Pattison makes bid to take Canfor private
Ian BICKIS The Canadian Press
VANCOUVER — Shares of Canfor Corp. closed up more than 70 per cent Monday after a Jim Pattison Group company made a $16 a share bid to take the company private.
Pattison’s Great Pacific Capital Corp., which already owns about 51 per cent of the lumber producer, made the all-cash offer over the weekend that was a 60-per-cent premium to the company’s 60 day average price and an 81.8-per-cent premium to Friday’s close.
Canfor shares closed up $6.46, or 73.4 per cent, at $15.26 on the Toronto Stock Exchange after closing at $8.80 Friday.
Great Pacific says the proposed transaction, which values Canfor at about $2 billion, will allow for the elimination of the significant costs related to maintaining a public company listing and allow for reinvestment of that money in the company’s operations.
It says the company is facing important strategic and capital decisions that it believes are best suited to a private company with a long-term focus.
Canfor says it has formed a special committee of independent directors to review the offer and consider its strategic alternatives.
CIBC Capital Markets analyst Hamir Patel said in an analyst note that he estimates the share offer represents a much lower valuation on capacity than other forestry deals in recent years.
He figures the $16 a share offer values Canfor’s capacity of 6.55 billion board feet a year at US$298 per thousand board feet, well below the US$615 per thousand
board feet West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. paid for Gilman Co. in 2017 and the US$525 per thousand board feet Canfor paid for Elliott Sawmilling last year.
The lower valuation reflects Canfor’s high exposure to B.C., where log costs have spiked from a supply crunch, as well as significant deterioration in market conditions over the last year, said Patel.
RBC Dominion Securities Inc. analyst Paul Quinn said in a note that he believes the deal has a high probability of closing as proposed, given how much of the company’s shares The Jim Pattison Group already owns. Quinn said the “vote of confi-
dence” could spark more interest the forestry sector, which especially in B.C. has seen significant challenges in recent months.
The sector has struggled after lumber prices dropped by more than half from record highs last summer as the U.S. housing market slowed. At the same time, B.C.’s sector has been struggling after the fallout of the mountain pine beetle and wildfires have led to a shortage of available timber, raising the costs of fibre for lumber producers.
Companies have responded by significantly cutting back capacity in the province, including numerous curtailments and several permanent mill closures.
Man jailed for trying to procure sex
Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff mnielsen@pgcitizen.ca
A Prince George man was sentenced Monday to one year in jail for attempting to procure sex from an employee at Treasure Cove Casino.
Less credit for time served, Joseph Neil Johnny, 46, will serve a further 56 days in jail. He was also sentenced to three years probation following completion of the time in jail.
On the evening of Sept. 26, 2018, Johnny had been drinking and began chatting up a woman working at Treasure Cove while she was on break in the smoking area outside the bingo hall. As she politely answered his questions, Johnny began to move closer to her, making her feel uncomfortable.
Johnny then asked her “how much an hour?”
When she replied “excuse me?” he repeated the question.
“I’m not a prostitute, I’m at work right now,” she then told Johnny. She finished her cigarette, went inside and told security, who escorted him out of the building.
RCMP were subsequently contacted, and Johnny was taken into custody where he has remained ever since.
Crown counsel had argued for 18 months in jail while defence counsel asked for time served.
Crown’s suggestion of three years probation was uncontested.
Johnny has had an long history
Johnny has been diagnosed with mental health issues that require medication, as well as developmental challenges.
of sexual offending and at one point he was on a 10-year longterm supervision order which he had breached it 15 times for inappropriate behaviour. He had also failed to complete treatment programs on four occasions and at the time of his arrest, he was serving two years probation for bombarding a woman with sexually-suggestive phone calls and voice messages.
Johnny has been diagnosed with mental health issues that require medication, as well as developmental challenges. He also tends to commit his offences when he stops taking his medication and is consuming alcohol. Malfair found further time in jail was appropriate in the name of public protection. And his terms of probation include a curfew, remaining at an approved residence and participating in a treatment program as directed.
Johnny’s lawyer, Keith Jones, had suggested his client is in need of one-on-one counseling rather than group therapy.
Johnny has also been ordered to stay away from the casino.
CITIZEN PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN Canfor Corp.’s pulpmill in Prince George is seen on Monday.
Manhunt suspects killed themselves, police say
The Canadian Press
VANCOUVER — Two British Columbia men who were suspects in the deaths of three people and led police on a manhunt across Western Canada shot themselves, the RCMP said Monday.
Police said it appears Bryer Schmegelsky and Kam McLeod were dead for a number of days before their bodies were found in the northern Manitoba wilderness on Wednesday, but the exact time of their deaths isn’t known.
Their autopsies were done by Manitoba’s medical examiner.
Police said in a statement Monday that there were strong indications the young men had been alive for a few days during the extensive search near the town of Gillam.
Mounties said on July 25 that there had been confirmed sightings of the men in the area and they believed they were still in the region.
Two firearms were located with the dead men, police said, and a forensic analysis was being done to connect the weapons with the homicides in northern B.C. McLeod, 19, and Schmegelsky, 18, were charged with the murder of Leonard Dyck, a University of British Columbia botany lecturer, and were also suspects in the deaths of American Chynna Deese and her Australian boyfriend Lucas Fowler.
“Investigators are now assessing all items located in Manitoba, along with the previous findings related to the three northern B.C. homicide investigations, in order to gain more clarity into what happened to Leonard Dyck, Lucas Fowler and Chynna Deese,” the
police statement said.
Once its review is completed in the next few weeks, RCMP said they will provide the families with an update then release the information publicly.
The mayor of Port Alberni, home to both fugitives, said in a statement Monday that she hoped the autopsy results and other information released by RCMP would answer some of the questions facing families struck by the tragedy.
“There may never be enough information to adequately answer
all of their questions, but our council remains committed to supporting the RCMP as they complete their investigation into what led to this tragic series of events,” Mayor Sharie Minions said.
She shared her sympathies with those affected and reminded residents that there are numerous supports available to residents of the Alberni Valley.
“I encourage anyone struggling at this time to take advantage of the services,” she said.
The BC Prosecution Service
said criminal charges don’t move forward once an accused is proven dead.
“We anticipate that the charge will be abated once the (prosecution service) receives official confirmation that the accused is deceased. That will conclude the prosecution,” spokesman Dan McLaughlin said in an email.
The autopsy results put a cap on the manhunt, which began July 23 when police announced Schmegelsky and McLeod were suspects in the three killings.
The young men had initially been considered missing persons when a truck and camper they were driving was found burned a few kilometres from where Dyck’s body was discovered at a highway pullout on July 15.
The bodies of Deese and Fowler were found on the Alaska Highway, 470 kilometres from where Dyck’s body was discovered, on July 19.
The manhunt for McLeod and Schmegelsky led to Gillam, where Dyck’s Toyota Rav 4 was found burned. Officers converged on the area to begin what would be a two-week search.
Police used drones, dogs and even had help from the Canadian Armed Forces to scour the remote area.
The search was scaled back July 31 and a few days later a damaged rowboat was found in the Nelson River. A search of the river turned up little of interest, police said.
On Aug. 6, police said some items linked to Schmegelsky and McLeod were found on the river’s shore.
The bodies were discovered the next day, about a kilometre from where police said they found the items.
Police have said it may be difficult to determine a motive for the killings because the suspects are dead.
Bryer Schmegelsky’s father, Alan Schmegelsky, said during the manhunt that his son had a troubled upbringing and that he expected the teen to go out in a “blaze of glory.”
A statement issued earlier by McLeod’s father, Keith McLeod, said his son was a “kind, considerate, caring young man.”
RCMP impound a dozen vehicles over the weekend
staff
Prince George RCMP took a dozen drivers off the road while patrolling the vicinity of two gatherings over the weekend.
The count included five 90-day immediate roadside prohibitions with 30-day vehicle impounds, issued for allegedly driving with a blood-alcohol level over 0.08, and three three-day impoundment for a first offence of driving with a blood-alcohol level between 0.05 and .08.
Two 24-hour driving prohibitions, with impounds for that period, were issued for “reasonable and probable grounds” of driving while impaired and one driver was
issued a seven-day impoundment for excessive speeding.
RCMP were keeping an eye on 15th Avenue and Ospika Boulevard near Exhibition Park, where the Cariboo Rocks the North classic rock festival took place, and Chief Lake Road near the Nitro Motor Sports Park where a drag racing event was being held.
“Impaired driving remains one of the leading causes of serious and fatal motor vehicle collisions on our roads,” RCMP said. “If you witness an impaired person get behind the wheel of a vehicle or witness a possibly impaired driver on our roads, please immediately call 911. Your efforts to contact police may save a life.”
Entertainment new and old at Sunset Theatre this week
Citizen staff
Sunset Theatre in Wells is offering a unique pair of shows this week.
On Wednesday, the theatre will present BEARS, starring award-winning Metis theatre artist Sheldon Elter and an eight-person chorus. Sunset Theatre director of presentations Julia Mackey called BEARS a, “comically dark and unapologetically political play about pipelines,” in a press release.
The new Canadian play is
told through a combination of dramatic storytelling, choreography, projections and an “electronic soundscape.”
On Thursday, pianist Patrick Courtin will provide live musical accompaniment during a screening of Charlie Chaplin’s classic 1925 silent film, The Gold Rush. To make reservations, call Sunset Theatre at 250-9943403.
For more information go online to www.sunset-theatre.com. Sunset Theatre is located at 2357 Pooley St. in Wells, 80 kilometres northeast of Quesnel.
RCMP HANDOUT PHOTO VIA CP
Bryer Schmegelsky and Kam McLeod are seen in this undated combination handout photo provided by the RCMP. The RCMP say two British Columbia men who led police on a cross-Canada manhunt died by what appears to be suicide.
Citizen
Hydrant hook up
Rookie fire fighter Graham Gill hooks a hose up to a hydrant across from the Prince George Aquatic Centre on Monday. Fire fighters practice the procedure over and over so that it becomes second nature when its an actual fire.
Man jailed on firearms charges
Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff mnielsen@pgcitizen.ca
A Prince George man was sentenced Monday to five years in prison for harbouring a trove of handguns and ammunition in a stolen travel trailer.
Less credit for time served, Robert Daniel Davis, 31, will serve a further three years and 7 1/2 months.
He was the subject of an Oct. 11, 2018 takedown on a Poplar Place property in which RCMP seized five handguns and two shotguns, two of which were loaded and three with their serial numbers erased, along with 11 boxes of various ammunition and over 200 loose rounds .
The number of guns and volume ammunition led provincial court judge Cassandra Malfair to comment that it could be “fairly characterized as an arsenal” of weapons that posed a significant risk to public safety. Moreover, he had been subject to a prohibition from owning firearms from a previous conviction.
By the time of his arrest, Davis was prominent on the RCMP’s radar. He was out on bail facing a series of firearms and theft-related charges from a series of arrests and had disappeared from the home where he had been requested to reside.
As well, the day before police came across an abandoned pickup truck that turned out to be his mother’s, with Davis’ identification and a shotgun found inside.
Police eventually went to his mother’s home and found the travel trailer parked on her driveway. Davis would not answer when police knocked on the doors or windows despite RCMP seeing movement within the trailer.
RCMP asked Davis’ mother to text her son and urge him to surrender. When she did, Davis told her to lie and say he was out of town in camp and would turn himself in upon returning.
An emergency response team was called in and Davis’ girlfriend gave herself up. On the way to the detachment, she told RCMP Davis was hiding underneath the bed.
After some time, Davis came out and surrendered without incident.
Davis has had a long history of drug use and had fallen back into those ways at the time of
his arrest. It put him into a circle of “dangerous people” and he was holding the guns for others, Davis has claimed through his counsel.
In sentencing Davis, Malfair agreed to a joint submission from Crown and defence counsels. Although at the low end of the scale, Malfair found the submission was still in the public interest.
Davis had pleaded guilty to seven charges from the incident at his mother’s home. The sentence also includes concurrent terms for the other outstanding offences for which Davis had pleaded guilty.
Prince George provincial court docket
From Prince George provincial court, Aug. 6-9, 2019:
• Cassandra Sarah Rose Evans (born 1990) was issued a one-year $500 recognizance after allegation of causing fear of injury or damage.
• Robert Earl Sampson (born 1984) was sentenced to no jail time for breaching probation. Sampson was in custody for two days prior to sentencing.
• Jordan Seth Allen (born 1991) was prohibited from driving for one year and fined $800 plus a $120 victim surcharge for driving while prohibited or licence suspended under the Motor Vehicle Act and sentenced to one day in jail and one year probation for theft $5,000 or under.
• Bryn Davis Antoski (born 1997) was sentenced to a 40-day conditional sentence order and one year probation for theft $5,000 or under. Antoski was on custody for one day following his arrest.
• James Allen Burgess (born 1987) was prohibited from driving for one year and fined $2,000 for driving with a blood-alcohol level over .08, committed in Chilliwack.
• Verna Anne Carpenter (born 1965) was sentenced to one day in jail and one year probation for theft $5,000 or under.
• John Castelli (born 1980) was prohibited from driving for one year and fined $500 plus a $75 victim surcharge for driving while prohibited or licence suspended under the Motor Vehicle Act.
• Craig Allan Gosselin (born 1980) was sentenced to one day in jail and 18 months probation for breaking and entering and committing an offence and theft $5,000 or under.
• Kevin Mark Hamilton (born 1985) was sentenced to no jail time for breaching probation, committed in Smithers.
• Steven Henry Mulder (born 1975) was sentenced to one day in jail and fined $500 for breaching
probation.
• Ollie James Henyu (born 1982) was sentenced to six months probation and ordered to provide a DNA sample for two counts each of possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose and possessing a controlled substance. Henyu was in custody for 159 days following his arrest.
• Brittani Hailey Bradley (born 1993) was prohibited from driving for one year and fined $500 plus a $75 victim surcharge for driving while prohibited under the Motor Vehicle Act and sentenced to no further days in jail for willfully resisting or obstructing a peace officer, breaching an undertaking or recognizance and possessing stolen property over $5,000, all committed in Quesnel. Bradley was in custody for 131 days prior to sentencing.
• Terry Roy Collins (born 1985) was sentenced to one year probation for assault, breaching an undertaking and two counts of
breaching an undertaking or recognizance. Collins spent a total of 56 days in custody on the counts prior to sentencing.
• Mark S. Luchene (born 1964) was sentenced to 18 months probation with a suspended sentence and ordered to provide a DNA sample for sexual assault.
• Tyrone Rod Hector MacDonald (born 1986) was sentenced to four months in jail and 18 months probation for break and enter with intent to commit offence.
• Ryan Wade Bazille (born 1980) was sentenced to one day in jail for two counts of breaching an undertaking or recognizance. Bazille was in custody for eight days prior to sentencing.
• Brandon Michael Felix (born 1992) was sentenced to 37 days in jail and one year probation for breaking and entering with intent to commit an offence and possessing stolen property under $5,000. Felix was in custody for 57 days prior to sentencing.
NEWS IN BRIEF
Stay on standard time, readers say
During the last Citizen poll
we asked “More than 223,000 people participated in a government online survey about daylight savings time” and asked “What would you like the government to do?” With 49 per cent and 816 votes online readers said they would like to stay on standard time all year while 35 per cent and 579 voters said they’d like to stay on daylight savings time all year and 16 per cent and 268 voters said keep the current system. There were a total of 1,663 votes. Remember this is not a scientific poll.
The next question is “Should Canfor become a private company, wholly owned by Jim Pattison?”
To make your vote count visit www.pgcitizen.ca — Citizen staff
NDIT looks to help businesses hit by mill closures
The Northern Development Initiative Trust announced a rebate program Monday aimed at helping small and mediumsized businesses affected by permanent mill closures and curtailments. The Forestry Affected Business Consulting Rebate program will reimburse businesses for up to 75 per cent of the costs of hiring consultants to assist the firm plan for the downturn in the forest sector. The maximum rebate is $15,000. “The Trust is very aware of the potential economic impacts mill closures and curtailments may have on communities and businesses in our service region,” NDIT CEO Joel McKay said in a press release. “This program seeks to help offset those impacts and sustain our communities during this difficult time.”
While Northern Development already offers a Competitiveness Consulting Rebate program for businesses in the industrial supply and services sector, the new program is targeted at businesses outside the forest sector including retail, tourism, hospitality, agriculture, etc. To be eligible, businesses must be privatelyowned, have less than 500 employees and have annual revenues of less than $100 million. For more information, go online to www.northerndevelopment.bc.ca — Citizen staff
Body pulled from Robson River
VALEMOUNT (CP) — The RCMP say the body of a man has been pulled from the Robson River near Valemount after he fell into the water on Friday. Police say the 53-year-old man was visiting the area from China with two friends and was walking along the Berg Lake Trail when he slipped into the river. The Mounties say the man’s body was found 800 metres from where he slipped.
A swift water rescue team from Parks Canada in Jasper was called in to help recover the body. The area is the same location where a German tourist died in June.
Cpl. Jacob Joslin says the water moves extremely fast in that area.
Cut cable, damaged gondola cabins to cost millions
The Canadian Press
SQUAMISH — The company operating the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish, B.C., said Monday the damage total will reach into the millions of dollars for what police have said appears to be a deliberate act of destruction.
At least 18 to 20 of the 30 gondola cabins and the main cable will need replacing, the company said in a statement.
It said it is working with the lift manufacturer and the RCMP to determine its next steps towards reopening.
Mayor of Squamish, Karen Elliott, said she’s been speaking with gondola staff.
“I understand that they’re working with their suppliers and we should have an answer later this week about how long they’ll be closed,” she said.
“And then we’ll be able to understand the impact both on the community and the staff.”
Police believe someone may have intentionally cut the gondola cable at the tourist attraction, sending several unoccupied cabins plummeting to the ground early Saturday.
RCMP spokeswoman Const. Ashley MacKay said Monday that police had no further updates on the investigation. MacKay wouldn’t confirm whether investigators were looking at closed-circuit TV footage in the area, or if such footage exists.
“I’m not going to speak to its existence or not but if it does exist then we’ll definitely look into it,” she said.
The Sea to Sky Gondola officially opened in 2014 and carries between 1,500 and 3,000 people who visit the gondola every day during the summer season, with each cabin holding up to eight people.
When in operation, it takes around 10 minutes to reach an elevation of 885 metres above Howe Sound.
Elliott said the incident surrounding the gondola has impacted the community.
“People are shocked. They’re really sad and there are lots of questions of who would do this and why,” she said. “With the shock came profound gratitude that this was not operating at that time and no one was hurt.”
The gondola is a major tourist attraction that is “really very well liked” and has brought the area “positive attention”, Elliott said.
She said she did not have a dollar figure on the economic impact of losing the gondola business for the community.
“Certainly, the gondola attracted thousands and thousands of visitors a year and there’s a spillover effect,” she said.
RCMP HANDOUT PHOTO
Policed seized a cache of weapons from a home on Poplar Place on Oct. 11, 2018.
CITIZEN PHOTO BY BRENT BRAATEN
Cariboo Rocks The North
CITIZEN PHOTOS BY JAMES DOYLE
Top, the audience sings along with Glass Tiger as they perform on stage at Exhibition Park on Saturday night, closing out day two of Cariboo Rocks The North. Above, Streetheart performs on stage Friday evening. Above right, Carol Pope and Rough Trade played on Sunday afternoon before The Romantics, right, took the stage. Bottom right, Sass Jordan and the Champagne Hookers played Saturday, as did Doug and the Slugs, below.
Top, fans sing along with Doug and the Slugs as they perform on stage at Exhibition Park on Saturday afternoon, opening day two of Cariboo Rocks The North. Third row right, Chilliwack performed Saturday, as did Glass Tiger, below. UNBC women soccer team players threw out some swag from the stage Saturday night. Bottom right, Trooper were the final act on the lineup Friday night. Above, Helix played Sunday with Loverboy, bottom left, wrapping up the three-day event Sunday night.
Canada’s marginal Christian right
The political power of the American Christian right naturally leads to interest and speculation about the influence of similar groups in Canada. But social conservatives and evangelical Christians are a marginal force in Canadian politics, even in the Conservative party. And research finds their dynamics here are quite different than in the United States.
Is there a Canadian Christian right at all? Yes and no.
The Christian right is closely associated with evangelical Christianity, and perhaps 10 to 15 per cent of Canadians (depending on the survey method) are evangelical Christians. Nearly all are strongly conservative on issues of reproduction and sexuality. But their broader political views vary considerably. Few would support “dominionist” ideas of imposing a theological state. Furthermore, comparative research on American and Canadian evangelicals consistently finds different approaches to politics and political activity. In one striking study, American faith researcher Lydia Bean embedded herself (with full disclosure) in theologically similar church congregations in Buffalo, N.Y., and the Ontario city of Hamilton — only 100 kilometres apart — and found clear-cut political differences. While all were strongly anti-abortion, the Buffalo group was heavily right-leaning across the board. They were also suspicious of government and secular society. In contrast, the Hamilton congregation was ideologically different beyond social conser-
vatism. They were also more supportive of public institutions and accepting of different opinions.
Access to power also differs in the two countries. The Canadian parliamentary system concentrates power top-down in government and party leaders. The more bottom-up American system gives greater openings for legislators to pursue independent agendas. This was evident under Stephen Harper’s Conservatives. While sometimes accused of having a theological agenda himself, Harper openly stopped attempts by backbenchers to introduce abortion-related bills and motions. Current Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer has pledged to follow Harper’s lead and not reopen the abortion issue. This is not to say there isn’t an evangelical and social conservative streak in the Conservative party. Scheer may give more freedom to backbenchers than Harper did. The strongly anti-abortion Brad Trost came fourth in the 2017 leadership race. Yet Conservatives have shown little interest in advancing abortion rights any further. Provincial governments have rolled back progress on sex education and gay-straight alliance clubs. But provincial party leaders retain strong top-down control. And they seem to prefer to avoid rather than engage in these issues, even when they’re facing pressure from within their parties. In this landscape, Canadian activism can be divided into two camps. The first is small but loud. Its most prominent figure is Charles McVety, president of Canada Christian College and associated with the
rollback of the sex education curriculum in Ontario. But while skilled in cultivating publicity, McVety’s exact influence with either government or fellow evangelicals has never been clear.
In contrast, groups in a larger second camp keep a lower profile. The largest evangelical Canadian organization, the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC), avoids protests and partisan engagement. While firmly socially conservative, the EFC engages on a broad range of issues that go beyond Christian right ideas. For example, it has taken a strong stand against Bill 21 (banning religious symbols) in Québec even though the legislation will have little effect on evangelicals.
The American Christian right is powerful and dominates politics in some parts of the United States. But Canadian activists are primarily fighting defensive battles.
A good example is the recent controversy over the Canada Summer Jobs program. Last year, Justin Trudeau’s government introduced new requirements for organizations seeking summer job subsidies to affirm their adherence to Charter of Rights and Freedoms values. This was clearly directed at anti-abortion groups that in the past had received subsidies for summer students.
But the wording of the application ensnared all religious applicants that held anti-abortion views.
Another example is the unsuccessful attempt of B.C.-based evangelical Christian Trinity Western University to accredit their new law school, with its restrictive “lifestyle
covenant” that binds students to a code of conduct that includes abstinence from sex outside of heterosexual marriage (now removed) – even though its teachers program already had such a covenant requirement. In both cases, the evangelicals’ challenge was to preserve their previous ability to exercise their views and values in semi-public spaces. And as secularization increases in Canada, this could lead to further encroachments on that space, such as the removal of charitable tax status for churches.
Sophisticated groups like the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada are therefore adopting a broad religious freedom agenda that links their struggles with other religious rights issues, such as the ban on religious symbols in Québec. Despite their bluster on reproduction and sexuality issues, Canadian evangelicals are on the defensive. And the Conservative Party of Canada has done a masterful job retaining evangelical support despite not delivering on their key priorities.
So while there’s something resembling a Christian right in Canada, its influence is limited and the context quite different from the United States. It does have policy successes, but not many. The broader picture is one of marginal influence and largely defensive battles.
While they’re not going away, evangelicals and social conservatives in Canada are distinctly different from the American Christian right.
— Jonathan Malloy is a political science professor at Carleton University. This article first appeared in The Conversation.
Island fair adds weed category
New to the Cowichan Exhibition: weed. For real. They have added a marijuana contest to September’s fair, giving the Vancouver Island’s finest amateur dope-growers a chance to strut their stuff, just like the onionpicklers and Holstein-raising 4-H kids.
“To the best of my knowledge, we’re the first in Canada to do this,” says Bud James.
Bud – no, I’m not making up that name – is the one who came up with the idea of adding a cannabis category to the 151-yearold fair.
“Trudeau legalized it, and I thought: ‘This might be fun,’” he says. So, James took the idea to his fellow exhibition board directors, who ran it past the Mounties, who scratched their heads and looked over at North Cowichan council, who giggled a little, and the next thing you knew there it was in the just-released CowEx catalogue – Division 17, Cannabis, nestled among the laciniated dahlias and yearling heifers.
“We thought: ‘It’s agriculture, and what we do at the fair is promote agriculture,’” says the exhibition’s executive director, Shari Paterson.
The competition is open to any non-commercial grower who is at least 19 years of age.
The cost is $1 per entry, one entry per person. Entrants must supply three buds in a clear, Ziploc-style bag. The marijuana will be judged on its uniformity,
SLIGHTLY SKEWED
scent, moisture and colour, but will not be smoked or otherwise ingested.
“The buds will be returned in excellent condition,” James promised.
I refrained from pointing out that this seems a bit like rating a wine without tasting it. I have discovered in the past that fair folk get a tad prickly when it comes to adjudication of the rural arts, so it’s best not to criticize.
People take this stuff seriously. I narrowly avoided being shanked with a pie fork after judging last year’s Metchosin Day pastry competition.
Also, not everyone thought Paterson was showing sufficient gravitas when her entry in the 2018 Cowichan Exhibition fruit pie contest consisted of a storebought pastry shell filled with her old BlackBerry phones.
“I didn’t win a ribbon,” she said, “but I know where they’re kept, so...”
For it’s not just the lavish prizes ($5 for first place in the cannabis category, $3 for second, ribbon only for third) that are on the line at fall fairs. It’s bragging rights, the ability to spend a year swaggering around the Island, like Mike Tyson showing off his Heavyweight Champion of the World belt. That’s why family recipes are guarded so jealously.
It’s why blunt-talking farm folk –people who would without compunction demand the intimate details of your medical records/ tax returns/sex life – stammer like Trump at a spelling bee when asking a neighbour to divulge her winning mustard pickle recipe. An outsider who innocently makes such a request is just asking to perish in an unexplained tractor tragedy.
Those of us who spend our working lives in Cubicle Hell are particularly enamoured by country fairs. There’s something comforting and down-homey about them. Years after living up north, Times Colonist business writer Carla Wilson still waxes on about the Bulkley Valley Exhibition and the legendary fruit pies of the Quick Women’s Institute, a wonderfully named organization whose members hail from the community of Quick, not far from Telkwa.
It brings to mind that story out of England where the Ugley Women’s Institute was retitled the Women’s Institute of Ugley. Carla’s colleague Darron Kloster gets dewy-eyed at the memory of his Saskatchewan boyhood where the highlight of the fair was guessing the weight of the fattest guy in town. That last bit illustrates another reality. The farther from the city you get, the earthier the fairs become. Fewer corporate logos, more cow-pie bingo. If you get drunk and barf at an urban event, you get arrested. Do it at a country fair and you get a mop.
Canada caught in U.S., China spat
Donald Trump and Xi Jinping are on a course of mutual harm, if not destruction, in a trade war gaining fuel. But their nuclear episode’s fallout is in our backyard, and there is no hopeful political sign in the making.
While our two most significant trading partners joust for which one is the moment’s most prevalent superpower, Canadian business is destabilized by uncertainty, certain industries are disabled by tariffs and bans and our trademark diplomatic efforts appear muted – Trumped, one might say – by circumstances that only two years ago seemed unfathomable.
The recent months have been powerful reminders of our diminished place. We can’t get a conversation going with Xi, our foreign minister has been reduced to grabbing her Chinese counterpart for a side chit-chat at a conference to remind him of our grievances and Trump never talks of his country’s strongest and most resilient friend in anything but bellicose tones.
We have long run out of cheeks to turn. We are being ghosted.
Xi and Trump are on the archetypical collision course that comes when large ego mixes with concocted pride in political strongmen who cannot risk the agony of losing face. Straight out of the playbook, their short-sighted economic gestures play well in their countries and rekindle intolerance and incite antipathy about the other. The immediate enthusiasm at home will at some point crest and people will realize their products cost more, their opportunities are fewer and their prosperity is undermined. But the real impact of a trade war can take time.
Social media and surly pronouncements are immediate.
We have little chance of operating under the radar of these two titans. We are not big traders for China or new traders for America, so we need their attention to mind our relationships and mend our disagreements. Justin Trudeau wisely keeps this quandary out of his daily talking points.
No question, the Meng Wanzhou migraine is unhelpful. The chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., apprehended at the Vancouver airport in December at the behest of American authorities, is experiencing what will rank as one of air travel’s most
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serious layovers in her Shaughnessy lounge. In this circumstance, we are dead to China, no matter that we did not instigate the extradition. In this circumstance, too, Canadian business executives worry they could be No. 3 – as in the third Canadian picked off the street and imprisoned in China, the way Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig appear to have been out of retribution for Meng.
Much of this would be dissipating if we had an ally to the south who was willing or able to do something. In other times a U.S. president would lift the phone and set the record straight about who owns the Huawei episode, whose idea it was and who should ultimately pay for its debris. If anyone sees this ending well, you are more than welcome to turn to someone now and suggest how it might be so. But you are on anything but solid ground, because before the Huawei matter on a micro level and the U.S.-China spat on a macro level are settled, the world is going to be unsettled. Global prosperity will be curtailed, investment will sputter, consumer prices will be clobbered on the one hand and consumer demand will be clobbered on the other.
The macro story: the hardworking labourers in America who cannot afford a rise in their cost of living will suffer, as will the hard-working labourers in China who need the voracious American consumer. Those two troubles, played out in tit-for-tat tariffs, will pummel world markets.
The micro story: long before authorities resolve the Meng mess, the Canadian government post-election has to determine if Huawei’s 5G technology will guide Telus and Bell in their internet evolutions. The intelligence services are not so far bullish on the idea. Choose China’s corporate jewel and America might view us as hostile tech; reject it and China will most certainly chill to us. Pick your problem. Enjoy the summer. Winter will be coming sooner than you think.
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Blood, Sweat and Tears singer looks back on Woodstock
The Canadian Press
David Clayton-Thomas thinks another Woodstock could be on the horizon.
The former member of Blood, Sweat and Tears says many have tried to replicate the iconic music festival for its 50th anniversary, but they’ve all missed a key element.
“It was about peace,” says the multiple Grammy winner, whose rock band was a headliner at the original 1969 event.
“It was at the height of the Vietnam War and people had enough of dozens of kids a week coming home in body bags. They were angry.”
He senses a similar unrest percolating in the United States as people grapple with the regularity of mass shootings, and a lack of interest by many politicians to change gun laws.
“That seems to really have ignited the youth of the country, with what just happened in El Paso and Dayton,” ClaytonThomas says, pointing to two recent tragedies. “In this current political climate we’re due for another Woodstock – and we may see something.”
Clayton-Thomas fondly recalls the original music festival as sheer pandemonium behind the scenes. His band was booked to play Sunday, the final night, and by then organizers had already lost control of the size of the event. People had cut through the fences and snuck onto the festival grounds without paying for tickets.
The roads to Woodstock were jammed with traffic and when Blood, Sweat and Tears landed at New York’s LaGuardia Airport they were told they wouldn’t be able to reach the concert grounds. Plans quickly changed as organizers hastily arranged helicopters to fly in the performers, in hopes of keeping the show from falling even further behind schedule.
“There was always the fear that this thing could turn ugly,” Clayton-Thomas wrote in his 2010 autobiography. “The music was the only thing keeping a lid on the place, so the show had to go on.”
Blood, Sweat and Tears took the stage around 1:30 a.m. on Monday, shortly after Robbie Robertson’s The Band finished their
set. Clayton-Thomas doesn’t remember much about the crowds, which estimates have numbered at 400,000 people, but he says it seemed like many fans of Blood, Sweat and Tears had shown up in support.
The band was riding high on success with their self-titled sophomore effort, hot off seven weeks atop the U.S. album charts. They would win the Grammy for album of the year in 1970.
But when it comes to Woodstock’s visual record, Blood, Sweat and Tears has been largely erased. The 1970 documentary released by Warner Bros. features historic moments with Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Sly and the Family Stone, but it’s missing footage from many of the headliners.
Managers for The Grateful Dead, The Band and Creedence Clearwater Revival also refused to sign off on having the film crew record them without a guarantee they’d get paid for it.
“I kind of regret that financial circumstances ended up with all of us getting cut out of the movie, especially because we did a remarkable show that night,” ClaytonThomas says.
“Managers, what are you gonna do? They weren’t going to get paid that night, so they cut us out of history.”
Clayton-Thomas has come to terms with how things played out, he says, though occasionally he’s reminded of the missed opportunity.
“I feel badly about my daughter asking me 30 years later, ‘Dad, were you at Woodstock? I saw the movie and you weren’t there,”’ he shrugs.
A recent boxed set celebrating Woodstock’s 50th anniversary recaptures the band’s presence with a full recording of the Blood, Sweat and Tears set, including songs Spinning Wheel, God Bless the Child and You’ve Made Me So Very Happy.
“It’s important to stress that was a unique moment in history,” Clayton-Thomas says.
“If violence had broken out at Woodstock it would’ve betrayed everything that generation stood for. It was the peace generation, it was about peace and love, and ending a war. The spirit among those people was just remarkable.”
He wonders if that lightning in a bottle could ever be recaptured.
“The era of social protest, and making social change, through music is kind of anachronistic today, isn’t it?” he adds.
“But that’s why we went to Woodstock –we thought we were going to change the world with our music. And maybe we did a little bit, for a while.”
David Clayton-Thomas of Blood, Sweat and Tears performs at Woodstock in a August 1969 handout photo provided by Clayton-Thomas.
Air Canada cleared for landing Transat
The Canadian Press
Quebec’s securities tribunal has barred a developer’s offer to buy up Transat shares, halting Group Mach’s bid to block the tour operator’s sale to Air Canada – and leaving the country’s largest airline as the only player publicly vying for the company.
The decision comes one day after Air Canada upped its takeover offer by $200 million in an effort to win shareholder support for its bid to take Transat private.
The new offer would see the carrier spend $18 per share, rather than $13, bringing the total offer to about $720 million, up 38 per cent from a previously announced bid worth $520 million.
The would-be deal sent Transat shares soaring by $4.96 or nearly 42 per cent to close Monday at $16.77, their highest price in more than eight years.
Letko Brosseau and Associates – Transat’s biggest shareholder at 19.3 per cent – has now given formal support to the fresh offer from Air Canada, the airline and Transat said. The investment firm said earlier this summer it would vote against the deal if the price stayed at $13 per share.
Group Mach’s offer of $14 per share for 19.5 per cent of class B voting shares represented the only rival bid.
The tribunal ruling, which says the bid “constitutes an abusive offer contrary to the public interest,” means the Montreal-based company cannot acquire any shares under its scheme and must return to shareholders any stocks already deposited. The company is also forbidden from using any proxies associated with shares deposited under the plan.
Transat spokesman Christophe Hen-
nebelle said Air Canada’s increased offer Sunday came after meetings with the tour company’s biggest shareholders, which include the Fonds de Solidarite FTQ, the Caisse pension fund manager and PenderFund Capital Management.
“Obviously it’s Air Canada’s decision. But it happened after consultations with Transat’s major stockholders, including Letko Brosseau, with whom we are now an-
Trade concerns subdue markets
The Canadian Press
North American markets started another week in the hole on persistent concerns about a trade war between the U.S. and China and lower yield curves.
Trade uncertainty has made investors cautious, sending them to more defensive sectors or safe havens like gold, says Craig Fehr, a Canadian markets strategist with Edward Jones.
“I think the prevailing sentiment in the market right now is that the longer trade tensions and uncertainty persists the more damage it could potentially do to the global economy and so we’re seeing equities take the brunt of that,” he said in an interview.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 103.57 points at 16,237.77.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 391.00 points to 25,896.44, a week after shedding 767 points. The S&P 500 index was down 35.96 points at 2,882.69, while the Nasdaq composite was down 95.73 points at 7,863.41.
Protests in Hong Kong were also adding to the economic headwinds as policy-makers in China divert their attention to the social unrest, Fehr added.
“The broader bull market is not exhausted but that investors should start to expect a lot more volatility,” he said.
Whereas markets were relatively calm from May to July as they moved to all-time highs, the recent volatility feels worse than it actually is since equity markets are less than five per cent below those peaks, he added.
“I feel this is more of a reflection of kind of a recalibration of this new environment that we’re in where this trade issue is probably going to linger on for much longer than people had expected.”
While a trade deal would likely be welcomed by the U.S. and China, Fehr said it’s unclear if U.S. President Donald Trump wants an agreement so that the economy is strong heading into next year’s re-election campaign or would rather have his tough stance on China as an issue again while also pressuring the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.
All 11 major sectors of the TSX ended the day lower, led by consumer discretionary, energy and heavyweight financials.
Power Financial Corp and Canada’s top six banks were lower as the yield curve was flat or inverted.
“That’s a more challenging environment for banks who earn the spread between the two so to the extent that we continue to see longer-term interest rates fall that’s going to be a headwind for financials, banks in particular,” said Fehr.
Materials also decreased even though gold
nouncing a lockup agreement,” Hennebelle said in a phone interview.
Group Mach chief executive Vincent Chiara questioned the judgment of Transat’s board, calling its endorsement of the original Air Canada bid “disturbing.”
“They still need to be accountable to shareholders on why they pushed that $13-per-share offer like they pushed it,” Chiara told The Canadian Press.
Transat has agreed to an increased break-fee of $40 million, while Air Canada’s break-fee remains $40 million.
Shareholders are slated to vote on the Air Canada offer Aug. 23, which is expected to face intense scrutiny from the Competition Bureau and other regulatory authorities. Air Canada and Transat command a combined 60 per cent slice of the transatlantic market from Canada, overlap on some sun destinations and maintain a firm hold on Montreal air travel.
However, Transat has posted net losses two of the last three years, with a loss of nearly $20 million forecast for 2019, according to financial markets data firm Refinitiv.
“We view the take-out price is rather generous given Transat’s volatile profitability profile,” said analyst Mona Nazir of Laurentian Bank Securities in a note to investors.
prices climbed close to the six-year high set last week.
The December gold contract was up US$8.70 at US$1,517.20 an ounce and the September copper contract was down 0.4 of a cent at US$2.58 a pound.
The Canadian dollar traded for an average of 75.55 cents US compared with an average of 75.64 cents US on Friday.
Several Canadian companies also had wild share swings.
Transat A.T. closed up 42 per cent after Air Canada raised its takeover offer price by $5 per share or $200 million in an effort to win shareholder support for its bid to take Transat private (see above story).
Canfor Corp. surged 73.4 per cent after a Jim Pattison Group company made a $16 a share bid to take the company private. Pattison’s Great Pacific Capital Corp., which already owns about 51 per cent of the lumber producer, made the all-cash offer over the weekend that was a 60-per-cent premium to the company’s 60 day average price and an 81.8-per-cent premium to Friday’s close.
CannTrust Holdings Inc. fell 27.8 per cent after closing up Friday by more than 40 per cent.
The latest share decrease came after the cannabis producer said its manufacturing facility in Vaughan, Ont., has been rated non-compliant by Health Canada.
An Air Transat plane is seen as an Air Canada plane lands in May at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal.
Hockey alliance formed
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
The Prince George Cougars recognize the value of investing in the development of minor hockey players from northern B.C.
To help identify those players and keep them playing close to home, the WHL club has formed an alliance with the city’s BC Hockey regional rep teams and the Prince George Minor Hockey Association to create a farm team system which will attract the best bantam- and midget-aged players, male and female, to teams in Prince George.
Cougars head coach and general manager Mark Lamb said his team stands to benefit by maintaining closer ties with those rep teams, which will in turn help create more opportunities for those players to advance through the system.
“I don’t think the Prince George Cougars have done a real good job of getting a lot of players from the north,” said Lamb.
“For us to do a really good job (recruiting players from the region) we need a lot of help. We draft from all over the place but there are still lots of players from the north we haven’t seen and haven’t drafted. With his type of relationship we don’t want to leave any stone unturned, and that’s what this whole thing is about.”
The WHL Cougars have worked closely the past five seasons with the B.C. Hockey Major Midget League Cougars and the midgets are regularly called up to practice with the WHL team. The movement of players and sharing of coaching/managing expertise creates also learning opportunities for the minor midget team and the BC Hockey Northern Bobcats double-A bantam and midget regional teams, and for girls playing for Northern Capitals midget female team.
“That’s a no-brain situation,” said Lamb. “When we’re missing a couple of players, they come in and practice and get more confidence coming back to their team. It’s a two-way street.
“If you get a good reputation for developing players, they’re going to want to come. When this program really gets going, and it goes through the parents, if we do a good job they’re going to want their kids to come here and start
Team Long player Kellan Brienen stickhandles the puck through Team Allen
on Sunday
Arena as the two teams participated in the final day of the Cariboo Cougars summer development
of a new alliance of local teams to help develop players.
playing bantam.”
With the bantam teams part of the organization, the Cougars will to get to know those players better, starting at the double-A bantam level, before they make their recruiting choices at the WHL draft table.
“We’re going to get the first look at these kids and get to know their character,” said Lamb. “We’re drafting kids anyway, but we really don’t know a lot about them sometimes. If they’re living in your back yard, you should know everything about them, and it’s not just Prince George, we need to do a really good job in B.C.”
During his seven years as general manager of the Swift Current Broncos, Lamb made an attempt to create a similar alliance with minor hockey teams in the Swift Current area, drawing on the success the Brandon Wheat Kings have had since they became more closely tied to the minor hockey teams in their area. The Wheat
Kings have been one of the most successful WHL teams on the ice, with one championship, two finals berths and two third-round playoff appearances in the past 15 seasons.
Trevor Sprague, general manager of the Cariboo Cougars major midget team, said both junior teams in the city, the Cougars and the BCHL Spruce Kings, have a unique opportunity to benefit from watching those northern players develop with Prince George-based rep teams.
“The Cougars and Spruce Kings get to see a kid develop from double-A all the way up, because all those teams are in Prince George – nowhere else in the province has that,” said Sprague, who rejoined the WHL Cougars scouting staff this year.
“I’m pretty excited to move ahead with these guys on building this organization and seeing how many people we can move on to college, university, WHL or pro.
We’re all going to have a helping hand here in hockey right out of Prince George and I’m pretty proud of that.”
Sprague said the structure is already in place to help bantamand midget-aged players from other cities relocate to the city. All of the rep team players attend the hockey academy based at Prince George Secondary School, which provides skills development, team tactics sessions and off-ice conditioning.
“If you look at our alumni list, the Cariboo Cougars have moved more guys on to the WHL and junior A and WHL than any other team in our league,” said Sprague.
“That says a lot about the people in our organization and the school plays a huge part of that.”
Brent McIsaac, a former BCHL defenceman who played for the Spruce Kings and Chilliwack Chiefs, was among several rep team coaches on hand for Friday’s announcement. McIsaac will
be head coach of the Northern Bobcats bantam team, after four seasons coach peewee triple-A teams in Prince George and Ridge Meadows. His son Brady plays as a forward for the Cariboo Cougars minor midget team
“The benefit to this is different from what we’ve had before because we’ve established a progression from the time you’re 13, leading kids right into junior hockey,” said McIsaac. “It’s giving players the opportunity to go through that progression naturally, being with like-minded athletes and play at the level they’re ready for while also affiliating and getting ready for the next level.
“It’s tough for families to send their kids away at a young age but at the end of the day, this is a can’t-miss program. This is going to pop your son or daughter into a program at 13 and potentially play here five years and go through the progression that will lead you to the next level.”
Knights off to western championship
For the second straight year, the PG Surg Med Knights will represent B.C. in the Western Canadian double-A bantam baseball championship.
The Knights locked up their second provincial championship in two weeks Sunday afternoon in Burnaby, where they defeated the host Burnaby Braves 7-1 to win the Baseball BC provincial title.
Behind the pitching of Kolby Lukinchuk, who allowed just five hits in seven complete innings, the Knights advanced to the five-team Western Canadian championship which starts Friday in Strathmore, Alta.
“It was just singles that did the job today,” said Knights assistant coach Dylan Lukinchuk. “We didn’t have guys that were shooting for the fence driving doubles and triples, they just chipped away at the other team with walks and singles. The meat of the order really picked it up in the final today.”
The Knights scored one in the first inning, three in the second and two in the third for a 6-0 lead.
Earlier Sunday they defeated the Queens Park Royals of New Westminster 11-1 in the semifinal round, scoring 10 runs in the fifth inning. First-year midget pitcher Jacob Ross pitched his best game of the year, winning a duel with Royals starter Devon Flattery. Ross allowed just one hit and one run in five complete innings and drove in the first run of the game.
Lead-off hitter Kolby Lukinchuk came to the plate twice as the Knights batted through the entire order in the fifth inning. He delivered an RBI double and answered that with a run-scoring single to help the Knights to their 10-run lead, which wrapped it up in five innings.
“The first four innings was like an hour,” said Dylan Lukinchuk. “It looked like it would be a 1-0 or 2-1 game until things broke open in the fifth inning there.
“The energy was high in that game and it was a lot closer than people think. It felt like a very high-stakes game and it was, but when you have to win that and also play in the final, it makes for an eventful day.
“Jacob Ross was a force in that game. When your pitcher can be fantastic defensively and help out offensively it feels good when guys elevate their game because they know what level we’re at and what level we’re going to next weekend when we try to defend a banner.”
The Braves advanced with a 4-3 semifinal win over the Vancouver Expos.
The Knights wrapped up round-robin play with a 15-4 win over the Royals, which came after a 13-3 victory earlier Saturday over the Ladner Red Sox. Kaelon Gibbs hit a three-run home run in that game.
The Knights won the BC Minor 18U midget double-A provincial championship a week ago in Kelowna. They will take on the Saskatchewan champions from Unity in their first game at Westerns, Friday at 1:15 p.m PT. The other teams they’ll face in Strathmore are Altona, Man., Leduc, Alta., and the host Strathmore Reds.
Meanwhile, at the BC Minor playoffs in Mission, the PG Floor Fashions peewee Knights beat the Penticton Tigers 7-3 for the 13U single-A provincial championship. Mitchal Haggelund pitched the first 1 1/3 innings until he hit his 40-pitch limit and Karson Husarski took over and went the
final 5 2/3 innings on the mound for the Knights. Josh Stachoski ignited the Prince George offence with a two-run hit in the bottom of the first inning to erase a 2-0 deficit. He also triggered a four-run outburst in the sixth inning which gave the Knights their lead.
In the semifinal round the Knights defeated Abbotsford Angels Black 10-6 Sunday. Haggelund and Lucas Peacock combined for the victory. Penticton handed Cloverdale its one and only loss of the season in the other semifinal, eliminating the Spurs 9-2.
Prince George went 2-2 in the preliminary round. After opening Thursday with an 18-0 loss to Cloverdale, the Knights blanked the Salmon Arm Hornets 10-0. On Saturday the Knights finished up with a 9-8 victory over the Ladner Red Sox, after an earlier 8-6 loss to the White Rock Tritons.
“After losing the first game 18-0 to Cloverdale nobody was too worried about us, until this morning,” said peewee Knights head coach Derek Wood. “We came in here as the 10th seed and nobody expected anything from us. We just rallied. These boys have worked so hard all season and just been a group of brothers. We had great pitching and great fielding and some big RBIs.
“When teams come out of Prince George and compete, it really surprises people. It’s just a great group of kids, they were always even-keel. Our motto the whole year was good body language, good attitude and good effort and we just built in that the whole year. I’m 100 per cent positive that’s how we were able to compete in the finals. ” Meanwhile, at the Baseball BC 15U bantam double-A championship in Chilliwack, the Jepson Petroleum bantam Knights fell one win short of their goal of playing for a Western Canadian championship when they lost Sunday afternoon 11-10 in the final to the Cowichan Valley Mustangs. Down 9-3 heading into the fourth inning, the Mustangs scored seven unanswered runs to beat the Knights, avenging their 15-7 loss to Prince George Tuesday in the BC Minor Baseball 15U double-A final in Prince George. The Mustangs scored the wining run on a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning. Knights relief pitcher Logan Dreher gave up back-to-back doubles to start the inning. Knights starter Caleb Poitras lasted 3 1/3 innings, allowing seven hits and six runs, five of which were earned. In the semifinal earlier Sunday, the Knights scored five runs in the fourth inning to top the Tri City Thunder 7-2. The Mustangs crushed the Ladner Red Sox 23-2 Sunday in the other bantam semifinal. In the preliminary round play Saturday, the bantam Knights lost 11-10 to the North Delta Rays. The Knights (2-1) opened with a 24-2 win over the Queens Park Royals, then defeated the Ladner Red Sox 1-0. The LTN Contracting midget Knights finished the BC Minor 18U single-A championship in Mission with a 3-2 record but did not advance to the playoff round at the 12-team tournament. The Knights lost 14-2 to the Nanaimo Pirates Saturday afternoon, which ended their season. Prince George kept its playoff hopes alive earlier in the day with a 14-13 triumph over the Vancouver Canadians. The Knights started the tournament with consecutive wins over Cloverdale, 108, and Mission, 6-1, then lost 11-4 on Friday to the Vancouver Mounties.
defenders
morning at Rolling MIx Concrete
camp. The Cariboo Cougars are part
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
The Prince George Surg Med Knights are heading to the Western Canadian doubleA bantam baseball championship after winning the Baseball BC title Sunday.
Andreescu wins Rogers Cup after Williams bows out with injury
John CHIDLEY-HILL The Canadian Press
TORONTO — As soon as Bianca Andreescu heard that Serena Williams was retiring from their Rogers Cup final, she went to her opponent’s bench, took a knee, and started consoling the veteran tennis player.
Lost in that moment of empathy was the fact that Andreescu had just become the first Canadian to win the tournament in 50 years.
“I started tearing up because she was tearing up. It’s because I know how she feels,” said Andreescu on Sunday. “Injuries really, really suck.”
Andreescu, from Mississauga, Ont., was up 3-1 in the first set at Aviva Centre when Williams called for a medical timeout. Less than a minute later, the chair umpire announced that Williams was retiring from the match, handing Andreescu her second WTA Premier title of the season.
“It’s not the way I wanted to win, but a win is a win so I’m really happy,” said Andreescu, who is the first Canadian to win the title since Faye Urban of Windsor, Ont., beat Vancouver’s Vicki Berner in 1969. The tournament was still played on clay courts and called the Canadian Open when Urban won.
Williams was impressed with the 19-yearold Andreescu’s class in that shared moment on the bench, calling her a “great sportswoman” and an “old soul.”
“She’s wiser than her, what is she?
Nineteen years old?” said the 37-year-old Williams, who added that the brief encounter with Andreescu was the highlight of the tournament for her.
“She definitely doesn’t seem like a 19-year old in her words, on court and her game,
her attitude, her actions.” Andreescu also won at Indian Wells in March, the beginning of a 17-match win streak, not counting when she has had to retire from matches due to injury herself. She holds victories over seven of the top 10 players in the world this season, includ-
ing Williams.
“I would say that the win in Indian Wells was – I mean, it was a hard-fought battle,” said Andreescu, referring to her three-set win over No. 8 Angelique Kerber. “So I felt like it was a sweeter victory at the time. “But (the Rogers Cup) is at home. I’ve
dedicated so much hard work and sweat on that tennis court and in this gym, so this tournament is definitely ten times more special.”
Andreescu has her two titles this season and her world ranking will rise from 27th to 14th on Monday. Her previous high was 22nd.
The Rogers Cup was Andreescu’s first tournament after a right-shoulder injury sidelined her since the French Open in May.
Andreescu had been on the court more than any other player at this year’s Rogers Cup at 10 hours 54 minutes heading into Sunday’s final. All that playing took a toll on Andreescu, who needed a medical timeout in her quarterfinal win over world No. 3 Karolina Pliskova to have her groin taped. Both legs were wrapped and taped for her next two matches.
Sunday’s final lasted only 16 minutes before Williams’s medical timeout brought it to a premature end.
“It’s not easy for Serena, for sure, to pull out, especially to pull out in a final,” said Andreescu. “I know how she feels because I’ve done that many times in my short career. But sometimes you just have to listen to your body.”
Williams said the injury is a recurring back spasm that doesn’t affect her ability to walk but makes serves and overhand shots painful. She expected to go to Cincinnati for the next stop on the WTA Tour to test it out ahead of the U.S. Open. On the men’s side, Rafael Nadal made quick work Daniil Medvedev to win the tournament’s 2019 edition Sunday, defeating the Russian 6-3, 6-0 at IGA Stadium in just 70 minutes to claim his fifth Rogers Cup title.
Kozlowski defends Ladies Simon Fraser Open title
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
tclarke@pgcitizen.ca
Natasha Kozlowski was suffering from golf overload Sunday and that made the final round of the Ladies Simon Fraser Open a test of endurance.
The 17-year-old Prince George Golf and Curling Club member was feeling the pressure playing on her home course as the defending champion, trying to hang on to her lead over veteran teaching pros Lindsay MacDermott and Ann Holmes. In her last tournament before she begins her college career at University of the Fraser Valley, Kozlowski struggled on the front nine to hit the fairways with her tee shots Sunday, and the secondguessing continued when her iron game went south on her on the back nine. Consequently, her lead began to crumble.
MacDermott, who won the Ladies Simon Fraser in 2016 and 2017, crept back to within a stroke and had a chance to win it or force a playoff on the Par 5 No. 18. But she bogeyed the hole, as did Kozlowski, who won by one stroke, carding 73-82-155.
“I had a pretty tough day but I think in the end it came down to just grinding out the shots and trying to make something happen, even though it wasn’t,” said Kozlowski, who shot 40 Sunday on the front and 42 on the back. “I couldn’t hit a fairway on the front and couldn’t hit a green on the
back. I guess that’s alright, there’s not a consistent problem to worry about.”
There hasn’t been much wrong with Kozlowski’s game all year. She started in the spring winning Maple Leaf Junior Tour events in Chilliwack and Banff, then finished 15th in early July at the B.C. Junior Championship at Nanoose Bay. She also placed fourth in the Simon Fraser Junior Open, competing against the region’s top male juniors.
Kozlowski grew up watching women play for the Simon Fraser title and now, at 17, she has her name on the trophy twice.
“This has been the tournament that got me really into tournament golf and wanting to play at these higher levels, so it’s pretty special to win,” said Kozlowski.
The Prince George teen spent the week leading up to it at the Canadian women’s junior championship in Lethbridge, where she made the cut and finished in a tie for 53rd in a field of 120 golfers, carding 83-78-73-83 for a fourround 309 total. Considering the Prince George climate limits her to only four of five months of golf per year, Kozlowski’s finish in the top half at nationals was satisfying.
“II had a couple good rounds at nationals, I had tough first day and then the second day I came back and put up an OK number,” said Kozlowski. “When you play tournaments in B.C. you know you’re going against all the Vancouver kids who play 12 months of the year. They all have consistent
coaching and I don’t really get that here.”
After four rounds of competition and two practice rounds at the junior tournament, Kozlowski admitted she was fatigued, mentally and physically, when she took her place on the course with 64 other golfers for the Ladies Simon.
“I was out of town pretty much the whole month of July, traveling and playing, and I just got back from nationals a week ago,’ she said.
“That was six days in a row of golf and I was feeling a little burnt out coming into this weekend.”
She averted disaster on the Par 5 16th hole Sunday when, after plunking her second shot into the pond. Kozlowski took a drop and made her approach, then sank a 15-foot putt to save par and keep her lead.
MacDermott, 39, who moved this year from Kamloops to
Edmonton, finished second to Kozlowski in 2018 and began Sunday’s round six strokes off the pace after an opening-round 79. She made up five of those strokes with a five-over 77 on Sunday.
“I knew I had to play my own game, (Kozlowski) is a great player and I would never wish that somebody played bad,” said MacDermott.
“I had a great round here last year (70), so I knew it was possible to shoot under par but I definitely struggled with my putter. I could hit it close but couldn’t quite convert those birdies. I got a bunch of pars to make it closer but she made a great up-and-down on 16 for par after putting it in the water and she was steady for the last few holes.
“I told her after if we’d both shot five shots better I’d be more satisfied with the results.” Holmes shot 78-79 and finished third, two strokes behind Kozlowski. The 47-year-old PGGCC teaching pro came into the tournament with just four practice rounds behind her the whole year.
MacDermott, a native of Langley who won the NAIA U.S. national team title in 2001 while being coached by Holmes at UBC, no longer teaches. Like Holmes, she doesn’t play often, but practices with her two kids at Windermere Golf Club, where her husband Brice is the general manager.
MacDermott predicts a bright future ahead for Kozlowski, who she says already has the tools to develop exponentially as she takes
advantage of her college surroundings.
“The benefit of the off-season has its perks but being able to practice and stick with it down on the coast where she has a great coaching lineup working with her will help gain that perspective,” said MacDermott.
“She hits the ball far and hits it well and she will start to dial it in and really get the ball in the hole and her scores will drop. She’s not the best golfer she’s going to be. It’s very clear she will continue to improve.”
Having competition in a team setting at UFV should bring out the best in Kozlowski, says Holmes.
“She has nothing but opportunity and a chance to lengthen her season and to be immersed in the culture of a team, finally, instead of being this little lost solo northern kid, where she parachutes into these big tournaments,” said Holmes.
“It’s exciting to be part of something like that and get full-time coaching and support and go to school. University years are just fun, so to combine that with golf is really a special time, so nothing but success for her.
“Today was a struggle for her and that’s all about building your competitive chops. All those experiences build your competitive resume.”
• Cody Bailey of Prince George, another UFC recruit this fall, is entered in the Canadian junior men’s championship, which starts Monday in Hartland, N.B..
KOZLOWSKI
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Bianca Andreescu, left, speaks with Serena Williams after Williams withdrew from the Rogers Cup tennis final in Toronto on Sunday.
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