ALASKA HIGHWAY NEWS
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2021 | SPORTS | A7
Local trio completes centennial 200-km brevet Dillon Giancola sports@ahnfsj.ca There’s no time for a 10-hour, 200 km bike ride like a sunny, Autumn Saturday. While others were turning their heat back on, and savouring the last weeks of warm weather, the trio of Wim Kok, Kevin Shaw, and Erik Snucins rode a 200 km brevet, in celebration of the ACP Randonneur’s 100th anniversary of the first brevet in France. The riders had 13 hours to compete the ride, as dictated by the Audax Club Parisien’s rules, and did so in 10 hours and 44 minutes. The actual time spent on the bikes was 8 hours and 33 minutes, with stops for lunch and rest as is part of the ACP Randonneur tradition. “It’s a celebration of being on the bicycle. It was a good time, we took a break here and there, and the weather cooperated, which is always a bonus,” said Kok. Kok has been participating in and organizing randonneur events for 21 years. The anniversary brevet was the fifth one he did this summer — four in Fort St. John, one in Edmonton —
after completing seven in 2020. Both Snucins and Shaw, who Kok has done marathon cycling with before, decided to join along for the special occasion. Similar rides were organized in places like Vancouver, Edmonton, Victoria, not to mention Paris, France. The route Kok chose for the ride went North of Fort St. John, back and forth to places like Charlie Lake, Upper Pine School, and Montney. “These rides add a special challenge, and a chance to get some good exercise and explore the beautiful landscape,” Kok said. Typically, he would organize a 300 km, 400 km, and 600 km ride in the summer as well, but hasn’t the last two years because of the pandemic. Here are the results and conditions of the ride: Wim Kok: 10:44 Kevin Shaw: 10:44 Erik Snucins: 10:44 Actual riding time: 8:33 for 220.1 km Weather: Temp 10-18C Wind: First a gentle SE; then predominantly SW 27-36kph; gusts 40-49kph
Fresh new start for NPSS Grizzlies Dillon Giancola sports@ahnfsj.ca The start of every school year feels like a fresh, new start, but for the NPSS Grizzlies student athletes, that’s especially true this year. Gone are the practice-only seasons, and in their place are games, competition, and travelling for tournaments. Masks are still required, but not when players are on the field or court. Currently, the senior girls, senior boys, and junior girls volleyball seasons are underway, as are boys soccer and cross country. “Competition is back this year, the students are travelling again, and it’s super exciting,” said NPSS athletics director Jaclyn McNicol. The three volleyball teams were
in Prince George Sept. 17 to 19 for a tournament, the first one any of them have competed in since the 2019-20 school year. “They were just happy to be competing again. That was the main takeaway from the students, wins or losses didn’t matter. They were just glad to be back out there after everything they went through last year,” McNicol said. McNicol said the junior team started strong and did well in its first tournament, but the senior teams have work to do and goals to meet. The senior teams will next play a tournament in Whitecourt, Oct. 1 and 2. The cross country team has several events coming up in Dawson Creek, Prince George, and Beaverlodge.
RICKY KOK PHOTO
From left: Kevin Shaw, Wim Kok and Erik Snucins, upon completion of the ACP Randonneur Centennial 200 km Peace Region bike ride, September 11, 2021.
SPEED SKATING PROSPECT
FALL ICEBREAKER
DILLON GIANCOLA PHOTO
Jackson Dyke has his eyes on the finish line during the Fort St. John Elks Speed Skating Club’s learn to speed skate session, at the Pomeroy Sport Centre, September 25, 2021.
Alexander makes Junior A debut Dillon Giancola sports@ahnfsj.ca
DILLON GIANCOLA PHOTO
Griffin Pankratz and Hobbs Harper race each other for the ball during a U11 game at the FSJ Soccer Club 2021 Ice Breaker, September 25, 2021.
Grayden Alexander has cracked a Junior A roster in his first year of eligibility. At just 16, Alexander, from Fort St. John, made the Storm out of training camp and has played in three of the team’s five exhibition games. “I’m really excited. I hope to get in the lineup as many games as I can. I might be scratched here and there, but I’ll play the best I can and hopefully make a real impact,” Alexander said. The former Tracker wasn’t expecting to be making the jump to Junior A right away. “It was last minute. I was in Prince George with the Cariboo Cougars, when I got a text from (coach Mike Vandekamp) asking if I wanted to try out for the Storm. I did really well and that got me a spot,” he said. Vandekamp, himself from Fort St. John, also coached Grayden’s dad David Alexander with the Huskies during the 1995-96 season.
Alexander has only played in one of the Storm’s first four games this season, but scored a goal when he finally got on the ice in the team’s most recent game, a 6-3 loss to the Sherwood Park Crusaders on Sept. 26. “It’s definitely a big jump for me, guys are 6 foot three instead of five foot eight. I hardly played last year at (U18), and now I’m at one of the highest levels I can play at. I’ve adapted well so far,” he said. Alexander played his bantam hockey with the U15 Trackers, before joining the Northeast BC and Yukon Trackers last year. However, due to the pandemic, he played just three games, recording one assist. Going from U15 to Junior A with barely any games played in between is quite the ask for anyone, but Alexander is up for the challenge. “I’m super excited for this year. Going into it was hard at first not knowing what would happen, but being in Grande Prairie has been awesome so far and I’m looking forward to the season,” he said.
ALASKA HIGHWAY NEWS
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2021 | OP-ED | A11
Teaching kids about money
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had a Proud Poppa moment recently. My daughter opened her very first bank account! I have had an “In Trust For” account for her since she was born, for all the birthday presents from Grandma and recycling deposits on Dad’s beer cans, but this new account is all hers. She will be soon starting a gig that will earn her a bit of pocket money. First job, first bank account; my little isn’t so little anymore. Teaching your kids about money is one of the important jobs that a parent has. But that is easier said than done. For one thing, there is the money taboo. A lot of people just are not comfortable talking about money with their kids. But the money conversation is like the birds-and-bees conversation. Sure, it might be uncomfortable to talk about with your kids, but what’s worse? A little awkwardness, or sending them out
into the world unprepared? Unfortunately, there is no manual that we can turn to that lays out step-bystep instructions to teach financial literacy. There are different opinions on allowances, and parental oversight, and appropriate expenses, etc. And I think that’s just fine. There is no one right answer on this stuff. When it comes to teaching your kids about money, do what works for you. But do something. After all, if you don’t teach your kids about money, who will? This is what we did. Maybe it will give you some ideas for your own situation. The new bank account is going to belong to my kid, 100%. She puts the money in, she gets to spend it on whatever she wants. Or save it for whatever she wants. She earned it, it’s her money. From this, she is going to learn about money man-
BRAD BRAIN agement, and living within her means, and opportunity cost, and working towards her financial goals. Those are some pretty important lessons. We thought about what kind of account we wanted; not just for today, but one that will serve her over time. She will be heading off to school in a few years, so we wanted a bank account that is convenient to work with, regardless of location. I was able to lend some perspective on the financial end. I told her to look for an account that has reasonable account fees. It doesn’t make sense to have a hundred bucks in a bank account if you are charged twelve bucks a month in service fees. Fortunately, all the financial institutions of-
fer some pretty good packages for students. I wanted an account that had modern day technology. Here’s a weird idea. My kid may never write a cheque in her lifetime. I wanted her to be able to send and receive Interac transfers, and be able to do her banking with an app on her phone. I wanted her to have a debit card, but no credit. She can spend her own money in person or online, but she can’t spend more than that. We went and visited four different financial institutions. She picked up brochures, and she actually read them, comparing the features of what was being offered. This comparison shopping was a money lesson in itself. We found the right fit for her financial needs. Her financial future is beginning. Maybe it’s because I am a financial planner as well as a Dad, but I felt a swell
of pride, sitting with her as she opened her very first bank account. She is taking these money lessons to heart, too. Lately she has been asking me how much I paid for things. That’s interesting, having to justify your purchasing decisions to your teen, but it’s all good. My younger one is getting into the act too. I explained about getting a debit card only, no borrowing allowed. He said, “So we will have no debts? That’s a good way to start out your life.” You got it, big guy. Lesson learned.
Brad Brain. CFP, R.F.P., CIM, TEP is a Certified Financial Planner in Fort St John, BC. This material is prepared for general circulation and may not reflect your individual financial circumstances. Brad can be reached at www.bradbrainfinancial.com
How our memories morph
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recent conversation got me thinking about memories and how they morph into something completely different from reality. “I told Dylan about the time Jessie, and I were getting our immunization and how I kicked the nurse in the leg, jumped off the table, and ran down the road. You had to come after me in the car,” I said to my Mom. Mom, taking sip from her coffee responded, “Well, you are sort of correct. It was Jessie who kicked the nurse, yelled ‘RUN JUDY!’ and you both scampered down the stairs of the clinic, jumped into the car and locked the doors. The nurse was furious, and I was laughing so hard that she got angry with me, and I think we ended up getting your immunizations done in Fairview after that.” “Really? It wasn’t me who kicked the nurse? You didn’t have to come after me in the car?” “Nope! It was Jessie, not you.” “Weird that I would remember it so clearly and incorrectly. Hey! Maybe it was Jessie and not me who took the Dodge Dart for a spin and scratched the Lincoln when she returned to the carport!” “No, Judy, that was all you.” I should also note that it is not cool to kick the nurse who is giving you the injection. It is not cool to kick anyone. In my defence, this was probably 1969 and this particular nurse was terrifying in stature
JUDY KUCHARUK and manner, and resembled Klinger from the television show Mash. Google it. Getting a little more comfortable on the couch, I asked, “What about the time I was tossed from the boat at Running Lake and told to swim to shore?” “Yup, happened.” “And when you stopped on the road because Jessie and I were fighting and told me to get out, that I had to walk home but then that crazy dude who was sleeping in the ditch reared up and I managed to get back into the car at the last minute as your foot hit the accelerator?” “Yup, sorry ‘bout that – happened.” “Okay… what about the time that I…” The conclusion was that many of my stories of my youth were true-ish, but my predisposition to make the sounds ‘louder’, the leaps ‘further’, the danger ‘greater’ and the consequences dire had made the stories much more exciting to share with my children or anyone else who would listen. Judy Kucharuk lives and writes in Dawson Creek.
RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE PHOTO
Sarah Byford of Taylor was among those who took extraordinary efforts to support McHappy Day this year. Sarah visited the Ronald McDonald House this month and mom Amy Byford says with the help of Fort St. John and Taylor residents, Sarah was able to take and donate a huge tote full of clothes for children and families staying at the House.
DILLON GIANCOLA PHOTO
Fort St. John firefighters Alyn Stobbe, Chris St. Cyr, Jayden Ockenden, and Marco D’Agostino were among those out volunteering in support of McHappy Day on Sept. 22, 2021. This year’s McHappy Day raised $9,100 for the Fort St. John Child Development Centre, and Ronald McDonald House BC and Yukon.
The cross is vertical and horizontal
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et’s be clear! Black does matter. So does Indigenous. So does Asian. And yes so does White. The Lord our God created one and all and loves each and every one and expects us to do the same. Racism, like so many things, begins in the home in our formative years. I was fortunate to have been raised colour blind and don’t think I was really aware of racism until my 20s, in spite of the American media and the racist issues in particular in the United States and South Africa. I was raised with Indigenous, Black, and Asian children and to me and them colour was never an issue, nor should it be. Years ago, the Federal Government implemented a program for companies that, as I recall, had more than 100 employees and that we had to submit a monthly record of the cultural backgrounds of new employees to ensure we had hired all nationalities. In spite of the good intentions of the legislation I personally found it frustrating, bureaucratic, offensive, and needless as I did not care about the race of applicants. Legislation does not and will not change what we carry in our hearts. Many years ago, I was about to finish my last year in high school and during the summer holidays I was was hired by the PGE as a wection gang employee shortly after the railroad came to Fort St John. School classmates would say, “Oh, you are going to be working with the DP’s.” I had never heard that expression before and was advised that it meant Displaced Person. In hindsight, it makes you wonder how screwed up our society can be.
JOHN GRADY All I found was my fellow workers were predominately from Europe: Poland, Portugal, Hungary, and Germany, and they were honest hard working men wording to provide for their families and they took time to teach me the “rookie ropes.” The Bible is a book that chronicles the journey of culturally diverse peoples seeking God’s will. It speaks against racism, sexism, and classism with a consistent call to oneness. In the book of Galatians, it states, “There is neither Jew or Greek, slave nor free, male or female for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.” We need to recognize the cross is vertical and horizontal. The vertical connects us with God and the horizontal connects us with each other. We are instructed by our Lord to love the lord our God with all our heart and mind and to love one another. Years ago, it was Displaced Persons, today it is Racism, and if you look ahead 25 or 50 years from now, can anybody project what the issues will be? Safe to say without a revival of God’s love and forgiveness that it will be messy and wrong. The Pandemic of Sin needs to change. John Grady lives and writes in Fort St. John.
A12 | NEWS | THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2021
ALASKA HIGHWAY NEWS
SITE C CONSTRUCTION UPDATE
BC HYDRO PHOTOS
BC Hydro says there is a lot of activity happening in the Site C dam core trench, including drying glacial till, cleaning the bedrock layer and placing filters and aggregates. At right, Material is removed from the upstream side of the dam core trench.
BC HYDRO PHOTO
View of the recently completed east abutment concrete of the Farrell Creek road realignment along Highway 29.
BC HYDRO PHOTOS
Left: Formwork installation on the eastern spillway wall. Right: Placement of the granular sub-base for the Farrell Creek road realignment along Highway 29.
BC HYDRO PHOTOS
Left: Structural steel is installed for the Highway 29 Dry Creek bridge realignment. Right: Steel cross-bracing is installed between the Dry Creek bridge girders.
BC HYDRO PHOTO
Aerial view of the Hudson’s Hope shoreline protection berm.