kickingfrog

50km. Over 2 hours of skiing and 1 second from a medal. In a sport that we won't see for 4 years.

So you mean the 1950's and the Soviets using the army for all of their "amateur" athletes??? The Olympics have been about money for a loooong time.

Team Canada is better, period. Better depth, talent and coaching. It will be difficult for the yanks to repeat their fortune from the first game. Seven game series Canada wins 4 games to 1. 10 games, Canada wins 8. Burke said as much before the Games (Although he used to be a lawyer, so make sure you keep one hand on your wallet and the other on the truth when they are talking). One game however, either team could win. Enjoy this game because if the owners/bettman get their way the best in the world will play in the Olympics no more, and hockey fans all over the world will be denied the chance to be truly entertained. Thanks again bettman for making hockey better... ice hole. GO CANADA

From the TOP of the podium, where else?

Thet do look good enough to sell.

I'll be buying a waterproof point and shoot this month before going on vacation. Here is a site I've been using to help me deside: http://www.dpreview.com/ I'm leaning toward the powershot D10, but I wish it was smaller, since this will be my beach camera and all I wear is a speedo. Anymore firsthand reviews?

Phew, I'm glad there is nothing to worry about.

Thanks Chris, I'll be passing this along.

That's Betman's plan. Stupid ice hole!

I'm about 30 minutes behind live tv right now and I'm not reading any of the above responses. But... The yanks just scored their 6th. I would have thought that once they got their bronze medal the Finish womens team would have got home?

No you don't.

In 2038 Sorry, couldn't help myself. I hope he doesn't grow-up to become a goalie... That stuff cost more than fishing tackle.

http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/ArticleDi....aspx?e=2460932 Maybe this hits home more for me because I have a 14 month old of my own, or because I just did my recert last Tuesday. 'The life was leaving him' EMERGENCY: Quick thinking saves young boy's life Posted By NICKI CRUICKSHANK Aunt urges residents to take CPR trainingORO-MEDONTE TWP. -- It was one tiny cracker. A quick snack for little Noah Espey. But seconds after popping the Cheese Nip in his mouth, the two-year-old was in Sarah Beer's arms, slowly choking to death. "It was my worst nightmare happening," said Beer, Noah's aunt, still visibly shaken a few days after the incident. "I keep remembering him in my arms, turning blue, seeing the life slowly slipping out of him." Beer is still haunted by the terrifying event that unfolded on Feb. 13, when her nephew and his mother, Natalie were at her Oro-Medonte home for a play date. Noah and Beer's two-year-old son, Lukas, were given crackers to munch on. But snack time turned to trauma when a cracker became stuck in Noah's windpipe. His mother called 911, and Beer jumped in to put the training she learned three years ago while taking a CPR course. "I heard Natalie say, 'Noah, what's wrong, honey?' and when I looked at him, his eyes were glassy and rolling back," Beer said, her eyes widening as she recounted the event. "I ran to him, took him from the chair and he wasn't breathing. "I knew he was choking, so I started pounding on his back with my hand the way they teach you in training for a small child," she added. "I flipped him over and he was grey. His lips went blue and then he started turning purple. The life was leaving him." Noah was without air more than two minutes while Beer performed CPR, determined to save her nephew's life. "It was the longest two minutes of my life and I still have anxiety over it," Beer said. "I turned him over, facing him down on my knee again, and banged on his back again, until I heard gurgling. "The cracker had come out of his windpipe and into his mouth enough that I reached in and grabbed it. I cut my fingers on his teeth ripping it out." An ambulance ride and a hospital visit later, Noah was brought home breathing well and without injuries from the CPR. Beer's actions saved Noah's life, but she accredits her CPR training as the real hero. She's made it her personal mission now to promote the training and wants everyone to get it. "If I didn't have this training, I wouldn't have been able to save him," Beer said, fighting back tears as she replayed the fearful day in her head. "The only way I can cope with the image of my sweet nephew nearly dying in my arms is to tell everyone I know to get the training. "Even though I was trained three years ago, I knew what to do and had some control over the situation. I think absolutely everyone should know the basics," she added. Melissa Nickason, of St. John Ambulance in Barrie, agrees. Every minute a person goes without CPR or AED their chance of survival decreases by 10%. Nickason believes more residents should receive the training so that more lives could potentially be saved. A 2008 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed CPR skills among Canadians are poor, with only 15% of residents knowing how to perform it. "Ontario is dead last from every other province for having people trained in CPR and prepared for an emergency situation," Nickason said. "In our area, it's pretty steady and training numbers haven't dropped. But it's mostly places of employment who are signing up to have employees trained. "It's hard to track how many residential training numbers there are," she added. "We try to encourage families to come and get trained. Children should know the basics in case something happens in the home." St. John Ambulance offers a free day of CPR training on Nov. 13 each year at the Lampman Lane Community Centre in Barrie. Nickason said it's always well attended. "Last year, we had a lot of families come out. Parents, kids and even grandparents trained together," she said. "With the increase of defibrillators in public places, that goes hand-in-hand with bringing awareness of CPR out more." Besides the free day, you can always pay to take a course. The basic eight-hour course is $95. It can be booked by visiting www.sja.caand clicking the Barrie-Simcoe-Muskoka link. Nickason said it might seem expensive, but it's a good investment. "Can you really put a price or a time limit on saving a life?" she said. "If you don't have time to come for training, we can come to your house to teach you the basics. That's great for new moms, especially." Beer thinks it should be a compulsory part of school life for students, teaching them the life-saving skills early. "I think it should be taught in school. It's a life skill that every child should have," she said. "I think parents should want this taught to their children. I think every family should take CPR." ncruickshank @ thebarrieexaminer.com

I love fishing. I understand all the hard work, talent, skill, practice and mental toughness it takes to be a good professional fisherman, and I admire them for it. But pro fisherman are not and never will be athletes. No one will ever convince me of anything else, but by all means waste your time trying if you like.

Isn't photo shop great! Nice fish Terry. Although they may not bring you next time now.

http://www.nugget.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2457941 Shiner shortage doesn't auger well for anglers Posted By JENNIFER HAMILTON-McCHARLES The Nugget Posted 10:00pm Feb 19, 2010 Bob Esch, owner of Trout Lake Bait and Canoe in North Bay, holds a net of dace minnows. Many bait dealers have sold out of emerald shiners and the few who have the species remaining dont expect to have them around for long.— JENNIFER HAMILTON-McCHARLES The Nugget The emerald shiner has become a hot commodity. Bait dealers who still have a supply of the lucrative minnows expect to sell out long before the ice fishing season closes next month. As word spreads about the shortage, fishermen are travelling far distances to stock up to assure they're not disappointed. Josh McKay walked into Billy Bob's on Lakeshore Drive Thursday morning to purchase a few dozen. He said this is early for bait shops to be running out of emerald minnows. "In the summer you can use whatever you want, but in the winter you need minnows," McKay said. Billy Bob Richards, owner of Billy Bob's Bait on Lakeshore Drive, said the 200,000 emerald shiners he currently has in his holding tanks should supply his customers for about a week. "If you don't have the bait then you don't make the money," he said. "I have been receiving calls from other bait dealers trying to buy my supply, but I don't have enough even for myself." Richards blames the Ministry of Natural Resources for the holding the bait back. He said restrictions put in place by the MNR to control the Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia virus has made it impossible to acquire live bait at this time of year. Richards said the MNR restrictions prevent bait dealers like himself from transporting live bait from Lake Ontario, Erie and Huron including Georgian Bay and their connecting waterways and bringing it up north. What's more puzzling to the 25-year bait dealer is there are two sets of rules. Richards can't understand why bait dealers can't acquire live bait from affected areas, however individuals living in those same areas can transport the bait wherever they want. "Tourists are being told to bring their own bait and many of them are coming from Southern Ontario, south of Highway 401," he said. John Cooper, a spokesman for the MNR, said there's nothing stopping individual anglers from transporting bait from one area to another. "We currently don't have a law that says that they can't do that," he said, admitting their is a chance waterways in this area could be affected if contaminated bait is introduced to the area. "We encourage Southern Ontario anglers to not buy bait until they arrive at their destination." VHS is an infectious disease that affects various species to include emerald shiners, walleye, yellow perch, rock and small mouth bass. Infected fish shed the virus in their urine and reproductive fluids. Fish are also infected when they eat an infected fish or minnow. VHS can survive in the water for 14 days. It was detected in Canada in 2006 in Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Bob Esch, owner of Trout Lake Bait and Canoe, said he's seen a lot of new faces come into his store in the last few days. "I wasn't surprised there's a shortage," he said. "But the guys who aren't prepared are in trouble. A lot of camps could start losing business because of the lack of bait." Esch said he has plenty of dace minnows, golden shiners and chubs to supply the recreational fishermen. But you can't let the bait do all the work, he said. "The fishermen have to do it." Esch said the dace minnow was the bait of choice in the 50s and 60s. "Emerald minnows were only used in the springtime," he said. The change was made when bait dealers were looking for more volume." [email protected]

Can't be true... cherry says Europeans are soft Gusty performance!

I am not an expert on the area, but I am from the area, so I thought I'd start a post for those of you who may not be as familiar with Innisfil Beach. The Exit from the 400 is Inisfil Beach Road. Take it all the way east to the lake. There is a Tim Hortons/ gas station right off the hwy. There are a number of gas stations as well as coffee shops right down by the lake access, including another timmies and a few mom and pops. Sorry no starbucks for those of you from the big smoke (bring your own). There are some places for bait, but the word is minnows are hard to come by, or non existent. 12- 15 inches of solid ice. Lots of cars and trucks on the lake, some snow and some bare spots. Use your own judgment if you are thinking of taking your vehicle out on the lake. Anybody else have something of value to add? Tight lines.

http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/ArticleDi....aspx?e=2453920 Have your say on Lake Simcoe plan Posted 9:00am Feb 18, 2010 The Ontario government is asking residents to comment on key pieces of its plan to restore the health of Lake Simcoe and its watershed. As part of implementing the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan, the government is seeking public input on: -- a proposed phosphorus reduction strategy that looks at setting targets and options for reducing loading from all sources around the lake; -- a study on the feasibility of using water quality trading as a tool to reduce phosphorus: and -- a discussion paper on regulating shoreline protection. The documents are posted for comment on the Environmental Registry at www.ontario.ca/environmentalregistry. The Ministry of the Environment is holding public information sessions in Newmarket on Feb. 17, Barrie on Feb. 22, Uxbridge on Feb. 25 and Ramara on March 3. The Lake Simcoe Protection Plan's long-term goal is to reduce the phosphorus loading from 72 to 44 tonnes a year to improve water quality. The Lake Simcoe Protection Plan came into effect in June 2009, following the passage of the Lake Simcoe Protection Act, 2008

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/nation...article1473535/ The Canadian Press Published on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010 8:01PM EST Last updated on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010 11:21PM EST He was an unlikely and reluctant figurehead for a generation of heroes, a self-described “tin soldier” whose teenaged zeal for combat conspired to keep him out of the very war that would one day cast him as its sole Canadian survivor. John "Jack" Babcock was destined to play a starring role in the First World War. It just came nearly a century later than he might have expected. Mr. Babcock, the last known veteran of Canada’s First World War army, has died at the age of 109. He went in search of military glory at the age of 16, when he tried to sneak his way on to the front lines in France. His ruse was discovered, however, and he never made it to the battlefield. “I wanted to go to France because I was just a tin soldier,” Mr. Babcock said in an interview with The Canadian Press in July 2007 at his home in Spokane, Wash. He was born July 23, 1900, on a farm in Ontario and emigrated to the U.S. in the 1920s. “I volunteered (for the front lines), but they found out I was underage. If the war had lasted another year I would have fought.” Still, more than 80 years of hindsight had helped to temper that young man’s regret over not having faced enemy fire in the trenches of France - unlike many of his friends, who never returned. “I might have got killed,” he said matter-of-factly. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, in a statement Thursday announcing Babcock’s death, said: “As a nation, we honour his service and mourn his passing.” “The passing of Mr. Babcock marks the end of an era. His family mourns the passing of a great man. Canada mourns the passing of the generation that asserted our independence on the world stage and established our international reputation as an unwavering champion of freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law.” “ I think it would be nice if all the different people in the world could get along together so we weren’t having wars. I don’t suppose that’ll ever happen, though. ” — Jack Babcock, First World War veteran Ten per cent of the roughly 600,000 Canadians who enlisted to fight in the First World War died on the battlefields of Europe; 170,000 more were wounded. The war would ultimately claim 15-million civilian and military lives on both sides of the conflict. “(Babcock) was both an individual and a symbol,” said Rudyard Griffiths, executive director of the Dominion Institute, an organization dedicated to promoting Canadian history. “We should honour his contribution to Canada.” In the days to come, there will no doubt be tributes and ceremonies to mark Mr. Babcock’s passing. It’s hard to say how he would react to the fanfare. Because he never saw action in the war, he was always a little uncomfortable being known as the last surviving First World War veteran. “I really didn’t accomplish very much,” Mr. Babcock said. “I went there and I did what the people above told me to do.” He said he had heard rumours about the government holding a state funeral for him, but wasn’t sure that’s an honour he deserves. “I think it should be for the fellows who spent time in the front lines and were actually in the fighting.” Mr. Babcock wanted badly to be right there with them. “I wasn’t smart enough to be scared,” he explained. “While he didn’t serve, he was emblematic of that generation and of a certain kind of fiestiness,” Mr. Griffiths said. “I know he felt quite proud of the Canadian period of his life.” Duncan Graham, a Korean War veteran whose father served in the First World War, said Mr. Babcock was the last living member of a generation that he and other veterans looked up to. “I’ve got great respect for them. The war they fought was completely different from the war I fought, where we had the luxury of tanks and armoured vehicles,” he said. “What they went through during the war in the trenches... we didn’t have to see what they had to see.” As an underage volunteer, Mr. Babcock was stuck digging ditches and doing endless military drills rather than fighting enemy soldiers. But he said he had vivid memories of the war, and the day an army sergeant inspired him to enlist. “He came and told us about the charge of the light brigade,” he said, referring to the recklessly brave British cavalry attack of the Crimean War, immortalized in a famous poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson. “I was really impressed by that.” Frustrated that he had been relegated to loading freight onto army trucks in Halifax, Mr. Babcock lied about his age when he answered the call for volunteers to join a “peacetime regiment.” “When they asked me how old I was, I said 18. Well, when we got to England you had to be 19 to go to France,” recalled Mr. Babcock. “I was waiting to be 19 and my service record came through, and they found out I was 16, so they put me in the young soldiers’ battalion.” Mr. Babcock joined 1,300 other underage soldiers and was drilled eight hours a day, always with an eye on reaching the front. By October 1918, the then 18-year-old Mr. Babcock was awaiting training that would send him to the battlefields of France. That same month, some Canadian soldiers were kicked out of a dance hall in Wales by British Army veterans. Mr. Babcock and other members of his battalion decided “to go up there and clean them.” The ensuing brawl, in which one Canadian soldier was bayoneted in the thigh by a British cadet, saw Mr. Babcock handed 14 days of house arrest. Before those two weeks were up, the Armistice had been signed and he was on his way home. Mr. Babcock has said that he worried that Canadians today, children especially, aren’t learning enough about the First World War. “They don’t know a lot about it. People are always thinking about what they’re doing right now,” he said, adding that Canadians should take the time to learn from veterans of the world wars while they still can. Mr. Griffiths shares that concern. Without “living reminders” like Mr. Babcock around anymore, he said, he worries that the history of the First World War will fade into obscurity, much like the War of 1812 has. “The duty not to forget now falls on a generation who has never known war, who’s been separated from the history of the Great War by a period of going on 90 years. I think there is a danger (that people will forget),” he said. Houchang Hassan-Yari, a professor of international relations at the Royal Military College, said that Canadians need to know about the Great War to understand how the country was born. “Babcock’s generation was important because they witnessed a transition for Canada from a member of the British Dominion to an independent state,” he said, explaining that Canada’s newfound military presence on the international stage helped the country find its own identity. Mr. Babcock himself, however, emigrated to the United States in the 1920s and served a brief stint in the U.S. military. “When he came back to Canada, he really didn’t have a home to come back to; his father was killed when he was six years old,” his wife said. “He had heard that in the United States the (military) was going to train people in a trade, so he and a couple of other buddies decided to come.” Mr. Babcock met his first wife, Elsie, while working as an oil-burner serviceman in San Francisco. The couple moved to Spokane in 1932, raised a son and a daughter, and spent every weekend golfing. Mr. Babcock married his second wife, Dorothy, after Elsie died in the late 1970s. In September 2006, at the age of 106, he managed to get out for a game of golf. While he lacked the balance to putt, he was still able to drive. When asked what lessons this generation should take from the First World War, Mr. Babcock had a simple reply. “I think it would be nice if all the different people in the world could get along together so we weren’t having wars. I don’t suppose that’ll ever happen, though.”

Now...... I've got this engine that I was hoping you could look at for free.

That clear ice is freaky. Kind of like the glass floor at the top of the CN Tower.

No problems guys. Just wait until the Tony Awards. You'll get yours. Now I have to find out when they are.

That is good news. Always time to read a post like that.

Something else for anyone going on Saturday, in particular if you are bring the younger ones, there is a outdoor ice rink right there at the park. Not sure if there is any hockey nets though.