Townsman, 1992-01, Page 29Cool it!
Grand Bend a hotspot for winter fun
Hey, it's not going to go away if
you ignore it, so you might as well
enjoy it, eh?
If they can do it in Grand Bend,
one of Canada's fun -and -sun capitals
of the summer, surely the rest of us
can learn to enjoy winter too. Grand
Bend has learned to ignore the lake-
side chill and discover that, while it
may not be the ideal time to ogle the
bods of the opposite sex, winter can
be a lot of fun anyway.
This is the sixth year for the Grand
Bend Carnival and January's storms
mean that this year's camival, running
from Feb. 7-16, may not suffer some
of the problems from lack of snow
that some of the last few mild winters
have brought. Back in 1987, the first
carnival offered nine events and had a
budget of $7480. It attracted 3000
people. The 1992 budget is $85,000
and a crowd of 18,000 is expected.
Dave Sheppard, chairman of the
winter carnival, says it is a total com-
munity event with tremendous support
from sponsors, local and provincial
governments and local businesses and
residents. There are 11 executive
members and 20 directors who are
representatives of various local clubs
and organizations (everything from
the Chamber of Commerce to
Lambton Elderly Outreach). Another
120 people volunteer to help make the
event a success.
The "flagship" event at the carnival
is the Ontario International Snow
Sculpting Competition this year to be
judged by the president of the World
Snow Sculpting Association Gene
Kempfer of Wisconsin. Teams from
England, Mexico, United States and
Canada will compete for the $1000
top prize, plus a week in Milwaukee
in January, 1993 to represent Ontario
at the U.S. International Snow Sculpt-
ing Competition.
Shepherd predicts that the chil-
dren's village will be a popular spot
this year. "The 1991 pilot project
showed great possibilities and we
have built on that experience," he
"+t
Working on the winning 1991 snow sculpture at the Grand Bend winter carnival
are Vickey Rogers (above), team captain, Scott Horsburg (left) and Paul Soren-
son.
says. "Now we can make this play-
ground in snow available free, to all
kids, including the handicapped. The
two-day kids play -and -fun area will
feature an entertainment stage, slides,
street performers, climbs, a snow
mountain, two mazes and free pony
rides." The Rotary Club of Grand
Bend and members of Youth Involve-
ment Ontario will be on hand to
supervise and assist in the village.
The excitement of dog sled races
will also be on view at Pinery Park,
south of the village on Sat., Feb. 8
from 11 a.m. onward and again on
Sunday. A total of $3500 in prize
money will be offered in the races,
sanctioned by the Intemational Sled
Dog Racing Association.
The carnival kicks off Friday night,
Feb. 7 with a fashion show at the
Grand Bend Legion Hall. Saturday, as
well as the sled dog races, there will
be a snow sculpting workshop and
display for area schools. As the Bend
re -Turns, a soap -opera written and
TOWNSMAN/JANUARY-FEBRUARY 1992 27
directed by Barbara Wheeldon will
also be performed Saturday at the
Legion.
The International Snow Sculpting
competition will begin Thursday, Fcb.
13 and continue until Sunday, the
16th. Judging is at 3 p.m. Saturday
and the announcement of the prize
winners at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the
Legion. On Feb. 14 there will be a
local snow sculpting contest.
There will be a parade on Sat., Feb.
15. On Feb. 15 and 16 there will be a
show and sale of work by local artists
at the lower level of the Municipal
Building. Feb. 16 will also see the
Winter Waiter Challenge, as teams of
four contestants from local restaurants
dodge around the obstacle course for
trophies and prizes.
There are dozens of other events as
part of the 10 -day event. A free
brochure and program listing all the
events is available by calling the Win-
ter Carnival Office, 23 Main St.,
Grand Bend, 238-6776.