National Coachlines will be pulling into town Friday to pick up 6 local residents on route to the Alberta 55+ Summer Games being held in Westlock/Barrhead July 25 to 28. These qualifying participants from Zone 2 Big Country Senior Sports Society are extremely excited to be heading up north for what promises to be an engaging and fun time.
The qualifying zone 2 team for Military Whist consists of Chestermere residents Brian and Holly Wood, Lionel Lefebvre and Shirley Farand who hails from Strathmore. Also participating in the games is Marilyn Conrad of Chestermere who will be combining her knowledge of the game with the luck of the draw in 70+ open singles Cribbage. Rose Armes along with sister Dianne Pearce will be participating in horseshoes.
The Game’s website states, “The Alberta 55 Plus Games are the province’s premier multi-sport events. They provide many benefits to both the host community and to thousands of Albertans who participate at local, zone, and provincial levels.”
Wood’s husband Brian made no bones about his gratitude to the Province of Alberta that makes this event possible “You can quote me on this, he said, “I thank the taxpayers and the Alberta Sports, Recreation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation for hosting this.” Wood loves being able to travel and having competitive fun while socializing, and further emphasized, “We’re fortunate to have this opportunity.” He went on to explain that the $100 fee was an excellent deal that covered accommodation, food and transportation to and from the event.
He himself along with Armes, Pearce and Conrad travelled to Brockville Ontario to participate in the 2010 55+ Canada Games. Wife Holly was unable to join as she hadn’t yet hit the 55 mark. Now she is making up for lost time by becoming a member of the Alberta 55 Plus Society and has competed in three Alberta competitions so far. The Canada Games require participants to cover their own costs in attending the games. None the less the experience was one of a lifetime judging from the smiles, excitement and stories coming from this group.
Friday will see the arrival of the participants and settling in to either billet or hotel accommodations. Everyone will be picked up to enjoy the supper and attend the opening Ceremonies. The next few days will be busy will full days of competitions from 8 to 4 whether in various card games, horseshoes, darts, sports such as athletics, badminton, bowling, floor shuffleboard, carpet bowling, tennis, cycling, golf , slo-pitch, and swimming. Also featured are a creative writing contest and an arts and crafts competition with over 50 different categories. Winning entries from these events will be on display over the weekend.
Often there are special events held such as evening socials and dances. Local businesses typically get on board supplying special mementos and offering deals to participants.
Zone competitions are held 3 to 4 months before the games to select the participants. Wood herself took a clinic in military whist 6 months ago to learn the game, qualified in the zone competition and now is boarding the bus for the games.
The Alberta +55 Games include both a winter and summer competition which are held every two years. Winter events also include curling, hockey, alpine and cross country skiing. Both Conrad and Brian Wood received their first gold medal at the recent winter games that were held in Calgary, hers in 5 pin bowling and Woods in carpet bowling. Lethbridge will be the site of the 2015 Winter Games with Strathmore hosting the Summer Games. As well Alberta will be taking its first stab at hosting the Canada Games at Strathcona County in 2014.
It is the hope of this group to get out the word about this event and encourage others to join. A membership in Alberta 55+ is required and costs $30 per year. Desire to be active and join in is more important than skill level and one doesn’t have to belong to a seniors club to participate in the games. This group emphasized that winning the medal is definitely secondary to being able to participate in the event and would love to see more seniors climb on board.
If you would like to join in the fun activities while enjoying the company of other seniors check out the Alberta 55+ website www.alberta55plus.ca for upcoming events and more information.
There is also an initiative being taken to bring Pickleball to Chestermere. Pickleball is similar to tennis but is played on a smaller court with a lower net, a light waffle ball and small wooden paddles. If this interests you give Holly a call at (403) 272-1338 or by email woodbhtt@shaw.ca . Stay tuned and good luck to these members of the Big Country Sports Society.
