine contributor Rachel Collier shares the story of Tristan Glen. A long-distance bicyclist, he’s had amazing (and at times, perilous) adventures

biking through South America and across the Australian desert. When he’s not trekking, he works as a bike mechanic in Halifax. He talks about what it takes to go on his sort of quest and how you can get started on your own adventure. As always, I want to hear what you think of these stories, and everything else in Halifax Magazine. Email tadams@metroguide.ca to share a letter to the editor. Letters may be published in an upcoming issue and should be a maximum of 250 words; we edit letters for length and clarity.

CORRECTION Due to an editing mistake, the story “Bringing worlds to life” in the June 2017 issue of Halifax Magazine indicated that DHX owns the rights to shows created by another animation company. We regret the error. See the corrected story at halifaxmag.com

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CONTRIBUTORS

SARAH SAWLER Cityscape “What it’s like to be in a car crash” Sarah is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in such publications as Halifax Magazine, Quill & Quire, Atlantic Business Magazine, and ParentsCanada. Nimbus Publishing released her first nonfiction book, 100 Things You Don’t Know About Nova Scotia, in April 2016.

SUZANNE RENT Profile Suzanne is an editor and writer whose work has appeared in The Coast, Lawyers Weekly, Canadian Business, Globe and Mail, Bakers Journal, Our Children, and more. She hosts the radio show Cobequid Magazine on 97.5 Community Radio.

CAITRIN PILKINGTON Intern, “The unstoppable paddler” Caitrin recently completed her Bachelor of Journalism from the University of King’s College. She writes for Halifax Magazine, The National Post, and The Signal. She has experience in writing, editing, podcasting, and radio.

RACHEL COLLIER “Bodies in motion” Rachel recently completed a journalism and political-science degree at University of King’s College and Dalhousie University. Drawn to adventure and the art of telling true stories, she plans to continue into a career in journalism.

PRIYA SAM “Punjab to Peggy’s Cove” Priya is the news anchor for CTV Morning Live and CTV’s News at Noon. She graduated from the University of King’s College Master of Journalism program in 2014. She spends her spare time cooking, reading, and working out.

ERIN MCINTOSH Intern, Cityscape, “Planting seeds” A recent graduate of the University of King’s College journalism program, Erin interned with Halifax Magazine and is jetting off to Europe in the fall, where she aims to continue freelance writing.

LOIS LEGGE Cityscape

TAMMY FANCY Photos for Cityscape Tammy has shot for East Coast Living, Bedford Magazine, Profiles for Success, and Our Children magazines, plus two cookbooks from Formac Publishing. fancyfreefoto.com

ROWAN MORRISSY Intern, Cityscape Rowan recently graduated from the University of King’s College journalism program. She’s a lifestyle blogger and aspiring photographer, who spends too much time thinking about interior design and travelling. rowanmorrissy.com

Lois is an award–winning journalist and a part-time instructor at University of King’s College School of Journalism.

8 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

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CITYSCAPE SMALL BUSINESS

A bottle of local pride STORY AND PHOTO BY ROWAN MORRISSY

At first glance, the colourful bottles lined up on the table at the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market look like fancy pop or juice. But look closer and you’ll see strings of slime floating at the top. It looks like a science experiment. It’s called “kombucha” and those fibres are supposed to be there; they’re pieces of the symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast that ferment the drink. Ryan MacLellan has been selling his product, Cove Kombucha, for six months. “I had no idea what I was getting into, really,” he says, “I thought I was just going to sell some kombucha at the farmers’ market. And to be honest I’d be happy doing that for the rest of my life.” Ryan began experimenting with fermented foods about five years ago. He brewed his first batch of kombucha from a do-ityourself kit only a year ago. “I loved it from the get-go,” he says. He began experimenting with the process, trying out flavours. His brother, John MacLellan, suggested they try to sell it at the market. They started slowly, just going on weekends, but within three weeks the demand was so strong that Ryan started to think about quitting school. “Even though I knew I wanted to quit school and I knew deep down that I was going to, I was still looking for support,” he says. He was in his second year studying education at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, but with a degree in physics already under his belt, didn’t feel the need to finish the program, instead focusing on his nascent business. Ryan feels lucky to have a strong team; it’s really a family business. The name “Cove Kombucha” was his mother’s suggestion. The family lives in Malignant Cove, near Antigonish. His brother John helps with sales, distribution, and finances; cousin Paul MacCarron handles the markets on weekends. “My family has been amazing helping me when I need it,” says MacLellan. “My brother has been the biggest support.”

WHAT IS KOMBUCHA? Kombucha originated in Asia and has been around for 2,000 years. It’s a carbonated fermented beverage that some people believe improves digestive health and detoxification, although there is little scientific proof. Kombucha is made with black or green tea, fermented over a couple weeks with sugar and a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast. The end result is a carbonated beverage that tastes vinegary and can be flavoured with fruit, juice, and spices.

10 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

The business is based in Halifax, sourcing local ingredients. Some 20 different locations, from Mahone Bay to Musquodoboit Harbour, carry Cove Kombucha. The brothers want to go much bigger. “We want to make it something that all of Canada is proud of,” says John. “It’s a big dream of course to be across the nation... If we stay focused and we stay passionate... we’ll be driven enough to keep that going.” Ryan says that having John on the team has been great for their growth because he’s always searching for the next step. “We’re taking it day by day,” says Ryan. “We had no idea it would come to this, where we’re at right now.” But working full-time at it has been hard. Ryan has been dealing with anxiety since he started university. “It’s a daily struggle for anyone that has mental-health issues,” he says. “It’s not something that pops up once in a while. It’s every day you wake up and you deal with it.” They collect tips at the market to donate to groups like Laing House. He believes that being open about mental health is the best way to end the stigma. “I take anti-depressants,” he says. “But I try to talk about it rather than keep it a secret because there shouldn’t be a stigma around something so prevalent in our society.” Passion for the business keeps him going. When he was studying to be a teacher, his anxiety made talking to crowds hard, he wasn’t motivated to put in the effort. “When you’re not passionate it is totally harder to deal with it because your mind’s not in sync with the way you feel internally,” he says. “Having a project that you love and are passionate about like Cove… you find a way to make it work.”

BOOKS

Food gets personal BY KIM HART MACNEILL

The sight of a man carrying a pig’s head through the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market would make most people pause. But it’s just another adventure in the name of research for Acadian food writer Simon Thibault. His first cookbook, Pantry and Palate, debuted at number one on Amazon’s Canadian Cooking Best-Seller list when it launched in early May. “When Atlantic Canadians create a cultural product, we want it to go national, but you figure it’s probably only going to be spoken about by other Atlantic Canadians,” says Thibault. “Then all of the sudden it’s on the cover of the Globe and Mail Life section and Chatelaine is calling me.” The book is part cookbook and part family memoir, but didn’t start out that way. Thibault has written about food for Halifax Magazine, East Coast Living, and CBC, among others. In 2012, he interviewed thenNimbus Publishing managing editor Patrick Murphy for an East Coast Living article about traditional Atlantic Canadian cookbooks.

In addition to getting the story, he earned an invitation to write a cookbook of his own. He originally planned an overview of Acadian cooking across the region. On a visit to his parent’s home in Clare, N.S., his mother gave him a stack of recipe notebooks written by her mother, grandmother, and great aunt between the 1930s and 1950s. In their pages Thibault found his focus and more. “My grandmother passed away when I was four,” he says. “[The notebooks] gave me this insight into her that I never got. Cooking from them, and learning what life would have been like for her, I feel like I got to know my grandmother through this project.” Readers will discover classic Acadian cuisine through the book’s 50 recipes, including rappie (AKA rapure) pie and chicken fricot. The narrative parts of the book offer snapshots of the lives of Acadian women in the mid-20th century and glimpses into Thibault’s kitchen, including his attempt to cook a whole pig’s head. “That’s part of what makes me so happy about this book,” he says. “I’m not a trained chef... But I was able to do all of this research and recipe testing in my teensy-tiny kitchen. If I can do that, you can do it.”

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CITYSCAPE OPINION

Cathedrals of calm—Nova Scotia’s wilderness is worth the fight STORY AND PHOTOS BY LOIS LEGGE

A tiny stream slips down the mountain. It runs low and whisks waterfalls over mounds of moss. Veils of leaves drape its edges, turning adjacent rock walls into feathery tombs. It feels ancient. Enchanting. An emerald oasis on high. I stopped there last August, on the Acadian Trail atop Cape Breton Highlands—sheltered then from what lay below. Resting, for a moment, in the glow. In this province, we’ve seen worthy fights for these kinds of forests or smaller windows of wild. Many care deeply about our woods, our wildlife, our water—still threatened by those who don’t. Last year, in an encouraging show of support, scores of outraged residents actively opposed development near a beloved Halifax sanctuary with a long name. Places like the Blue Mountain Birch Cove Lakes wilderness (the proposed site of a regional park, just west of Halifax) area promise relaxation, adventure, fun. They hold important ecosystems, sweeping views, memories. But why beloved? Maybe it’s also about things less tangible, more personal. Places to go when there’s nothing else we can do. When my father and mother were sick, I sometimes walked in wilderness. When they died, last May and July, I went back to the woods.

12 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

Silence and scenery help when people you love can’t speak or understand. Watch swallows feed their babies on Cole Harbour Salt Marsh Trail and you can forget for a little while. Climb hills over Musquodoboit Valley and the colour green quiets the mind. Walk or canoe through Birch Cove and you can stop, and stay, in the middle of a moment. That’s what people crave: places to think, or stop thinking, in times of loss or chaos, confusion, or constant conversation. That’s worth a fight. I’ve found cathedrals of calm on granite cliffs, salty marshes, windswept mountains, where coyotes howl or moose come calling. On rocks in the middle of rapids. In alcoves. And oceans. Other images sometimes intrude. Butterfly tubes and hospital rooms. Shallow breaths and goodbyes. But I go to a yellow butterfly with a pastel eye. I saw it one day on a purple flower. I picture a broken tree in an empty field. I passed it one day on the way to Economy Falls. I remember tie-dyed skies over Cape Breton cliffs. The smell of juniper along Gaff Point Trail. The way Ban Falls sweeps over giant, centuries-old trees with never-

ending roots. And Long Island’s mysterious Balancing Rock, which tips out into the ocean, but hangs on. Little pictures often rise up: irises shooting from rocks at Taylor Head Provincial Park, a hawk brushing Cape Split’s tip, a turtle swimming and crawling up Dartmouth lakes each spring to lay her eggs. Fragments of moments stand still: a bee over honeysuckles at dusk, an eagle on ice. And whole days linger. In the mountains by a stream, in Halifax by a lake, one of many winding through Birch Cove’s woods and islands and outcrops, a still, secluded place in the heart of Halifax. I went back there a few weeks after my father died, which turned out to be a few weeks before my mother followed. I remember heat and haze and lanes of lady slippers, veins alight under the summer sun. I remember mayflowers and giant mushrooms and parades of pine cones, painted brown against a baby blue sky. I remember a smiley face carved into a fallen tree. A woman by the water. I sat on a platform of rock, looked down on a lake, smelled earth on the air. A mother, with her ducklings, sailed past. Then disappeared on wisps of wind.

CITYSCAPE TV

A visit from the Amazing Race BY SARAH SAWLER PHOTOS BY TAMMY FANCY

Ever wonder what it would be like to win The Amazing Race Canada? Halifax Magazine caught up with Season 4 winners Steph LeClair and Kristen McKenzie on the Halifax waterfront and they told us what they’ve been up to since they became the first all-woman team to win the Canadian reality show. “It’s been truly life-changing for us, and not just in terms of the money and the prize-winning,” says McKenzie. “We both quit our jobs and the money’s great because it allowed us to do that, but [the show] also opened our eyes to so many different things, travel-wise, and the people we’ve met, and just how grateful we are.” LeClair and McKenzie may have quit their jobs, but they didn’t take much of a breather after the show ended. Since September, they’ve hiked part of the Appalachian trail in Maine, trekked 27 km of Mount Doom, skydived in New Zealand, swam in a volcano crater in Costa Rica, and explored the Great Barrier Reef (sharks and all) off the coast of Australia. And life just got busier from there. While the couple was in Australia, producers of The Amazing Race Canada Auditions asked them to host the fourth season of the spinoff show. They accepted the offer with a lot of excitement and no hesitation at all. “It’s pretty easy for us to get excited about it when we had such a good experience,” says McKenzie. A few months later, and McKenzie and LeClair were travelling around Canada again, as hosts for The Amazing Race Canada Auditions. The gig took them back home to Toronto, then to Ottawa, Montreal, St. John’s, and finally Halifax. Usually the Auditions show has different hosts in each city, but this year, McKenzie and LeClair hosted them all. “We’ve met so many amazing people, we’ve seen so many amazing places, and now the opportunity after the show with the audition show, we’re just really appreciative and thankful,” adds LeClair. “It’s been a really fun experience for us.” “It’s really cool because this year it’s a little different, and some of the racers who applied are actually coming on the show. 14 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

We get to meet them instead of just watching the videos,” says McKenzie. “Today we’re meeting a team of guys who applied and they had a pretty funny audition video. They told us they were willing to do anything to be on TV, so we’re going to put them to the test and see if they really mean it.” McKenzie and LeClair don’t know what’s next for them yet, but they know they’ll have to pass the torch soon, and return to their respective jobs in law and sales. For those who are hoping to grab that torch for Season 6, start getting your tape ready now. “Definitely do it,” says LeClair. “We were one of those teams that was just like, ‘We’re never going to get picked anyway, so why even bother?’ We did it last minute and we made it on. It really worked out for us.”

Profiles Seeing it through PART OF SHAKESPEARE BY THE SEA FOR 14 YEARS, THOMAS GORDON SMITH INTRODUCES THEATRE TO NEW AUDIENCES EVERY SUMMER BY SUZANNE RENT

If you’ve seen Shakespeare by the Sea in the past 14 years, you know Thomas Gordon Smith’s work. He’s 6’1” and has a deep, booming voice to match. It carries clearly across the amphitheatre formed by ruins of Cambridge Battery in the Point Pleasant Park. He often introduces the shows, asking guests where they ’re from, and poking fun at Dartmouth (where he grew up). “I love the outdoor theatre because I can see the audience,” he says. “I don’t like the concept of a fourth wall. I don’t like to pretend they are not there. That’s kind of the way we do our shows as well, to always embrace the crowd. To see people’s faces, like know if you’ve done something that has an effect or not.” Smith first got interested in acting as a teenager, auditioning for his first role in Grade 10. “I never not liked the attention,” he says. “When I was a kid, I was making fun of my parents for being old. I knew that was material people could relate to. I was getting reactions from that. Sitting around big family campfires I always tried to be the centre of attention. If no one else was going for it, someone else has to take it.” This season is Smith’s 14th at Shakespeare by the Sea. He auditioned for the summer season after his second year at Dalhousie’s theatre school. “I was working and I was only 19 or 20 at the time,” he recalls. “So that was exciting to have a professional theatre job so early on.” His first role was Launce in Two Gentlemen of Verona. That part gave him two long monologues, but someone upstaged him:

16 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

Miles the scene-stealing puppy. “When there’s a dog on stage, there’s no point in trying to compete with it,” he says. Some of his more memorable roles are those in which he played women. He played the Queen of Hearts in the 2012 production of Alice in Wonderland. “The minute I walked out, people were laughing,” he says. “I hadn’t done anything, I hadn’t said anything. That was great. Walking out and already having half my work done for me. It was such a fun character to play.” In 2014, he played ugly stepsister Tammy Fae in Cinderelly, dressed in a frock layered with fabric of pastels and gingham, a giant bow in his blonde, curly wig, and garish makeup. Like the Queen of Hearts, this role gave him laughs without seeming to try. But Smith says he has a method for playing females characters. “Every time I play a

woman on stage, I think I am the most beautiful woman, even though there are actual women there,” he says. “I am not a dude trying to be a woman. I am a woman. I am gorgeous and that’s how I always try to approach it. I find you can have more honest comedy than the man-in-the-dress look.” Jure Gantar taught Smith in two theatre history classes during his second year in the theatre program at the Dalhousie Fountain School of the Performing Arts. Smith’s comedic talents stood out. “He was one of those people who had an absolute deadpan delivery,” Gantar says. “He was a very funny guy. You always want people like that.” Gantar says he thinks Smith could play Iago from Othello or Richard III. “I think he could do a variety of roles,” he says. “He could certainly do some big characters.” Working with Shakespeare by the Sea brings challenges. Performing in an outdoor theatre in costumes made of wool and several layers leaves actors baking in the sun during matinees. Shakespeare by the Sea founder Patrick Christopher died in 2005, a year after Smith j o i n e d t h e c a st . E l i z a b e t h M u r p hy (Christopher’s wife) became artistic director. Then there was the fire in May 2014 that damaged the troupe’s indoor space, Park Place Theatre at the entrance of the park. Besides acting, Smith, along with Murphy and Jesse MacLean, co-artistic director, build the sets, risers, and props in that space. The building reopened this season, but the fire is still a bad memory. “I was very angry

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that season,” Smith says. “My morale was down because it was something I had built with my own hands and it was just gone because some random kids thought a garbage fire would be fun.” Smith has had personal challenges, too. In November, his father Clyde died. “That was a huge hit,” he says. “I don’t know who I am yet.” He says that may even change his acting this season. He noticed the change in his method during a writing workshop for the family show. “I wouldn’t call it an evolution, but maybe a mutation,” he says. “I feel like I’m not as funny as I used to be because there’s a sadness in my life that’s permeated everything.” No matter what’s happening, Smith and his colleagues work to capture “the unlikely theatregoer.” He says he uses his late father as the example of the audience member they want: he was into hunting and sports, not theatre. “He used to say just make people laugh, that’s what they want,” he says of his father’s advice. “There’s a real truth in that. We’re accessible and we try to make Shakespeare accessible. Our family shows are immensely accessible and we want to create theatre that is.” Smith has invested a lot in the company. There are weeks of rehearsals and building props and sets. He’s eager to see what happens next. “I want to see it though, although hopefully it will never end,” he says. “I want to make sure I’m there for the whole ride.”

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| COVER STORY |

Summer in the

city make it musical HALIFAX JAZZ FESTIVAL JULY 12–16 With headliners like Jo Mersa Marley, Blue Rodeo, and Dr. Lonnie Smith, the 2017 JazzFest is packed with great acts. Visit the waterfront tent for main-stage shows and free matinees, plus venues like St. Matthew’s and The Carleton. halifaxjazzfestival.ca

MUSIC, SPORTS, TALL SHIPS, AND PRIDE—HALIFAX MAGAZINE SHARES OUR FAVOURITE THINGS TO SEE AND DO IN HALIFAX THIS SUMMER BY SARAH SAWLER

Tegan and Sara

RAWLINS CROSS AT THE SHORE CLUB JULY 14

HALIFAX SUMMER OPERA FESTIVAL JULY 15–AUG. 13

The classic Shore Club dance hall in Hubbards + ECMA-winning Celtic band Rawlins Cross = a guaranteed rollicking good time. shoreclub.ca

This year’s Opera Festival features three main stage shows: L’Egisto by Francesco Cavalli, Albert Herring by Benjamin Britten, and Carmen by Georges Bizet. halifaxsummeroperafestival.com

TEGAN AND SARA IN CONCERT JULY 27 If you can still get tickets for the Tegan and Sara show at the Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, grab them while you can. With opening act Japanese Breakfast, this one’s a sure thing. teganandsara.com/shows

See Reany Smith at this year’s Halifax Jazz Festival. 18 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

BASTID’S BBQ JULY 30 If you missed the first six years of annual Bastid’s BBQs, you’ve got another chance to check out the entertainment, served up with a whole lot of good food in the parking lot of the Olympic Hall Community Centre. eventbrite.ca/e/bastids-bbq-2017-halifax-tickets-35045873150

STAN ROGERS: A MATTER OF HEART JULY 18–SEPT. 3 Neptune Theatre presents a musical tribute to the folk singer/songwriter features timeless music that has captured the hearts of generations of Canadians, including “Barrett’s Privateers,” “Northwest Passage,” and “The Mary Ellen Carter.” neptunetheatre.com

CAPE BRETON SUMMERTIME REVUE AUG. 9 This annual fusion of music and Maritime comedy is a summer favourite. See Jenn Sheppard, Jordan Musycsyn, Margaret MacPherson, and more at the Dalhousie Arts Centre. dal.ca/dept/arts-centre/events-schedule.html

Matt Mays

NAUGHTY BY NATURE AT CASINO NS: AUG. 17 Still trying to get “O.P.P.,” “Hip-Hop Hooray,” and “Feel Me Flow” out of your head? Then it might be time to stop trying and just give in. Return to your musical roots in the Schooner Showroom at Casino Nova Scotia. casinonovascotia.com/single-event/naughty-by-nature Séan McCann

SÉAN MCCANN AT THE CARLETON AUG. 17

PHOTO: EVAN DICKSON

Séan McCann shares songs from his latest solo album You Know I Love You to The Carleton. Find out what he’s been up to since his days with Great Big Sea. thecarleton.ca/events/sean-mccann-2

MATT MAYS IN CONCERT (X4) AUG. 24–27 This year, you’ve got four chances to catch rocker Matt Mays at the Hubbards Shore Club. Don’t miss this one—it’s always packed to the rafters. sonicconcerts.com/matt-mays

Stan Rogers: A Matter of Heart JULY/AUGUST 2017 halifaxmag.com | 19

vive la différence

LEBANESE FESTIVAL JULY 6–9 Don’t miss this chance to enjoy Lebanese music and dance, food, and art at the Olympic Community Centre. And really, don’t miss the baklava at Café Al-Arz—we’ve heard it’s amazing. lebanesefestival.ca

on the water

HALIFAX PRIDE FESTIVAL JULY 20–30 This 10-day festival celebrates Nova Scotia’s pride community. Highlights include: a speaker’s series, live entertainment, art and the East Coast’s largest annual Pride Parade on July 22. halifaxpride.com

AFRICA FESTIVAL OF ARTS AND CULTURE JULY 21–23 Afrifest 2017 at Sackville Landing has something for everyone, from drummers, dancers, and acrobats to artists and food vendors. Bluerocker Carson Downey—always good for a smokin’ live show—closes the festival. afacs.org

ART IN TRANSIT JULY 15

INDIA FEST AUG. 11–13 Lebanese Festival

Esmeralda, Tall Ships Regatta

Treat your senses at the Halifax Forum with music, dance, food, henna, and all things Indian. facebook.com/events/1806989946247476

Take transit to a whole new level with this Argyle Fine Art workshop. You’ll take a ferry ride from Halifax to Dartmouth, and create an acrylic painting inspired by the journey. argylefineart.blogspot.ca/p/art-on-gosummer-workshop-series.html

MYSTIC ADVENTURE PSYCHIC CRUISE JULY 16 Curious about what it’s like to be a psychic? Hang out with 10 local psychics on the Tall Ship Silva and find out. They probably already know you’re coming, but advance tickets are required. mysticalreadings.ca/mystic-adventure-psychiccruise-2017

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20 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

P H O T O D AV I D H O U

Tall ships from around the world visit Halifax as they compete in a race around the Atlantic. Ships will be open to visitors while docked on the Halifax waterfront. Scheduled visitors include the Oosterschelde (a Dutch schooner), Galeón Andalucía (a replica of a historic Spanish galleon), Esmeralda (a Chilean naval sailtraining ship), and Jolie Brise (an English cutter built in 1913). tallshipsevents.com

THEY WILL SURF AGAIN AUG. 19 Volunteer or participate in an all-day adaptive surf event at Martinique Beach, with adaptive surf and skate organization Life Rolls On. liferollson.org/novascotia

doing good ATLANTIC FILM FESTIVAL OUTDOOR FILM EXPERIENCE CONTINUING THROUGH AUG. 12

BIG BIKE RIDE DAY AUG. 10 Join or start a team to raise money for the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Bonus perk: you get to ride the Big Bike on Aug. 10. support.heartandstroke.ca

Outdoor screenings at venues around the city. Films include Strange Brew, The Grand Seduction, Meatballs, Moana, The Pirates! Band of Misfits, and Lego Batman. In support of Feed Nova Scotia. atlanticfilm.com/outdoor-film-experience

NINE AT NIGHT GOLF TOURNAMENT AUG. 11 Love golf? Bet you haven’t played it in the dark. Play glow-in-the dark golf at Indian Lake Golf Course for a good cause—the event is hosted by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada. facebook.com/events/406222056422013

get moving 2017 MOTIONBALL MARATHON OF SPORT HALIFAX JULY 15

SCOTIA SPEEDWORLD DRIVING EXPERIENCE AUG. 19

Participants team up with 30 teams of Special Olympics Nova Scotia athletes and compete in a range of sporting events, from road hockey to soccer. motionball.com/events/ marathon-of-sport-halifax-2017

If you’ve always dreamed of driving a racecar, now’s your chance. Get the full Ride-Along or Driving Experience at Scotia Speedworld. racingexperience.com/project/scotiaspeedworld-driving-experience-ridealong-experience

COASTAL CLASSIC BEACH VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT AUG. 19 Get in on the action or watch from the bleachers, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Volleyball Nova Scotia Beach Facility. halifaxsport.ca/tournaments-events/2017-coastalclassic-beach-volleyball-tournament

BACKCOUNTRY 201: WILDERNESS NAVIGATION JULY 16 Join MEC Halifax for a full day of wilderness navigation and learn about everything from maps to GPS. events.mec.ca/event/177921/backcountry-201-wilderness-navigation

RANDY KING LIVE—DIRTY BOXING SEMINAR JULY 29–30 Do your self-defence skills need a little (or a lot) of work? Learn how to kick butt (legally, should the need arise; hopefully it doesn’t) in this street-fighting seminar. facebook.com/events/293915891053244/?active_ tab=about Galeón Andalucía, Tall Ships Regatta

JULY/AUGUST 2017 halifaxmag.com | 21

| COVER STORY |

express yourself SAKKIJÂJUK: ART AND CRAFT FROM NUNATSIAVUT CONTINUING THROUGH SEPT. 10 See the first major exhibition on the art of the Labrador Inuit, curated by Heather Igloliorte, assistant professor of aboriginal art history at Concordia University. artgalleryofnovascotia.ca/exhibitions/sakkijajuk

Diogo Alvares

are you not entertained?

PAINT HALIFAX PUBLIC GARDENS CONTINUING THROUGH SEPT. 16 Whether you’re a pro or an amateur, grab your easel or a sketchbook, choose a spot in the gardens and get painting. halifax-public-gardens-150th.squarespace.com/partners-1

PEGGY’S COVE AREA FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS JULY 6–16 Get out and explore the art of Nova Scotia with this annual festival that includes an opening night celebration, art studio tour, silent auction, and a Paint Peggy’s Cove event. peggyscoveareafestivalofthearts.com

SHAKESPEARE BY THE SEA JULY 1–SEPT. 2 Shakespeare by the Sea is a rite of summer for local theatre fans. This year, the Park Place Theatre reopens for rainy-day shows. The lineup: All’s Well That Ends Well, Julius Caesar, and Peter Pan. shakespearebythesea.ca

RAT TAILS AND WEDDING VEILS TAXIDERMY WORKSHOP AT PLAN B JULY 9 Because who doesn’t need taxidermied bride and groom rats? facebook.com/ events/103090336931187/?active_ tab=about

UCW SUMMER EXPLOSION JULY 22 Wrestling fans, don’t miss Ultimate Championship Wrestling’s biggest event of the summer. See Maddison Miles face off against Victoria at the Halifax Forum. wherevent.com/detail/UCW-ProWrestling-UCW-SummerExplosion-2017

HALIFAX BUSKER FESTIVAL AUG. 2–7 Street performers from all over the world descend on downtown Halifax, with free daily shows on five stages: the roster includes street magician and illusionist Diogo Alvares, contortionist Bendy Em, interactive character artist Jenny Jupiter, and much more. buskers.ca

HALIFAXDARTMOUTH NATAL DAY FESTIVAL AUG. 4–7 Celebrate Nova Scotia’s birthday with live entertainment, parades, a garden party, a road race, pancake breakfasts, fireworks, and more. natalday.org

FOLK/FUNK ART EXHIBIT AT AGNS JULY 22–JULY 15, 2018

Bendy Em

This exhibit focuses on the work of professional and folk ceramists who use clay as a form of storytelling. This one’s sticking around for awhile, so if you can’t fit it in over the summer, there will still be plenty of time later. https://www.artgalleryofnovascotia. ca/exhibitions/folkfunk

DCAF DARTMOUTH COMIC ARTS FESTIVAL AUG. 13 Alderney Landing hosts 100+ artists, cartoonists, and creators (including Michael DeAdder, author of the best-seller You Might Be From Canada If...). dcaf.strangeadventures.com

eating, drinking, merriment LE DÎNER EN BLANC JULY 22 Add yourself to the waiting list for the chance to participate in the top secret dining event of a lifetime. Thousands of people, dressed all in white, will gather in a public space for a “chic picnic.” halifax.dinerenblanc.com

HALIFAX SEAPORT BEERFEST AUG. 11–12 Sample some 300 different craft beer, imported beer, and ciders from 110 different producers. You’ll find the finest local brews, alongside offerings from Quebec, British Columbia, Maine, and Ireland. seaportbeerfest.com JULY/AUGUST 2017 halifaxmag.com | 23

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Pride on the move

Since the first Halifax Pride March in 1988, the organization has changed dramatically. Pride evolved from a small equal-rights protest to a large community celebration. But at last year’s AGM, Halifax Pride became embroiled in an acrimonious debate about who and what it represents. It began when the Queer Arabs of Halifax put forward a resolution on “the removal of contents in Halifax Pride Society events that pinkwashes the human rights violations of foreign governments.” The target was promotional materials from Size Doesn’t Matter. According to the resolution, the group “directly engages in pinkwashing by aiming to highlight, amongst other things, the LGBT life in Israel, with a special focus on the city of Tel Aviv.” of the Atlantic Jewish Council called the resolution sizes style and is Representatives home to over ’t find elsewhere. Reliably censorship. The debate led to many Council supporters attending the AGM n, accessories and home décor. to vote down the resolution. The meeting grew rancorous, and many the heart of downtown, you’ll walked out. fare to tempt people every palate. In the aftermath, Halifax Pride is trying to refocus and address issues around inclusion and safety, and provide more diverse representation. Recently, executive director Adam Reid talked with Halifax Magazine. Halifax Magazine: How has Pride evolved over the last 30 years?

Garden AreaAdam is the retail heart We’ve come a very long way and Pride is a wonderful time Reid: x and is a delight to explore to reflect on the achievements that our community has fought for. of the day or night. Consisting see cases around the world of gains in our community being lost, city blocks, the area We has over so most we need to keep reminding ourselves that we need to keep working ail shops and services, dently owned. Thisfor charming, more, keep doing better. There are still those who haven’t had the area is a shopper’s paradise gains or haven’t been able to enjoy the benefits of Pride that others rand name fashions, Nova have, so there’s still lots to be done. iftware, spas and salons nestle Acceptance has grown in the community, so we’re now able to perb hotels, restaurants, cafés have a larger festival that includes more individuals and serves the s.

community in lots of great ways, like our celebratory dance parties

and performances and entertainment. But we really need to ensure pring Garden Area there are 00 parking spaces available that Pride is just as much about reflection, knowledge sharing, and within walking distance to all of gathering. community lous shops and services. These HM: You mention “there are still those who haven’t had the gains or both indoor and outdoor lots, haven’t which have either monthly or been able to enjoy the benefits of Pride that others have.” What were some of the concerns that you heard after the AGM? arking rates. There is also plenty metered parking AR: throughout We certainly heard that people were frustrated that Pride did not . Metered parking isoffer free in a the safe space for that meeting to take place. People felt that they s and on weekends!

| COVER STORY |

TALKING WITH ADAM REID ABOUT HOW PRIDE HAS EVOLVED OVER THREE DECADES, AND WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

the festival. We’ve taken a number of steps that I hope people will recognize as being positive moves forward, but we also recognize that the kind of change people want is going to take time, so we’re going to have to build that understanding. We realize that some people might not feel interested in engaging with Pride at this time, and we understand, but we’re going to do our best to ensure that everyone can find a way within Pride to celebrate and be proud and take part. HM: What changes are you making? AR: We have built a number of new policies, which I think were overdue. Those include a safer space, anti-discrimination, anti-harassment policy, and dispute-resolution policies, and we also have a safer spaces statement. Now, at the start of every one of our gatherings, we read a message about the need to be respectful of each other, to listen to each other, and not cast judgment. We now also do a lot more outreach. We host monthly committee meetings to keep people engaged and give people more of a voice. We had two vacancies open up on the board, so we were able to put two new individuals on the board from trans and QBIPOC communities. Now, we also have a community-event funding program, so notfor-profit LGBT organizations who wanted to host events during the festival were able to submit an application to Pride seeking financial assistance, so we’ve been able to support about a dozen community events that might otherwise not have happened. HM: What’s on your to-do list that you haven’t started yet? AR: There’s still room for growth. Pride is an ever-evolving thing, so we need to get over the idea of creating something like a dispute resolution policy, putting it on a shelf, and letting it sit there. We recognize the need to constantly re-examine our policies and our actions. HM: What do you hope people take away from this year’s Pride festival? AR: I certainly want people to celebrate, and to acknowledge the work that still needs to happen in the community, but because we’re coming off a difficult AGM and a first executive director, my hope is that those who are most engaged with Pride will start to notice that there’s a renewed awareness, a renewed commitment to community support and outreach, and a goal of building a festival that is reflective of the desires of the community.

couldn’t express themselves or weren’t comfortable in that space.

e of you that use form agree that Pride has not done all it could to ensure that a different I definitely portation such as bicycles, we all of our communities felt included and welcomed and reflected in s and lots of bike racks that can ound throughout the area.

This interview has been edited and condensed. JULY/AUGUST 2017 halifaxmag.com | 25

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artisans, a barbecue at the library and a “Best of the North End” concert at The Marquee. “It’s really our way of celebrating the Halifax queer community’s connection to the North End,” Reid says. “Local businesses are encouraged to participate in their own way, whether it’s decorating their building or setting up a lemonade stand. It’s going to be great.”

the changes we’ve made,” Reid says. “Society is changing in really wonderful ways, and we’re trying our best to put on a festival to the full benefit of the community.”

This summer marks the 30th time Halifax’s LGBT2Q+ community will come together, but Adam Reid says Halifax Pride is going to look very different this year -- exactly as requested. It’s been a tumultuous nine months for many community members. Reid was brought on board as executive director after tempers flared at Halifax Pride’s AGM in October over accusations of “pinkwashing” — where a business or organization paints itself as queer-friendly to advertise during a Pride celebration. Combined with several years of complaints that there wasn’t enough community outreach, Reid says the volunteer-run board was overwhelmed and didn’t always have the time to reflect on changes that needed to be made. “We’ve done a lot of outreach and made tons and tons of changes to address issues we knew were present, and our guide includes an extensive list of

Despite Halifax Pride being one of the biggest festivals on the east coast, Reid is its first full-time staffer. He got right to work introducing new policies and events for the 11-day festival, and the biggest change was eliminating all the booths on the festival grounds at the end of the parade route. Reid says it was always a weird mix of businesses, sponsors and groups, so the whole thing ended up feeling “like trade show meets community fair” and no one really enjoyed it. Instead, they’ll take over Gottingen for a neighbourhood celebration on July 28. The evening event will include a community market featuring queer

Community groups, LGBT2Q+ businesses and artisans are welcome to participate, but there won’t be any big corporations taking part in the new community market. Reid says there have been times when it was difficult to walk the line between having a community focus while still offering the amenities of a big-city Pride festival, but he’s confident things are changing for the better.

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“There’s no finish line — it’s going to be continuing work,” Reid says. “We understand the need for ongoing reflection, care and outreach to always find ways to improve Halifax Pride.” One of the other major changes to this year’s festival is that the parade will be held on the first weekend—July 22—rather than as a big final event. Thousands of people line the streets from the DND dockyards on Barrington up to Spring Garden Road where the parade finishes at the Garrison Grounds. Since the parade is the biggest draw, Reid says this will allow volunteers to circulate Pride Guides and make sure everyone knows about the other activities coming up. The committee has also raised parade entry fees for big corporations so they carry more of the cost burden, allowing Pride to waive fees for LGBT2Q+ not-forprofit organizations.

Even the pre-parade action will be different this year. Since everyone lines the streets early to get a good spot for watching the parade, Reid says it made sense to take advantage of those crowds. So, for the first time ever, Halifax Pride will include a 5K Rainbow Run. “We thought we’d have a fun little race for folks who want to have a laugh before the parade, and we’re encouraging them to dress colourfully,”

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Reid says. “Our visual theme this year is ‘glitter,’ actually, so we think we’ll see a lot of glitter, during the run and the parade.” But the 5K Rainbow Run isn’t the only brand-new event. Symphony Nova Scotia is holding a free, all-ages afternoon concert featuring music composed by members of the LGBT2Q+ community. Halifax Pride is calling it a Tea Dance, in homage to Sunday afternoon gay dance parties commonly held in the ’70s and ’80s. “Following the concert by Symphony Nova Scotia, the party will continue with a DJ spinning disco on vinyl, so we’ll have waltzing, and other dancing, on the Garrison Grounds,” Reid says. “We hope to make it an annual event.” He says they’ve also expanded Halifax Pride’s evening speaker series, bringing in more thought leaders from the queer community, including Toronto Pride executive director Olivia Nuamah, comedian and activist Dylan Marron, and Brown author Kamal Al-Solaylee.

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Even the all-powerful handbook to every activity, the Pride Guide, will appear differently this year. Reid says not everyone trusted the businesses advertising in last year’s Pride Guide were participating for the right reasons and the Halifax Pride Society wanted to address those concerns. S H E L B U R N E , N O VA S C O T I A

As a result, this year’s partners are being asked to fill out a survey to demonstrate their commitment, alignment to the values of the Pride movement and contributions to the LGBT2Q+ community. Some of the responses will be printed in this year’s Pride Guide and the only ads in the guide will be from sponsors or 2SLGBTQ+ not-for-profit organizations and local 2SLGBTQ+ businesses.

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Reid says last year’s theme “This Is Why” resonated well, so they’ve stuck with it for 2017. “It’s really a call to folks to reflect on what is the reason, the meaning, behind Pride,” Reid says. “The celebrations and dance parties are really amazing and fun, but the community is more nuanced than that.

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“It’s a time to gather our community together to celebrate our achievements and see what more needs to be done.”

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Your wording matters. The full acronym is LGBTTIQQ2SPA+ and it stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, Questioning, 2 Spirited, Asexual, Pansexual and Allies. But that’s a mouthful, so you can say “LGBT2Q+” and you aren’t missing anybody.

2 The dance parties aren’t to be missed. Check out The Bump on the first Friday of Halifax Pride (July 21) to dance with Katya, a fan favourite from RuPaul’s Drag Race; Montreal drag superstar Barbada, winner of the 2017 Mx Fierté Canada Pride Competition; and Mz. Gay Halifax, Kristi Davidson. Tunes by Simon Thibault, Bambii and DJ Davie Inda House. Saturday night is The Grind, where you can dance under the stars with thousands of your new best friends.

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4 There are community-organized Pride events that anyone can put together. Halifax Pride is about MUCH more than the biggie events that bring out thousands of people. Look through the Pride Guide to see what’s happening in your area and start thinking about next year’s festivities. If you have an idea that would make Pride even better, you can submit your suggestion online and you could even get the cash to make it happen for Halifax Pride 2018.

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3 Kids love coming to the parade, of course, but there are plenty of other activities for them during Halifax Pride. Sunday afternoon’s Tea Party at the Garrison Grounds is open to all ages and there’s a family-focused picnic on July 25 on the Dartmouth Commons at the pizza ovens. The Youth Project is organizing activities for teens, and the Dykes vs. Divas softball game is always

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5 You want to be at the parade early. If you’re there to watch, and by “watch” we mean whoop, cheer, dance and generally have an awesome time, you’ll want to be early to snag a prime spot on the parade route (it runs from the DND dockyards up Barrington and Spring Garden to the Garrison Grounds). But if you want to get a little exercise in, be sure to register online for the first-ever 5K Rainbow Run. It’s all the fun of being in the parade with the added benefit of mid-day cardio.

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THE UNSTOPPA BY CAITRIN PILKINGTON Dennis Ring is 67 years old. He’s a world class paddler, born and raised in Dartmouth, who recently returned from competing in New Zealand. This is his 61st year paddling. His eyes are bright and he exudes a restrained, confident energy. He’s a cancer survivor and he had a heart attack in 2015. He was once an airline pilot, but he’s retired now. He is used to winning. He’s been doing it since he’s been a child, and it runs in the family. He describes growing up in Dartmouth with a stoic, quiet father who delighted in the success of his children. “He made a big deal out of winning,” Ring says. Ring has three siblings that made it to the national level in their sports. Ring was a sprinter, hockey player, and gymnast; he competed in Canada Games gymnastics as a teenager. But eventually he settled on paddling. Dennis Ring’s family helped found the Banook Canoe Club in Dartmouth. Ring has always loved being on the water; he won his first trophy for paddling in 1960 at age 10. At 17, he won the national championship at Expo ‘67. At 23, he won gold at the Pan American Games. He’s won 194 paddling medals. Ring’s training partner, Timothy Schaus, has paddled with him for some 45 years.

FOR 61 YEARS, DENNIS RING HAS BEEN COMPETING (AND WINNING) AGAINST THE BEST IN HIS SPORT

Over six decades as a competitive paddler, Dennis Ring has had one motivator: “peer recognition is all it’s ever been about... It’s fun to win.”

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“I’ve known him from when he was a young man,” Schaus says. “He’s still really fast. You’d have to say he’s abnormally fast. People become known for speed but he’s really something different.” Schaus explains that watching someone compete at the level Dennis is able to now, at his age, is like watching someone who’s 5’4” do a slam dunk on a basketball court. “He’s a freak of nature,” he says. “His ability to go as fast as he does, at 67... you think to yourself, ‘did I just see that?’” Ring was selected for Olympic trials in 1972. At that time, there was no race for someone like Ring — a paddler built for short bursts of speed. His specialty was 400 m races, but the Olympics only ran 1000 m races. Schaus explains that in warm-ups during the Olympic trials, Ring was consistently up in a pack with the top paddlers in the country. However, he did not make it to the Olympics that year. After renewing his focus on his air career, Ring returned to the water in 1978 with a beeper on (ready to fly a plane at a moment’s notice). That year he won gold at the North American championships.

Being one of the top competitors in his category for canoeing has led Ring around the world: he has competed in Edmonton, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Hungary, Portugal, and Lithuania. “I go after the best in the world: Germans, Russians, Poles. My nemesis is a Pole. He’s number one in the league. I’ve been racing against them all for years now,” he says. Despite all this success, what makes Ring relatable is his candor: “peer recognition is all it’s ever been about,” he says. “It’s fun to win.” And he works for it. Take this last competition in April, in New Zealand. Some 80 per cent of eligible paddlers worldwide didn’t go to the race, because most lakes were still frozen during training time. But Ring drove all across the province looking for a patch of water. “I was determined that by February 28, that was the deadline I set for myself, that I would be out on the water,” he says. “I finally found a little stretch between Fletcher and Charles Lake: 700 metres of open water. The reason it was open was the rapids and currents. It’s zero degrees. I’m out there dressed like Michelin Man, trying to go as fast as I can even though it’s hard to twist around.”

He continued competing (and winning) for the next two decades. In 1998, a career highlight was winning at the World Master’s Games in Portland, Oregon. (“Master” means anyone competing in the sport over age 25.) Ring is also a Senior in the sport, which is based on points, but basically means he’s won a lot at multiple Canadian championships. “You’ve got to understand how unusual he is as an athlete,” says Schaus. “Not just at 67; he was unusually good when he was younger, too. But what’s exciting for Dennis now, is that there are competitions for shorter distances, so he’s really been able to excel in the last few years, more than ever before.”

Add to that the possibility of spilling into the frigid waters. That happened 20 metres from the finish line in New Zealand. “Our boats are very tippy,” he explains. “They’re made for speed. You could take your baby finger and tip it over. You tip when you’re tired, when you’re going as fast as you possibly can... Miss a stroke and suddenly you’re off-balance. And before you know it you’re upside down.” In a competition like New Zealand, Ring has to be better than his competitors just to hold even. “I’m out of my time zone, I’m on rented equipment, I’m racing against people that race against each other all the time, because they’re in Europe most of the time while I’m here,” he

40 | halifaxmag.com JULY/AUGUST 2017

says. “It’s very difficult to come from a provincial level and compete internationally. You have to go in thinking you’re going to win, somehow achieve that mentality.” Ring tells stories of getting out to practice at 5:30 a.m. when the temperature is -20, in storms and freezing rain. He estimates he travels around 2000 km over water every summer. That’s close to the distance between Halifax and Cuba,” he says. “Your shoulder starts to wear down a bit, so I do take the winter off.” After his heart attack in 2015, he had stents put in. “Afterwards I felt better than I had in years,” he says. Eleven days after his surgery he was back on the water. “There are days when I suffer, sure,” he says. “But it’s about knowing I’m going to compete at the end of the summer next to those Europeans. That’s what drives me... I’ll do it forever. There’s very little that stops me from getting out there.”

Dennis Ring is “abnormally fast,” says training partner Timothy Schaus. “He’s a freak of nature.”

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PUNJAB TO PEGGY’S COVE MARITIME BHANGRA SHARES CULTURE AND JOY, WHILE SUPPORTING GOOD CAUSES BY PRIYA SAM Bhangra dance originated in the Punjab regions of India and Pakistan, but a Halifax group turned it into an Internet sensation. You may remember Maritime Bhangra from a video filmed at Peggy’s Cove, which (at the time of writing) has 333,000 views on YouTube. After that went viral, they were featured in news stories worldwide. They had a second video involving bhangra and shovelling that also went viral early last winter. But fame alone isn’t the point. They want to use dance to increase awareness about humanitarian issues and to raise money for charity. “We actually started dancing bhangra 3.5 years back in a volunteer capacity—me, my cousin, and two more dancers,” says co-founder Hasmeet Singh Chandok.

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The group has since grown to include six core members and about 12 who participate as needed, most of them are Sikh and originally from India. Chandok handles media and event bookings while his cousin, Kunwardeep Singh, choreographs dances and videos. And they all collaborate to decide on how things are run and which causes to support. Before performing professionally, Chandok says he and his friends would often do bhangra. “It was a fun thing to do when we were away from home just to feel like we are still connected to the culture,” he recalls. In July 2016, they decided to form a professional group and started performing at local festivals and events. Those performances were well received and then the Peggy’s Cove

video gave them a big boost in September 2016. “It was just another day,” says Singh in an interview with Dal News. “We often go to that place because it’s so beautiful.” That day changed things. “When the Peggy’s Cove video came out, it just took that jump,” Chandok says. “After that, we did a small interview with a channel owned by Ashton Kutcher…that interview was viewed almost 15 million times.” The biggest rewards come from the reactions of people who see the videos. “We have so many messages coming from people living with mental-health issues, especially depression,” explains Chandok. “They say there are not many things that can make me happy but your videos are one of those few things that I watch and I just forget my problems for awhile.”

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They get thousands of messages; Chandok replies to each one. “Each and every reply is different, it’s not that we have one reply written up and we just copy and paste it,” he says. “Each and every person’s message is read and understood and especially the emotions they are trying to portray.” Chandok recalls one situation at the Halifax airport where the group had a photo shoot. “A man who had some health issues came over to us and said, ‘You know what, one of the wishes I have on my bucket list is to dance with you guys’ and the team just left the photo shoot and danced with him,” Chandok says that was unforgettable. “People send us messages saying it’s changing their lives. We are amazed by that every day.” The group is passionate about supporting charities and humanitarian causes as well. Through their videos, performances and fundraisers, they have raised about $300,000 for different charities. At the end of their second viral video, for example, there was a message for people to donate to the ALS Society of Canada if they liked the video. “We don’t make money off of it,” explains Chandok. “We did buy some costumes and stuff from the money we got from performances, but other than that each and every single penny goes to charities.” Most of the group members work full-time and part time jobs to make ends meet. It’s not a business venture, it’s a way to share their culture and start conversations that they hope will break down cultural and religious barriers. “We have always been trying to find ways to let people know who we are and where we come from because we had our fair share of bad

Maritime Bhangra’s fame began with a dance on the rocks at Peggy’s Cove that got 330,000+ views on YouTube.

experiences,” reflects Chandok. “We had people confusing us with other races, saying slurs to us…so we wanted to give the message that we are all humans and if you don’t understand who I am, just ask me.” Bhangra started out as a way to stay connected to their culture but it has now become a way to share it. It provides a window into a part of their culture that others can easily appreciate. But Chandok and the other group members hope that it will also encourage others to not only find out more about Bhangra but also to be more open minded about what other people have to offer. “We need to work on making this environment around us more comfortable for the people who are different in any way,” says Chandok. “We need to embrace differences.” The group meets a couple times weekly, and this topic often comes up. They want to ensure the performances and the causes they support match their core message. “One message we are trying to get out is how we can practice all different religions and still be united,” Chandok says.

That’s a message they also try to spread when they do presentations in schools. “We go to schools, especially rural schools where we go and talk about failures and rejection and how racism kills diversity,” says Chandok. The group also has to devote some time to keeping up with the changing world of bhangra. For them, that often involves watching videos together and learning new bhangra moves and trends. “With globalization, the music has changed and the moves have changed, so you have to keep up to date,” explains Chandok. While it is clear that the group is well on its way to introducing others to a new cultural experience and sharing a message of hope, while also fundraising for charities and worthy causes, Chandok says that they still have a long way to go. “I personally feel like we still haven’t had a big impact on the community, we still have a lot of work to do,” he says. “I would feel that I’m successful when every person on this planet has food to eat and a job to do. And until that date, we have to work; there’s a lot of work to be done.”

JULY/AUGUST 2017 halifaxmag.com | 43

| FEATURE |

BODIES IN MOTION

PHOTO: RACHEL COLLIER

CROSSING CANADA AND EXPLORING COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD, TRISTAN GLEN IS HALIFAX’S POSTER CHILD FOR LONG-DISTANCE BIKING ADVENTURES

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BY RACHEL COLLIER Setting up and tearing down camp every day. Months of cooking limited to one camp burner. Pushing your body through a workout schedule that mimics a full-time job. Powering through headwinds, rain, hail, snow, energy-sapping heat. Navigating unknown territory. The idea of immersing in a longdistance adventure can be daunting —especially if you’ve never experienced anything like it. But the only way to get that experience is to get on your bike and ride. “If you want to go on a trip,” says Glen. “Do it.” With a desire to explore and a learn-as-you-go attitude, Glen (a bike mechanic from Halifax) has biked a series of impressive expeditions. Recently, he crossed Canada. It was stressful at times. “Sometimes it’s fun to get lost, but not in a city— that wasn’t fun,” says Glen about the time he navigated a tangle of freeways in Montreal. But occasional slip-ups don’t erase Glen’s best memories. Memories like meeting people across Canada who shared stories, advice, home-cooked meals, and sometimes even a place to stay the night. Or appreciating purple and blue skyscapes, pierced by the Rockies, as he biked through Alberta and British Columbia. Glen’s next big adventure was a 105-day trip. He toured over 7,000 kilometres, pedalling across Southern Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand. Glen recollects biking into one of his most precarious adventure experiences during this trip. Glen and partner Anna Slater had been biking the Eyre highway—a road that traces the south coast of Australia, along the unforgiving Nullarbor Plain. The climate in the region is typically hot and arid with high temperatures that drop drastically overnight. “We were biking through high -20ºC to 30ºC weather,” says Glen, “and I remember we would wake up early and see frost.” As they biked along, Glen’s freewheel snapped. A freewheel is a key part of a bike’s gear system but “not the kind of thing anyone would bring a spare of,” says Glen. “Much less the tools you need to fix that. I’d never even seen that tool.”

When the freewheel broke, the back gears and bearings flew off Glen’s bike and scattered in the sand. “We were this greasy, sandy mix on the side of the road,” he says. “We didn’t know what we were going to do.” Glen and Slater were about halfway through the 1,200 km of desert road they were traveling. The only significant traces of civilization along this portion of highway were small service stations every 100 to 200 km. The stations supplied little more than water and convenience store snacks. “You always had the chance to store up on overpriced junk-food,” says Glen. But an abundant supply of bike gear and specialized tools? Not in stock. Glen and Slater got lucky: a biker they passed earlier caught up to them. He was the only other cyclist they had seen for days. “He was a strange character,” says Glen. “He was dressed totally in orange. He was pulling this matching orange trailer behind him.” Orange Allen, as they dubbed him, pulled over to help. He opened his trailer, revealing an assortment of tools and bike parts. The collection included a spare freewheel, the proper sized bearings, extra grease, and all the tools they needed. “He really saved us,” says Glen. Glen’s longest trip was from the United states to Chile. He travelled with his partner Avalon Moore for 324 days by foot, canoe, sailboat, and finally by bike. Glen and Moore stayed sane by indulging in creature comforts this trip. They brought books, board games, and a laptop for entertainment. They stayed at hostels and pedalled with other bikers on similar adventures. They often cooked on a campfire rather than a camp burner and when their bodies needed a break they took a break. “Sometimes it’s just really hard,” says Moore about travelling long distances. The thrill of being in a new country and in unfamiliar situations can wear off but in the end, you learn something that is useful no matter where you are in life. “You need to figure out how to keep yourself happy and sane,” she says.

START YOUR ADVENTURE You don’t have to be an expert to go on a longdistance excursion. His travel goals have been to explore and experience the unexpected, not to break records or follow strict itineraries. His style and strategy has allowed Glen to move beyond the idea of incredible long-distance journeys, into experiences he never would have imagined. 1. Save money. If you need to save money, Glen suggests buying relatively cheap gear. “Weighing an extra 15 or 20 pounds,” says Glen, “is better than not being able to afford a trip.” You can often find cheap, suitable second-hand gear online. Travelling in countries with favourable exchange rates helps too. Glen says he spent less money travelling to Chile than he would have living in Halifax. He spent about $6,500 over a year. 2. Practise. “Everything that you are able to do in one night or weekend trip,” says Glen, “can carry over into a 100-night trip. You just need more food and different clothing depending on where you go.” 3. Plan, but not too much. Based on that practice trip, plan the distance you want to travel every day and how much food and water you will need. Bring back-up food and account for different climates. Bring basic safety equipment like a firstaid and bike-repair kits. Know how to use all your gear. But don’t stress yourself out trying to foresee every contingency. 4. Find a friend. Your bike partner is your biggest safety net, says Glen. A partner can make or break the mood of your trip. Glen says the best biking partners have a common sense of humour, ambition, and budget.

JULY/AUGUST 2017 halifaxmag.com | 45

DINING

PLANTING SEEDS WITH A FOCUS ON TASTY FOOD, VEGANISM GOES MAINSTREAM IN HALIFAX STORY AND PHOTOS BY ERIN MCINTOSH Oooey-gooey grilled cheese, hefty burgers, chocolatey cupcakes, creamy milkshakes, and all with a twist: they’re vegan. That means the kitchen used no animal products. All ingredients are plant-based. Daniel Wiseman owns Blue Apples Natural Products on Blowers Street. He uses the term vegan so people know what he’s talking about, but it’s not about the name. It’s about the thought put into the food, and how it affects a person’s wellbeing. “I always said to everyone working in the kitchen that our food has to be about health first,” he says, “and quality and sustainability, and real issues that are at hand that obviously veganism is concerned with.”

At Blue Apples on Blowers Street, Daniel Wiseman emphasizes quality and sustainability.

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Wiseman wants Blue Apples to be a space where “every group of people, especially ostracized groups of people, or minority groups,” can feel safe. It combines a vegan café and a wellness centre that offers herbalism, massage, acupuncture, and traditional Indian medicine. It was a work in progress for six years. Wiseman discovered herbalism in his late teens. He started harvesting his own herbs and making medicines for friends and family. In 2012, Wiseman started a hobby project selling bulk herbs and natural products through an online store. A couple years later this grew into a stand at the Alderney Landing Farmers’ Market in Dartmouth. By 2015, he moved into a shared space on Quinpool Road. Less than a year

later, he moved into a room on Blowers Street. Less than a year after that, he leased the old Paper Chase café location across the street. “It was very loose the way it came together,” Wiseman says. “This business has always been about things I’m passionate about, and now the group of friends that I work with are passionate about and I like keeping it that way. If I were looking to make a lot of money with something, this would not be the thing I would be doing.” Halifax’s vegan community continues to expand every year. There are four core vegan restaurants and cafes in the city, like enVie a Vegan Kitchen, and several others offer a mix of vegan and vegetarian dishes. Few offer both vegan and non-vegan food; the Foggy Goggle on Gottingen Street does. Natalie Dugie, co-owner of the Foggy Goggle, has been a vegetarian for 33 years, and gluten free for the past three. Her diet has consistently influenced the restaurants’ approach to food. “When Julie and I started the Goggle, the premise for it was we want it to be a place that we would want to go to.” “When I can get a vegan meal out or a vegetarian meal, to me it’s like this personal little victory,” says Dugie. “There are so many good meals that are vegan and vegetarian and people have no idea.” Dugie says a lot of staff that work both in the kitchen and front of house are either vegan or vegetarian, or come with a variety of allergies. Dugie says there’s a lot of thought that goes into the menu. “It’s nice to be able to take care of everybody,” Dugie says. Every Monday, the menu at Foggy Goggle is entirely vegan. And the rest of the week always offers a vegan choice. Blue Apples focuses on using as much local and organic products as possible. The process in the café involves making everything from scratch, soaking all the grains overnight, not using granulated sugar, and sticking to a high standard. “I think what’s worked best for us is to have really tasty food, and not talking about the vegan thing very fiercely,” Wiseman says. Wiseman says most of the diners are specifically seeking vegan; the location brings in a lot of business people looking for healthy alternatives to the fast food and pubs that dominate downtown. “If I was going to do something extreme I wanted it to also be inclusive, as much as it could be,” Wiseman says. The menu might mimic some western cuisine, but it also offers transitory food for vegetarians, and accessible food for vegans. “We’re either going to succeed doing it right, or fail doing it right,” says Wiseman. “[We’re] sticking to that standard of providing the good stuff, making our decisions based on what’s right and not always about business.”

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DRINK

CRAFT-BEER LEXICON LEARNING THE LANGUAGE IS THE FIRST STEP TO FINDING YOUR NEW FAVOURITE BREW BY KIM HART MACNEILL You’ve sipped pints in some of Halifax’s craft breweries, and even visited a few taprooms outside the city. Now it’s time to take your craft-beer experience up a notch. Chatting with other enthusiasts is the best way to learn, so learn to talk the talk. Ale versus lager: People use a lot of terms for beer that they shouldn’t, like suds and wobbly pop. But the biggest sin is using ale and lager interchangeably. Yeast eats sugar and produces alcohol and carbonation. Without yeast, it’s not beer. Different yeasts need different conditions to survive. Ale yeast likes warmer temperatures and ferments quickly, often in as little as a week to 10 days. Lager yeast demands a cooler location, and can take weeks to finish the job. ABV: Alcohol by volume, the percentage of your beverage that’s made up of alcohol. A typical local beer will be in the 5% to 6% range. Imperial: These high-alcohol beers were first brewed in 18th-century England for export to Russia and the Baltic states. Brewers dialled up the alcohol and hop levels to preserve the beer on its long journey. The result is an 8% to 12% ABV beer. More recently, North American breweries applied the term to high hop and alcohol IPAs, which are also called double IPAs. Tread carefully with these; you’ll feel their effects after your first pint. Session beer: A low-alcohol (generally in the 3.5% to 5% range), light-bodied beer that offers easy drinking and low bitterness. IBU: International bittering units is a quick way to identify how much hop bitterness you’ll

find in your bottle. Some breweries make a sport of seeing how high they can push that number. Developing a taste for hops takes time. Start with something in the 15 to 30 IBU range and work up. Aroma: Research tells us that 90% of what we perceive as flavour is derived from our sense of smell. Start your pint with a big smell rather than a big swig. Put your nose in the glass, open your mouth and inhale through your nose. Think about what you smell and let that inform your first sip. Tropical/Citrus/Pine: Hops are one of the easiest flavours to identify in beer, so it’s a great place to start learning. After your big sniff, take a sip, but don’t swallow right away. Let the beer dance on your tongue. Note tropical flavours like passion fruit and pineapple, orange and grapefruit, and earthy hints like pine and resin. Dry hop: This is an ancient technique that’s come back in a big way. Traditionally, adding hops was more about inhibiting spoilage than imparting taste. Thanks to refrigerators and modern packaging, modern dry hopping is all about adding extra aroma to beer to enhance its taste. Mouthfeel: Think about the level of carbonation you’re feeling. A lager might feature tiny, champagne-like bubbles that buzz in your mouth, while a high alcohol beer often feels warm and velvety. Body: Like mouthfeel, body describes how the beer feels. This time we’re looking at weight and thickness. A fizzy lager will feel much lighter in your mouth than a full-bodied stout.

Must-try beers: award winners

Lacing: The intricate lace-like patterns left on the inside of your glass as you drink. While some say it’s an indication of high quality ingredients in the beer, others say the only thing lacing tells you is your glass is clean and free of detergent residue. Growler: A reusable jug used to transport fresh craft beer. Common growler sizes in Halifax range from 750ml to 1.89L. Some breweries will let you swap your old growler for a new one when you bring it back clean, but most will refill your old growler. What’s important isn’t the label, but that it is clean. Rinse your growler with hot water as soon as you empty it and let it air dry, until it is dry. No cheating. Cask: Known by the marketing label “real ale” in the U.K., this beer starts the process in the fermenter like it’s beer siblings, but instead of pouring into a bottle or growler it goes into a barrel-shaped cask with some residual yeast to mature more. Cask beer isn’t force carbonated like draught, so it develops less carbonation, which lets subtle flavours shine through. Find cask beer locally on Barrington Street at the Henry House or Stillwell.

KIM HART MacNEILL Kim is a freelance journalist and editor with East Coast Living. Read her weekly beer column on HalifaxMag.com and follow her on Twitter. @kimhartmacneill

Unless otherwise noted, featured beers are available at private stores, NSLC, and the brewery.

Vohs Weizenbier (hefeweizen)

Porter

Uncle Leo’s Brewery, Lyon’s Brook, N.S.

Propeller Brewing, Halifax, N.S.

This beer won the 2017 Canadian Brewing Awards (CBA) gold award for German-style wheat beer in May. The wheat malt lends this light-bodied beer a cloudy look, while the yeast adds a hint of clove and banana flavours. It weighs in at 5% ABV and 14 IBUs—a perfect pairing with BBQ chicken and summer salads. Available throughout the summer.

Some people say dark beers are just for the winter. But they’re wrong. This delightfully refreshing porter offers notes of chocolate, coffee, and dark sugar. At 5% ABV, it’s a good sipper for an evening by a bonfire. This year it won bronze in CBA’s porter category. Available year-round.

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TREES TO TABLES REPURPOSING CITY’S FALLEN TREES AS SUSTAINABLE HOME DÉCOR Advertisement

n a quiet tree-lined street in Dartmouth, a lone commercial building is nestled amongst older character homes. It’s the perfect

setting for Natural Wood Designs’ new workshop. Three years ago, Dave Barry, a certified arborist for more than 20 years, grew weary of seeing the once majestic trees he was taking down becoming firewood. Through his business, Enviro Tree Solutions, Barry removes trees that are diseased, storm-damaged, posing a danger or unwanted by property owners. After hauling away thousands of tonnes of wood over the years he imagined new ways of repurposing these trees – meaningful ways. With the purchase of a sawmill and the desire to provide new life for the magnificent specimens of oak, maple, ash and elm that he removes from properties throughout the Halifax Regional Municipality, Natural Wood Designs was born. In addition to the hand-turned bowls and vessels he offers clients as keepsakes of felled trees, Natural Wood Designs’ product line has grown to include live-edge dining tables, kitchen islands, headboards, furniture. What makes each Natural Wood Design creation truly one-of-a-kind is the fact that it is an authentic Nova Scotian craft. Each piece is made from local wood with local hands. Barry is involved every step of the way – from tree removal and milling of live-edge slabs to the slow process of air drying and finally, the kiln drying stage. From here he works with each piece of wood’s distinctive features and grains to determine what it will become. Every piece of wood has a history and every Natural Wood Designs’ creation becomes a new chapter of its story. Just as each Natural Wood Designs’ piece tells a story, Barry, who emigrated with his family to Canada from Ireland in 2006, has many stories to share. In fact, one of the first ‘tools’ he moved into the new workshop was his tea kettle and when visiting the showroom in search of the perfect locally-sourced live-edge slabs or handcrafted furniture, it’s worth making time for a cup of tea and a few tales.

Natural Wood Designs is located at 80 Fairbanks Street in Dartmouth and open by appointment only. To inquire on Natural Wood Designs’ products or custom projects please contact Dave Barry at (902) 240-9186 or visit www.naturalwood.ca

PHOTO: MIKE MOUSSEAU (MODERN MOOSE PHOTOGRAPH)

coffee tables, benches and unique custom ofﬁce

OPINION

TO SERVE AND DEFLECT HAVE A COMPLAINT ABOUT POLICE? YOUR ONLY OPTION IS TO COMPLAIN TO OTHER POLICE BY RYAN VAN HORNE

When you file a complaint against police officers, usually one of their peers is going to investigate. That is the case with the Halifax Regional Police Service, which has a Professional Standards office where the chief of police sits as the judge. The RCMP accepts complaints at detachments, but you can also file them with the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC). Although the CRCC makes a point of telling people that it is “not part of the RCMP” (crcc-ccetp.gc.ca), RCMP members investigate all complaints: “No matter what entity the complaint is filed with, the RCMP will generally investigate it and issue a Final Report to the complainant.” When there is an incident of violence involving a police officer, Nova Scotia’s Serious Incident Response Team investigates. Former Crown attorney Ron MacDonald runs that team. He says they are “civilian investigators,” but they’re former police officers. There is a sense of family in policing. Police officers tend to close ranks when criticized by civilians, so it is difficult to achieve any useful results from these processes. It’s the same when members of the RCMP file harassment complaints against colleagues. Federal public-safety minister Ralph Goodale commissioned a report (released this spring) that reached the same conclusion as one prepared by former Auditor General Sheila Fraser. They both proposed sweeping changes to the way the RCMP operates and called for civilian expertise to bring its hierarchical, top-down management structure into the 21st century.

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“The RCMP is not a state unto itself, and it is required to comply with the same legal o b l i ga t i o n s t o p r e ve n t wo r k p l a c e harassment, bullying, and sexual harassment as other federal employers,” says the latest report. “Instead, after each new harassment scandal has arisen highlighting anew the RCMP’s dysfunctional organizational structure, the RCMP’s reaction has been to merely circle the wagons.” When police officers receive a complaint from a civilian, there are similar challenges. Police officers have stressful jobs and deal with a lot of crap. This tends to make them cynical about people. I get that; they’re not usually seeing humanity at its best. But that means it’s just about impossible to make a complaint about police, to the police, without ticking off police. That will make them less likely to be thorough and impartial during their investigation. It’s human nature; who likes to be criticized about the way they do their work? Let’s say you’re the victim of a crime, and don’t think police are investigating properly. If you wait until the investigation is over to file a complaint, and no charge has been laid, then the automatic assumption is that you’re complaining because you don’t like the outcome of the investigation. One case that I’m aware of involves a complainant who received legal advice to wait until the investigation ended before filing a complaint. But still, people have assumed the complaint is about the result, even though documents reveal concerns about the officer’s conduct during the investigation and not the decision about whether to lay a charge.

This reminds me of the double bind that handcuffed bomber pilots in Joseph Heller’s 1961 novel Catch-22. A double bind, or Catch-22, is “a dilemma or difficult circumstance from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or dependent conditions” according to the Canadian Oxford Dictionary. In his book, Heller’s main character Capt. John Yossarian pretends he’s insane so he can avoid having to fly dangerous missions over Europe in his bomber. Unfortunately for Yossarian, though, his desire to avoid those missions proves that he is sane and so he has to continue flying. “That’s some catch, that Catch-22,” Yossarian says. “It’s the best there is,” says Doc Daneeka. The solution to our Catch-22 is to provide more civilian and truly impartial oversight. Goodale says he’s open to the idea, but wants to do more research before presenting any kind of plan to cabinet. If he does this, hopefully it will be a model for other police forces in Canada. Even if he doesn’t proceed, there’s nothing stopping Halifax from adopting a similar approach.

RYAN Van HORNE Ryan is a Halifax journalist, playwright and documentary film director. His work appears in magazines and newspapers from coast to coast and at ryanvanhorne.com.